I can't allow my parents’ wishes to stand in the way of what's been orchestrated by a higher power, mightier than even the toughest alpha, which allows me to feel like that's me. I feel tough, invincible, unstoppable, with Arianna by my side.
I'll work out the finer details and how to reveal the news to my parents first, then to the elders who form the Moonshine council. I suspect it won't be met with open arms, but there's little anyone can do to question what the Moon Goddess has set out for me. Though rare, the true mate bond is a soul tie that transcends the bounds of our society and is the final word when it comes to having a mate.
I always knew she was my true mate, and perhaps that's the reason I've been reluctant to pick someone else just for the sake of siring a child that will take over this pack.
Being mated to someone is so much more than creating a child together—even if that's the height of the union. I felt it tonight when I made love to Arianna in the woods, and the memory of the strong pull when our bodies were as one compels me to kiss her forehead, right between her eyes. It's a silent oath that will soon materialize when we've spoken about this and ironed out the past. My transgression back then wasn't unjustified, but I was wrong for ever believing that I could do life without my one true mate.
I pull back and sweep away the hair clinging to her face, picking out the leaves and twigs that caught in her hair while we were in the woods. We should have showered when we returned, but Arianna was so exhausted, and all I really wanted was to have her in my arms, where she belongs.
The corners of my lips lift in a smile that echoes my gratitude for getting a second chance with Arianna. Just then, she begins to stir again.
Only this time, her brows furrow, her face contorting with anguish as her body trembles.
It's like the first night when she arrived, and I'd been so restless and pulled to come check up on her, only to find hermuttering in discomfort as if she was having a nightmare. It's happening again, but she's in my arms this time, and I get to comfort her.
I'm just about to reach for her face when she moans and murmurs, her head tossing from left to right. A tear rolls out from the corner of her closed eyes, her bottom lip quivering.
She murmurs something I can’t make out, and I sense her nightmare is getting emotional, as if she’s become sad. I place my hand on her shoulder, about to gently shake her awake, when her bottom lip trembles, and she says, “James… James…”
Just like that, my whole world falls apart. I freeze on the spot, my hand stuck on her shoulder as all determination to soothe Arianna and get her out of her bad dream slips away.
James?
Who's James?
My brows furrow as I stare at her, all the warm, fuzzy feelings slipping away to leave behind a spark of jealousy, reignited by the sudden, horrid realization that Arianna isn't over her ex.
James must be the wolf she had Noah with, and here she is, calling out his name right after we had sex as if she’s longing for him with sadness.
She told me he was no more, dead. But clearly, he hasn't been buried in her mind.
We made love out in the woods, but she's still thinking about him…
My heart sinks, and my chest pulls tight, a gnawing sensation of irritation and anger overwhelming the protectiveness I was feeling for my true mate.
We might be mates, but her heart is elsewhere, with a dead wolf named James.
Retracting my hand slowly so I don't wake her, my body becomes numb as I carefully slip away and slide out of bed.
If there was anything that could hurt me, it was learning that Arianna isn't over her ex.
Was tonight just a way to rebound from her dead ex? Did it mean nothing to her?
Wiping my hands across my face, feeling defeated and betrayed all at once, I look up at the ceiling, inwardly berating the Moon Goddess for this sick joke.
Was this my punishment for rejecting the true mate bond in the past? As my heart shatters into pieces like glass that pierce my chest with physical pain, I can't bring myself to look back at Arianna.
Taking a deep breath, I decide that I need to drown my sorrows in every bottle available in my liquor cabinet, so I pull myself up, grab my robe from behind my bedroom door, and drag my feet toward the kitchen. A sense of heavy gloominess settles on my shoulders, weighing me down as my mind races with the thought that Arianna just paid me back for rejecting her in the past.
She doesn't even know it, but she broke my heart tonight.
Sighing heavily, I'm almost at the kitchen doorway when I hear the metal squeaking of door hinges echo through the hall, and I tense, sensing the presence of my true mate when my heart skips a beat.
Unable to face her, I freeze on the spot when, suddenly, a tiny hand slips into mine.
“Noah?” I ask, bewildered when I look down and see him yawning.
His groggy eyes lift to mine, and that's when I glance back over my shoulder, a frown gripping my brows.
