Chapter 2
Olivia’s POV
The elevator ride to our penthouse feels like it lasted an eternity. The sleek chrome walls reflects my tear–streaked face, but I don’t care. Anger course through my veins, blotting out the humiliation I’d “felt at the courthouse.
I clutch my phone tightly in one hand, the image of Lucian and Lyanna at their impromptu wedding still burned into my mind. Each second they spend together, smiling as though my existence doesn’t ‘t matter, stokes the fire inside me. He owes me an explanation–no, he owes me more than that.
The elevator ding, and I step into the penthouse. The large windows frames the city skyline, glittering against the backdrop of night. It was quiet–too quiet–but his scent is unmistakable. Warm, earthy, and dominant. It lingered in the air, pulling at the small bond mark on my wrist.
I sit on the edge of the bed we had once shared, my engagement ring resting in my palm. It glittered in the soft light of the bedside lamp, mocking me. I’d always thought of it as a symbol of our love, our unbreakable bond. Now, it felt like a lie.
The room is eerily silent, the weight of betrayal hanging heavy.
“You’re stronger than this, Olivia. You don’t need him. You’ll survive, and you’ll thrive. You always do.” I say to myself
Even the words feels empty and hollow. I know I can’t thrive because I built my world around him. He was always the one.
I rip it off and hurl it across the room. It clinked against the hardwood floor and rolled under the bed, lost in the shadows.
My sleep is restless and my dreams disoriented but I feel his warmth enveloping me in his hot embrace. I imagine him right beside me, his kisses trailing a path down my neck. I lose myself in this dream, to escape my reality.
The morning sun hits my eyes in its glory. The night is gone but the pain is ever present. I sink lower into the sheets in despair. How do I live without him?
I notice for the first time that his side of the bed is all rumpled up. The smell of fresh coffee hits my nose. Someone is in the apartment!
Lycian?
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ucian!” I call, my voice echoing through the vast space.
moment later, he appears at the doorway, his expression grim. He is still wearing the same black suit from the photo, though the tie has been loosened, and his shirt is slightly unbuttoned. He obviously must have slept in his clothes. He looks tired, older somehow, but my rage drowns out any sympathy I might have felt.
Wait! I wasn’t dreaming that he was holding me all night.
“Olivia,” he says softly, as though my name were a fragile thing that might shatter in his mouth.
I don’t give him the chance to speak further. I throw my phone onto the glass coffee table between us. The screen lights up with the image of him and Lyanna, their smiles frozen in a moment I would
ever be able to unsee.
“What the hell is this?” I demand, my voice shaking.
He doesn’t glance at the phone. Instead, he sighs and rubs the back of his neck. “You weren’t supposed to find out like that.”
“Find out what?” I snap, my nails digging into my palms. “That you left me at the altar to marry her?
That everything you promised me was a lie?”
His eyes snapped back to mine, and for a moment, the fierce Alpha I knew resurfaced. “Don’t you
dare say that,” he growled. “You mean everything to me, Olivia. You always have.”
“And it wasn’t a lie,” he says firmly, stepping closer. “I meant every word I said to you, Liv.”
I take a step back, my feet stumbling against the hardwood floor. “Don’t you dare,” I say, pointing a trembling finger at him. “Don’t you dare try to justify what you did. You humiliated me in front of everyone. You chose her–her–over me.”
“She’s dying.” His voice is low, heavy with a weight that didn’t soften my anger.
“And what does that have to do with us? With our bond?” I hold up my wrist, the faint crescent mark glowing slightly under the dim lighting. “You marked me, Lucian. You said I was your mate.”
“I didn’t plan for this,” he growls, his dark eyes locking onto mine. “Lyanna was the love of my life first, for twenty years. We promised each other when we were children to stand by each other and build a life, long before you came into my life. When she left, I thought that part of my life was over. Ånd then I met you, Liv. You showed me that I could love again, that I could have a future.”
I swallowed hard, the lump in my throat threatening to choke me. “But?”
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he’s dying,” he repeated, his voice cracking. “She’s dying, and her last wish was to finish what we sted, she doesn’t have anyone else, Liv, The bond–it’s..it’s not just a connection. It’s a part of her
ul And without it, she wouldn’t have found peace,”
1 let out a bitter laugh, shaking my head, “So what? You’re honoring some ancient wolf tradition instead of the life we were building, together? Do you even hear yourself right now?”
“She’s pack,” he says simply, as if that explained everything.
“And I’m not,” I spat, the words tasting like venom,
His jaw tightens. “That’s not what I meant.”
Isn’t it?” I shot back. “Because that’s exactly how it feels. Like I was just a placeholder until she came back into the picture.”
Lucian’s shoulders tense, and for a moment, his Alpha presence surged through the room. The air grows heavier, charged with his dominance, but I refuse to back down. I stare at him, daring him to try and intimidate me.
“Olivia,” he says after a long pause, his voice softer now. “I never wanted to hurt you. But Lyanna is dying. She has no one else. She asked me for this as her final wish, and I couldn’t say no.”
You couldn’t say no?” I repeat, my voice rising. “You couldn’t say no to her, but you had no problem saying no to me? To us?”
“It’s not that simple,” he says, his frustration finally breaking through his calm facade. “This isn’t just about you or me. It’s about the pack, about honoring the bond that was made long before we met. I owe her a lot. I owe her my life. It’s far more complicated than I can explain.”
I take a step closer, my fury boiling over. “You want to talk about bonds? What about the one we share? Or does that mean nothing to you now that she’s back?”
His silence is deafening.
He closes his eyes, a muscle in his jaw twitching as he fought for control. “I don’t have an answer for that,” he admitted, his voice low. “I didn’t want to lose you. I don’t want to lose you. But Lyanna -she needed me, Olivia. She needed me in a way I couldn’t ignore.”
I laugh bitterly, shaking my head. “So that’s it? You just get to play the hero and leave me to pick up the pieces of my life? Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“No,” he said quickly, his voice desperate. “I know it doesn’t. And I’ll never forgive myself for what
ve done to you. But I couldn’t… I couldn’t let her die thinking I’d abandoned her too.”
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apte
His words hit me like a punch to the gut. For the first time, I saw the war raging inside him–the guilt, the regret, the helplessness of a man who had been forced to choose between two impossible paths. But that didn’t make it hurt any less.
The bond mark on my wrist throbs painfully, as though it could sense the growing fracture between us. I press my hand over it, trying to ease the ache, but it only made the pain sharper.
“I loved you,” I say, my voice cracking. “I trusted you. And you destroyed that the moment you chose
her.”
Lucian’s expression shifted, a flicker of pain crossing his face. “I still love you, Olivia.”
“Don’t,” I warn, holding up a hand. “Don’t you dare say that to me. You don’t get to say that after what You’ve done.”
The room fell silent, the weight of our words hanging heavily in the air.
Finally, Lucian speaks, his voice barely above a whisper. “I had no choice.”
“There’s always a choice,” I said, my voice cold. “And you made yours.”
He sighs deeply and draws me close.
I had no choice but I have a solution. Wait for me. She doesn’t have long to live and she’ll be gone before you know it. Wait for me, and we’ll be together again. And this time forever.”
