Page 13 of Forsaken By Fate
“Eat up,” I tell her. “Before it gets cold.”
Ignoring Victor’s deep scowl, I make my way out of the suite, toward my wing of the estate, ignoring the daggers he shoots into my back with his stare.
“Zane!”
Sighing, I turn to face him. “Yes?”
The door to Aurora’s room is already closed behind him, and he stalks toward me in a fury. “What are you doing?”
“Making nice, just like you said,” I reply innocently.
“Don’t give me that,” he barks.
I hold my ground firmly and raise my hand toward the chandeliers overhead. “Notice anything different, brother?”
Victor hesitates and looks around, cocking his head. “The house is more stable,” he mutters.
“The key is keeping her happy. You’re right. The happier she is, the better things will be around here. I’m just doing my part.”
Victor scowls. “To what end, exactly?”
I grin broadly. “Are you asking for details, Victor?”
My older brother is annoyed. “We still don’t understand anything about her and you’re thinking with the wrong head. Did you learn anything new, or were you just trying to get her naked?”
I resent the implication.
“No, but I don’t really think there is anything to learn. My best guess is that she’s afraid of the Apex Alphas in Oklahoma and left the state to escape them. She wouldn’t be the first one to make a move like that for that reason.”
Victor makes a face. “We don’t need a problem with other Apex packs,” he grumbles.
“It doesn’t need to be a problem if we keep her happy,” I remind him.
His eyes narrow more, but I quirk a wink at him. “You make it sound like keeping someone like her happy is a major chore,” I chuckle. “I could think of worse ways to pass the time.”
“She’s obviously not our mate, Zane. There’s no bond,” Victor hisses.
I shrug, unbothered by the fact. “She might not be our mate, but she made it into our town somehow. And until we find our mate, she might be nice to keep around. I don’t think she’ll complain if we treat her properly.”
Turning away, I leave him with the thought to chew on and head toward my room, Aurora’s electric kiss remaining on my lips. I wouldn’t mind maintaining her happiness at all.
Chapter 5
Aurora
The gifts begin to arrive on the third day of my imprisonment, one after the other, in wrapped boxes. In each one, there’s a different pastime for me—books, puzzles, and other things for me to do while I’m in captivity.
It doesn’t feel right to call it imprisonment at this point when I am being treated so well, my favorite foods being cooked, a collection of movies and music added to the sitting room, and a gorgeous wardrobe of clothes brought to my closet.
Zane furnished a proper library of books for me, with titles I haven’t even heard of, and I find myself sitting on the Juliet balcony, overlooking the rose gardens at the front and side of the house, reading for hours. It’s not a hard life, and I really can’t complain.
Zane makes it a point to spend time in my suite, gently prodding me on details of my life in Oklahoma, and I’m reluctant to share even the smallest bits of information, lest they learn about Lachlan’s rejection. I’m surprised they can’t see the mate glow around me, my yearn for Lachlan less now that I’m locked away in the Golden brothers’ estate, maybe because I’m tucked in Oak Hollow. But can’t they tell I’m mated, even if I’m rejected?
Every day, I feel less connected to Lachlan, and I wonder if that’s normal. I don’t know how that works, if he’s done something on his end. Perhaps he’s visited a warlock and had a spell cast to unbind him, or maybe his rejection is just so strong that it won’t exist. But the burn of the rejection still lingers, and it hurts more than the loss of my mate. I’ll never have a mate now and that’s a slap in the face I never saw coming.
Peering at my reflection in the full-length mirror in the bathroom, I don’t look much different than I did before the night of the full moon bonfire. My skin seems clearer than before, and I still ache deep down, but the Golden Alphas have helped alleviate the yearning that Lachlan left behind. That creates an odd sense of guilt that I don’t understand.
They can’t be my mates, of course.