Battle of Fate 87

The five course dinner was amazing. The atmosphere was stunning, and Finlay looked good enough to eat. He was
ticking all the boxes I could wish from a date. The way he looked at me, like I was the centre of his world, had me longing
for his mark. The conversation around the table was light, we were all in a good mood. Finlay had his hand resting on the
back of my chair, his fingers lightly skimming my bare shoulder. His aunt was telling me a story from her first formal
dinner back in their old pack. The band had started playing and the evening felt perfect. Both Finlay and I laughed at the
punchline of Matilda’s story. Finlay leaned closer to me.
“Do you want to dance?” he asked. I smiled.
“I do, I have been looking forward to it,” I confessed. He returned my smile and got up. He helped me up from my chair
and told the others where we were going. I saw several knowing smirks from them, but I didn’t care. I knew the time
when Finlay and I could be open about how we felt was almost here. He led me to the dancefloor and pulled me into his
arms as he led me out amongst the other couples. He held me close and I relaxed and enjoyed the moment.
‘You look happy,’ he mindlinked me.
‘I am happy, very happy,’ I told him.
‘It makes me happy.’
“But I want to dance!” we heard a shrill voice object. We both looked in the direction of it, and we weren’t alone. Cindy
was standing next to James. She looked to be seconds away from stomping her foot like a child having a tantrum. Her
face had almost the same pink colour as her dress. James gave her a stern look and she shrunk and then stormed off.
James turned his attention to me.
‘Ignore him,’ I linked Finlay. ‘He has been ignoring me for days. We can ignore him for an hour or two.’
‘I don’t know who you are talking about,’ Finlay told me. He was really on his best behaviour. The music changed into a
slower tune, and Finlay didn’t hesitate to pull me even closer. We rested our temples against each other and I could feel
him scent me. ‘I love you, Red,’ he said in our link.
‘I love you too, Finn. I’m happy I get to share this moment with you. It feels magical,’ I told him. We danced for a couple
of more dances. Then Finlay led me off the dancefloor and we headed for our table. Before we got to it, Elder and Becky
came walking. Elder looked handsome in his dark suit and Becky was beautiful in a red dress. Becky and I hugged while
Finlay and Elder shook hands. I gave Elder a kiss on his cheek.
“Please tell me he is treating you like a queen tonight,” I said to Becky. She giggled.
“He is,” she told me.
“Everything okay?” Finlay asked. Elder sighed, and I knew the sigh by now.
“What does he want?” I asked.
“He has agreed to see you. If it’s done tonight. I told him it was a shit move, but he won’t listen.” I could feel Finlay tense
up. I rubbed his arm.
“Fine. It’s not what I hoped for, but I’ll take it and get it over with,” I agreed. “Tell him to meet me by the bridge over the
creek in half an hour. The place should be empty tonight,” I added.
“I will come as well,” both Finlay and Elder said at the same time. Becky giggled and I smiled.
“No, you won’t, neither of you. I will do this in private. It’s the dignified way to handle this. Does he agree to my terms?” I
asked Elder. There was a moment of silence as he mindlinked his Alpha.
“He says he will see you there,” Elder said.
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“Good. Now go and have fun and don’t think too much about this. That is what tomorrow is for,” I told both my brother
and his lovely mate. I hugged Becky again and then Finlay took me back to our table.
‘Red,’ he started as we sat down.
‘No, Finn. Don’t ruin a perfectly amazing evening. I will take a little break from it. When I get back one more thing will
have been resolved and we can go back home to start the rest of our lives,’ I told him.
‘What if he tries to harm you?’
‘You, Sam, Ramses and Jake are within linking distance. I can hold him off until you get there. It won’t come to that. He
knows why I want to meet, he has agreed to it. I will be back before you know it,’ I insisted. I got up and headed for the
bridge. It was in the part of the forest that was thicker with undergrowth. It would give us some privacy. It took me ten minutes to walk through the forest to the bridge, but James was already waiting. His eyes grew bigger as I stepped into
the clearing.
“Amie, you came,” he said.
“Of course I did. I have been trying to set up a meeting for days,” I answered.
“You are upset with me.”
“I’m upset that you try to drag this thing out,” I corrected him.
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“You are being stubborn and won’t give me another chance. I thought that if I dragged it out and your pack was forced
together with the Ocean shore pack, you would have to come back home and then we would have a chance to start
over,” he told me.
“James, that wouldn’t have happened. If you hadn’t agreed to meet me, I would have made sure we ran into each other
in a more public setting. This needs to end. We both deserve a new start. You can have Cindy, or someone else,” I said.
“And you can have your Alpha,” he spat out, sounding bitter.
“I can. And I can forget everything about fated mates and just enjoy life with my chosen mate instead. If you want to hold
out for a second chance mate, I wish you all the best of luck.”
“Amie, please. I beg you not to do this. Please take pity on me.” I looked at him. He didn’t look well.
“James. This isn’t healthy, it’s not good for either of us. The bond between us has turned toxic. I don’t want the bond, I
haven’t wanted it for many years. If anything I would like my friend back. The one who picked blueberries for me when I
was sick and who made sure I didn’t have to walk by the old bridge alone because I believed a troll lived under it. I don’t want this. This could have been great, it could have been amazing, but it never was and it never will be.” I had to take a moment to collect myself. The forest was quiet, the music didn’t reach us. It was only the pebbling from the brook and
the soft sound of the wind rustling the leaves. “I, Beta Armeria Rose Sage Winstone…”
“No! Amie, please. Please don’t do this to me, to us,” James begged me as he fell to his knees in front of me.
“… accept your rejection.” I felt the frail tendrils of the bond between us vanish. There was no snap, no pain. It was just a
feeling of freedom, of peace. James howled in pain. I turned my back on him to head back.
“Amie, wait. What happens now?” he asked. I looked back over my shoulder.
“Now we go back home and find happiness, James. We learn and we move forward. I wish you all the happiness that life
can bring. I hope you find a mate you will love and accept. I hope you build a happy family and that your pups get to
grow up as we did. And I hope that when your pups find their mates, they will accept them because you will have taught
them the value of the bond. That is what will happen, James.” I could hear him sobbing as I walked away. I didn’t feel bad
for him. I just felt relieved. I was done with true mates, with mate bonds, and with fate. I would choose Finlay and he would choose me and it would be perfect. I was walking through the woods, heading back to the dinner. The scent hit me
from nowhere and I wanted to cry when my wolf told me my mate was close. Why me? What had I done to the moon
goddess for her to hate me like this? Why wouldn’t she just let me be happy? I steeled myself and turned towards the
scent. I had rejected one mate this evening, I could reject fifty more if I needed to.