He'd left. Took his things that night....his clothes, his books, his toothbrush. Erased himself from my life in less than an hour.
And I'd sat on the floor of that apartment, surrounded by empty spaces where his things used to be, and realized I'd been living a lie.
He'd never loved me. Not really. I'd been a placeholder. A way to pass time until his real mate showed up.
Three years of my life, wasted on someone who saw me as temporary.
Standing here now, looking at him with his perfect mate waiting by the door, I felt that same hollowness.
"I did care about you," Derek said, and he had the audacity to sound sincere. "Those three years weren't a lie. I just...."
"You just found someone better." I smiled, and it felt like glass in my mouth. "I get it. She's everything I'm not. Wolf, beautiful, your mate. How could I possibly compete?"
"This isn't a competition...."
"Isn't it?" I stepped closer, dropping my voice. "Be honest, Derek. Did you ever really love me? Or was I just convenient until the real thing came along?"
He hesitated. That hesitation told me everything.
"I thought so," I said.
"I'm sorry," he said again, and maybe he even meant it. "I wish things had turned out differently."
"No you don't." I looked past him at his mate, who was watching us with possessive eyes. "You got exactly what you wanted. Don't insult me by pretending you wish things were different."
His mate called out: "Derek, we're going to be late."
"Yeah, I'm coming." He looked back at me. "Take care of yourself, Lilith."
"You too," I said, because what else was there to say?
He walked back to her, and I watched as she immediately pressed close to him, marking her territory. He put his arm around her, and they walked into the building without looking back.
Just like that. Erased.
I stood there on the sidewalk, watching the door close behind them, and felt absolutely nothing.
Maybe I'd already cried all my tears over Derek. Maybe I'd already processed the betrayal and come out the other side. Or maybe I was just too numb to feel anything anymore.
Three years.
Gone like they'd never happened.
And the worst part? He was happy. Genuinely, completely happy with his mate. The kind of happiness he'd never had with me, no matter how hard I tried.
Because I wasn't enough.
Would never be enough.
Not for him, not for anyone.
I was wolfless, broken, worthless...a reject that no one wanted, no one would ever choose.
The thought that used to devastate me now felt like simple fact.
I started walking again, leaving behind the building where I used to live, the man I used to love, the life I used to think I'd have.
All of it was gone.
But maybe that was okay.
Maybe it was easier this way.
Tonight, three Alphas would use my body. They wouldn't pretend to love me. Wouldn't make promises they couldn't keep. Wouldn't look at me with disappointment when they realized I wasn't enough.
They'd take what they wanted and pay me for it, and there would be no illusions, no false hope, no betrayal.
Just a transaction.
Honest. Simple. Clean.
Derek had taught me one valuable lesson: Love was a lie. Promises were meaningless. And the only thing I could count on was that everyone would eventually leave.
So why not get paid for it?
Why not take their gold and at least have something to show for being used?
The Alphas would fuck me and throw me away, but at least they'd be honest about it. At least they wouldn't spend three years pretending I mattered.
I walked faster, my hands clenched into fists, anger burning away the numbness.
Fuck Derek. Fuck his perfect mate. Fuck everyone who'd ever made me feel like I was less than nothing.
Tonight, I'd let three Cursed Alphas do whatever they wanted to me.
And I wouldn't feel guilty about it.
Wouldn't feel ashamed.
Because there was nothing left to protect, no dignity left to lose.
Derek had taken that when he walked away.
The world had taken it when it made me wolfless.
So let the Alphas take what was left.
At least they'd pay for it.
At least I'd get something in return.
I reached my shitty apartment building and climbed the stairs, my footsteps echoing in the stairwell.
Three hours until midnight.
Three hours until I stopped being the girl who got thrown away and became the girl who chose to sell herself.
It felt like power, in a fucked up way.
My choice. My terms. My body, but my decision.
Derek didn't get to dictate my worth anymore.
Tonight, three Alphas would pay fifteen thousand dollars for one night with me.
That's what I was worth.
That's all I needed to be.
And maybe that was enough.