Page 30

Miles

Alpha Stone sent me to a Beta workshop at Stone Mountain. We regularly attend educational classes provided by the Alpha Commander to help us become better leaders for our packs, so I always seize the opportunity. However, life feels rather colorless at the moment.

It’s my lunch break, so I go into the café next door to the headquarters. It’s a small mom-and-pop eatery that most employees and meeting attendees visit for breakfast and lunch.

As I grab my meal, I turn to look over the tables to find a spot to sit, and my eyes lock on Paisley.

I startle until I realize she’s smiling at me.

It’s been a long time since I’ve had the pleasure of being the recipient of her warmth.

I lift my eyebrows in question, and she nods, gesturing to the seat across from her in invitation.

Hesitantly, I approach, looking around the room for her mate.

“Paisley,” I smile softly. “It’s been a while.”

“It has, Miles,” she replies, her expression regretful.

At this moment, it hits me: the pain of parting from Paisley is far greater than anything I ever felt when Marissa left me.

I think I’ve finally realized the magnitude of my mistakes and the cost. Wanting Marissa was a leftover from my feelings of abandonment because she never stayed.

I thought Marissa was the key—if she wanted me, I felt worthy.

Now, in retrospect, I know the exact opposite is true.

Marissa was never deserving of me, and I sold myself short, losing the best thing that ever happened to me.

My grandma used to say, Chase the glitter and miss the gold.

Speaking of gold, I stare into Paisley’s doe-brown eyes, the pain hitting me sharply. She looks away.

“What brings you to the capital, Miles?” she asks in a conversational tone.

“Beta workshop,” I say, taking a bite of my sandwich, which turns to dust in my mouth. I force it down with a gulp of water and set the rest back on the plate.“You? ”

“Luna workshop,” she giggles, rolling her eyes. “Can you imagine me as a Luna?”

“Yeah, I can,” I say softly.“You’ll make a great Luna. You would’ve been a great Beta mate, too.”

“I think so, too,” she drops her gaze again, her voice tinged with sadness.

“Anyway, Drágon is transforming the club into a more pack-oriented structure. It wasn’t founded with the wild party scene most people associate with motorcycle clubs, so he’s shifting the focus to highlight the successful businesses it operates.

Right now, he’s out having lunch with the Alpha Commander and a few other Alphas. ”

“Ah. That’s good. I’ve heard a lot of good things about him.”

“Yeah,” she nods in agreement.“He’s a good male.”

“Paisley… I’m sorry…”

When I open my mouth, she sighs loudly, slightly turning her head.She looks at me out of the corner of her eye.

“Miles…” she begins, stopping me by holding up her hand and shaking her head. Frustration radiates from her, and it’s obvious that she’s done with me. She is so done .

“Miles,” she starts again, taking a deep breath. “Let me clarify something here so we can be perfectly clear. I still feel a weak energy flow through our mark.”

She absently rubs the spot on her breast where I know the symbol is etched; I feel an answering twinge in my own ruined one as she strokes hers.

“I also know we could be made whole again as mates.” My heart leaps with hope.

“I can sense that you genuinely regret your actions and want my forgiveness.” Her eyes brighten with unshed tears as she blinks rapidly, trying to hold them back.

“But you don’t realize I’ve been crushed by the damage done to our connection from the lingering intense pain from being abandoned and betrayed.

I want to heal, but the bond won’t allow it— you won’t allow it. ”

I take a sharp, involuntary breath.

“You were my everything, Miles.My knight in shining armor, my hero, my light, my breath. I built myself around you and placed you up on a pedestal.”

I lower my head in shame. “That’s the danger of being on a pedestal; it’s a long way to fall.”

She drops her gaze shyly, voice dropping just enough to make me lean in. “You were kind of my daddy kink, too. You made me feel safe and protected, until I didn’t. ”

Her words catch me off guard. I stare at her lovely face for a moment, drinking her in. Heat flickers through me, unexpected and not unwelcome, at the memories she evokes. But it quickly dies under the weight of everything I put her through.

I go quiet. “That year we were together, before Marissa’s ghost rematerialized, was the happiest of my life up to that point. I realize now that it was just a pipe dream for me. She’s always been a shadow between us.”

I lower my gaze, unable to deny it any longer. I’ve been lying to myself all along. I never truly gave up on Marissa. I inserted Paisley into my life as a placeholder, but I never fully acknowledged it until now.

“It’s my deepest regret,” I admit. “I truly loved you, Paisley. I still do.”

"It wasn't enough, Miles. Not enough,” she accuses.

I nod in agreement. She deserves the truth, even if I’m digging my own grave. "Please let me make it up to you. Allow me to put you on a pedestal, finally.”

“I don’t want to be on a pedestal, Miles. I only want to be loved fully, truly. Just me.”

“I do love you fully and truly. Please forgive me,”I beg .

“I can forgive you, Miles, but it comes with a price.”

“Anything,” I gasp.

I'll forgive you if you walk away from me, never to return, and let this connection sever completely. As long as we are tethered, I’ll still consider you mine.

I'll always look over my shoulder, wondering when she’ll return to sabotage us.

I’ll forever ache with the fear that you’ll be out with friends, and she’ll decide it’s time to pick you back up for playtime, and you won't even think of us. I’ll never be able to trust that you won’t crush my heart again if I entrust it to you.

“Never again, Paisley, I swear,” I whisper, shaky. “Marissa has been banished to the Wilds of Prisoner Island and will never interfere with our bond again.”

“That’s not good enough, Miles,” she glares at me.

“I wanted you to love me for who I am, despite Marissa, not just because she’s physically unattainable now.

That makes me feel like an afterthought.

I refuse to be your second choice again.

You chose me only after it became clear that an honest relationship with her was impossible. ”

“No! That's not true.”

“Yes, it is! The minute—and I mean the minute—she showed up, thoughts of me went straight out of your head ! Paisley? Who?” she whisper-hisses at me.

“Even after she cheated on you and dosed you with stolen Amra to deceive you and hide her betrayal, you still defended her! When she and her friends bullied me, you sided with her!” She jabs me in the chest with her finger, her voice steadily growing louder during her tirade.

“I…”

“You have to accept reality.I don’t care what you believe; you need to examine your actions, Miles, and let me be in peace. In peace! ”

She stands up, takes her untouched lunch, and leaves the café. I have to be the better person for her. It’s time to stop being the selfish male I’ve always been and finally think of Paisley for once.I need to free her from this soul-sucking bond, I realize as I watch her walk away.

“I, Miles Reid, accept your rejection, Paisley Woods, and release our bond,” I quietly choke out.

I feel immediate pain radiating through my chest as the last fragile tendrils of our tether snap.

Paisley stops abruptly, turns to face me, and smiles.

“ Thank you,” she mouths, rubbing her chest as she continues on her way, leaving me and my pathetic, shattered heart to grieve the final loss of her.

Paisley

Lying in bed later that night, I reflect on my life as it is now.

Drágon and I are in the capital, newly bonded, and beginning our life together.

We combined a work trip with our honeymoon, and we’re attending meetings and workshops today to prepare ourselves to lead our new quasi-pack.

It’ll now have most of the same structure as a standard pack but with less formality.

With the Alpha Commander's silent approval, the focus will remain on our own brand of vigilante justice.

The club’s focus during leisure time will shift.

There will be no wild parties, and the concept of "club girls" will become a thing of the past, especially since Drágon and I want pups.

I refuse to raise them in that atmosphere.

Activities will become more family-oriented, and those who disagree are welcome to leave.

I can still hear the shower running as I roll over in bed and reflect on the conversation that Miles and I had today. He finally understood and let go completely, easing my heartache. His releasing me from the last remnants of our bond is healing.

Drágon enters the bedroom with his sweatpants hanging low on his hips. He lies beside me, pulling me close as I trace the fractured, eclipsing moon tattoo over his heart.

“Sia rumag, sia itov. My mate, my love,” Drágon sighs seductively in Draconian, the language of dragons, as his fingers gently stroke my arm.

I close my eyes, curl against him, and savor his touch.

I could listen to him speak all night long.

His slightly Romanian and Russian accent deepens when he uses his native tongue.

The past month has been the happiest of my life since meeting Drágon.

We’ve gotten to know each other and allowed our families time to gather.

However, we decided not to postpone the bonding ceremony.

No bachelor or bachelorette parties were needed; we excitedly said goodbye to being single and quickly became mates.

The month we spent getting to know each other allowed me to organize the ceremony. Since my time at Wind Howl Pack was filled with mean girls and unhappy memories, we held it outside on the clubhouse grounds.

“Paisley,” Drágon whispers softly against the shell of my ear. “I don’t know what has changed today, but our connection has deepened to my very core. Do you feel it, too?”

I roll over, deeper into Drágon’s warm chest, and look up into his fiery red eyes; his dragon stirs beneath the surface, primordial and ancient. Our bond simmers like a pool of lava, the energy ebbing and flowing, woven by the heat of invisible flames.

“I saw Miles today at lunch,” I sigh, nuzzling into Drágon’s neck and inhaling his smoky scent.

“He finally accepted my rejection and released me from that tie. Once he did, I felt your presence in my soul deepen.” I tap my chest. “It shifted my focus, and I can now feel the pain easing as I’m freed from the broken promise of his bond. ”

Drágon tilts my head back gently with his fingers under my chin and looks into my eyes. “I’m glad you’re finally free of that burden, Paisley,” he says against my mouth. I lean forward and press into his warm kiss.

I feel the heat of his body pressing against mine, and my heart thrills. Our bond is true and strong, representing the light after the darkness. I’m his first choice—his only one.

As we join together, I feel pure and untainted energy pulse through our bodies.

Each stroke gently mends the frayed edges of my heart and soul.

The process doesn’t erase the past but begins to heal the wound.

The shattered eclipse marks on our chests glow as the cracks and fractures fill in and fade away.

The tattoos blossom into beautiful matching mate marks, transforming from symbols of brokenness into representations of love, recovery, and new beginnings.