Chapter Two

Ryan

I drove back to my pack with a heavy heart, my mind in turmoil, wrestling with confusion and loads of emotions. I couldn't believe that I had finally found my mate after all this time of hoping it would be someone else. And the shock was compounded by the fact that it was the last person I ever expected.

Rayna, my arch-nemesis and the one I'd despised for years, was my mate. The mere thought was enough to drive me to madness. I had spent years hating her and wishing she'd disappear, but now, in the blink of an eye, I was inexplicably drawn to her. The realization left me feeling unbalanced and unsure of what to do next.

Pulling up to the packhouse, I saw Clarissa waiting for me. She looked as radiant as ever, her long blonde hair flowing in the wind, but I couldn't muster the same feelings I used to have for her. Guilt gnawed at me as if I were betraying her by harboring these newfound emotions for someone else.

"Hey, baby," Clarissa said as she walked up to me, giving me a warm hug. "How was the meeting?"

I forced a smile, knowing that I couldn't reveal the truth just yet. "It was okay. Just a lot of talking and negotiating."

Clarissa looked up at me, concern etched on her face. "Is everything alright? You seem different."

I hesitated for a moment before answering. I had no idea how to tell her about Rayna, especially when I was still struggling to accept it myself. "Yeah, I'm just a little tired. I think I need some rest."

Clarissa gave me a skeptical look but didn't press the issue. "Okay, let's go inside then. I'll make you something to eat."

As we walked inside, I couldn't help but think about Rayna. I wondered what she was doing right now and whether she felt the same way I did. I wanted to talk to her to understand why fate had brought us together, but I had no idea how to approach her.

I struggled with conflicting emotions over the next few days. I tried to convince myself that Clarissa was the only person for me by spending time with her, but no matter what I did, I could not get rid of the feeling that something was missing.

I felt terrible for thinking about Rayna, but I could not stop myself. My wolf was drawn to her, and I didn't know how to ignore it.

One day, as I took a walk through the woods in an attempt to clear my thoughts, I heard a familiar voice calling out to me. "Ryan! Ryan, wait up!"

I turned around and saw Rayna running towards me with a slight frown on her face. Despite my attempts to suppress it, a twinge of excitement flickered inside me at the sight of her. It was an emotion I knew I shouldn't be feeling.

"What are you doing here, Rayna? How did you get in?" I asked, trying to conceal my emotions. Yet, deep down, I couldn't help but wonder how she had entered the pack unnoticed.

I hadn't anticipated her showing up here, of all places. Moreover, I couldn't fathom how she had found out I was here. Even Clarissa probably had no idea of my location.

Rayna looked at me quizzically. "Can't I just come to say hello to my mate? Can you really not guess why I'm here?" she questioned, her expression unimpressed.

Her words made my heart skip a beat and flooded me with conflicting emotions. Even though I did not want Rayna to be my mate, I could not help but feel a mysterious attraction to her.

I couldn't believe my terrible luck. Out of all the women in the world, I had to be paired with Rayna, the most infuriating woman I'd ever met. I had never considered her anything beyond an enemy—someone to be tolerated but never liked. And now, fate had bound us together as mates, expecting me to accept it as if it were normal.

Hell no!

Tension hung in the air as we stood a few feet apart, glaring at each other. Rayna looked on the verge of exploding, while my expression was a mix of disbelief and anger.

"What a joke," Rayna muttered, her voice low but dripping with disgust. "Out of all the men in the world, I just had to be unfortunate enough to get stuck with someone like you. What sort of bad luck is that?" she hissed, deliberately trying to provoke me.

I gritted my teeth. "Trust me, I'm not thrilled about it either. I also wonder what kind of terrible luck this is. You already know I can't stand the mere sight of you, Rayna. And the fact that we're mated makes me sick to my stomach," I retorted, not bothering to mask my disgust.

"Good to know the feeling is mutual," Rayna said with a sneer.

"You know what's even funnier? I never expected I'd be mated to someone so... dull, weak, and just straight-up boring. What is life with you even going to be like? A snooze fest?" Rayna taunted, deliberately poking at my ego.

My nostrils flared in anger. "Weak? Dull? Boring? That better be a joke, coming from someone like you, Rayna. You don't even know me enough to call me weak and boring," I argued.

Rayna laughed bitterly. "Sure, you're not, but it's still unfortunate that you're stuck with me," she replied, and I shook my head, desperately wanting to believe this was all just a joke.

"Is there any way we can just reject each other and move on from this nightmare? I mean, we clearly hate each other, and it's obvious that neither one of us is going to give in to the other person. It's not like we must be together. So, how about we take the less difficult road of rejection?" I suggested, thinking that the best way Rayna and I could get past this was by rejecting each other as early as we could.

Rayna shook her head. "I wish it were that simple, but it's not. That day at the meeting hall, when we found out we were mates, my father and some other Alphas noticed it as well, so they're also aware of our bond," she explained.

I frowned. "And what does that have to do with anything? It has nothing to do with the fact that we want to reject each other," I replied, not particularly seeing anything wrong in rejecting her even if the whole world already knew.

"Ryan, I'm not thrilled with the idea of being your mate, and I would love more than anything else to reject you as well, but my father didn't send me here to be rejected. He, more than I am, was thrilled by the idea of us being mates, and he wants us to get together because he believes that our bond is only going to strengthen the alliance between both packs," she explained.

"In other words, I've been given no other choice but to accept, except, of course, you choose to carry the cross of rejecting me alone and deal with however my father chooses to react," she added, and I couldn't believe my ears.

I didn't intend to upset Alpha Kavan and cause enmity with the Storm Pack, but at the same time, I didn't think being with Rayna was the right thing to do. We just weren't right for each other.

 I sighed, frustration evident on my face. "I don't know what to say to you, Rayna. I mean, I don't want to be enemies with Alpha Kavan, but I also don't think being with you feels right. I can't be with someone I don't like, and you also don't deserve to end up with someone you don't like," I said, hoping Rayna would understand my perspective.

"Do you have the perfect excuse to justify rejecting me? Because only then will my father not lose his mind," Rayna responded.

I stared at her, my eyes flickering with conflicting emotions. I knew I had to mention Clarissa, and I knew I had to mention her now.

Rayna looked at me, her expression unreadable. She waited for me to speak, sensing that I had something important to say, and she waited patiently to hear what it was.

"The truth is, I have someone else in my life," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "And I do love her," I announced.

Rayna's face remained expressionless, but her eyes betrayed a hint of hurt, which I assumed wasn't hers but her wolf's.

"Then I guess we have nothing else to say to each other. I'll relay your message back to my father, and the next time we meet, we'll make sure to break the bond," she responded, and without waiting to hear anything else, she walked away from me, leaving me with my guilt and confusion.

Unable to deal with my guilt, I attempted to run after her and stop her from getting away with that upset look she had on her face. But before I could move an inch, a hand grabbed me suddenly from behind, and when I turned to see who it was, my heart dropped to the floor.

"Clarissa," I muttered in shock, my voice catching in my throat.