Chapter 3

That night, Zack did not come home. I, on the other hand, did not bother asking where he had been.

Asking was pointless anyway.

Nancy had already flaunted the pictures all over social media.

Zack had gone back with Nancy to her pack. Her grandmother was grinning as she held Zack's hand.

His other hand rested on Nancy's belly, his eyes brimming with deep affection.

I could barely look at the photo.

For five years, Zack had given me that same loving gaze time and again.

I had reveled in every moment.

It was only at this moment that I came to understand the love I thought was mine could just as easily belong to someone else.

"Zack, do you ever feel guilty?"

My tears blurred the image of Zack's smiling face on my phone screen, and the words just spilled out of me.

In all our five years together, Zack had met my family just once. He had claimed he was not comfortable around older folks, that it made him feel stiff.

However, he did not smile, not even once, during that visit.

I inhaled sharply, frustration boiling over, and chucked my phone onto the bed.

The truth hit me hard: It was not about his discomfort with elders at all. He simply did not want anything to do with my family.

The following day, I met up with my friends to break the news about the Bonding Ceremony being called off.

All the while, the wolf inside me was pacing and growling with restless anxiety.

I clutched at my chest, feeling sick, my face ghostly pale.

The truth was, Zack had never wanted the Bonding Ceremony. I had to beg him to even consider it.

My friends were in shock when I told them.

"After all the trouble to get Zack on board with the Bonding Ceremony, why cancel it now?"

"You're so in love with him. How can you stand to leave?"

I could only offer a wry smile in response.

Let him go? Impossible.

'Years of love aren't easily cast aside,' I thought bitterly.

However, that relationship... it was never mine to demand.

I had tried so hard to be close to him, to be his one and only. Then Nancy came along, and everything shifted.

He gave her all the patience and smiles that used to be mine while he grew distant toward me by the day.

I lied to myself, saying she was his lifesaver, that he was just repaying a debt.

However, when she mentioned wanting a child to remember him by, he did not hesitate.

He had always said he would consider my feelings, but behind my back, he had gone ahead with the Breeding Ceremony.

In that moment, it was crystal clear: Zack and I were over.

Sometimes, the hardest thing was walking away, even when it tore me apart. Still, I had to do it.

I kept my reasons to myself.

All I told anyone was that I was heading to Northwood to dive into herbal research, and I would not be easy to reach for a few years.

After a night out with friends that stretched into the wee hours, I stumbled home to find Zack, fresh from his own late return.

He caught a whiff of my night out, his expression darkening as he recoiled.

However, then, as if a thought struck him, he composed himself and pulled me into a hug. "My dearest Maggie, hitting the bottle."

His eyes shone with affection as he grinned and caressed my forehead.

"Not exactly the behavior of a good Omega, leaving your Alpha to drink the night away."

Zack's attempt at humor fell flat, and I just stood there, mute.

Once, that look in his eyes would have had me spellbound. Now, it just made my stomach turn.

"Maggie, make me a promise, will you? Once we're bonded, no more booze." Zack laid it on thick, playing the part of the concerned fiance.

"Omegas are delicate, you know? Too much drink is rough on your inner wolf."

He deserved an Oscar for that act. If I had not known better, I might have fallen for it.

I let out an icy laugh and shoved him away. "Why don't you hit the showers? You reek of some other Omega."