Page 1 of Exiled Mate

Chapter 1

Terra

Ihave no reason to be this upset at Zander’s mating ceremony. I’m surprised at myself… and disappointed. I’m trying my best, but despite the joyful atmosphere and beautiful day, inside I feel like I’m a thunderstorm.

I don’t really even have a right to feel this way. Zander and I weren’t ever anything… official. Childhood friends who always had enough of a thing that we kind of thought might turn into something someday.

I can’t help thinking that I could have been in Mia’s place. Mia, who is currently holding Zander’s hands like they’re her lifeline to the world, and looking up into his eyes with a shy vulnerability that’s definitely unusual for her. Normally, she’s bold as brass, so seeing her be kind of reserved? It’s sweet.

Zander, for his part, looks happier than I’ve ever seen him. He’s normally a very taciturn kind of guy, even with the guys he hangs out with, and is the pack’s main enforcer. I wouldn’t exactly say he’s a fountain of emotion.

Normally.

Not today.

Today, he’s practically glowing with love. His lips keep curling in a smile, and his eyes are glued on Mia like she’s the sun and the moon.

It’s easy to say that I’m jealous of them. That I’m angry about the fact that Mia took something away from me.

But… damn it. They are a really cute couple.

They’re fated mates, something that’s treasured in our culture, something that Zander and I could never be—especially because he’s fated to Mia.

And I know that despite everything I’m feeling right now, if I was standing up there, Zander wouldn’t be looking at me the way that he’s looking at Mia.

It makes the whole thing easier to get through, especially when the alpha tells them they’re officially mated in the eyes of the pack, and Zander sweeps Mia up for the most romantic kiss I’ve ever seen in my entire life.

Yeah, okay, I guess it stings a little.

I applaud with everyone else. I smile. I nod. I toast with champagne as the happy couple sparkles in the late summer light. I do everything required of me to be seen as a happy member of the pack.

It’s not until later, when I get back to my own little apartment behind the Oakwood Café, that I let it all fall away. And I fall apart with it.

The tears are easy. They flow like a river from the loss, that should feel like a scab, but currently feels more like a gaping wound.

I’m not mourning the fact that Zander and I should have ended up together.

I’m mourning the fact that it should be Rylan and me.

Rylan.

On a day-to-day basis, I don’t let myself think of his name. I can’t. Because if I think Rylan’s name, then I do…

This.

My mascara is probably shot. My eyes hurt, and the sobs that rip out of my chest feel like they’re pulled from the very bottom of my soul.

There is nothing on earth that hurts me as badly as thinking of Rylan James.

I’m so caught up in my indulgent sob-fest that I barely hear my phone ring. However, on the fourth round of hearing it screech at me, I pull it out of my bag.

Ember.

I pick it up after taking one steadying breath. “Hello?”

“Oh, sweetheart.” Ember’s voice is so kind, and I resist the urge to crumple again. “I thought I’d check in.”

“I’m fine,” I mumble.

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