For a moment, I didn’t know how to respond. Everything felt too surreal, as if out of a bad dream. I had told myself to expect disappointment; I had warned myself to walk away before I made this leap. I had told myself I needed to know the truth.
Now, I wished I had listened to myself when I wanted to run. I felt like he had taken my heart and ripped it in two. I coughed, trying to bite back the tears, not wanting to cry while Drake was looking at me like this, like I was a silly child, naïve and stupid.
“Liv, you’ve seen how I treat you,” he said. “I make fun of you all the time. You can’t actually think I’m your mate after all that.”
“I’ve seen the softer side of you as well,” I countered. “I know there’s more to you than you let on, and I know you don’t hate me as much as you let on. You can’t, not with how you treat me in private. I’m not just talking about the umbrella, either. There was the time you told me to walk a certain way home to avoid some bullies. There was the time you found mein the library and helped with that essay I’d been working on. Whenever it’s just us, you’re different.”
Drake blinked. I wasn’t sure if I imagined it or not, but I might have seen the faintest flicker of surprise, as if he hadn’t expected me to notice those few moments. For a half-second, he looked uncertain, and hope jumped again in my chest like a wild rabbit. My wolf stirred, all her attention locked on the shifter she knew was her mate. Even though he refused to accept it, even though he disagreed, she was certain.
Please just admit you’re wrong,I thought desperately.
He took a step forward, not quite within arm’s reach.
“Liv, I’m going to tell you this, so I hope you understand,” he said, that tone still so gentle. “I’m not your mate, and I’m never going to be your mate. Fated mates don’t exist. And the sooner you accept that, the better.”
Those words pierced through those final rays of hope that I had been desperately clutching to. My insides turned cold, and all I wanted was to be far, far away from here.
“Right,” I muttered, taking several steps back from him. “Okay, then. Well, thanks for talking to me. I’ll see you later.”
Once again, I caught the flicker of something in his gaze, as if he was debating whether to change his mind as I took several steps back. I paused, giving him one last chance to tell me to wait. When he didn’t, I turned and walked away, keeping my back straight. I could feel him staring after me. I listened on the off-chance that he would call me back, tell me he was wrong.
He didn’t. I walked away in silence.
I at least managed to wait until he was out of view before breaking down. I could barely breathe as I leaned back againstthe wall, staring after where he had vanished, my mind spinning as everything seemed to crumble around me.
I closed my eyes. How could I have been so stupid? Of course, he wouldn’t want to be with me. I should never have said anything to begin with. I should have just let it be.
Would that have been any better, though? At least this way I knew where he stood. I wasn’t going to sit around pining for him, waiting for him to act first. I had taken a risk, and it had shattered my heart.
Still, even as I thought this, a kernel of certainty buried itself deep inside me. No matter what Drake said, I knew the truth. I knew we were mates.
We were mates, and we would never be together.
Chapter 1 - Liv
“You are just so darling!” I squealed, bouncing Isaac up and down as he giggled and burbled. “You’re the best baby in the whole world.”
Rachel’s lip curled in amusement, her eyes sparkling as she watched. “I’m pretty sure that you say that to every single baby you come across,” she teased.
“Yeah, but this time it’s the truth,” I cooed, grabbing Isaac’s adorable toes and wiggling them as he laughed. “Isn’t it? Yes, it is!”
Isaac giggled again as he looked up at me with the most adorable baby grin I had ever seen.
“You’re just lucky I don’t kidnap him and take him home with me.” I looked at Isaac as I held him in my arms. “You would like that, wouldn’t you? Do you want to come home with Auntie Liv?”
Isaac squealed and clapped his hands, his cute little face scrunched up in a delighted smile.
“I think Sam would have something to say about that if you tried to do that on a permanent basis,” Rachel said. “Though, if you ever wanted to take him for a day or so, I wouldn’t mind being able to take a nap. Just give me a heads-up before you whisk him away.”
“I’m always happy to help when you need a break,” I said. “It’s nice getting to spend time with him. The kids at work are great, but there’s something about babies that just makes me so happy.”
“You could always start a babysitting business. Sam told me that the Oracle mentioned that she had seen more pairingsduring her scrying,” Rachel said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if the pack has an influx of babies in the near future.”
My insides froze. The rhythm of my bouncing knee hitched for the span of a second.
“Really?” I asked, trying to keep my tone neutral, almost indifferent. “Any idea who might be next?”
Rachel shook her head. “We haven’t figured out a pattern this far,” Rachel said. “Granted, it’s only been two of us at this point. If it were anyone other than the Oracle, I might think she was just pairing people at random, all willy-nilly. But so far, it seems as though she knows what she’s doing.”
