The Rejected Mate's Unexpected Glorious Comeback

Eva Chase POV:

"Just a little further," I whispered to myself.

My palms are sweating.

The delicate frosting on the anniversary cake began to feel slippery and stuck to the inside of the box.

Today is my anniversary with Chace Mays.

Every guard we passed nodded respectfully in a low voice.

Happy anniversary, Luna.

A warm feeling spread through my chest.

I returned a smile to each of them.

Unconsciously, his fingers touched my neck, tracing the blurry outline of our intertwined marks.

The image of him from ten years ago flashed through my mind, standing before the entire wolf pack, his voice echoing with conviction as he swore his loyalty to me.

"Eva, I will do everything in my power to protect you."

That memory is my shield.

Used to maintain our cold relationship throughout the year.

It's about ten steps away from the master bedroom door.

The wolf spirit within me suddenly became restless.

A pure sense of fear washed over me, so intense that I immediately stopped in my tracks.

The air has changed.

A tiny ripple disturbed the private spiritual connection I shared with Chace.

It was a whisper, a ghostly voice.

A sharp, shrill laugh-that was definitely not mine.

My blood is cold.

I did not hesitate.

I rushed forward and pushed open the heavy oak door to our bedroom.

The room was pitch black, and the curtains were tightly drawn.

But my eyes adjusted to the darkness immediately.

The smell hit them like a heavy blow.

Our scent-sandalwood and lily-is there.

But it was tainted.

It was contaminated by a cloyingly sweet rose scent.

It was so wrong, so aggressive, that it made my stomach churn.

My gaze suddenly shifted to the bed.

Two figures were entangled in our bedsheets.

The cake box began to tremble violently in my hands.

A sliver of moonlight shone through the gap in the curtains.

It illuminated the face of the woman beneath him.

Her head was tilted back, and her black hair was spread out on my pillow.

My sister.

Bella.

The air in my lungs was completely drained away with a silent gasp.

That wasn't a thought. That wasn't an emotion.

That was a physical event.

A cold fist slammed into my sternum. I bent over, struggling to breathe, but couldn't get any air in.

The cake box slipped from my numb fingers.

It landed on the expensive wool carpet with a soft, nauseating thud.

The sound broke the spell.

The two people on the bed hurriedly separated, their shocked gasps echoing in the sudden silence.

I can't watch. I can't process all of this.

My body acts purely on instinct.

I turned around abruptly and ran out.

I stumbled out of the room, my shoulder bumping into the wall in the hallway.

Tears blurred my vision, turning the ornate wall lamps into halos of light.

"Eva, wait!" Chace's voice roared angrily behind me, filled with rage rather than regret.

I didn't stop.

I rushed down the magnificent staircase, my bare feet slapping against the cold marble.

But I didn't run out of the house.

not yet.

I need an answer. An excuse. Anything to make this impossible reality seem unbelievable.

I burst into his private study.

That room he always forbade me from entering alone.

My hands trembled uncontrollably as I yanked open the top drawer of his mahogany desk.

It's locked.

With a frustrated sob, I pulled harder, my fingernails splitting on the wood.

The lock opened with a crisp click.

I clumsily rummaged through the documents, files, and receipts.

Then I saw it.

A yellowed, curled-corner document was tucked at the very bottom.

A prenuptial agreement.

My fingers trembled as I unfolded it.

The legal terminology was blurry to me, but the terms were brutally clear.

My relationship with Chace was a deal.

A political strategy aimed at acquiring resources for his wolf pack.

My value is calculated as assets and alliances.

My gaze fell on the signature panel at the bottom.

His familiar, arrogant, scribbled signature.

The date is ten years ago and one day ago.

The very foundation of my life collapsed into ashes.

I am not his partner.

I am a tool.

The study door suddenly flew open and slammed against the wall.

Chace stood there, his shirt hastily buttoned up, with a red lipstick stain on his chest.

There was no shame in his eyes, only rage.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he roared.

I did not answer with words.

I picked up the agreement and threw it at his face.

Paper fluttered around him.

"Ten years," I choked out, my throat hoarse, the words tasting like blood. "You've lied to me for ten years."

A figure appeared behind him.

Bella.

She was wrapped in my favorite silk nightgown.

That was the gift he gave me for our fifth anniversary.

It hung loosely on her body, a final, intimate insult.

She pressed close to his side, her voice a sweet, trembling whisper.

"Chace, darling, she scared me."

My wolf spirit is tearing and clawing inside my skin, begging for release.

"You!" I hissed, my finger trembling as I pointed at my sister. "How could you do this?"

Bella didn't even show the slightest bit of shame.

She let out a soft, contemptuous laugh.

"Oh, please, Eva. Do you really think someone as boring as you can keep an Alpha like him?"

"Enough," Chace snapped, his patience exhausted.

He took a step forward, his icy gaze freezing me in place.

"I never loved you, Eva. Not even for a day. It was a duty. An arrangement."

He vaguely gestured around the luxurious study.

"Bella, the one I love is Bella."

He stood up straight, ramrod straight.

The oppressive weight of his Alpha power assaulted me, squeezing the air out of my lungs and pinning me to the spot.

His face was a mask of indifference.

He looked at me as if I were a stranger.

A problem.

Then he said those words.

Those ancient and binding words are enough to shatter a soul.

"I, Chace Mays, formally reject you, Eva Chase, as my partner."

A scream ripped from my throat, primal and wild.

The pain, absolute and all-consuming, tore me apart.

It felt like my heart was being ripped out of my chest.

My knees buckled.

I collapsed onto the floor, clutching my chest, panting heavily.

The last thing I saw before darkness swallowed my vision was their faces, cold and indifferent, looking down at me.

Then, in a final, desperate surge of adrenaline, I struggled to my feet and ran.