Chapter 5
“George… what are you doing here?”
Melody’s smile faltered the moment she saw him in the doorway. A flicker of panic flashed in her
eyes, and she instinctively shrank behind Orion.
“I invited him.”
I stepped aside, letting George walk in. My gaze swept across both of them–faces suddenly pale.
“You two wanted to apologize, right? What’s the point if it’s just to me? Don’t you think Melody’s
mate deserves to know who she’s been sneaking around with?”
I turned to her, cold and sharp.
–
“So tell us why’d you need your stepbrother to be the donor? Your almost–mate, your first love?”
Orion’s expression turned stormy in an instant. Melody looked like she might collapse, her lips
trembling.
George’s fists were already clenched, knuckles white.
He’d clearly heard enough before I opened the door.
Before Melody could say a word, he slapped her across the face.
Hard.
The force of it sent her stumbling back into the chair, five red lines blooming across her cheek.
“You think this is funny?” His voice was ice.
“That little ‘artificial insemination‘ story you gave me–was that just code for ‘let me hit up my
ex‘?”
“George!” Orion stepped forward, shielding Melody behind him.
“It wasn’t her fault,” he said quickly, his tone strangely apologetic. “It was me. I gave in. If you want to blame someone, blame me. Just… don’t hurt her.”
George let out a hollow laugh, hands shaking with rage.
“You’ve been screwing her for years and now you want me to raise your damn pup?”
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“We didn’t sleep together!” Orion shot back, panicked. “She didn’t betray you, I swear! That’s not
“Not what, exactly?”
I cut him off, folding my arms across my chest, watching the scene unfold like some twisted soap
opera.
In their minds, betrayal only counted if there was a bite mark on the back of someone’s neck.
George didn’t bother with semantics.
He swung.
His fist collided with Orion’s jaw, sending him stumbling backward.
“Not betrayal?” George roared. “Who held her when she cried during a thunderstorm? Who ran to her the second we argued? You’re practically her second mate at this point!”
“How dare you hit him?” Melody shrieked. She launched herself at George and slapped him across the face.
“If you weren’t so damn useless, I wouldn’t have needed anyone else!”
His eyes darkened, turning wild–like a lone wolf pushed too far.
“Fine!” George barked. “If you had to find someone else—why him? Why the one person you knew would gut me?”
“I wanted his bloodline!” Melody screamed back, eyes gleaming with desperation. “He’s the only one I ever loved!”
I walked out before the punches flew again, never once looking back–just kept moving as their shouting erupted behind me, followed by shattering glass, snarling growls, and the heavy thud of fists.
A full–blown wolf brawl, right there in the middle of a restaurant… all over one shattered bond.
By the time I got home, the Enforcement Unit was already calling.
There’d been a physical altercation at the Lodge, and they needed a statement.
When I arrived at the Enforcement Hall, Orion and his crew were already lined up. Most of them were bruised and bloodied–Leo had a fresh bandage on his arm.
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Orion spotted me and practically snarled.
If it weren’t for the officer holding him back, I had no doubt he would’ve lunged.
Leo glared at me like he wanted to put his fist through the wall–and maybe my face.
I didn’t waste my breath.
I followed the officer into the interview room and gave my statement.
It was nearly dawn when I walked out again.
I’d heard Melody had been rushed to the wolf wellness center. Apparently the shock sent her pregnancy into distress.
Orion and George were both slapped with a three–day holding sentence for aggravated assault–a rare consequence, even for an Alpha.
The next time I saw Orion, it was a week later. He’d asked to meet so we could finalize the mate
bond termination.
But instead of the attorney’s office, he drove me to our old packhouse.
I crossed my arms. “What is this?”
He didn’t look at me.
His jaw was tight. His eyes, colder than usual.
“You want the bond broken? Fine. But first… you’re going to apologize to Melody.”
Chapter 5
