Finley
The party swirls around me in a blur of silver and white, but I barely register any of it. My wolf paces restlessly beneath my skin, yearning for our mate who keeps finding reasons to stay on the opposite side of the room. But I refuse to let anyone see how much it hurts.
"He probably just needs time to process," I whisper to Nova, forcing myself to smile as another pack member wishes me happy birthday. "Anyone would be shocked."
I'm lying to myself and I know it. But it's better than facing the truth I saw in Liam's eyes when he ran from me.
Kaden, Liam's older brother and the Alpha of Glass Lake, approaches with his mate Olivia. They both hesitate, nostrils flaring slightly, and I know they can sense it – the newly formed mate bond humming in the air. Olivia's eyes fill with concern, but before she can say anything, I shake my head slightly. Please don't make me talk about it.
"Happy birthday, Fin," Kaden says smoothly, respecting my silent plea. His eyes flick to where Liam stands with Ryleigh across the room, but he doesn't comment.
Ryleigh. She's beautiful tonight in a pale blue dress that matches her eyes, her dark hair falling in perfect waves. I've always liked her – it's impossible not to. She's genuinely kind, always ready with a smile or encouraging word. But now, watching Liam lean down to whisper something in her ear, I have to fight back the urge to growl.
He's just being a gentleman, I tell myself for the hundredth time. He'll talk to her first, explain things. That's why he's avoiding me. It has to be.
But as the hours drag on, that hope grows thinner and thinner. Liam dances with Ryleigh, laughs with Ryleigh, looks at Ryleigh like she's his whole world. He won't even meet my eyes.
Unable to stay away despite the pain, I drift closer to where they're standing. My enhanced hearing picks up their conversation easily, even through the music.
"I need to go take care of something," Liam says softly to Ryleigh, his fingers tracing her cheek with such tenderness it makes my chest ache. "But when I come back, I'm taking you home." His voice drops even lower, intimate in a way that makes me feel like a voyeur. "I’m going to fuck you, leave my claim inside you, show you exactly what you mean to me."
Ryleigh blushes, rising on her toes to press a kiss to his jaw. "Don't be long."
The possessive look in his eyes as he promises her he won't is enough to shatter what little hope I had left. Whatever I am to him – whatever the mate bond says we should be – he's made his choice. And it isn't me.
Nova whimpers, and I retreat to the back porch, desperate for air. The space is mercifully empty, and I lean against the railing, trying to steady my breathing. The lake stretches out before me, dark and peaceful under the rising moon.
"Fin."
My heart lurches at his voice. I don't turn around, afraid of what I'll see in his face. "Liam."
"We need to talk." His voice is gentle, and somehow that makes it worse.
"Do we?" I'm proud that my voice doesn't shake. "Because you've made things pretty clear already."
He moves to stand beside me, careful to keep space between us. The mate bond pulses with his proximity, and Nova surges forward, desperate to close the distance. I dig my nails into my palms, forcing her back.
"I'm sorry," he says quietly. "I never meant for this to happen."
A harsh laugh escapes me. "Right. Because you were so worried about a mate bond that you insisted on having my birthday party here." The bitterness in my voice surprises even me. "Why did you want me here, Liam? If you knew there was even a chance—"
"I didn't." He runs a hand through his hair, a nervous gesture I've known since childhood. "I wanted the party here because... because Ryleigh can't leave Glass Lake right now. Her mom's sick and she needs to stay close in case she needs her. I didn’t want to leave her."
The words hit me like a physical blow. Of course. Of course he arranged it all for her. Everything Liam does is for Ryleigh.
"I'm rejecting the mate bond," he says softly.
Even though I've known it was coming, even though I've seen it in every avoided glance and careful distance he's kept all night, the formal words still tear through me like claws.
"Why?" The question slips out before I can stop it. "We've known each other our whole lives, Liam. We've been best friends. How can you just—"
"Because I love her." His voice cracks with emotion, but not for me. Never for me. "I've loved Ryleigh for years. She was there when I thought I'd never be anything but the spare prince, when everyone else saw just the joke, the screw-up. She believed in me before anyone else did."
"I believed in you," I whisper, but he shakes his head.
"Not like she did. And now Kaden's offering me the Beta position. I finally have a real place in the pack, a purpose. I can't – I won't – throw all that away just because fate decided to play some cruel joke."
Each word drives the knife deeper, but I force myself to stand straight, to keep my voice steady. "Fate isn't playing a joke, Liam. The Moon Goddess chose us for a reason."
"Then she chose wrong, damn it!" He steps back, and the distance feels like a chasm opening between us. "I formally reject this mate bond, Finley Bennett. I release you from any claim or obligation."
The magic of his words settles over us like frost, and something inside me shatters. Nova howls in grief, the sound echoing through my mind if not my throat. My legs give out and I sink to my knees, one hand clutching the porch railing, the other pressed against my chest where it feels like my heart is being torn in two. The pain is physical, raw and burning, like someone is trying to carve out the piece of my soul that just recognized its other half.
"Fin!" Liam moves to help me, but I throw up a hand to stop him.
"Don't." My voice is ragged, but I force the word out. "Don't touch me."
He steps back, hands raised, and the look of pity in his eyes is almost worse than the rejection. I press my palms flat against the rough wooden boards of the porch, focusing on the bite of splinters against my skin. Physical pain I can handle. This other pain – I need to lock it away, at least until I'm alone.
Slowly, deliberately, I push myself back to my feet. My legs shake, but I force them to steady. I swipe at the tears on my cheeks, squaring my shoulders as I take a deep breath. I am a Bennett. We do not break.
"I hope you'll still come to the Beta ceremony next month," he says, as if he hasn't just ripped my world apart. "You're still... you're still my friend."
I say nothing. There's nothing left to say.
He hesitates a moment longer, then turns and walks away, back to the party, back to Ryleigh. Back to the life he's chosen.
I stay on the porch, staring at the lake until my vision blurs, until I can't tell if it's tears or moonlight making everything shimmer.
My first mate bond. My first rejection.
Happy birthday to me.
