Losing Tommy had been painful, but knowing that he had betrayed her was even more heart-breaking. For a long time, Tommy had been Emma’s world and she’d known she would be with him forever. She had planned to reject her mate if she ever found him and stay with Tommy. Tommy had lost his mate a long time ago so he would never have to reject anyone for Emma. Emma had always believed in Tommy and trusted him with all her heart. A lot of things had happened because of the decision to delay Tommy’s burial.
Emma was so angry. Had she known that Tommy was seeing another woman, she would never have stayed with him. She was so furious that she had given her all for a man who was just using her. Was Axel’s sister the only woman he had cheated on her with? Emma couldn’t help but wonder.
She spent the next two weeks mourning the last five years of her life and getting over the heartbreak. She felt that it had all been a lie. Her emotional state was shattered. The tables had turned, and now Katya was the one helping her get through her problems. They spent a lot of time together. They played outdoor games, went for walks and helped out around the pack.
By the end of the second week, Emma found herself enjoying pack life. For the first time in two years, she felt safe again. As a rogue, they always had to be cautious. Emma was beginning to think that maybe she had been wrong. Maybe pack life was better than being out there, moving from place to place. Being in a pack gave one a sense of belonging and security. As she interacted with different people in the pack, she realised a lot of things she had denied herself.
An example was companionship. She had always spent a lot of time with one person Tommy and never interacted much with other people. It was no wonder his death had hit her hard. She didn’t know who to hang out with and couldn’t imagine forming attachments with other people. Emma was now realising the importance of multiple friendships. It was not good to have one friend to always rely on.
She never saw much of Lucius. He spent a lot of time away from the pack and when he returned, he usually locked himself in the study. However, Emma saw a lot of Michelle, who was always there to remind her that she was not part of the pack and needed to leave as soon as possible.
Sometimes she would see Michelle and Lucius leaving the pack together in his car. The woman was always dressed glamorously and looked amazing. Emma wished she was in the woman’s place but always chastised herself. Just because her mate had rejected her didn’t mean Michelle’s mate would do the same. Some people were willing to work on their mate bonds even when they seemed incompatible at the start.
Thinking of the fact that she had to leave the pack at some point made her very sad. When the two weeks she had given herself elapsed, she decided to give herself one more week.
One morning, she and Katya were standing at the balcony of the second floor. They saw five men in the backyard drinking their tea. There was fishing equipment scattered all over the grass near them.
“Do you think they would allow me to join in their fishing trip?” Emma asked. She had not gone far from the pack since the day she went to see Axel. She loved fishing and needed to go out. Since it was not very safe out there, they were never supposed to take walks beyond 200m from the pack’s boundary. Emma had found it rather suffocating and she wanted to go further.
“I don’t know,” Katya said. “Why would you want to go fishing anyway? That’s a job for men, just like hunting.”
“I use to fish and hunt while I was out there. There is nothing like men’s jobs or women’s jobs when you’re a rogue. Each individual has to ensure their own survival. I’m used to the stuff. You pack women are always so soft because all the hard work is done for you. It’s not the same out there.”
“Why do you like the hard life out there?”
“I don’t know. I guess I just have an adventurous spirit. I like being out in the wild, doing my own thing. Anyway, have other girls ever gone with them.”
“I’ve never seen any girl who wants to do that. Let’s go and ask them. Maybe they’ll let you join.”
“Okay.”
At first, the men didn’t want to hear of it but eventually accepted to let her join as long as she was capable of defending herself. When the men finished their breakfast, they stood up and went into the woods with Emma. One of them was a young man called Caleb. He and Emma took the lead as they conversed about how different their lives had been.
“The alpha is here,” one of the men suddenly said. Everyone stopped walking and bowed as Lucius walked down a narrow path. Lucius seemed surprised to see Emma.
“Why is she here?” he asked.
“She wanted to come,” one of the older men said. “We told her it wasn’t safe but she insisted. Said she missed fishing.”
“Okay, you all go ahead. Miss greenfield, I need to talk to you.”
Lucius waited for the men to move out of hearing distance before turning to Emma.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m sorry, alpha. It’s just that I’m not used to staying in one place. I’m used to being on the move all the time. I used to fish and hunt a lot. When I saw them, I couldn’t resist. I swear I didn’t know that you were part of the team.”
“If you had known, wouldn’t you have come?” he asked.
Emma smiled nervously. “I don’t know.”
“Well, I’m glad you came.” He said. He raised his hand and touched her jaw, using his thumb to caress her cheek.