Chapter 3

I had heard that male twins shared the same mate—just as female twins shared a single partner—and I already knew I was their mate; I’d known for three years, in fact. But I also knew they wouldn’t want me. To them, I was hideous and useless. After grabbing a few belongings, I went back outside and left the estate. No, I wouldn’t let them humiliate me by rejecting me all over again. I needed to get away to think—far away from that tempting scent.

Alex’s POV

I went up to my room—a bit too drunk, I have to admit; the celebrations marking my brother and me as the pack’s new Alphas had led to a lot of drinking. Plenty of female werewolves tried to seduce us, but without success. It wasn’t that we didn’t like women, but we had decided—he and I—a few weeks back that we wouldn’t have any flings, to avoid dealing with jealousy issues once we finally found our mate.

We didn’t have any specific physical expectations for our mate; we just hoped she would be gentle, compassionate, intelligent, and loving. As for the rest—even if she were ugly—we would accept her just as she was.

Once upstairs, I froze and looked at the stunned expression on my brother’s face. I’m sure I looked just as shocked as he did. That intoxicating scent of forbidden peach, hot chocolate, and ripe red berries. Our mate was here.

I could feel my Wolf pacing restlessly with anticipation. Finally, she was here. We quickened our pace and stopped in front of our rooms. The scent was leading toward the small room situated between ours. My stomach tightened, and I walked with determined steps toward the small room. I turned the handle and entered the room. Her scent hung in the air. I looked around and saw the small mattress on the floor, the tiny dresser that served as her desk, and the ridiculous mirror perched on top. Rage surged within me as I realized the terrible conditions we had forced her to live in. Why had we done this? The estate was very big; there were plenty of spare rooms in the guest wing. Yet we had treated her like dirt; just the day before, I’d even gripped her lovely neck a little too hard, leaving a mark. For years, we had tormented her for no reason, constantly humiliating her. Hadn’t she said just yesterday that she didn’t want a mate?

Zach: This isn’t good, brother.

Zach looked at me with despair in his eyes.

Alex: What, Zach? We couldn’t have known that the "hideous one" would be our mate.

Zach: Don’t call her that anymore, Alex.

I took a deep breath; he was right—I shouldn’t call her that anymore.

Alex: Amelia... it’s a pretty name. You’re right, Zach—you’re right. Why did we ever stop using it?

Zach: I don’t remember anymore, Alex. Probably out of spite.

Alex: Yeah... but she won’t want us, Zach. She’s going to reject us.

Zach: Then we’ll have to change her mind—show her we can be kind to her...

Alex: But how? She isn’t in... in... I can’t even bring myself to call it a bedroom because the room is so awful—but this *is* where we forced her to sleep for, what, ten years?

Zach: We’re going to change that, brother... And we’re heading into town now; apparently, she transformed last night, so it’s her birthday. We’re going to buy her everything she might need or want. We’re going to make up for everything we did to her.

A plan was taking shape in my mind. Nothing else mattered to me anymore. Amelia was everything my brother and I had wished for in a mate—and as a huge bonus, she was stunning, with her fire-colored hair and large eyes the soft green of spring moss. Her milky skin looked incredibly soft. I clenched my fist, remembering how I’d gripped her lovely neck the day before. I mentally called myself an idiot.

My brother and I headed back and quickly climbed into our vintage car—a black Jaguar with tinted windows. Once in town, we scoured the shops, buying practically everything we saw. At the checkout of the last store, I spotted a pack of hair ties on the counter. The memory of the previous day came flooding back: Zach had snapped her last hair tie. Without thinking, I grabbed three packs of them and added them to the pile of clothes we’d picked out.

On the way back, we decided to move into a private wing of the estate. This wing featured three huge bedrooms, a spacious living room, and a home theater. Each bedroom had its own bathroom, ensuring her privacy until she was ready to accept us. Back at the estate, we instructed the staff to move our belongings and take our packages up to that wing, then set out to find her. Her scent was all over the estate, but she was nowhere to be found.

Zach: But where is she, Alex?

Alex: I don’t know, Zach, but we’re going to find her!

We decided to follow her scent. It led us first to the library. I smiled fondly, picturing her curled up in one of the armchairs, leafing through one of the many books. Then I realized my parents had forbidden her from coming here. If she had taken that risk, all we could hope was that she hadn’t been caught.

Her scent then led out through the library’s glass doors; I was relieved, yet intrigued to know where she was headed next. We followed the trail as it wound deep into the forest. I looked at my brother with concern.

Alex: Why is she going into the forest? Why did she run away from us?

Zach sighed, looking at me in despair.

Zach: Yesterday... you told her she wasn't welcome here anymore... she...

He sighed and looked up at the sky. We had been so awful to her ever since she came to live with us. Yet, she had never done anything wrong. Our parents forced her to work for us in exchange for room and board... Then, the memory of yesterday’s altercation flashed through my mind. I had stopped her from eating, even though I knew my parents had forbidden her to eat until we had all had our fill—and we took a perverse pleasure in leaving nothing on the table.