Aiko knew he was her mate when she spotted Faris even before blasting him with her fake pheromones.
The very reason her pheromones affected him to a level that they pilfered his brain and he couldn't resist her, even if he wanted to.
It stung her deeper than she could have cared; she wasn't very particular about finding her mate, considering she lived in vampire territory and did anything for survival. But her heart was scrambled when she betrayed and left him behind.
Aiko was born to a mage father and a fox-shifter mother, gaining both traits. She could shift into a fox and spray herself with tricky pheromones, which would attract shifters and lead them astray. She also possessed the ability to completely hide her scent.