The Broken Angel & Her Overprotective Brothers

The surprised and confused look on Shadow's face soon started changing as realization finally hit him. "We both are..." 

He just trailed off like that. The reality of their situation hit him hard and left him unprepared for the time being. All this time, he was too focused on Emily that he completely neglected Kaiden and the link between the two of them that got created due to both of them sharing the same soulmate bond with their mate.

Letting out a small sigh, Kaiden just gave another unimpressed look to Shadow before turning his attention away. He could still recall those days when he first met with the man and felt an indescribable feeling of attachment to him. 

That feeling was not only strange for him but it was also pretty strong and it took him quite long enough to find out the truth about it and even more time to come to terms with such a puzzling truth. It wasn't the best feeling for him to find out that Emily was never meant to be his. He only found her because Shadow chose him to take care of her in his stead.

Though it took him a little bit of time, he soon learned to not worry about such unimportant things and to pay more attention to his relationship with Emily. Even if they were not meant to be together, he was still gifted with a rare chance and he decided to give it his all.

At first, he was really wary of Shadow and his presence around Emily. He kept thinking that he won't be able to make Emily fall in love with him as long as Shadow would be present in their life but then he found out about how Shadow was hiding the truth abound their bond and how he was doing everything in his power to make the bond between Emily and him (Kaiden) work.

"I always wanted to know the reason for your decision of giving up on your sacred bond with Angel..." Kaiden suddenly spoke as he continued to stare at the far end of the valley down below the cliff. "... I was curious about why you broke your bond with her but still refused to leave her alone."

He stopped to take a deep breath before continuing, "I wanted to know what kind of a silly man would sacrifice such a perfect soulmate. And most importantly, I kept thinking about the reason for which you chose me to replace yourself in Angel's life." 

Shadow listened silently while keeping his eyes trained on Kaiden. "So... did you find the answers?" He asked when the other man didn't speak for quite some time.

Kaiden let out a little chuckle but there was next to no humor present in it. He finally turned around to face Shadow before replying, "How could I? You were never that friendly and approachable. And it's impossible to get any information about you. Even my best men couldn't find anything. In the end, I just decided to be patient and focus my attention on my mate instead of wondering and worrying about things that weren't in my control." 

A small twitch appeared on Shadow's lips as he approached Kaiden and put one of his hands on the latter's shoulder before lightly patting him. "And this is exactly why... I chose you for her. You aren't my replacement, Kaiden. You are the person whom Princess loves. I hope you will always remember this." 

Kaiden wouldn't have been able to deny even if he wanted. Shadow's words indeed filled him with warmth and faith that he never knew he needed from the man until the moment he heard those words. 

He found himself nodding his head in response before both of them broke out into soft chuckles. "It feels so... light and positive. Like a burden has been removed." 

Shadow smiled softly and the look in his amber eyes were telling that he was also feeling the same emotions. "Let's be brothers... Brothers who not only share a soulbond and soulmate but also brothers who understand each other?" 

It sounded like a suggestion that made Kaiden raise his eyebrows in surprise. "It's such a weird sight to see you making suggestions and not giving out final decisions. You don't even have to ask. Anyone who rejects such an offer would be an idiot. It's beneficial from both personal and professional points of view."

Shadow couldn't help but shake his head as he let out a small sigh. Kaiden was indeed a businessman. He could find profit in every chance he got. "I'm really sorry, Kaiden. I should have known better than to just transfer the bond to you. I should have guided you properly through the tangles of our bond and... probably told you the truth too. I'm sorry for neglecting you and your feelings all this time." 

Kaiden could see the sincerity in Shadow's eyes and could also hear it in the latter's voice. The man was really regretful and that alone was enough to quench all of his, Kaiden's, complaints. Not having the heart to stay mad at Shadow, he decided to end the matter on happy terms. "I will forgive you if you will start treating me a little bit warmly from today onwards. Can you spare at least one percent of your warm side for me? I don't think Angel will mind." 

Shadow just shook his head in response and didn't bother to answer the question. Instead, he stood up from where he was sitting on a little rock and started stretching his limbs as he spoke, "Let's head back. Princess will be waiting for us. We still have an important task to finish tonight and the clock is ticking." 

As soon as Kaiden got reminded that Emily was still waiting for their return, he too immediately stood up and without wasting another second, shifted into his wolf form and headed back to his mate, followed by Shadow who had also shifted into his lion form.

The two of them would definitely have spent some time running and hunting in the deep forest together but they had a mate waiting for them on the other side of the alluring forest.