When I woke up, he was gone. Like I should have known he would be. Still, I had mated with Tandan and now my wolf was one step closer to being forever knotted with his. All it took now was a bite to the neck. We had, as I could remember, almost marked each other several times while mating, but something held me back. I suspected it had been the same for him. Probably Lorrie. The thought of her made my sobs worsen. She was probably the one he went running back to. After all, she was the one he loved. I pulled my bare legs to my chest and cried into my knees. I knew this wouldn't make him want me. I knew that. So why did I mate with him? Why would I do that to myself? Tandan would never want me. I would never be slender enough, smart enough, and surely not successful enough. Lorrie was a doctor and I just worked as an assistant under him. We weren't even on comparable levels. After a while, I got to my feet and pulled my slacks and blouse back on. There was blood on the floor, so I scavenged the house for something to clean it with. I couldn't find even toilet paper, so I went out to the van. While I searched around for napkins or something, I realized he could have easily taken the van and left me here. He didn't have a vehicle to leave. Maybe Lorrie picked him up. Napkins were stuffed in the glove box, so I took them all and the tiny bottle of hand sanitizer and went back inside the house. The beautiful house where I lost my virginity to my mate. It should have been an extraordinary memory, as it had felt in the moment, but now it was clouded by guilt and shame. The blood was thin and wasn't difficult to clean up. I took the soiled napkins back to the car with me before locking up the house. Then I sat in the car for ten minutes or so, thinking about what to do next. Could I really go back to the office like this? No, I was a wreck. One glance in the rearview mirror stole all my confidence. My mascara had streaked my cheeks and my eyeliner was smudged. The lipstick I had applied at work now stained the skin around my lips a dark red. I had no choice but to drive back to my apartment first. There were still two hours left in the workday, so I just hastily cleaned up my outfit and used makeup remover to clean up my face. By the time I returned to work with the work minivan, there was only an hour and a half left. I hung my head at the thought of facing Angelica. What would she think of me? I had slept with our boss. To her, the insatiable mate pull wouldn't make sense, and neither would the burning heat that had eaten me alive the last two weeks. I had acted inappropriately, and there was no excuse. I shouldn't have let myself be alone with Tandan. Into the office I went, the minivan keys digging into my damp palm. As I walked to Angelica's office, I tested the air for Tandan's smell. The traces of him were all old. He hadn't returned to the office after our time together. Good. I couldn't bear to see him. "Lee!" greeted Angelica excitedly while I stepped into her office. Her enthusiasm dropped with a look at my face. "What's wrong?" "Nothing," I told her with a forced smile. "Sorry it took me so long to wrap up the house. I had to, um, make sure everything was locked up. Here are the keys." When I handed them over, she caught my wrist. My eyes went wide in surprise. A stern look crossed her face, and all I could think was that she knew. Somehow she found out that Tandan and I slept together. She knew, so now I would be jobless. "What happened?" Her voice came out shockingly soft like she was afraid to hurt me. "N-Nothing," I stammered. "I just lock—" "He told me he was going to mate with you," she said firmly, brows drawing in at a harsh angle. "I told him he needed to stop messing around because it's been hurting you, and he finally agreed. What happened? You should be glowing." My face had drained of color, I could feel it. I let my mouth hang. What? She knew we were wolves? I had suspected it, of course, but she knew we were mates? We had hidden it so well. "I'm a close family friend of Tandan's," she explained. "He tells me many things, but telling me about you has been one of the hardest for him. I knew you were coming, that you were almost here, and now that he found his mate, I thought he would be ready to indulge in his wolf again. Apparently not." "You knew?" I questioned. "Yes, honey." She finally released my hand to retrieve her cell phone. "So...you dropped him off with me, knowing what it would do to me?" "Lee, you have been suffering, and so has he. It's not right for mates to be willingly separated. It's unhealthy. I did what was best. I'm only surprised he didn't take the opportunity," she muttered grouchily. "I'm going to give him a piece of my mind." "No!" I gasped. "Angelica, please, you really shouldn't. Please, just don't." Her face turned downward into a saddened expression. "Well, alright. Why don't you go on home? There's not much left to do here anyway." "Okay. Thank you." Ducking my head, I rushed out of her office. When I got back to my apartment, I checked my phone for the first time all afternoon. Matt had called several times and left a few voicemails. I immediately called him back while kicking off my heels. He didn't answer, so I tried again. "H-He-Hello?" he stammered. "Matt?" I responded. "Are you okay? I just saw your calls, I'm sorry." "Aye! My girl!" He laughed boisterously before belching. Drunk as a skunk. Sighing, I put the phone on speaker and shed my work clothes. "Matt, where are you?" "R-Remember that bar where we met?" "Yes. You went back there?" "Mmmmmhm." "God, cut me some slack," I growled lowly. "Give me ten minutes. I'll be right there." "Okayyyy." Hiccup. After throwing on a pair of sweats, a sports bra, and a lounge tee, I jumped back in my car and sped off to retrieve Matt. I was actually relieved to have something to do. If I was left alone to mourn over the mate I couldn't have, I would turn into a hermit. He was already outside on the curb when I pulled up. A girl was crouched beside him, her wild red curls glowing from the neon lights above. I parked beside the curb, put on my hazards, and got out to check things out. The girl instantly glared at me. "You're his new friend?" she spat. "Lila, or whatever?" "Just Lee," I said. "Is he okay?" Both of our gazes flickered to Matt. His eyes were fluttering open and closed while he swayed, even though he was sitting down. Okay was not even remotely applicable here. "He got piss drunk and kept moaning and groaning your name," the girl hissed. "I've never seen him like this. You must've got him all screwed up." My mouth parted in surprise. "Oh, Matt," I murmured with a sigh. "I'll make sure he gets home safely." She didn't look like she trusted me, but didn't stop me when I grabbed Matt under his arms and used my supernatural strength to lift him up. He staggered on his feet, and the girl opened the passenger door for him. I guided him into the car, though he was heavy and unsteady on his own. "Tell him to call me when he's sober, yeah?" she asked once I'd shut the door. I nodded. "Sure. What's your name?" "He'll know." Her thick lips pulled back to flash me a crooked grin. "Good luck, toots." Matt was almost completely unconscious when we reached my apartment. I didn't know where else to take him, and he was too inebriated to speak anymore. Getting him up to my apartment was a nightmare. He kept falling off my shoulder, and I came close to dropping him one too many times. By the time I got him into my bedroom and onto the bed, I collapsed beside him. It was then, while I lay there catching my breath, he suddenly opened his eyes and looked over at me. Not in an alert way—his eyes were still foggy from the alcohol—but I think he somehow knew where he was. His mouth lifted in some sort of a smile. "You found me," he slurred. "Yep," I said, sitting up. Taking my hand, his lips pulled up higher. "I love you, Lee." My stomach dropped. Oh, hell.