RYAN POV
Morning came too early.
I stood at the front of the art studio, my arms crossed over each other, my face strangely blank, while more than one hundred and fifty pairs of eyes watched me.
The bruises on my cheeks had darkened overnight, turning into an ugly purple mark, my split lip was still tender.
I hadn't bothered hiding them. Let them stare; it doesn't seem to faze me.
When the school asked about the official story I'd given them, it was "a training accident." They didn't seem to believe, but no one dared question their Alpha.
But I knew the truth.
Every pain in my face reminded me of her palms across my skin. Every time I swallowed, I tasted the blood she had drawn. And every time I tried thinking about a way to end it, the mate bond kept pulling me back
