I hadn’t slept all night.
The poorly wrapped bandage on my hand itched and stung, a constant reminder of the frustration and pain bubbling just beneath the surface. But that was nothing compared to the ache in my chest.
I had waited for Harlan, my mate, all night. I’d paced the floors, checked the windows, and even debated of calling him, though I knew it wouldn’t matter. He wouldn’t pick up. He didn’t care enough to tell me where he was or why he hadn’t come home.
By the morning, exhaustion tugged at me, but my pride kept me standing. I threw on some clean clothes, tied my hair back and grabbed my coat to go and meet Ava, my closest friend and one of the pack’s Deltas, had suggested meeting by the river. She said I needed fresh air, and I wasn’t about to argue. Anything was better than being trapped in this house, haunted by my own thoughts.
Just as I was pulling on my boots, the door creaked open.
Harlan.
He walked in like nothing had happened, like he hadn’t left me waiting all night.
“The pack is hosting a gathering tonight,” he said,and businesslike as he handed me a folded invitation card, “We’re both expected to attend.”
I stared at him, incredulous. That was it? No apology, no explanation, not even a glance at my hand, which was so poorly bandaged it looked like a child had done it. He didn’t ask if I’d slept or if I was okay. His eyes barely skimmed over me before settling on the wall behind me, as though I were just another task he had to check off his list.
“I’m not going,” I said,
Harlan paused, turning to face me fully. For the first time, his dark eyes locked onto mine, but there was no warmth in them. “You don’t have a choice, Anya. It’s your duty as my mate.”
“Duty?” I spat, “You’re going to talk to me about duty when you can’t even fulfill yours? Do you know how long I waited for you last night? Do you even care?”
He folded his arms across his chest. “This isn’t about us, Anya. It’s about the pack. You need to stop making everything personal.”
I took a step closer, anger boiling in my veins. “Oh, I’m sorry, Harlan. I didn’t realize that being abandoned by my mate was just ‘pack business.’ My mistake.”
“Enough,” he said, “Be ready by sundown. This conversation is over.”
“No, it’s not,” I said, “You don’t get to walk in here, order me around, and pretend like I don’t exist. I’m not a piece of furniture, Harlan. I’m your mate.”
“A mate who knows her place would be helpful.”
The words hit me like a slap, stealing the air from my lungs. I opened my mouth to respond, but no sound came out. Instead, I turned on my heel and stormed out of the house, slamming the door so hard it rattled the frame.
The forest was my only escape, the one place where I could breathe without feeling like the walls were closing in on me. I wandered to the riverbank, the soft rush of water filling the silence that had settled in my chest.
Dropping to my knees by the edge of the river, I let the tears come, hot and angry. My wolf stirred uneasily, in the back of my mind.
“This isn’t what I wanted,” I whispered. “This isn’t what I thought it would be.”
I wiped at my tears with the back of my hand, but the frustration only built. “You’re pathetic,” I muttered to myself. “Crying over a man who doesn’t even care.”
All of a sudden, a sharp scent hit me then, cutting through the damp pine and fresh water. It was rich and wild, like frost and steel and something darker, something that made my wolf lift her head, ears pricked.
Before I could turn, a voice rang out.
“Talking to yourself already?”
I spun around to see him leaning against a tree…Kael.
He was leaning against the trunk of a tree, his broad shoulders relaxed, yet his posture exuded an alertness that spoke volumes. He was always like that calm, calculating, and completely unreadable. Harlan trusted him, despite the fact that no one in the pack really knew him. Kael had shown up months ago, exiled from the Silverlight Pack for reasons no one dared to ask about, and Harlan had given him shelter in the Moonshine Pack.
But trust didn’t mean familiarity. Kael didn’t talk much, and when he did, his words were sharp and purposeful, like arrows aimed with precision. He carried himself like a lone wolf, even in a pack full of strong personalities. Harlan often relied on him for pack security, especially with tensions rising between the enemy pack. And now, here he was, sent me like some kind of protector or spy.
