FATED MATE

Ava's POV

The ballroom glittered with a thousand lights, but all I could see was the way Adrian's eyes had changed when he walked in.

Four years. We'd been together for four years. He chose me when everyone said a future Alpha needed his fated mate, not some ordinary pack member with nothing special about her. But Adrian had looked at me like I was his entire world and promised that no bond decreed by fate could be stronger than what we built together.

I was stupid enough to believe him.

Now I stood three feet behind him, watching as Sophia, his actual fated mate, practically threw herself into his arms. The crowd around us had gone completely silent, everyone holding their breath to see what would happen. The great Alpha Adrian finally meets his destined Luna at the annual Summit Ball.

How romantic.

My nails dug into my palms as I watched him freeze, his whole body going rigid. Then slowly, so slowly it felt like torture, his arms came up and wrapped around her waist.

He didn't push her away.

That was all I needed to see. I turned and walked out of the ballroom, my heels clicking against the marble floor. I kept my head high even though tears were already burning behind my eyes. I wouldn't give anyone the satisfaction of seeing me break down.

The cool night air hit my face as I stepped onto the terrace. I made it to the stone railing before the first sob broke free. My hands gripped the cold marble as my shoulders shook.

"Ava."

His voice made me straighten immediately. I wiped at my face quickly, trying to compose myself before turning around.

Adrian stood in the doorway, his dark hair slightly disheveled like he'd been running his hands through it. His grey eyes, the ones that used to look at me with such warmth, now seemed uncertain.

"Don't do this," I said, my voice surprisingly steady. "Don't come out here and try to explain or make promises you can't keep."

He moved closer, and I hated how my disloyal heart still skipped when he was near. "Nothing has to change between us. You're the one I chose. You're the one I want as my Luna."

"She's your fated mate, Adrian." I forced myself to meet his eyes. "The bond between you two is something I can never compete with. I won't even try."

"I don't want you to compete. I want you to stay by my side like you promised." He reached for my hand, but I pulled away.

"Did you feel it?" I asked quietly. "The mate bond when you touched her?"

His silence was answer enough.

"I should go home," I said. "I need to think."

"I can't leave the Summit early. It would be disrespectful to the Alpha King. Jacob will drive you home." He pulled out his phone, already texting his Beta.

In the past, he would have left with me immediately. He would have told the other Alphas himself that his chosen mate needed him. But that was before Sophia walked into his life twenty minutes ago.

"Fine," I whispered.

Jacob arrived within minutes, his expression carefully neutral as he led me to one of the pack's SUVs. As I was about to get in, I glanced back at the entrance.

Adrian stood there with Sophia now beside him. She said something that made him really smile, and the sight felt like a knife twisting in my chest.

I climbed into the vehicle and didn't look back again.

The drive to Crescent Moon Pack's territory took forty minutes. Jacob kept glancing at me in the rearview mirror, and I could tell he wanted to say something.

"Go ahead," I finally said.

He sighed. "You know I respect you, Ava. You've been good for Adrian, and you've worked hard to earn your place in the pack despite not being born into a high-ranking family."

"But?"

"But his fated mate has arrived. The bond between them is sacred. If Adrian chooses you over her and makes you his Luna instead, there could be consequences for the entire pack. It's not just superstition. There are documented cases of packs suffering when an Alpha rejects his true mate."

I closed my eyes. "I know."

"Do you? Because staying with him now, knowing what you know, makes you look selfish to the pack members who matter."

His words stung because they were true. I'd been so focused on my relationship with Adrian that I hadn't considered the bigger picture.

When we arrived at the packhouse, I went straight to the room Adrian and I had shared for the past year. I took off my dress and stood under the shower until the water ran cold, but it didn't wash away the ache in my chest.

I was just crawling into bed when I heard voices downstairs. Adrian's deep laugh echoed through the house, followed by a feminine giggle I didn't recognize.

Sophia. He'd brought her here. To our home.

I sat up, straining to hear their conversation.

"I can't believe we finally met," Sophia was saying. "I'd almost given up hope of finding my mate."

"My parents insisted I bring you back here tonight rather than leave you at the hotel. I hope that's okay." That was Adrian, his voice warm in a way it hadn't been with me in weeks.

"More than okay. Your home is beautiful, Adrian."

My stomach churned. She was already calling him by his first name. Most pack members had to address him as "Alpha Adrian" out of respect.

The bedroom door opened, and I quickly lay back down, closing my eyes. I felt the bed dip as Adrian sat on the edge.

"I know you're awake, Ava," he said softly.

I opened my eyes to find him watching me. "She's here."

"My mother insisted. Said it would be rude to leave my mate at a hotel while we have plenty of guest rooms." He ran a hand over his face. "I know this is difficult, but I need you to be understanding. Just for tonight."

"She's your fated mate, Adrian. If anyone should be in the guest room, it's me."

His jaw tightened. "You're staying right here. With me. Always."

He kissed my forehead before heading to the bathroom. I listened to the shower run and tried to convince myself that everything would be okay.

But when I woke up at three in the morning, Adrian's side of the bed was empty and cold.

I found him on the back balcony with Sophia, both of them wrapped in blankets and talking quietly. The way they looked at each other, like they were the only two people in the world, made me feel like an intruder in my own home.

I went back to bed and cried myself to sleep.