-Ember-
The girls just left to pack for our weekend trip. I'm rushing around my room pulling clothes from my closet, totally lost on what to bring—God, it's been forever since I've gone anywhere. My wardrobe basically screams "sad hermit with a Netflix addiction" instead of "fun city girl ready to party."
Tanner never wanted me, but he sure as hell never wanted me out of his sight either. Classic move straight out of the Toxic Masculinity Handbook, Chapter freaking 1.
The soft click of the front door stops me cold. My heart just drops.
"Going somewhere, mate?" Tanner's voice slides through the room like ice water down my spine. I freeze up but don't turn around. My hands are gripping this sweater so tight my knuckles are white.
"Stella wants to go to the city to look for her mate," I lie, trying not to sound as terrified as I feel. "We, um... thought we'd make it a girls weekend." I start folding the sweater with shaky hands. "I figured since I've already found my mate... you know, you... that it'd be okay if I went."
I hear him step closer, feel him right behind me without actually touching. That scent of his—pine, sandalwood, and sex—makes me want to puke. And there's definitely another woman's perfume clinging to him. Eau de Skank, by Bethany. Lovely.
"Funny," he says, way too calm, "I don't remember giving you permission to go anywhere."
Something inside me just... snaps. Maybe it's Oaklynn's experimental serum, or maybe it's three years of swallowed rage finally bubbling up. I spin around and jab my finger into his chest.
"I didn't realize I needed your permission to live, Tanner. I don't stop you from your little extracurricular activities."
His eyebrows shoot up—he's clearly shocked I've grown a backbone. For three years I've been this docile little thing, doing whatever it took to avoid setting him off. But something's different now—maybe it was feeling like death was coming for me, or my friends having my back, or maybe I'm just finally done.
"What did you just say to me?" He steps closer, towering over me like the bully he is. His wolf eyes flash that warning amber.
I step back and my legs hit the bed, making me fall onto it. "I said..." my voice shakes but I push through, "I'm going to have a girls weekend with my friends."
Before I can even blink, Tanner's on me, straddling me, pinning me to the bed. He grabs my jaw hard enough to bruise. Real charming.
"You think you can enjoy a weekend in the city, while I'm fucking someone else miles away?" His thumb brushes my lip in this gross parody of tenderness. "Do you wish it was you I was fucking?" He leans down and licks my ear. I squirm, completely disgusted. "Do you wish it was your pussy my cock was sliding into?"
"I don't want your nasty diseased dick anywhere near me," I spit out, trying to push him off. "I've seen your rotation schedule. You're basically a community service at this point."
He licks up my neck, making my skin crawl. "Aw come on, Emmy, we are mates after all."
"Get. The. Fuck. Off. Me." I shove at his chest with everything I've got.
Tanner just laughs and climbs off. Then he grabs my bag and dumps everything I just packed all over the floor. What a child.
"You're not going anywhere," he says like it's the final word.
I scramble off the bed and frantically wipe at the places he licked, feeling violated. "Why do you even care?" I'm shouting now, surprising both of us. "You don't want me! You've made that crystal clear every single day for three years! You sleep with half the pack's females right under my nose!" My voice keeps rising. "You've taken my money, locked me up, you... you..." my voice cracks, "You're killing me with the cheating pains and you know it!"
His eyes go dark, something dangerous flickering there. "You think I wanted this?" he snarls, gesturing between us. "You think I wanted to be mated to the weird loner orphan bitch?"
His words slice into me, but instead of crumpling, I let them fuel my rage. The pain transforms into something else—something powerful that makes me feel alive for the first time in years.
"Then reject me," I challenge, stepping closer. "We both know you want to." I glare straight into his eyes. "Just say the words, Tanner. Reject me like you've wanted to since day one. End this!"
For a split second, something crosses his face—uncertainty? Fear? It vanishes so fast I can't be sure.
"Save your breath," he says coldly. "You know I won't do that."
"Won't?" I press, sensing weakness. "Or can't?"
"It doesn't matter," he snaps. "What matters is you're staying here. I am your Alpha and mate, and that's final. You. Aren't. Leaving."
I cross my arms, glaring at him, feeling this weird new confidence surge through me. Who knew standing up to your abuser could feel this... good?
"I'm leaving with a group of warriors in an hour," he continues. "We'll be gone till Sunday afternoon. When I get back, you better be right here in this cabin."
"And if I'm not?" I ask, almost smirking.
A nasty smile spreads across his face. "Then I'll hunt you down and drag you back." He reaches out to push my hair behind my ear in this fake tender way. I smack his hand away. His eyes harden and his jaw clenches. "You know there are worse punishments than a week in the cells."
Tanner turns and walks out. I take a few deep breaths, feeling something solidify inside me—like, actual determination. I follow him.
"Tanner?" I call quietly, like I'm giving in.
He turns to look at me, anger all over his face.
I take a deep breath and close my eyes for a second. When I open them, they're blazing. "I, Ember Brighton, of the Silver Moon Pack, reject you, Tanner Bailey, Future Alpha of the Silver Moon Pack."
The words leave my mouth and something shifts between us. I stumble a little, feeling this weird tugging in my chest, like someone's yanking on a rope tied to my heart. Tanner falls to the floor, clutching his chest and screaming. When he looks up, his eyes are full of rage and—wait, is that actual hurt?
"Accept the rejection, Tanner," I command, my voice steadier than I feel.
"No!" he spits out, face twisted. "You will stay my mate, you bitch."
I feel something inside me strengthen instead of break. For the first time in three years, I'm not cowering. "You can't force a rejected bond to stay intact," I say, remembering pack laws. "Not even you are above the Moon Goddess's will."
"Watch me," he snarls, struggling to his feet. He lunges for me, but I'm ready.
I sidestep and he crashes into the wall. If this were a movie, cue the laugh track. "It's over, Tanner. I'm done being your prisoner."
"You're mine!" he roars, eyes fully amber now, his wolf right there. "You think you can just walk away? I'll make your life hell. I'll—"
"You already have," I cut him off. "For three years. What more could you possibly do to me that you haven't already done?"
Something in my words seems to hit him. He stares at me, breathing hard, confusion mixing with the rage.
"I'm leaving," I say firmly. "And when I come back—if I come back—things will be different."
I turn my back on him—something I'd never have dared before—and walk to my room. My hands are shaking, but my resolve isn't. I start picking up my clothes from the floor, listening for what he'll do next.
The front door slams so hard the windows rattle. Through the bedroom window, I watch Tanner stalk across the yard and punch a tree so hard it cracks down the middle. Poor tree. What'd it ever do to him?
I let out this breath I didn't know I was holding. The rejection isn't complete—he didn't accept it—but I've taken the first step.
And for the first time in three years, that step feels like it's leading somewhere other than misery.