But as the afternoon stretched into evening, he mind-linked me. I listened to him with a nervous smile, expecting to hear him say he was on his way. Instead, his voice came through, distant and cold.
[I won’t be able to make it home early, Aeliana,] he said, his tone flat. [An unexpected meeting came up. I’ll be late.]
The disappointment hit me like a punch to the gut, but I forced a smile, even though he couldn’t see it. “It’s okay,” I lied. “I understand.”
The line went dead, and I stood there, clutching the phone in my hand, staring at the wall as the truth slowly settled in. He wasn’t coming. Not because of some important pack matter, but because of her—Leila. I didn’t want to believe it at first, but the rumors were too loud, too insistent to ignore.
One of the pack members had seen them together at a famous hotel, where Haynes was hosting a grand banquet for her, his childhood sweetheart. Just because she was sad. The irony stung more than I could bear. While I sat alone, on the day that was supposed to be mine, my mate was with another woman, celebrating her.