My Sister Stole My Mate And I Let Her (Seraphina) novel Chapter 246

Chapter 246: Chapter 246 A DIFFERENT BEAST

SERAPHINA’S POV

After that cryptic reply, Maxwell didn’t say anything else.

He just stood there, hands braced on the stone ledge, eyes fixed on the jagged horizon where the mountains tore open the sky.

A slight wind tugged at his jacket, ruffling his dark hair, carrying the faint scent of sandalwood and a hint of amber.

Silence stretched long enough that guilt pricked the back of my throat.

I shouldn’t have asked.

I’d pushed too far, too fast. His story was intimate, vulnerable—something he hadn’t owed me at all.

I, of all people, knew what a sore spot the topic of relationships was.

“I’m sorry,” I started quietly. “You don’t have to—”

“No,” he said, cutting me off gently.

He straightened, exhaling a long breath that seemed to deflate something inside him.

“You asked a fair question.”

I stayed quiet, giving him the space he needed.

Maxwell rubbed the back of his neck, eyes flicking skyward. “Romance is...easy,” he began. “Intoxicating. It sweeps you up. Makes you feel bulletproof. Invincible.”

His mouth twisted into a wry, almost weary smile. “But marriage? Marriage is a different beast entirely.”

I blinked. The shift in tone—reflective, edged with old hurt—made something in me perk up, attentive.

“All Willow’s reservations evaporated once we got together,” he continued. “We were in love. Deeply. Passionately. Recklessly. And for a while, that was enough. Until it wasn’t.”

A knot formed in my stomach.

His eyes dimmed with the weight of memory. “We weren’t prepared. For the world. For responsibilities. For parenthood.”

My breath hitched. His implication was loud and clear.

The twins were just like Daniel.

Miracles, yes. Blessings, definitely.

But unexpected. Unplanned.

Maxwell gave a humorless laugh. "We told ourselves we were ready. We believed that if we loved each other enough, everything else would fall into place. I was naïve. I figured I could balance Beta duties, pack responsibilities, then come home and be the perfect partner and father."

His jaw flexed. “I promised Willow we would be happy. I proposed with every ounce of confidence a young idiot could possibly have.”

My heart sank gently, a slow descent in tandem with the inevitable downward spiral to come.

“Our matching was destiny,” he murmured. “A bond forged by our souls. Fate.” He shrugged one shoulder. “And for a while, it did feel that way. Our marriage was blissful. Beautiful. Perfect.” 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

He paused.

“But life doesn’t freeze in that perfect moment.”

I swallowed hard. “What changed?”

Maxwell opened his mouth—

And his phone rang. A sharp, brisk sound that cut clean through the moment, slightly startling me.

He grimaced and checked the screen.

“Alpha Callister,” he muttered. “Sorry, I have to take this.”

He answered with a professional tone I wasn’t used to hearing from him. I stepped aside politely, not intending to eavesdrop, but it wasn’t hard to guess the content from the clipped ‘Yes, sir’s and ‘Understood’s.

Work. Duty. Responsibilities that didn’t pause for heartbreak.

When Maxwell hung up, the softness had drained from his face, replaced by Beta sharpness.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify