Chapter 2
Olivia's Point of View
A week has passed, but the ache in my chest still has not faded.
The memory of that divine scent, my mate’s scent, still lingers at the edges of my senses like a ghost I cannot quite chase away. I have replayed that moment a hundred times in my mind. The fresh tire tracks, the vanishing scent, the bitter taste of disappointment in my mouth.
And now, I am leaving.
The soft rustle of fabric fills my room as I fold the last hoodie and slide it into my duffel bag. My closet is practically empty, my drawers cleared. Everything I need for the next phase of my life is packed tightly in the corner of the room I have called mine for eighteen years.
I zip the bag shut, the sound final and sharp, and I sit down on my bed with a sigh.
This is it. Tomorrow morning, I leave for the Lycanis Training Center, where the children of the five packs are forged into future Alphas, Betas, warriors, and diplomats. I should be buzzing with excitement. But instead… my stomach is a tight, anxious knot.
Just then there is a knock at my bedroom door, light and familiar, pulling me from my thoughts.
“Come in,” I call out, already knowing who it is.
Kael steps inside with that usual mix of confidence and calm. His black hoodie is pushed up to his elbows, and his hair is slightly tousled like he ran a hand through it on the way up. His gaze flicks from my packed bags to me, and he raises an eyebrow.
“Wow. So it is really happening.”
“Yeah,” I say, standing. “Last bag is done. I am ready.”
He leans against the doorframe, his arms crossed over his chest. “You do not sound ready.”
I give him a half smile. “I guess I thought I would feel a little more excited.”
He watches me for a moment, then pushes off the frame and steps closer. “That is why I am here.”
I raise an eyebrow. “To help me unpack my emotional baggage?”
He grins. “Tempting, but no. I came to drag you out of this room and convince you to come to the Stormfang party tonight.”
My stomach flips. “Kael…”
“Do not even try to say no,” he cuts in, already knowing I will. “It is your last night here. You deserve one more carefree moment before all the responsibility and training and mate hunting stuff starts.”
The word mate still stings, even if I try and hide it well.
“I do not know,” I murmur, turning back to glance at my bag. “I should rest. It is a big day tomorrow.”
“You have got a hundred big days ahead of you,” he says gently. “But you only get one last night as Olivia of the Moonshade Pack, the girl, not the Alpha in training. And if anyone deserves to let loose a little, it is you.”
I hesitate, chewing the inside of my cheek.
Kael walks up behind me and nudges my shoulder with his. “Come on, Liv. One night. Music, noise, people pretending they do not hate each other, it will be fun.”
I let out a small laugh despite myself.
He holds out his hand. “So, what do you say?”
I stare at his hand for a moment, then give a reluctant sigh and take his hand.
“Fine. One party. One drink. But no dancing.”
Kael smirks. “No promises.”
Kael jingles his keys with a smug little smirk as we walk side by side down the gravel path towards his car.
“I still cannot believe I talked you into this,” he says, unlocking the doors with a beep.
I shake my head with a faint smile. “You are lucky I am emotionally vulnerable right now.”
He grins, sliding into the driver’s seat. “You say that like I am not always lucky.”
I roll my eyes but climb in beside him, pulling my seatbelt across my chest. The engine hums to life, and soon we are pulling out of the Moonshade grounds, heading into the darkening forest roads that separate our packs.
The ride is quiet for a while. The trees blur past outside the window, tall and looming, their silhouettes painted black against the lavender sky. The sun has already dipped behind the mountains, and dusk is fading fast into night. A few stars have started to peek through, blinking down as if watching where I am going… or what is waiting for me.
Kael hums along to the music playing low through the speakers. It is some upbeat indie song I barely recognize, but the rhythm is calming, familiar.
I lean my head back against my seat, watching the sky.
When we finally reach the Stormfang Pack’s territory, the energy shifts. Even from the road, I can hear the beat of music and the low rumble of voices carried on the wind. Lights glow from the windows of the massive pack house, and laughter echoes faintly through the trees.
Kael parks along the edge of the gravel drive, and we both climb out of the car.
By the time we reach the front door, the sky is dark above us, the moon half full and watching. Warm light spills from the open entryway, and we step inside, slipping past the crowd gathered in the grand hall. The space is loud, but there is a wildness to it that is unmistakably Stormfang.
“Backyard,” Kael says, nodding his head towards the side hallway. “That is where the real chaos is.”
We follow the sound of laughter and music through the house, past warriors pressed into casual conversation and couples swaying in corners. Then, through a pair of wide open French doors, we step out into the backyard.
The Stormfangs do not do small gatherings.
The party is sprawled across a large open space behind the pack house, strung with lights that dangle from trees like fallen stars.
There is a bonfire blazing in the center, and music booms from large speakers near the drink tables. Pack members are everywhere, dancing, talking, drinking, their energy buzzing like electricity in the air.
Kael heads straight for the long table lined with cups and bottles. I follow, grabbing a cup of something vaguely citrusy and probably stronger than it tastes.
I tip my cup back and finish the drink just as Kael’s eyes light up.
“Oh hell yes,” he grins, his eyes flashing. “That is my song!”
Before I can stop him, his hand wraps around mine and he is dragging me towards the makeshift dance area where bodies move in time with the beat.
“Kael!”
“No backing out now!” he shouts over the music.
We plunge into the crowd, and he immediately starts dancing like an idiot, flailing, dramatic, completely unapologetic. It is ridiculous. It is also very Kael.
I cannot help it, I laugh. The sound bubbles out of me, loud and real, and I find myself swaying to the rhythm, letting the music move through me.
For a few songs, I forget the weight of everything. I forget about tomorrow. I even forget the ache in my chest.
But after two songs and one too many spins, the heat and the crowd start to get to me.
“I need a break,” I shout to Kael, already stepping back. “And air.”
He nods his head, still grinning as he keeps dancing like the floor might disappear if he stops.
I slip through the crowd, brushing past laughing strangers and tipsy pack members, and make my way back into the pack house. It is quieter inside, just barely, and the warmth of the fire lit space wraps around me like a blanket.
I walk down the hallway, heart still thudding from the music and dancing, but something deeper stirs beneath it, a strange pull in my chest I cannot quite place.
I just need a minute. A breath of fresh air. Some stillness.
But then... it hits me. That scent. His scent.
Instantly, my entire body stiffens. It wraps around me like smoke, warm and electric and unmistakable. My heart lurches in my chest.
He is here.
My mate.
I barely realize I have moved, not until I am halfway up the staircase, drawn by instinct alone. My fingers trail the wooden banister as I climb the steps one by one, my pulse thundering in my ears. With every step, the scent grows thicker, more intoxicating and familiar, like the woods after rain, like the air before lightning strikes.
And then... I know.
Even before I reach the landing, I know where he is.
And even worse... I know what he is doing.
The scent of sweat and lust hangs heavy in the air, tangled with the unshakable pull that twists inside me like a blade. Every cell in my body begs me to stop, to turn around, to not confirm the thing my heart already dreads.
But I keep walking.
I stop outside a half closed door. The music from downstairs hums faintly beneath the moans slipping through the crack. I do not want to hear them, but I do. I do not want to know, but I already do.
Still… I push the door open.
It creaks softly. The room beyond is dim, lit only by slivers of moonlight spilling through the curtains.
And in the shadows, I see them.
Two figures, entwined, their bodies moving together.
My breath catches in my throat.
I do not need to see his face. I do not need to hear his voice.
The scent tells me everything. The pull deep in my soul confirms it. That man is my mate.
And he is inside of another woman.
For a long second, I just… stand there, frozen, feeling completely shattered. My hands tremble at my sides, and a cold emptiness settles over me like frost.
But then something inside of me hardens.
This is what fate gave me?
A man who would rather bury himself in a stranger than search for the one tied to his soul?
No.
I may not have chosen the bond, but I will choose myself.
My voice is quiet but firm. “I, Olivia Bennett, reject you as my mate.”
The words are iron on my tongue. A cut clean through the bond.
The bond severs, but not completely, not yet, but enough that I feel the pain spike through my chest.
And I walk away.
I do not run. I do not cry.
I walk, steady and sure, down the hallway, back towards the stairs.
He may be my mate.
But I am not his second choice.