I close the door and throw on some clothes before opening it again and letting Leena into my room.
She goes to the bed, looking out the window at the view of the woods. “I didn't mean to get upset like that,” I state. “Talking about mates is a sore spot for me because of how my ex-wife and I ended things.”
Leena nods in understanding. “That makes sense. Can I ask what happened?”
“She formed a mate bond with someone and left me,” I say in a plain voice. I move close to the window, not wanting to sit on the bed with Leena. That would just be a very dangerous game to play.
“That's terrible,” Leena says.
“Yes, but not for the reasons you think.” A small breeze from the open window brushes across my face. “I was hurt, but I had just become the alpha when it happened. Imagine a leader who can't keep his own home in check. It was humiliating.”
“But it looks like you were able to sort things out in the end.”
“It doesn't mean it's not a slap to the face. That's why this isn't a topic I like visiting. I hate disrespect, and it doesn't get much bigger than that. I was upset, but I ultimately had to let her go.”
“Damn,” she muses. “This bond thing must be such an inconvenience.”
I chuckle. “I guess that's a good way to describe it. There are members of my pack that would disagree, but yes. For me, it was definitely inconvenient and life-changing. There is no argument when it comes to fated mates.”
She remains quiet for a bit, but her eyes remain on me. “Thank you for telling me about this.”
“Of course.”
Chapter 10
LEENA
The sound of birds singing outside my window is the first thing I hear in the morning.
I struggle to open my eyes, eventually able to pry them open as sleep fades away. I let out a yawn, looking around my room.
I'm not sure what the time is, so I roll over and reach for my phone. The screen shows me that it's a few minutes before seven. The sky outside tells me the same thing, with the sun nothing but a faint glow struggling to rise.
I yawn again before finally getting up from the bed. I stroll over to the bathroom and brush my teeth as well as I can before pouring water over my face to get rid of the last bits of sleep.
“Okay,” I say, looking at myself in the mirror. “Let's get this day started.”
I had promised myself the night before that I would help Grant with his work today. I might as well act like the assistant I am.
There's so much that I still don't know because Grant and I haven't really talked about work in detail. Today is as good a day as any to finally learn the ropes.
I do a little bit of stretching before leaving my room. Surprisingly, Grant walks out of the office beside me at the same time.
“Good morning,” I greet.
Grant yawns in return, taking a few seconds before he can get himself under control. “Morning? I was afraid of that.”
Things begin to click in my head. “Wait, did you get any sleep last night?”
He answers me by shaking his head first. “I really didn't take note of the time.”
“You have a window in the office. You can literally just look outside.”
Grant places a hand behind his neck and begins to crack it. The snapping sound almost makes me jump because of how loud it is. Not only has he spent the entire night working, he probably wasn't even comfortable doing it.
“Look, it's alright. I'm going to sleep now, problem solved.”
I watch as he slowly moves toward his bedroom. I wait until he fully steps inside before opening the office door. The sight I see makes it feel like Grant lives here. Guilt covers me in waves.
