Page 54 of His Rejected Fated Mate

I felt a twinge deep inside, wondering. Had I been seeing it all wrong? Was there something that I missed?

I walked across the park and headed for a bench. I sat down and began contemplating my life. I remembered dinners with my parents. I knew my parents loved me, but they were afraid. I could see it in their eyes when we sat down for meals. I watched the way it ate at my mother, not knowing what was happening.

And I remembered Martin. He always smiled and told me that I was made this way. That I was different, but that was okay.

He brought me to the councils and even let me tag along with him to meetings. I felt more connected to Martin than tomy own parents. He was the one looking up information about magic and witches. He was the one who was trying to help me grasp what was going on. And I thought that Martin liked Troy. But now that I thought back, he never said anything about a relationship. I don’t even recall him congratulating me on dating Troy.

I frowned, thinking harder about the past. Now that I thought about it, Martin always seemed to slip out when Troy was near me. It was almost like he was avoiding us.

I felt my shoulders sink as I thought harder. Any family dinner that Troy attended, Martin didn’t. He always ended up having a reason; he’d fallen ill or suddenly become too busy.

“Hey.”

I jumped, nearly falling off the bench as I turned, finding Janella standing behind the bench. She held back a laugh as she covered her mouth. “Oh my god, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you. I called your name a few feet back, but you didn’t answer.”

I held my hand over my heart and shook my head. “No, it’s fine. I’m just thinking. I didn’t hear you.”

She rounded the bench and plopped down next to me. “What are you doing out here? It’s starting to get late.”

I looked around, realizing that the sun had set. I hadn’t even grabbed the phone out of the car when I got out, so I couldn’t even check the time.

“I could ask you the same thing. What are you doing out here so late?”

“I’m taking an evening walk. I like the weather change and the leaves at this time of the year.” She tilted her head. “So, why are you out here?”

I sighed. “I had a bit of a fight with Troy, and I stormed out of the car.”

Her eyebrows went up. “Dang.”

I nodded. “I’m feeling a little childish but also angry.”

“At him?”

“At everyone,” I looked down at my hands and twirled my thumbs together. I knew if anyone understood this feeling, it would be Janella.

“Did your parents accept you?”

Janella nodded her head. “Oh yes. My parents were overly affectionate. They were constantly reminding me how special I was.”

My eyebrows went up. “Oh…” Maybe she wouldn’t understand.

She offered a smile. “But I grew up thinking they were forcing it. I knew it was different to have a witch daughter rather than a shifter daughter. They had expectations that I would never meet. There were aspects of my life they would never understand.”

“Troy told me something tonight, and I’m having a hard time mulling it over.”

She scuffed. “Oh Jesus, what did he say? Do I need to beat his ass?”

I shook my head. “That my uncle was the reason we broke up years ago.”

Her eyebrows raised. “Wait, you dated Troy before?”

I nodded. “Yeah, in high school. We were dating when he just ended things. Told me that there was no future and that the pack would never accept us.”

Her jaw dropped. “Seriously? He said that.”

I nodded. “Yeah, and what I never understood… why the sudden change. He told me he never cared if I was a witch and that he was going to get everyone to see the side of me he saw. And then just ended things.”

“Wow…”