I raise my hands in defeat. “Don’t you worry, I was punished for that misdemeanour and have to live with those scars.” I cringe, shaking my head.
“Anyways, I stuck with my boyfriend even though I told the twins I was going to break it off. Then I find my boyfriend in bed with his mate and run into the arms of my first mate trying to get away. As you can guess he rejects me because he thought I was weak.” I laugh that off too. I know I’m not supposed to tell anybody about the fact that I’m half human so I keep that little nugget to myself.
“Boy, was he wrong. So I flee to my parents’ house and run smack-bang into one of my second chance mates. When his girlfriend busts in on us having a heated make-out session he runs off behind her. Running to my bedroom thinking I’m going to be rejected a second time that night, I’m mauled by Talon before I even get to close the door. When his girlfriend knocks on my bedroom door, he too abandons me. So yeah, I guess it’s just a matter of time before I’m completely mateless.” I force a laugh out, wiping away the tears with a long deep breath.
“Fuck,” he says, looking emotionless.
“Yeah, see… you don’t have it so bad. You still have a chance to meet your second chance mate.” I smile at him.
“Fuck that shit. I don’t want another mate. I don’t care how fucking fit they are, I don’t want one. Can’t believe I was rejected… the love I felt when I laid my eyes on her was amazing, but now? I fucking hate that uptight, perfect bitch,” he mumbles.
“Can I tell you something funny?” I poke his one arm.
“That perfect bitch is dating Tyler.”
“Let me guess, he’s just as flawless as she is. He’s probably a jock too with perfect teeth and clear skin. I wouldn’t have stood a chance either way,” he says, rolling his eyes.
I start chuckling because he’s spot on. He looks at me as I confirm and shakes his head as he mutters a “Shit!”
****
“Angel! I’ve been looking for you. Couldn’t you hear me trying to connect to you? Are you okay? I could hear what he was saying to you through the open link you were sending my way. Can’t believe that jerk, honestly,” Nixon mumbles, as he makes his way down the pebble path to where we sit on the lush grass under the moonlight.
He stops a few steps away when he catches sight of Axel.
“Who are you?” He frowns, then looks down at me as I pat the grass.
“Come join the reject squad,” I mumble. He sighs then flops down on the grass next to me leaning on his one elbow. Axel and Nixon shake hands and introduce themselves.
“You were rejected as well?” Nixon asks Axel.
“Yeah not even thirty minutes ago,” Axel grunts, looking out at the view of the lake in the distance.
“Shit sucks,” Nixon says, and we both agree.
“Can’t believe what Talon said to you, babe. Fucking tool doesn’t deserve you,” he mutters.
“Which part are you talking about? The part where he threatened to reject me or the part where he said he’ll pray for me to have a second chance mate that treats me like shit when he does?” I say sarcastically.
Axel whips his head in my direction. “The fucker said what?” He growls.
I place my hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. Let’s just go back up and enjoy the rest of the party.”
We spend the rest of the evening chatting, laughing and dancing, not sparing one minute worrying about the twins. The three of us get along great and surprisingly have a lot in common besides the whole rejection thing. I choose to ignore the twins eyes on me the rest of the evening, making sure neither of them can get into my head.
Chapter 8
No one explained to me exactly what a welcoming ceremony entailed, if they had I probably would’ve been more freaked out than I initially was. So here I sit, on the edge of my bed in the early hours of the morning looking down at the bite mark on my wrist where my father had to bite me. There was also a lot of sacred pack talk culminating in a lot of howling, but the bite is what I remember most because it hurt like a bitch.
It still hurts like a bitch.
As soon as the howling was done, I could already feel every pack mates emotions; I just moved my eyes to them, focusing my mind to it, hearing the thoughts of those who hadn’t put up any barriers in their mind. It’s so much harder to keep my walls up now, I’m guessing it will be easier for them to reach into my head now as well; I don’t want anyone to see how tainted and messed up it is in there with all those hidden, horrible memories.
The wound has yet to heal, even though Alex told me it would because of a wolf’s mega fast healing ability. I find a bandage to wrap around the wound then wash all my makeup off before climbing into a pair of black shorts and a loose green top. Looking into the mirror, I lift my shirt to see the bruise Talon left on my waist near the tattoo that bears his name. If you look close enough you can see his individual fingers bruised in a perfect pattern. I gently place my fingers over the individual bruise prints and wince.