Elaine believes she has found her fated mate Michael until she learns he chose her sister Kathy and their unborn child instead. Abandoned by her family and pack, she’s forced to watch their mating ceremony. Broken and alone, Elaine must decide: will she accept her fate, or fight back?
Elaine pressed her lips together, unsure of how to respond. “How are you feeling?” He asked, watching her closely when she didn’t answer right away. “I’m… okay,” she murmured, her voice soft, fragile-like it might break apart at the slightest touch. Without another word, Darius sat down beside her on the bed, his presence grounding…
“I’ll… think about it,” Elaine had said carefully, though in her heart, guilt pressed heavily. It was during one of those quiet moments of thought that a knock suddenly sounded on her door. Elaine looked up quickly. “Knock, knock,” came a cheerful voice, The door cracked open, and a young woman stepped inside. She was…
“Yes… I do,” she admitted softly. Roselyn’s triumphant grin widened, and she turned to Darius with a smug little tilt of her chin. “See? She wants me here. You can’t argue with that.” For a moment, the room was thick with tension-brotherly protectiveness clashing with sisterly stubbornness. Then Darius sighed, a sound that seemed to…
Darius sat back down in his chair after Roselyn left, still shaking his head in quiet exasperation. A small, helpless chuckle escaped him as he looked at Elaine. “My sister sometimes… no, most of the time she’s overwhelming,” he admitted, rubbing the back of his neck. “But she means well. She’s been pestering me to…
Elaine gave him a grateful smile. “Thank you, Dr. Grey.” By the time she had signed the necessary papers and gathered her few belongings, Darius arrived. He leaned casually against the doorway, but his eyes softened the moment they fell on her. “Ready?” He asked. Elaine took a deep breath and nodded. “As ready as…
It was… frustrating, to say the least. I always wanted to see him, to be near him, and I found myself looking forward to even the smallest interactions. But I had no right. His true mate-his fated one-was somewhere out there. And I didn’t know if he even felt anything for me beyond companionship. I…
“Speaking of the pup,” he said after a moment, clearing his throat. “You only have-what-maybe three months left before you give birth, right? Do you have any plans?” The question landed oddly, intimate in the way only an alpha’s concern could be intimate – not intrusive for the sake of prying, but because the fate…
He leaned forward until his forehead rested against hers. His breath was steady, steadying.” Tell me what you need. Tell me what you want for you to agree to give us a chance, Elaine. I’ll do it. I’ll prove to you that what we have is real. Let us be happy. I promise I’ll make…
The younger woman’s smile softened, her tone shifting from giddy to serious. “I understand. But you have to know something. He’s been searching for a long time. He’s gone to every mating ball, visited countless packs, tried everything. And yet nothing. Then he met you, and wham!” Roselyn clapped her hands together dramatically, her eyes…
Three years of waiting. Three years of enduring the pack politics that would demand he attend mating balls. Three years of proving over and over again that she was the only one he wanted. But he would do it. For her. For the love that had taken root so fiercely in his heart that he…