Bonds

Chapter 118

-Maya’s POV-

The slam of the front door echoed through the empty house, a punctuation mark to the whirlwind of emotions I was feeling. The nerve of them

both

gut.

–

Alex waltzing in like he owned the place, and Ivan letting him. I fumed all the way down the sidewalk, my anger a hot coal burning in my

Reaching the house, I practically threw myself through the doorway, collapsing onto the couch with a sigh that could have rivaled a hurricane. My phone, nestled on the coffee table, buzzed once, the tiny notification light blinking accusingly. Figures. Just what I needed – Ivan checking in to see if I was okay. Another sigh escaped my lips, this one tinged with irritation.

They could all go to hell. This was going to be a me–day. A day of escape. Ivy and Nate were safely with Ms. Rodriguez’s for the afternoon at the park, leaving me with a glorious expanse of empty time. No work, no mind–numbing worry about the vanished mark, and definitely no Alex to disrupt my carefully constructed peace.

Today, I was taking back control. Today, I was going to be a woman with needs and desires that extended far beyond the tangled mess that was my relationship with werewolves and supernatural drama. It was a day for self–care, a day to recharge the emotional batteries that had been steadily draining ever since this whole madness started.

With a renewed sense of purpose, I pushed myself off the couch and padded towards the kitchen. Wine. That was what I needed. A nice, deep glass of something red and robust, something that would help me unwind and forget the world outside these walls for a while.

brief struggle with the stubborn cork, I poured myself a generous glass, the deep crimson liquid swirling in the light. Sinking back onto the couch, I curled up with the wine and a photo album

worn pages, a bittersweet smile playing on my lips as then as my fingers grazed a particular picture from my college days, a wave of emotions washed over me, strong enough to halt my nostalgic journey. It was a photo of Natalia and me, but it wasn’t the image itself that stopped me. It

a recent event. The insistent drumming of the professor’s voice faded into

a soothing balm against the storm of emotions brewing within me. “We’ll

“We are not going anywhere near him. My father

if he found

fierce protectiveness. “For the last time,” she hissed, “screw Daniel Stone. He’s nothing but a big bully. You found your mate, Amaya. Do you know how

of the name pressing down on

put in some effort to fight for it. I know if I found my mate, it wouldn’t matter if it was going to be a

about was the jolt of electricity that coursed through me the moment Alex touched me in the bathroom stall. My wolf had been a whirlwind of emotions, a primal urge pushing me towards him. But even then, a part of me knew it

I just had to be fated to the billionaire alpha who was my father’s biggest enemy. It was a story written for tragedy, doomed before its first

finally pierced the fog in my head, its shrill ring snapping me back to reality. Class was over. Natalia nudged me, her expression a

coming?” she

shook my head, the words catching in my throat. “I need

gaze unwavering. Then, with a silent nod, she gathered her things and left the classroom. The hollow echo of the closing door was the final punctuation mark on the scene, leaving me alone with the chaos

to let fear dictate my life! Was I going to let

of Alex’s touch, the way my wolf responded to him, was a co. my father’s

But the image of

be a way. There had to be a way for us to be with him, even if it meant defying everything I thought I knew. But how? In the deafening silence of the classroom, the answer remained

to see Natalia standing next to me again, a mischievous grin plastered on

a mixture of surprise and