Chapter 3

The next morning, Rowan was already waiting when I arrived on the busiest street on the north side of the city.

He wore a pale blue shirt stretched taut across his broad, muscular shoulders. He stood perfectly straight by the road, scanning his surroundings.

Then he spotted me and lifted one hand in a small wave.

"Selene." His voice was deep and resonant.

I picked up my pace and went to him.

"Hello, Rowan. It's nice to meet you," I said softly as I approached.

The street was nearly empty that early, and after five years of Damian keeping me shut away, few people knew what I looked like now.

Rowan and I sat down on a bench by the road with a space between us.

"Rowan, you know why I'm here. You must also know that crossing Damian won't do you any favors."

He nodded.

"I do."

"I heard you want to marry soon."

"I do."

His clear gaze held mine, open and guileless.

"Do you want to know why I agreed to this?"

"I do. With my reputation, there's nothing in it for you," I said calmly.

People still saw me as Damian's intended mate. If I bonded with Rowan, Damian would never let it go.

He was quiet for a moment, then turned his eyes to the far sky, toward his own territory.

"I've worked myself to the bone for my pack so my mother and our people could have a decent life. But the last time I went home, her chronic illness flared up. She doesn't have long..." he said heavily.

"She told me then that her one great wish was to see me settled with a family."

I stared at him, disbelieving. "That's the only reason?"

"No. You've probably heard that I intend to love only one woman in my lifetime. Sharing my life with one person has always been my dream too."

He looked at me, and there was not a trace of lust in those clear eyes.

I looked back at him and laid it out plainly.

"Rowan, you know Damian's pack is one of the strongest among our kind. Marrying me means bearing the full force of his anger, and it could put your pack in danger.

"Marrying me won't buy you my father's backing either.

"And marrying me means sealing the mate bond. After that, our fates are tied together for good.

"Do you still want this?" I laid the truth out plainly, though my voice betrayed a hint of nerves.

My words stripped away any pretense that this was an ordinary courtship.

Rowan suddenly smiled at me. "Selene, I'm glad you're this honest."

He paused.

"I'm still willing."

I pressed him again.

"You know Damian isn't just my childhood friend. We grew up together. I've spent my whole life in his shadow."

Rowan was silent for a moment before answering.

"The way I see it, Selene, you've made this choice and you're standing by it. That's enough for me."

"Good!" I said, brightening. I stood up and took his hand.

His palm was rough and covered in calluses.

Then, at last, we went on our first real date, both of us knowing what we wanted.

We walked hand in hand through a vast, glittering shopping center, tried foods I had never tasted, and spent the afternoon at an amusement park.

For five years Damian had made me study day and night, kept me under his thumb, and I had never once walked free through a world with this much color in it, let alone with Rowan beside me. The more I thought about it the more my eyes filled, until I couldn't hold it back and started to cry.

Rowan froze, at a loss for what to do.

I threw myself against his chest and burst into sobs.

His body went rigid, his hands hovering awkwardly in midair. Around us, the noisy street carried on beneath the thin sound of my sobs.

After a long while I lifted my head and looked at him.

"Come on. My father has everything ready for the bonding ceremony. After the celebration, we'll truly be married."

I paused.

"And from then on, we'll be each other's only mate."

Before the words were out, I took the hand of this big, blank-faced block of a man and pulled him along.

My father had arranged everything. I brought Rowan to a pure white bonding altar flanked by three white pillars carved with vine-like patterns.

My father watched from a short distance and ordered the guards to secure the doors.

Two priests presided while Rowan and I stood at the center of the altar and spoke our vows together.

The final vow left our mouths together. "We will never betray each other. We, Selene Vale and Rowan Hale, swear to be each other's one and only mates."

We held each other tightly. The carvings on the pillars flared red, and ribbons of crimson light wrapped around us before flowing into the backs of our hands.

A crimson mark burned itself into both our hands at once, and it seemed we could hear each other's thoughts.

[We will never be parted.] The words never left our lips, yet the vow settled into both our hearts.

When the bonding was complete, my father had us escorted home.

He also sent for Rowan's mother, and it was settled that the wedding celebration would be held two days later.

Word that the Alpha's daughter was getting married spread quickly, and the entire pack was swept up in celebration.

In a gleaming hotel ballroom, on a carpet of red silk, Rowan held one of my hands and walked me slowly forward.

His tall frame was dressed in a bright suit. I wore a red gown with a long train carried by two maids.

The crowd raised glasses filled with deep red wine and cheered.

I looked to the end of the silk, where my father and Rowan's mother stood on either side, smiling at us.

When it was over, I lifted my head to the sky.

Damian, you can never control me again.

Finally... free.