To be Loved by the Three I Feared

I was just a human waitress pouring bad coffee until a Titan tore through my diner, killed everyone, and whispered my name. The ones who saved me? Three terrifyingly beautiful, massive brothers who hunt monsters for a living. Ezra, the heir of shadows. Rowan, a towering, mute warrior with a muzzle strapped to his face. And Damien... the deadliest, most arrogant demi-god of them all. They dragged me to their hidden Institute to heal, but to the other demi-gods, I was just a joke. A fragile, breakable human. A nuisance who didn't belong in a world of magic, lightning, and immortal bloodlines. I heard Damien outside the infirmary doors. "She's just a human," he scoffed to the elders, his voice laced with irritation. "She breaks if you look at her wrong. She trips over branches. She's a liability. We should have never brought her here." Every word stung, but it also ignited something inside me. I was tired of being the victim. I was tired of trembling in my hospital gown while they tortured me with interrogations, deciding my fate. Tonight was the Institute's ancient gathering in the courtyard garden. They expected me to hide in my room, shaking with fear. Instead, I found something to wear. A breathtaking midnight-blue dress dripping with embroidered golden stars. It hugged my waist and flowed to the ground, with a slit cut dangerously high up my left leg. But the best accessory wasn't the silk. It was the wicked, silver dagger I strapped tightly to my bare thigh. I pushed the heavy glass doors open and stepped into the moonlit garden. The entire courtyard went dead silent. Conversations died in their throats. The demi-gods who commanded wind, ice, and earth completely froze. Every single eye in the garden was pinned on me. I wasn't the fragile, bleeding human anymore. I walked with my head held high, the silver blade glinting under the stars with every step I took. Damien was standing by the fountain, a glass of amber liquid in his hand. When he saw me, his jaw clenched so hard a muscle feathered in his cheek. His dark, predatory eyes dropped to the dagger on my thigh, then traced agonizingly slow up my body, drinking in the slit, the curves, the stars, until he met my gaze. He stopped breathing. Beside him, Rowan went perfectly still, his golden eyes flaring with raw, untamed possessiveness, his massive hands curling into fists. Ezra's shadows immediately slipped across the floor, curling around my ankles like they were claiming me before anyone else could. I walked straight toward Damien, my heels clicking in the absolute silence. "Just a human, right?" I whispered as I brushed past him. Before I could take another step, Damien's hand shot out. His long fingers clamped around my waist, pulling me flush against his hard chest. "Where the hell did you get that blade, Avery?" he growled, his voice a dark, vibrating rumble that made my knees weak. "And why is every man in this garden looking at what belongs to us?" ad.readinkapp.com