I Tore Our Mate Bond, Alpha Craved Me

Chapter 3

The next morning, I got up early and started packing.

Declan, who hadn't come home all night, walked in and froze when he saw the suitcase. He immediately grabbed my wrist as I was folding another piece of clothing.

"Where are you going?"

I didn't look up. "The school has a three-day wilderness training program for pups, and I'm leading the group."

His expression relaxed. Then, as if by habit, he slipped his arms around my waist from behind, his voice taking on a suggestive edge.

"How long does the program last? Honey, you know I can't handle being without you."

I used to love this kind of easy intimacy between us.

Now it made me want to vomit.

Keeping my expression neutral, I stepped out of his arms and went back to packing.

His eyes dropped to my hand. The moment he saw my bare ring finger, his expression cooled.

"Where's your wedding ring? What happened to it? Why aren't you wearing it?"

The questions came so quickly that they caught me off guard.

"It got dirty, so I took it off for now."

Maybe I imagined it, but Declan seemed relieved.

He smiled and said lightly, "If it got dirty, just forget about it. It wasn't worth much anyway. Our anniversary is in two days. I'll get you a better one then."

'Right. It isn't worth much anyway.'

Four years ago, Declan had proposed to me in a hotel room.

After we had s*x, I looked at him with my eyes still red and asked, "Declan, are you going to marry me?"

He froze for two seconds, then reached into his pocket, pulled out a plain band, and slipped it onto my finger as if it were an afterthought.

There had been no flowers, no applause, and he hadn't even gotten down on one knee.

Yet I had still been foolish enough to believe he would make me happy.

Looking back, that kind of naivety was almost laughable.

I zipped my suitcase and went to wash my hands. The moment cold water ran over my fingers, a notification popped up on my phone: Beatrix had tagged me in a proposal video she posted on social media.

In the video, Declan knelt on one knee as everyone around him cheered. He carefully slid the diamond ring onto Beatrix's ring finger.

The enormous diamond flashed under the bright ceiling lights.

The glare made my eyes ache.

I refreshed the page. The video was gone.

Beatrix sent me a private message that read like an apology.

Beatrix: Nyla, don't be mad. We were just fooling around last night.

Beatrix: I don't even know how my finger slipped and tagged you. We'd all agreed not to tell you.

Beatrix: You're not angry, are you?

The messages kept coming, each one more taunting than the last.

Outside the bathroom, Declan knocked on the door.

"Honey, what kind of ring do you like? I'll take you shopping tomorrow, okay?"

The tenderness in his voice outside the door only made the betrayal on my screen hurt more, each word dragging across wounds that were already raw.

I took a deep breath, dried my hands, and answered loudly, "Okay."