---- laced with panic. "Anna, I'm so sorry... I was poisoned with an aphrodisiac. While I was unconscious, I mistook Leah for you and made a terrible mistake. But don't worry. I've compensated her, and she won't cause any more problems." I wanted to believe him. But before long, Leah came back. Her parents were ill, and she'd turned to Alan for help. As always, Alan didn't hesitate-something I once cherished deeply. Now, I found myself quietly resenting how dependable he was. Leah's parents held a feast to thank Alan. At the celebration, someone slipped an aphrodisiac into his wine. With Leah's daring seduction, Alan found himself drawn into another night of passion with her. When Alan got trapped in a landslide in Northaria, ---- it was the expecting Leah who dug through the rubble with her bare hands to pull him to safety. Between the blood debt he owed her, her sweet words, and the pups she carried, Alan couldn't bring himself to let her go. He held me close, his eyes filled with pain and guilt, begging for my forgiveness. I swallowed the bitter lump in my throat and laid down my terms. "Either end our mate bond or banish Leah from the pack." He held my hand tightly. "I can't break our mate bond," he said, "but I also can't turn my back on Leah." He refused to let go of either of us. With no other choice, I fled. 1 threw myself into solitary training, using the endless exertion to silence everything else. ---- It wasn't until Leah gave birth to her twin pups that Darian and Thalia forced me to come back. Thad to confront the two lives that weighed so heavily on my heart. In the darkness, I pulled out my phone and finally typed the message I should have sent long ago. "Let's break our mate bond." Before ten minutes had passed, hurried footsteps sounded outside the door. Alan rushed in, sweat shining on his forehead. " Anna! I won't agree to breaking our mate bond!" I sat there quietly, my voice barely a whisper. "Let it go, Alan. I'm just so exhausted." "T told you, Leah will never come between us!" His voice trembled with desperation. Just as he reached for my hand, his phone rang sharply, breaking the moment. ---- It was Leah, her voice trembling with tears. "Alan! The pups are running a high fever after their fall. The healer says they're in critical condition!" Alan's face was drained of color. He looked at me, then down at his phone. "Anna..." he began hesitantly. "I have to check on the pups. You know they're the future of our pack. Thope you understand." This was my marriage- Even something as crucial as breaking our mate bond was pushed aside for Leah and her pups. Tears slipped down my cheeks as a painful truth settled in. No matter how tightly I held on, some things were never meant to stay.