2
Selena’s POV
Pain is the first thing I register. A dull, persistent ache radiating from the center of my chest outward, as if someone had reached inside and squeezed my heart until it nearly burst.
My eyelids feel impossibly heavy as I force them open. White ceiling. The antiseptic smell. Pack hospital. The memories crash back, Ronan with another woman, the searing pain, the world going black.
“You’re awake.”
The deep voice draws my attention to the corner of the room. Rylan. He sits in a chair that’s too small for his large frame, elbows resting on his knees, dark circles under his eyes. He stayed.
“How long?” My voice comes out as a rasp.
“Almost twenty-four hours.” He stands, approaching slowly. “How do you feel?”
I try to push myself up, but my arms shake with the effort. “Like I’ve been hit by a truck.”
Rylan’s hand shoots out to steady me, warm and strong against my shoulder. “The bond strain was severe. You shouldn’t move yet.”
“Ronan...“ The name catches in my throat. Every cell in my body screams to reject him, but the invisible threads of the bond pull me toward him like gravity. My parents’ faces flash in my mind, the way they’d looked at each other until their final breath, their hands intertwined even as they slipped away.
Something dark flashes in Rylan’s eyes. “Is not here.”
“He’s my mate.” The words come automatically, the way I’ve been taught since childhood. Sacred. Unbreakable. Destined.
Rylan’s jaw tightens. “A mate who was too busy with his hands down another woman’s dress to notice you collapsing.”
The memory stings fresh. I swallow hard. “I’ll demand an explanation from him myself.”
“An explanation?” Rylan’s voice remains controlled, but barely. “What possible explanation could justify what he did?”
I stare at my trembling hands. “The mate bond...“
“Is not a free pass to treat someone like garbage,” Rylan cuts in. “Mate bond or not, he’s the Alpha heir. He has responsibilities, especially to you.”
My fingers twist in the hospital sheet. “My parents died believing the bond was sacred,” I whisper. “Their final lesson was clear: never reject your mate, no matter what. I have to honor that.”
Rylan runs a hand through his dark hair. “The bond is sacred. But behavior still matters, Selena.”
“You don’t understand...“
“I understand perfectly.” His voice drops, something raw entering it. “I had a mate once too.”
The simple statement hangs heavy between us. Had. Past tense.
“I’m sorry for what happened.” I say softly.
Pain flickers across his face before he locks it away. “She died. Five years ago. Every day is painful. Every moment I breathe I yearn for her. Her presence. Her touch.”
“No one should have to experience the loss of their mate. I’m sorry.”
He shakes his head. “My point is, I know what a mate bond feels like. I know its power. But what Ronan is doing isn’t love or devotion or anything resembling how a mate should act.”
“But the pain when I saw him...“ I press a hand to my chest where the ache persists. “That proves the bond is real.”
“I’m not saying the bond isn’t real,” Rylan continues, his voice softening. “I’m saying it doesn’t excuse cruelty.”
The doctor releases me three hours later with strict instructions to rest. My legs wobble beneath me as I stand, the floor tilting like the deck of a ship in a storm.
