Chapter 1

“What? You’re ending things with Lucien and going abroad to pursue your medical research career?”

My best—and only—friend, Eve Young, stared at me in shock.

Her voice rose, full of disbelief. “Did Lucien agree? He’s been so good to you these past three years! I thought he had fallen for you!”

I gave her a bitter smile, eyes drifting toward my cup of coffee. “Who would've thought? The moment Summer came back, he chose her yet again.”

The truth was, I didn’t even know if Lucien had agreed. When I handed him the mate-bond termination papers, he was on a call. He barely looked at me, just signed it while still talking, and walked away before I could say a word. He had not brought it up since.

Now, all I had to do was wait three more days. Once the papers go through at City Hall, and I get the official termination certificate—the human equivalent of a divorce—I’d finally be free.

I turned to Eve and smiled. “It’s fine. Just three more days, and it’ll be official.”

“What’ll be official?”

A deep voice interrupted our conversation. Lucien Grey, my mate and husband, had walked up without us noticing.

Eve looked up, clearly confused. “Lucien, Mia was saying she–”

“You’re here,” I quickly cut in before she could finish.

Reaching out, I gently patted Eve’s hand and shook my head at her.

“It’s raining. I came to take you home,” Lucien said calmly.

I gave him a small nod, said goodbye to Eve, and followed him to the car.

Rain tapped softly against the windows. The air inside the car was heavy and silent.

Ever since Summer White came back, things between Lucien and me had become strained and awkward in ways we both tried to ignore. He opened his mouth a few times, trying to say something, but ended up pressing his lips together each time.

Finally, after a long stretch of silence, he spoke.

“Oh, right. Mia, what were those papers you had me sign last week?”

I was caught off guard, and just as I was about to answer, his phone rang again.

“Lucien,” Summer’s voice slurred through the speaker, soft and whiny, “I drank too much at the bar and fell. My foot hurts really badly, and I can’t get a ride. Can you come get me?”

Lucien’s grip on the steering wheel tightened. His knuckles turned white, his jaw clenched.

“Summer,” he said sharply, “I’ve told you this more than once. I have a mate. Her name is Mia. Please stop calling me in the middle of the night. Ask one of your other friends.”

There was a brief silence on the other end. Then, she muttered, “So what if you have a mate? That Marking Ceremony was meant for me. You planned it all for me!”

Her entitled tone pushed Lucien over the edge. He slammed the brakes. The tires screeched, and the car lurched.

“Yeah, I did, but you ran away. And in the end, the one I chose was Mia!”

Lucien had always been composed and level-headed. That was the first time I’d seen him lose control like that.

There was a long pause, and then Summer’s voice came through, shaking.

“I’m sorry. If you hate me that much, I promise I’ll never bother you again.”

With that, the call ended, but Lucien didn’t relax. Instead, he looked even more torn than before, gripping the wheel as if it could anchor him. His eyes stayed on the road, but I could tell that his mind was somewhere else and with someone else.

I wiped away a tear and bit my cheek, sighing. I knew what I had to do. Before he could turn to me with that guilty expression I’d seen so many times before, I beat him to it.

“It’s okay,” I said with a smile. “If you’ve got something to do, go ahead. I can head home on my own.”

Lucien watched as I opened the door, stepped out into the pouring rain, and raised my umbrella.

He said softly and remorsefully, “I’ll be home as soon as I finish up.”

I nodded at him with a calm smile and stood there, in the downpour, watching his car disappear down the street.

I had loved Lucien Grey for ten years, and never once did I expect to be anything more than a shadow in his life. Then, three years ago, Summer had bailed on the Marking Ceremony, and Lucien stood before the whole pack, asking if anyone else was willing to be bonded to him as his mate.

I stepped forward immediately. I had loved him quietly for so long, and for three years, he had been nothing but gentle, so much so that it all felt like a dream. Just when I began to think maybe he had feelings for me too, Summer returned.

Watching him struggle—caught between rejecting her and still instinctively drawing close to her—I knew it was time for me to walk away.

In the middle of the rain, I pulled out my phone and sent him a message.

“Those papers you asked about? It’s in the glove compartment. Open it. You’ll know exactly what it is.”

I set the phone down and wiped my tears away.

It was time I returned the mate to its rightful owner, for Lucien’s true heart and for my own dignity.