His First Love, His Last Chance

For the first time in ten years, my mate ordered me to take a vacation. Seven days in Norway. No council meetings, no trade negotiations, no midnight calls about the pack's accounts. I thought Alpha Adrian Blackwood had finally noticed how tired I was. Then I overheard him talking to our son. “Dad, if you stand beside Aunt Vanessa at a public vow ceremony, what happens to Mom?” “Nothing happens to your mother. There’ll be no mating mark and no second bond.” Adrian laughed softly. “The ceremony only places Vanessa under my protection in front of the pack.” “But it looks like a wedding.” “It’s only a public promise, Finn. Your mother and I still have the real bond. She doesn’t need to know. Keep this between us, and I’ll buy you that remote-control truck.” I stood outside the door with my hand over my mouth. He was sending me away so he could stand before the pack and publicly place his first love under his protection. No mark. No second bond. Just the wedding Vanessa had always wanted—and the lie Adrian needed to tell himself it wasn’t betrayal. He thought I would come home grateful for the holiday. Instead, I called a lawyer, packed my son's favorite sweater and made sure our return tickets would never be used. Adrian had forgotten one thing about a chosen mate bond. The woman who chose him could choose to leave.