My heart raced as Julian forced his lips onto mine, his powerful arms caging me against the leather seat of his SUV. I struggled against him, the taste of his kiss both achingly familiar and repulsive. When he finally broke away, his amber eyes burned with an intensity that once would have melted me.
"Let me go!" I shoved against his chest, my voice trembling with rage. "We're done, Julian. There is nothing left between us."
His jaw tightened as he trapped me with his body. "You were meeting with Victoria today. Why?"
"That's none of your business." I turned my face away, refusing to look at him. "My life is my own now."
Julian growled, the sound vibrating through his chest. "Everything you do is my business, Aurelia. You're my mate."
"A mate you've ignored for five years." The words tasted bitter on my tongue. "A mate whose daughter you let die alone."
His expression darkened. "Don't bring Violet into this."
"Why not?" I challenged, anger giving me courage. "She's the only reason I stayed with you. And now she's gone."
Julian's grip on my arms loosened slightly. Something flashed across his face—guilt, perhaps? But it vanished as quickly as it appeared.
"You trapped me," he said, his voice low and accusing. "You drugged me that night and tricked me into mating with you."
The old accusation hit like a physical blow. Five years, and he still believed that lie.
"I never drugged you," I whispered, tears stinging my eyes. "How many times do I have to tell you? You came to me that night. You wanted me."
"I would never have chosen you over Victoria." His words cut deep. "I was engaged to her. I loved her."
I laughed bitterly. "Yet somehow you ended up in my bed."
"Because you orchestrated it!" Julian slammed his hand against the window beside my head. "You saw an opportunity to trap an Alpha and took it."
"Is that what she told you?" I searched his eyes, looking for any doubt, any crack in his conviction. "And you believed her without question."
Julian's phone rang, breaking the tense silence between us. The name on the screen made my stomach turn: Victoria.
While he was momentarily distracted by the call, I gathered my strength and drove my knee upward. Julian grunted in pain, doubling over just enough for me to push past him and fling the door open.
"We're done, Julian," I said, backing away from the vehicle. "For good this time."
I turned and ran to my car, my hands shaking so badly I could barely get the key in the ignition. Tears blurred my vision as I pulled out of the parking space, narrowly missing Julian who had recovered enough to follow me.
In my rearview mirror, I saw him standing in the lot, his tall figure growing smaller as I drove away. The weight of the past five years pressed down on me, threatening to crush my chest. How had we come to this? Two people who once shared a bed now couldn't share the truth.
The memory of that night flooded back—Julian appearing at my door, his eyes dark with desire, not a hint of intoxication in his movements as he pulled me into his arms. The heat between us had been real, explosive. Nothing about it had been fabricated.
But the next morning, Victoria had stormed into my cottage, screaming about drugged drinks and stolen fiancés. Julian had believed her without hesitation, refusing to even consider my version of events. Our mating bond had already formed by then—unplanned but undeniable.
The pregnancy test a few weeks later had sealed my fate. Trapped in a loveless marriage with an Alpha who resented my very existence.
I wiped away tears as I drove, determined not to break down. The crystal competition was my focus now. For Violet. Everything I did was for her.
"I won't let him distract me," I whispered to myself. "I'll win that prize money. I'll give you the proper burial you deserve, my sweet girl."
The thought of Violet steadied me. Her memory was the only thing that mattered now.
---
Julian's POV
I watched Aurelia's car disappear around the corner, a storm of conflicting emotions churning inside me. The pain between my legs was nothing compared to the tightness in my chest.
"She's lying," I muttered to myself, lighting a cigarette with trembling hands. "She's always been lying."
But the raw pain in her emerald eyes haunted me. For five years, she'd maintained the same story—that I had come to her willingly that night. That there had been no drugs, no manipulation.
Fenris, my wolf, whined uncomfortably in my mind. He had always been strangely protective of Aurelia, despite everything.
"She trapped us," I reminded him harshly. "She took away our choice."
My phone rang again. Victoria's name flashed on the screen.
"Julian? Are you coming over? Isabelle is asking for you."
I closed my eyes, trying to push away the doubt that had crept in during my confrontation with Aurelia.
"I'll be there soon," I promised, taking a long drag from my cigarette.
"What happened with her?" Victoria's voice held an edge. "Did she tell you where she's hiding your daughter?"
The question made my blood run cold. Victoria had planted the seed months ago—the possibility that Violet wasn't actually dead, that Aurelia had staged the funeral to keep my daughter from me. The thought had been eating away at me, fueling my rage and suspicion.
"No," I answered. "But I'll find out the truth. I swear it."
"I know you will, darling." Her voice softened. "You deserve to know your daughter."
After hanging up, I stared at the spot where Aurelia's car had been. Despite everything, the mating bond between us pulled at me, an insistent tug I couldn't ignore no matter how much I tried.
What if she had been telling the truth all along?
The thought was too unsettling to consider. It would mean I had wronged her—terribly, unforgivably wronged her. It would mean I had abandoned my own child based on a lie.
No. Victoria wouldn't lie to me. We had been together since childhood. She was my intended mate before Aurelia interfered.
Fenris growled in disagreement, forcing me to acknowledge the doubt that had taken root. My wolf had never fully accepted Victoria, had always been drawn to Aurelia despite my resistance.
I crushed my cigarette under my heel, making my decision. I would go to Victoria and Isabelle, as I had promised. They were my priority now. My responsibility.
But a part of me—a part I couldn't silence—wondered if I was making the same mistake I had been making for five years.
With a heavy sigh, I got back into my SUV and drove toward Victoria's house, trying to ignore the scent of Aurelia that lingered in the air around me. The scent of lilacs and rain that had always felt like home, even when I denied it.
The weight of a five-year-old lie pressed down on me. The question was—who was the liar?