Time-Traveled to Five Years Later, Ex Became My Alpha Mate

It had been exactly one month since Marcus broke up with me.I knew we still loved each other, but under pressure from my father, he was the one who broke things off.I lay there staring at our old photos, tears dripping onto them one by one, until I cried myself to sleep.I didn't know how long I was out before a girl's voice pulled me awake."Luna, it's time to get up. The Alpha will be home soon. He's taking you to your prenatal checkup today."Luna? Alpha? Prenatal checkup?I blinked, groggy and disoriented, and found myself in a room I had never seen before. That snapped me wide awake. An unfamiliar maid stood in front of me, and I had no idea who she was."Who's this Luna you're talking about? Me?"The maid laughed. "You must still be muddled from sleep, Luna. You and the Alpha have been mated for five years. Of course it's you.""Who is the Alpha now?"She thought it was a strange question, but answered earnestly. "Marcus Cole."My brain short-circuited.When did I have a mating

I chased Marcus into the hallway and turned on every ounce of charm I had. "Come on, I worked so hard on this. Just try one bite? For me?"His gaze dropped to the cut on my finger. A small crease appeared between his brows. "Be more careful next time. I'll get you a bandage."He cared. He still had me in his heart. I seized the opening. "See? I literally bled for this meal. The least you can do is sit down and eat it."Marcus stared at me, then exhaled slowly through his nose. "Fine."Works every time. Sweetness is a superpower.The table was set with all his favorites, or at least, the favorites I remembered from five years ago.He didn't smile. He didn't soften. But he sat down across from me, and that was enough.I piled food onto his plate, grinning at him. "Eat up. Everything here is something you love."He didn't touch his fork. He leaned back slightly, eyes narrowing."What did you put in the food this time?"The smile died on my face. "I didn't —""I've told you before. No matt

I stared down at the small curve of my belly, then back at Marcus.He wouldn't look at me. He reached for his jacket, heading back to his own room."Wait. Marcus, wait."I grabbed his sleeve. "I need to tell you something."He looked at me, cold and closed-off. "If this is about the dissolution, save your breath.""It's not." I was panicking now, and I didn't care anymore whether he thought I was crazy. I took a deep breath and just said it."I'm from the past. I time-jumped here."Marcus stared at me like I was out of my mind."I know it sounds insane. But it's true. Five years ago, you broke up with me to protect me, and I went home and cried until I passed out. When I opened my eyes, I was here. Five years in the future.""I don't know what happened in those five years. But the woman who cheated on you was the future version of me. Not the me standing in front of you right now.""I love you. I would never dissolve our bond."I said it all in one breathless rush. Then I looked up and

He cut me off before I could explain. "I got you a cake. The one you liked five years ago."I stared at the box in his hands."If you really are the Mia from five years ago," he said quietly, "you should still like it."So he believed me. That impossible, absurd story about waking up five years in the future, and he actually believed it.Something cracked open inside my chest. The ache spread through me like a slow tide.I grabbed the hand holding the cake box. "I do. I really do like it."I pulled the cake out and took a bite. It was too sweet, almost cloyingly so. Honestly, it wasn't even good. But the tears came anyway, running down my face before I could stop them.There was a secret I'd never told him. I never actually liked this cake. It was just the cheapest one in the shop. I told him it was my favorite so he wouldn't feel pressured, back when he was broke and this was the most he could offer me.But the taste brought it all flooding back, to the early days when we'd first gott

The next evening, I poured Aunt Vera's herbal tonic down the drain.A suspicion had been nagging at me for weeks. So I went to find Ryder on my own.He'd just finished a match and was toweling sweat off his neck when he saw me. He didn't look surprised. Just smiled that crooked smile."Well, well. Miss me already?"I ignored that. I glanced at the cluster of fighters behind him. The whispers cut off the moment they caught my look."Too many ears here. Walk with me."We ended up at a coffee shop across the street. We each ordered something and sat in silence until the drinks arrived. He raised an eyebrow at me over his cup."You drag me all the way out here just to have coffee?"If it weren't for the questions gnawing at me, I wouldn't have wanted to look at this face at all, the face that stirred up nothing but ugly memories.I took a breath. The words had been turning over in my mouth for so long they'd gone smooth. I let them out. "What exactly was the deal between us?"Ryder laughed