Chapter 2

I laughed quietly.

Through the static, I could almost see how anxious he was.

I'd known Ethan since the year my wolf awakened. His inner wolf had a patch of pure white fur under its throat. I used to tease him for looking like a scruffy little skunk. He chased me three streets before I gave up running.

But later, when I was the one being bullied, he was the one who stepped in. He told them I was the scruffy little skunk, not him.

Five years ago, he'd dropped to one knee and asked me to be his chosen mate.

That was the same moment Julian appeared.

The fated bond was too strong. I couldn't fight it.

I broke our childhood promise. But every time we'd walked side by side, every time we'd looked at each other — I remembered all of it.

Ethan said he'd wait. He hadn't been lying.

That's what a promise should weigh. Not the cheap, weightless thing Julian called a promise — the kind he could break without a second thought.

I hung up. The air in the healing room felt thick.

Julian's face had gone suspicious. "Who were you talking to?"

"A friend."

I slipped the phone back under my pillow. I didn't want to talk to him. I closed my eyes and pressed my lips shut. I didn't even want to look at them.

Julian sighed.

His voice softened, took on that practiced, regretful tone.

"Rafaela, don't be like this. You're still recovering."

"Everything you did for me — I'll never forget it."

"But fate changes with time."

I didn't answer. Then I heard Lyra start crying.

"Rafaela, I shouldn't have fallen for the Alpha. I couldn't help it... he was so lonely these three years..."

"Don't be angry at him, please. You just woke up, your wolf is so weak. You can't get worked up."

I looked at her, expressionless.

"Don't blame him?"

"So I should blame you?"

Lyra's head dropped. She took a small step back.

"Rafaela... I'm sorry. I do love him."

"But it was a love that grew over time. A real love."

"I hope you'll understand."

If she weren't the little sister I'd loved most since we were children, I wouldn't hate her this much.

When Eleanor took me in, she swore she'd never have another child. Then somehow she was pregnant with Lyra. She didn't dare tell the pack. I — barely a child myself — looked after her for months until Lyra was born.

I was only five years older than her.

But I might as well have been her mother.

I'd loved that girl. Trusted her completely.

And this is what she gave me back.

Lyra wiped her eyes and started crying harder.

Julian stepped closer and tucked my hair behind my ear.

"You just woke up. Of course you can't accept it yet. I understand."

"Lyra and I are just honoring what we already promised each other. I just want her with me. I can't let her down."

It was so absurd I actually laughed.

Promises?

His promises were cheap paint. Easy to cover with a new coat.

He saw the anger rising in me. Lyra dropped to her knees beside the bed and grabbed my hand.

"Rafaela, you've always shared everything with me, ever since we were little."

"Just this once, share Julian with me too. Let me help take care of him."

Julian wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Sweetheart, you don't have to do this. Take it easy."

I looked at the two of them — selling shamelessness as devotion — and laughed in their faces.

"Sure. Why don't you tell me everything? How exactly did the two of you start this 'great love' while I was unconscious for three years? I'll think about how I want to share. Monday, Wednesday, Friday — or Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday?"

Lyra's face went pale. "I — I —"

Julian exploded. "Watch your mouth! Lyra is pregnant! How can you say that to her?!"

The shock hit me like a hammer through the bond.

I couldn't stop the tears.

"Pregnant?"

"Julian, how dare you say the word 'baby' to me?"