Page 16 of His Rejected Fated Mate

I ground my teeth together. The priest cleared his throat, and we both moved to the altar.

“You’ll take each other’s hands and repeat after me.”

Elize frowned. “We aren’t doing vows or anything. Just a straight, get this official ceremony. There is no need to make this more than what it is.”

The priest nodded. “This is part of it. You have to be holding hands for the bond to snap into place.”

Elize looked a little surprised before she looked back at me. I held my hands out, and she grabbed onto them. I felt a shiver roll down my spine. Her hands were soft against mine.

I swallowed as the priest spoke. I could hardly hear his words as I felt my heart was racing. I felt a tug deep in my chest, unable to break my gaze away from her. I’d felt something for Elize, but it was more powerful as the priest spoke.

“With these words, you are connected. May your bonding continue to grow and thrive as your relationship grows.”

It was the same words they said at any other ceremony. I could see that Elize looked unfazed, but I was feeling it all. I could feel the snap of the bonding. I felt like someone was grabbing my heart and yanking on it.

Elize pulled her hands free and turned. “Well, now that this is done, I have things to get done today.”

Martin moved up from his front seat, beaming with pride. “Oh, Elize! This is wonderful! I’m so proud of you.”

I watched her parents get up and offer her tight smiles. Ivan moved closer to me. “So, how do you feel? Can you feel the difference?”

I stared at her. I watched her talk with Martin. I watched as he tugged her down the aisle, speaking like a proud father. Her parents looked uncomfortable as they followed leave us behind.

The next morning, I headed to a meeting with the other Alphas. I was the last one to arrive and found the others already deep in discussion.

“This is a problem, Riley.” Dustin snapped. “We need a solution.”

I cleared my throat as I stepped inside, shutting the door behind me.

“Glad that you didn’t wait for me,” I said as I walked over to my seat.

“Sorry,” Dustin grumbled as he leaned back in his chair. “I’ve had a long night.”

I looked between them and raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

“One of his members attacked a woman,” Riley said, his face falling. “She died.”

My eyebrows went up. What shocked me more was that it was in Dustin’s pack. He hadn’t been having any issues, which we thought was because his pack wasn’t affected, but we couldn’t say that now.

“Shit. Is anyone having problems?”

Troy nodded. “And I’ve had several losing control and being locked up.”

“What kills me is I can’t even explain what’s going on. I just look like an idiot without answers.”

Riley gave a tight smile as he looked back at me. “So, how is the bond? Do you feel like a different man now?”

I felt like our bonding was different, but I didn’t feel like I was different. I knew how badly they wanted to hear good news, though. I could see it written on all of their faces.

“It’s the start, but I feel positive.”

They nodded. “That’s good. So, things are good between you two?”

Good wasn’t the word I would use to describe us. After she left the altar, she disappeared. I had no idea where she went. I knew better than to go looking for her. I figured she either wenthome or she went to her parents’ house. I figured I should give her a little space.

“It’s an adjustment for both of us.”

The phone vibrated, and Dustin looked down at it. He quickly frowned. “Crap, I’ve got to take this.”