Chapter 496-Stole Our Mate

Chapter 496: 496-Stole Our Mate

Theodore:

Ever since I’d found out that Jaguar was planning to marry Verity, I’d been anxious.

That was why I’d called him out of the room again, hoping to speak to him privately.

"Did she seriously choose you?" I asked.

We were standing in the garden because I didn’t want anyone else overhearing our conversation.

If Verity had chosen me, I would’ve happily run through the entire neighborhood beating a drum and announcing it to everyone.

But she hadn’t chosen me, and that was precisely why I couldn’t afford to let this information get out.

Nobody was supposed to find out that Jaguar and Verity were mates and that she’d chosen him.

Otherwise, my entire plan would fall apart.

"What do you want from me? What am I supposed to tell you? You want me to lie?" Jaguar asked wearily.

I was genuinely struggling to believe there was any truth to what he was telling me.

"No. I want you to come with me right now. I want to confront Verity."

The moment I said that, I watched my brother’s expression harden.

"You seriously want to put her through all that stress? You want to question her? Embarrass her? Is that what you’re trying to do?"

The way he immediately began rambling left a sour taste in my mouth.

There was no way he was telling the truth.

Knowing Jaguar, if Verity had really chosen him, he would’ve been more than happy to drag her in front of me and have her confirm it to my face.

"No, I just want to do what I think is right," I replied with a shrug. "What’s wrong? Is there a problem?"

His jaw tightened at my question.

"You were lying, weren’t you?" I accused, immediately catching on to his deception.

He shook his head.

"If you think I’m lying, that’s your problem. Tell yourself whatever you need to hear to convince yourself otherwise."

He couldn’t even look me in the eye. His gaze kept wandering everywhere but toward my face.

"Fine, then. I’ll go ask her myself."

That was all it took for him to start coming after me.

"What the hell are you doing? Have you lost your mind? You’re seriously going to see her at this hour? It’s the middle of the night!"

It was around eleven.

Of course, there was a chance Verity was already asleep, but it was just as possible that she was still awake.

And even if she had gone to bed, I would wake her because there was no way I’d get any sleep until she told me herself that Jaguar was lying.

Besides, why did he look so frightened?

What was he so afraid of?

"Let me go and ask her. I mean, it’s about time I found out who she’s actually planning to choose," I told my brother.

His jaw clenched again, and the warning in his eyes was impossible to miss.

"You’re welcome to come along if you want," I added, continuing toward the car.

I was dressed in nothing but black shorts and a black shirt, while Jaguar wore white shorts and a gray shirt.

It was late, and neither of us had bothered changing, but I wasn’t about to waste time getting dressed.

After all, I was going to my comfort zone.

To my Verity.

"Fine. I’m coming with you."

With that, he hurried past me and climbed into the passenger seat before I could even reach the driver’s side.

"You’re afraid she’ll tell me the truth, aren’t you? That she never accepted your proposal?"

He let out a chuckle.

"You’re way off, buddy."

There it was.

Whenever Jaguar started throwing around those casual, supposedly cool expressions, trying to appear completely unbothered, I knew he was lying.

And right now, he was nervous as hell.

"Oh, come on. She didn’t say yes to you. If she had, you wouldn’t have immediately assumed she was the one who complained to Ragnar. Why would she go running to him if she’d already accepted your proposal?"

As I started the engine, I noticed Jaguar sink farther into his seat and turn his face away.

That was when I knew I’d caught him in a lie.

At least now, I wouldn’t have to spend the night losing sleep over something that wasn’t even true.

After that, we traveled in complete silence.

Neither of us said a word, probably because we both knew we were heading to the same destination with the same intention.

By the time we finally reached the omega community, it was already past midnight, around 12:15 a.m.

I’d stopped along the way to pick up some flowers, while Jaguar had bought food.

Apparently, we were both trying to impress her in our own ways.

I had no intention of bringing up Ragnar or anything related to him when I saw Verity.

First, I needed to make her mine.

Once she’d accepted me, I’d figure out how to deal with everything else.

For now, I didn’t want her to know how much the situation had affected me.

She hadn’t even accepted me as her mate yet, so I couldn’t exactly behave like her boyfriend.

But when we reached her house and began ringing the doorbell and knocking, there was no response.

"I told you she’d be asleep," Jaguar hissed, looking ready to shove me away from the door.

Just then, the front door of one of the neighboring houses opened, making him stop and pull his hands back.

We both turned toward the sound, and I noticed Jaguar take a small step aside.

"Do you know them?" I asked in a near whisper and he nodded.

"They’re the neighbors."

That was all he said before a woman approached us.

"Hi, I’m Mrs. Baker, Verity’s neighbor," she introduced herself, flashing me a rather creepy smile. "Alpha King Jaguar, it’s been so long since you last visited our home!"

The moment those words left her mouth, I slowly turned my head toward my brother, deliberately raising my eyebrows at him.

"Yeah, actually, we’ve been busy. Is Verity not home?" Jaguar replied, quickly changing the subject.

I noticed the woman shift her eyes toward me and then back to him without moving her head.

A peculiar smile spread across her lips.

"I’m not sure. She’s been acting really strange these days," she answered with a small, uncomfortable laugh.

"What do you mean?" I questioned.

She seemed awfully familiar with Jaguar.

Or had my brother actually appointed a neighbor to keep an eye on Verity?

After all, this woman lived close enough to have a clear view of her house.

"Actually, your elder brother came by a few days ago," Mrs. Baker continued. "I thought he’d moved in because he stayed there for at least two days, I believe. Then he came back today as well, but after that, I didn’t see either of them again."