Stealing My Best Friend’s Mate

Loss of Memory

Sloane’s POV

"…doctor said mild concussion..."

"...I.V..."

Kai and another voice.

The sudden memory of crashing into a truck rushes back to me.

'Rest now, Sloane.' Zia’s tone is hollow-sounding, and everything fades again. What felt like minutes later, voices again. Muted.

Xavier?

My eyelids feel unbearably heavy, but his scent reaches me before anything else. Slight perspiration, but cologne too. Even unconscious, my wolf recognizes him instantly because he is the alpha's son. We also became acquainted while I stayed at the Beta house. And a sexy beast too, though gloomy. Did I mention he hates me?

Yeah, the future alpha avoids me as if I had the plague, even though Kai is his best friend.

Where am I?

A soft beep echoes somewhere nearby.

Hospital.

Oh Goddess, it all rushes back in again, and I must have made a sound for I hear someone calling my name as I squint my eyes, bracing for the impact that already happened. Then I force my eyes open slowly.

Bright white lights stab my skull.

"There she is." Kai's handsome face appears above me almost instantly, relief flooding his features, his deep-blue eyes locked onto mine with familiar intensity. The sight of his handsome face has warmth unfurling low in my stomach.

Beside him stands Xavier, silent, and with his usual brooding appearance.

"You scared us," Kai says, brushing my hair away from my forehead, his touch sending awareness beneath my skin throughout my being. "You're okay. But you have a head injury, and the doctor says it might take six months for you to fully recover."

Thank Goddess!

A wicked idea sparks suddenly inside my mind, sharp as a struck match, and I blink slowly at him. Once. Twice. Just enough hesitation to let confusion settle across my features like fog.

Then I frown.

Not dramatically. No, that would ruin it. A tiny crease forms between my brows instead, delicate and uncertain, while my gaze drifts over his face as though searching for recognition that simply refuses to arrive.

Inside, laughter already claws against my ribs. Kai looks so confident standing there, so painfully certain of himself, and the temptation becomes irresistible.

"I'm sorry…" The words leave in a soft murmur, fragile enough to sound genuine. "Do I know you?"

The blood seemed to have drained from my boyfriend's face as silence hung between us, and I almost lost my composure immediately.

Kai stares, and Xavier's eyes narrow slightly.

Inside, I nearly laughed, barely able to keep it in.

Oh, this is going to be good.

"You don't know me?" Kai's words are spoken carefully.

Blinking to add tension, I squint at him, ignoring my wolf's instinct to just grab him and lose myself in his lips. "Should I?"

But then something unexpected happens.

"I'm Kai. Xavier's friend." Kai glances at Xavier, pushing him closer to the bed. "Xavier's your boyfriend."

Zia reacts first, discomfort filling me through her, then my smile vanishes internally.

Even the monitor beside me seems quieter as my wolf senses sharpen around Kai's cold words. Slowly, I turn toward Xavier. His face remains expressionless, but the slight side glance he gives Kai betrays his discomfort.

"What?" I gawk, tension coiling tightly inside me when neither of them starts laughing. I do note that Xavier now has an alarmed appearance. You had to know him to recognize it because his face still seemed blank, while his eyes darted between both of us.

Shaking his head, Kai lets out an awkward laugh. "You hit your head pretty hard."

I can tell he's reigning in his wolf from reaching out.

No. Kai is supposed to play along before teasing me back. That was our thing. We always teased each other like that.

Zia stirs uneasily while I look between them carefully. Xavier remains motionless, his jaw tense but not denying anything.

"Xavier?" I repeat uncertainly, hurt rising steadily inside me the more Kai's words settle.

His throat moves once before he answers. "Yes."

Kai quickly steps closer to the bed. "You probably don't remember much right now, Sloane. The doctor said memory confusion can happen after head trauma."

Considering I had no major injuries, I stared at him carefully. What game is he playing?

Knowing Xavier never liked me much, I forced myself to stay calm, swallowing slowly before turning toward him again. "You’re my boyfriend?"

The alpha’s son’s gray eyes finally meet mine fully. Cold.

"Yes," Xavier confirms quietly. The word settles heavily between us while Kai exhales beside me like he is relieved.

Relieved.

My chest tightens painfully, instinct screaming that something is very wrong. I should expose the prank now, but instinct stops me. Years of surviving pack politics sharpened that instinct well, and if Kai is lying this easily, then I want to know why.

So instead of calling him out, I lower my gaze slightly and whisper, "I don’t remember anything. And my wolf seems to still be sleeping because of his injury."

Kai moves instantly, taking my hand, and electricity crackles sharply between us from the mate bond.

"It’s okay," he assures me softly. "We’ll help you."

Xavier still has not moved from his place near the bed, and, ignoring him, I study Kai’s hand wrapped around mine through lowered lashes. The mate bond hums painfully beneath his touch, easing my hurt as well as increasing the unease I sense from him.

Even if I had truly lost my memories, this alone would have exposed the lie.

The boy who became my best friend before he became my mate. The person I trusted most in the world was now lying directly to my face.

"Are we close?"

"Huh?" Kai’s hold on my hand tightens.

I raise my eyes slowly. "Are we close enough that you would hold my hand while my boyfriend stands aside?"

Kai freezes for half a second. Barely noticeable. But I notice because we are fated mates.

"We’re friends," he answers smoothly after a beat. "You’ve known me forever, remember?"

That was a good save. I study him quietly while Xavier remains beside the bed like some silent storm cloud looming over the room. His broad shoulders stay tense beneath his dark hoodie, gray eyes unreadable.

The awkward silence stretches before Kai suddenly clears his throat and releases my hand.

"I should probably call your landlord and let them know you’re okay." Kai is already pulling his phone from his pocket. His attention drops to the screen almost immediately, fingers moving quickly.

Texting, not calling.

I feel a piercing in my heart.

Meanwhile, Xavier steps forward just as a doctor enters the room holding a clipboard.

"How are we feeling?" The older wolf asks.

"Sore," I mumble truthfully, and my wolf once again takes the backseat. "My wolf is gone."

"That’s expected. Mild concussion, bruised ribs, strained shoulder, but no internal damage." He glances between the three of us. "Memory gaps and confusion are normal after head trauma. She needs rest, hydration, and someone watching her tonight. Monitor her dizziness carefully. If she vomits, loses consciousness again, or complains of worsening pain, bring her back immediately."

Xavier gives a short nod. "Understood."

I stare at him quietly as he listens carefully to every word while Kai continues typing, barely hearing anything at all.

"Am I being released?" I ask before Xavier mentions the memory loss. I can already see the concern written across his face. He wants to drag the doctor into another conversation about scans and symptoms, but I shake my head no at him, bulging my eyes as well.

The doctor nods. "You’re free to go, but take it easy for the next few days."

As soon as he leaves, I glance toward Kai again and notice the faint blush spreading across his face while he stares at his phone.

"Something funny?" I ask lightly. The words come out smooth. No one would ever guess how nauseous I was. A strange ache spreads through my chest so suddenly it nearly steals my breath. I am lying in a hospital bed with bruises blooming beneath my skin, IV needles taped to my arm, monitors chirping softly beside me like mechanical birds, and Kai is blushing at his phone.

"Huh? No. Just the guys."

Lie. I have known Kai for too long. Besides, the mate-bond between us tugs painfully whenever he lies, and he scratches the back of his neck casually just like he does now.

Xavier notices too. I can tell by the slight narrowing of his eyes before he looks away again.

"You’re discharged," Kai says, slipping his phone back into his pocket. "We should get you home."

"Did you call my landlord?" I keep my face blank, knowing I am not supposed to remember anything, but he did mention the man, so…

His cheeks heat up in embarrassment now, but he is saved when the nurse comes in to remove the I.V.

I push the thin white sheet aside carefully and swing my legs over the bed just as the nurse leaves. The second my feet touch the floor, dizziness slams into me hard enough that the room tilts violently sideways.

A startled gasp leaves me as the floor disappears completely. A curse slips from my lips. Before I can steady myself, strong arms suddenly slide beneath me. One beneath my knees. The other is behind my back, but I can tell by the touch it’s not Kai.

"Hey!" Kai snaps.

Ignoring both of us, Xavier lifts me effortlessly against his chest, and heat instantly floods my face because, other than Kai, I had never been this close to another man before.

To steady myself, I instinctively wrap my arms around his neck as his scent surrounds me. Xavier makes a rough sound beneath his breath, his jaw tightening sharply, and something inside me reacts strangely to his smell.

Kai laughs awkwardly beside us. "Guess your boyfriend likes touching you, huh?"

Jealousy rings clearly beneath the joke. All three of us hear it, feel it. His words sound more like a warning aimed at Xavier than a joke.

Close friends.

But he hated me.

Years ago, during one particularly ugly pack argument, I overheard elders whispering that I only clung to the Rhodes family because I had nowhere else to go after my parents died.

A burden and a charity case.

One elder even implied I would eventually sink my claws into one of the bloodlines for security.

Not long after that, Xavier cornered me outside the training grounds and warned coldly, "Don’t mistake kindness for entitlement."

I never forgot it and never will. At the time, humiliation burned so deeply that I locked myself in my room afterward and cried until sunrise. From then on, I convinced myself Xavier saw me exactly the way everyone else did.

A gold digger. A stray pack girl attaches herself wherever survival looks easiest.

Being mated to Kai had only intensified the whispers, which was exactly why I moved out as soon as I became legally old enough.

And now that same man carries me through the hospital hallway like I weigh nothing at all.

My pulse stumbles traitorously. "This is unnecessary."

Xavier does not even glance down at me. "Doctor’s orders."

"That is absolutely not what the doctor said."

Kai snorts beside us, but the sound dies quickly when his phone suddenly rings. His entire expression changes afterward. Guilt flashes across his face so fast that most people probably would not have noticed it. But my wolf does.

'Hide, Zia.'

She whimpers softly inside me, shrinking back in distress at whatever she senses through our mate bond, and sudden weakness washes over my body hard enough that I sag slightly further into Xavier’s arms.

Kai glances between us before dragging a hand through his damp hair.

"Hey, I gotta go-um, I’m glad you’re okay…" The words come out strained and uneven, his usual confidence nowhere to be found as he backs toward the hallway a little too quickly.

Then he turns and disappears almost immediately.

From the hospital's glass walls, I see rain pounding outside the windows now, thunder rumbling overhead.

So, where exactly is my boyfriend rushing off to in this storm when he was supposed to spend the night with me?