This was to be my 99th bonding ceremony with my mate, Garrett Zane.

Everything was ready.

Just then, his childhood sweetheart, Lindsey Sykes, called.

She was crying, saying she was trapped in a bar by a group of Rogues.

That it was dangerous.

Everyone could see it for what it was: another one of her ploys to stop our union.

But Garrett Zane fell for it every time.

Every time, he rushed to her rescue.

At our 99th bonding ceremony, Lindsey Sykes called, sobbing.

“Garrett, I’m trapped in a bar with a bunch of drunk Rogues…”

Garrett Zane’s face changed in an instant. He dropped the ceremonial token and made to leave.

“Garrett Zane.”

I grabbed his arm, my face devoid of expression.

“I’m only going to ask you this once, and it will be the last time. Are you sure you want to leave?”

He shook my hand off impatiently.

“Mia, why are you being so selfish? We can have another ceremony, but Lindsey only has one life. She’s in danger right now, I have to go save her!”

A sudden laugh escaped my lips.

I let go of his arm.

“Then go.”

Garrett Zane shot me a grateful look. “Mia, I knew you’d understand.”

“Next time, I promise I’ll make it up to you with an even grander bonding ceremony.”

There won’t be a next time.

————————

1

After Garrett Zane left, the guests were all used to it.

Even my parents just sighed.

Grace Zane, his mother, simply flipped through a calendar.

“Mia, why don’t you pick another date for next time?”

“There’s no need.”

I shook my head. “This mate bond… I’m not maintaining it anymore.”

…

At these words, everyone turned to look at me in shock.

Grace Zane’s face paled, and she hurried over to persuade me.

“Mia, don’t stoop to that brat’s level.”

“You two have been mates for ten years. You’re so close to completing the ceremony, don’t be impulsive…”

She held my hand warmly.

“I’m not being impulsive.”

I pulled my hand away, my expression flat, and offered a small smile.

“Grace, you’ve seen it yourself. Garrett always cares more about other people. He’d walk out on something as important as a bonding ceremony without a second thought.”

“Since he has no real intention of completing this union with me, there’s no reason for me to keep throwing myself at him.”

“I will cut off the mate bond between us.”

When I came out after changing out of my gown, more than half the guests had already left.

Grace Zane was on the phone, practically shaking with rage.

“You little brat, you get your ass back here right now!”

“Even if Lindsey Sykes drops dead out there today, it has nothing to do with you…”

She had it on speaker.

A clamor of noise came from the other end. Garrett Zane was shouting to be heard.

“Mom, what did you say… I can’t hear you.”

“Look, whatever it is, we’ll talk later. I’m busy right now.”

But I could clearly hear party music from his side, mingled with Lindsey Sykes’s laughter.

“Garrett, I knew you couldn’t bear to see me upset. You even ditched your bonding ceremony for me. Girls, how many times does this make?”

A few girls laughed and played along.

“Of course! Who in our circle doesn’t know Garrett Zane spoils you the most?”

“If you just agreed to be his mate, that Mia Weston wouldn’t even be in the picture, right?”

“Lindsey Sykes, you really are a vixen, just stringing him along like this. You just enjoy the ambiguity, don’t you?”

“Grace, I’m heading out now.”

My sudden voice startled her. She quickly covered the phone.

“Mia, I’m so sorry about today. It’s all that vixen Lindsey’s fault!”

She still thought I was just sulking.

“Mia, I know you’re a good kid. This time, it was definitely Garrett’s fault.”

“I’ll make him kneel and apologize to you another day.”

I shook my head, my expression serious.

“Grace, really, there’s no need.”

“You can’t force something that isn't meant to be. Just let him be with Lindsey Sykes.”

Seeing that I was serious, my parents didn’t say any more and drove me away.

The truth was, I had already seen it the moment I left the dressing room.

It was the same as the previous 98 times.

Every time she got her way, Lindsey Sykes would post an update on Instagram.

This time was no exception.

Two photos. One was of a man’s and a woman’s hands, fingers intertwined.

In the other, Garrett Zane was pulling a fragile-looking Lindsey Sykes into his embrace.

The caption read: “I told you I’d always be his favorite.”

“I just made one phone call, and he ditched his ceremony for me again. 99 times for me, just one more to hit the target, and I’ll be all his!”

“But I have to say, his chest feels so safe.”

After reading it, I casually liked the post.

And left a single comment: “Congrats.”

On the way home, my mother, Amelia Weston, was fraught with worry. She held my hand, her face full of concern.

“Mia, what are you going to do? When you said you wanted to break the mate bond, were you just angry or were you serious?”

She couldn’t believe it either. After all, we had been together for nearly ten years.

Every wolf thought we would successfully unite and eventually become family.

We hadn’t separated even during the toughest times.

But after Lindsey Sykes returned, everything changed.

I looked down and smiled. “Mom, I couldn’t be more serious.”

“Honestly, with all these repeated walk-outs, I’ve come to see things clearly. It seems I don’t love Garrett Zane as much as I thought.”

“As for a new mate—”

I looked at my mom seriously. “Didn’t you say that Aunt Diana’s son, Dylan York, the Alpha of another Pack, is supposed to be back these days?”

“If he’s still single, I wouldn’t mind trying to get to know him.”

My mom was instantly overjoyed to hear this.

“Mia, you’ve finally seen the light?”

“I’ve been telling you! Your Aunt Diana’s son, Dylan, is handsome and accomplished, and you two were basically childhood friends. Diana just told me yesterday he was back. You two should set up a time to meet.”

I smiled and nodded, saying nothing more.

That afternoon, I bought a plane ticket to the Maldives to clear my head.

As I was boarding, Garrett Zane called me. I didn’t answer.

By the time I landed in the Maldives, the number of missed calls had grown to over 30.

I swiped them away without a second thought.

After a day of fun, I posted some beautiful photos of myself on Instagram that evening.

Garrett Zane was the first to lose his cool.

The call finally got through.

“Mia Weston, didn’t we agree to go to the Maldives together? For our honeymoon, for commemorative photos… why did you go by yourself?”

“And you haven’t been answering your phone or replying to my texts for the past two days. What’s your problem? Do you think you can just walk all over me?”

He laid into me without giving me a chance to speak.

I just felt annoyed. If I hadn’t accidentally tapped the screen, I never would have answered his call.

Sure enough, before I could say a word, he came to his own conclusion.

“Fine, you’re just angry that I left the ceremony the other day, right? It’s not the first time. What’s with all the drama?”

“Hurry up and come back when you’re done playing. It’s not safe for a woman to be alone in a foreign country. How will you manage without a man by your side?”

“Okay, okay, I have things to do. Message me when you get back. I’ll take you to buy some new jewelry, treat you to hot dogs.”

The line went dead.

If his dismissive words would have hurt me before, they now left me completely unfazed.

It was always the same old tricks to placate me after he made me angry.

Just like a wolf eating the same prey every day, you eventually get sick of it.

I was just about to block him.

When a video popped up.

It was from Lindsey Sykes.

In the video, Garrett Zane, egged on by a crowd, took a sip of alcohol and fed it to Lindsey Sykes, mouth to mouth.

Lindsey Sykes deliberately licked his lips, provocative as a little wildcat.

Her actions finally ignited Garrett Zane’s desire to conquer.

The next second, he grabbed the back of her head and bit down hard on her lip.

“Garrett, are you a puppy? You’re hurting me…”

Lindsey Sykes swatted his chest playfully.

The crowd around them hooted.

“Come on, what’s so interesting about this? These two have practically kissed their lips off. Let’s play something more exciting.”

“How about Truth or Dare?”

Lindsey Sykes jumped up first, pulling Garrett Zane with her, and asked the first question.

“Have you ever slept with your mate-to-be?”

Everyone perked up their ears, laughing and looking at Garrett Zane with schadenfreude.

He froze for a moment, then his gaze softened as it landed on Lindsey Sykes.

“Silly girl, why are you asking that?”

“You’ll be jealous no matter what I say.”

But Lindsey Sykes wouldn’t let it go.

“Well, have you or haven’t you? You’ve been with Mia Weston for almost ten years, it’s impossible that you haven’t, right?”

“I just want the truth. And when you have wet dreams, do you dream of me more, or Mia Weston?”

The cheering from the crowd grew louder.

Caught up in the moment and unwilling to back down, Garrett Zane finally conceded.

“It’s you, Lindsey Sykes.”

“Mia Weston has no figure and no sense of fun. How could she ever compare to someone as alluring as you?”

As he spoke, his hand moved suggestively toward the strap of Lindsey’s top.

The video cut off abruptly.

Immediately after, another message from Lindsey Sykes came through.

“Mia, so sorry, but I’ve requisitioned your mate for another night.”

“But I assume you’re generous enough not to mind, right? Seeing as you still stick to Garrett like a leech even after he’s ditched your ceremony so many times.”

I didn’t know what to feel seeing all this.

Ten years of sweet affection, all of it rotting away in an instant.

I stood up and sent a message to Dylan York.

“Send me a picture of your abs.”

Dylan York took a full minute to reply: “?”

“What do you want it for?”

Then he sent a voice message, his voice low and magnetic.

I immediately forwarded him the disgusting video Lindsey Sykes had sent me.

“What else? To help me get some revenge, of course.”