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It was dark, but the moonlight provided enough visibility. Alpha Denzel was taken aback by the question and coughed a few times to think of a response. "No. That’s why I’m interested in knowing how the bond feels."

He sighed with relief when he realized he hadn’t spoken awkwardly. Everything came out naturally, as if he had prepared for the question.

The mention of the mate bond caused a bitter smile to line Valerie’s lips. "Well, it’s the strongest there is, but the most painful thing I felt when I got rejected."

Alpha Denzel’s gaze dulled with guilt, so he continued walking, pulling her along, afraid she might see through him.

Valerie continued nonetheless. "I was too excited to take note of the odd happenings around me. I cared too much about my pack and my mate that I ignored the sad truth that some people grow tired of waiting for their mates and fall in love out of the mate bond."

Alpha Denzel could understand what she meant. A lot of people had fallen in love out of the mate bond, but things were complicated when they found their mate. It always ended up with someone getting hurt.

Due to all that, he decided to wait for his mate but was upset with the moon goddess when Lisa got murdered. He didn’t care that she was human. She was his mate, and he was ready to do anything for her.

He would have sacrificed a lot for her if she had lived. At that, he couldn’t allow the same fate to befall Valerie. There were just too many Alphas there.

He still could not imagine how differently he could have handled things back then, but the harm had already been done, and he had to deal with what was in front of him before he lost it too.

"Tristan hurt me badly, but Scarlet? I loved her like my soul." Valerie had already shed enough tears; she couldn’t cry anymore, or was it because of the man beside her? To her understanding, he was just a warrior in the pack like Tristan, so how could she show her vulnerability?

"I’m very sorry," Alpha Denzel said, realizing how much hurt she carried within this short time.

"It’s okay. Letting it out is quite a relief. I’ve never done that, and it created so much bitterness in my heart. I think I feel lighter."

Alpha Denzel frowned a little. "So you forgive them?" He will be disappointed if she did. He wasn’t one to forgive easily, just as he took every kindness shown to him seriously.

This weakness was the reason he couldn’t be too hard on Adira. That woman gave her all to the pack in spite of her shortcomings.

"For almost succeeding at killing me?" Valerie asked, and before Alpha Denzel answered, she responded, "Yes, but I will still make them pay. They are a bunch of power-hungry wolves."

"Do you think they were power-hungry or in love?" Alpha Denzel asked. It seemed to him that those two had something going on, which wasn’t shallow.

Which man in his right sense would reject Luna Valerie? Tristan was either out of his mind or there was more to the story.

"I never saw Scarlet as the power-hungry kind. She had no interest in pack activities, but Tristan was just a warrior. But when the bond pulls you close, nothing about that matters. If he had rejected me the moment we found each other, then I will agree that he did it for love."

She laughed bitterly. "He marked me that night, and I passed out. I don’t remember anything after that."

Alpha Denzel’s gaze darkened as she recounted the story, her hand slightly tightening around his. It was obvious that Tristan had only marked Valerie because of the Alpha title, for which reason he rejected her after getting it. "Did you drink anything before then?"

"Yes, Scarlet had given me a glass of champagne to celebrate the occasion. Now that I think about it, I must have been drugged. I don’t even know if that man I saw in the pictures took advantage of me.

The night was cold, and the two walked like lovers. They tried to be honest with each other, greatly appreciating this newfound friendship.

"Did you feel any different when you woke up? I mean, I haven’t done it before, but I heard if it’s your first time, it’s painful," Alpha Denzel clarified. He had pieces of the puzzle, but Valerie’s account was the final piece.

"No. Aside from feeling a little tired, which I thought to be as a result of the mark, I was fine. No aches or pains whatsoever, and there was no blood," she recounted honestly. Alpha Denzel smiled with relief.

None of those two fraudulent men had their way with her; if not, he would have butchered them himself. No one touches what belongs to Alpha Denzel.

"Don’t worry about it. Things happen. So what about Alpha Denzel?" He asked, his heart pacing at a fast rhythm in anticipation of what she was going to say about him.

"Alpha Denzel." Valerie sighed with complicated emotions.

"When he appeared and my wolf began to rejoice, I felt like I was in a different world. I mean, it was exciting to know that I had a stronger second chance than the one who rejected me, and I couldn’t wait to be his.

Well, while I busied myself with pack activities, before then, I heard a lot of the she-wolves lust after him.

I always thought they were crazy until I saw him with my two eyes. "

"He walked as if the world belonged to him with an aura that made even Alphas obey his every command." She sighed again, as she fought back her tears. "I was just waiting to see the regret in Tristan’s eyes when I’m elevated, but sadly, he rejected me."

She wiped a small tear from the corner of her eyes with her free hand since one hand was intertwined with that of Alpha Denzel. "His rejection was even more painful because I had so much hope in him, but at least, he wasn’t as heartless as I thought."

Alpha Denzel was greatly pained as regret filled his heart at her words. Not even her rejection of him back then could justify his actions, but her last words had him confused.

"What do you mean by that?"

"He could have allowed Tristan to finish what he started, but he didn’t. That man remains a mystery."

At least she didn’t hate him, so that was a great relief. Then the question that has been on his heart ever since he brought her to his pack. "So, do you feel anything towards him?"