I didn’t know who Ayla was at first. Luke only ever called her "a friend." One night, shortly after our mating ceremony, he got a call. The kind of call that makes your heart stop.
"I need to go," Luke had said, his voice distant. "A friend of mine... she’s hurt."
I was naïve. I asked if he wanted me to come with him.
“No. I can handle it,” he said, and left me standing alone in our house, staring at the flickering firelight. He was gone all night.
The next morning, he returned looking haggard, haunted. His eyes, usually cold and distant, were filled with something I hadn’t seen before—fear and guilt. It wasn’t until later that I learned the truth.
Ayla, my Alpha’s first love, had returned.
Emily’s POV
I always knew Luke didn’t love me, at least not the way a mate should. I’d tried convincing myself for years that maybe I wasn’t enough—too quiet, too different. But deep down, I knew the truth: it was never about me.
Then I found out why.
Ayla.
The cursed wolf from Luke’s past wasn’t just an old pack mate. She was his first love. The one who disappeared years ago, leaving him hollow. She came back, twisted by a curse, but he didn’t care. He was still obsessed with her.