Chapter 192

Chapter 192: Chapter 192

Lena’s POV

I bought flowers, groceries, and that set of tableware I’d been eyeing forever. When I got home, I cleaned the whole apartment top to bottom, put the flowers in the vase by the window, then started cooking.

Living alone was quiet. Peaceful, even.

Anna texted me and asked where I was. I told her I was home. Twenty minutes later, she showed up at my door carrying a whole case of beer.

"Why’d you bring so much?"

"You just got out of a two-year relationship. Don’t tell me you’re not in the mood for a drink."

"It’s not like I lost anything. Nothing to be sad about."

I walked into the kitchen, turned on the tabletop grill, brushed it with oil, and laid the steak strips across it.

I set out the dipping sauces and the sliced vegetables, then started flipping the meat.

Anna sat across from me, staring at everything I did.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I picked up a piece of cooked steak and dropped it into her bowl. "Eat."

"You’re seriously not upset? Not even a little?" Anna looked genuinely confused. "You ended a relationship. Two whole years. And you’re in here grilling meat like it’s just another Tuesday."

I laughed. "From the day that relationship started, I’d been wanting out. Now that it’s finally over, why would I be sad? I should be celebrating."

"So I hauled all this beer over for nothing?"

"Beer, steak, and my best friend hanging out with me? That’s basically a perfect night." I cracked open two cans and handed her one.

Anna watched me eat, drink, and grill, calm and efficient, like I’d just checked one more item off my to-do list.

"You’re kind of terrifying right now," Anna said. "Two years with a man, and you just walk away like that without even blinking."

"There was never some epic love story between me and Dominic. We weren’t one of those couples who fought through hell to be together. Our relationship was always clean and practical. That’s why ending it doesn’t hurt."

"You really don’t love him?"

I shook my head. "No."

"I don’t buy it."

"Then why ask?"

"What if you said yes? Would I believe you?"

"Probably not."

We ate, drank, talked about Dominic, talked about Daniel, and just rambled about everything and nothing. By the time it got late, we’d finished the entire case of beer.

Anna collapsed onto the table, cheek pressed against her arm, and groaned, "I’m sleeping here tonight."

"Does Daniel know?"

"He’ll get it. Honestly, Dominic probably needs him more than I do right now." Anna closed her eyes. "Dominic didn’t want this relationship to end. He’s probably a total mess tonight."

I put my feet up on the empty chair and leaned back. "He’ll survive."

Anna’s phone rang.

I glanced at her. "Daniel?"

She fumbled for her phone and squinted at the screen. "Yeah."

She answered. "I’m at Lena’s... I’m not going back tonight, so don’t worry about me... yeah, I had a little to drink... where’s Dominic?... oh."

She hung up and looked at me. "Daniel said Dominic’s drinking too."

I raised a brow and took another sip of beer.

Anna dragged herself to the couch and flopped down with a cushion in her arms. "I need to lie flat for a bit. My head is spinning like crazy."

I stayed in my chair and closed my eyes.

Then the doorbell rang.

"Go open it," Anna shouted from the couch. "It’s Daniel."

I dragged my heavy legs to the door and opened it.

Daniel stood outside. Dominic was slung over his shoulder like a sack, reeking of alcohol and completely out cold.

I stared at the heavy, unconscious body hanging off Daniel, then looked up at him. "Why did you bring him here?"

"I can’t leave him alone in the car."

I crossed my arms. "So what, your plan was to haul him up here, carry Anna back out, and then somehow deal with both of them? That’s a lot, even for you."

"Exactly. So I’m leaving him here and coming back for him later." Daniel shifted Dominic toward me.

I didn’t want to catch him, but my arms moved before my brain could stop them.

Dominic tipped forward, and I quickly grabbed him, bracing his weight against me. The sharp smell of whiskey rolled off him in waves.

"Daniel, our mate bond is over. This really isn’t appropriate."

"I know." Daniel stepped past me, walked over to the couch, scooped Anna into his arms, then turned back to me. "I’ll come get him in a while, Lena."

I rolled my eyes. Daniel was seriously bad at lying. His loyalty to Dominic was written all over his face.

Daniel carried Anna toward the elevator. I stood in the doorway, holding up the man who technically wasn’t mine anymore, and watched them leave.

Twenty minutes later, Daniel came back. I had settled Dominic on the floor by the door and hadn’t moved him an inch after that.

"You’re really not going to take care of him?" Daniel looked at Dominic, then at me.

"Our mate bond is over. He’s your Alpha. That makes him your problem now."

Daniel helped Dominic into the passenger seat, fastened his seat belt, and shut the car door.

"Drive safe," I said.

I stood in the parking garage and watched the car pull away. Only after the taillights vanished at the corner did I turn and head back upstairs.

The weeks after the bond was broken were calm.

I went to work, came home, cooked for myself like usual... and I started taking yoga classes at night. My body felt looser than it had in months.

One day after class, I was pulling my coat out of my locker when a voice suddenly came from behind me.

"I heard you and Dominic broke your mate bond."

I jolted. Eliza had appeared behind me without me even noticing. She was still in yoga clothes, fresh out of class, her skin flushed pink.

This woman was seriously everywhere. Like a ghost that just wouldn’t quit.

"That’s right." I slipped on my coat. "Looks like your chance finally came."

I headed for the exit. Eliza grabbed her bag and followed beside me, keeping pace.

"I told you before." Her tone was light, smug, almost playful. "If I can’t have something, you don’t get to keep it either."

I stopped and turned to face her.

"Now that I’m out of the picture, what exactly did you win?"

"Satisfaction." Eliza shrugged and grinned. "I used to think you were special to Dominic. Turns out I gave you way too much credit. As long as Gemma’s around, everyone else gets pushed aside."

I tilted my head. "Funny. During the eight years Gemma was missing, you still couldn’t make a move. Now she’s back, and you’re still shut out. At least I was his mate for two years. I was by his side, in his bed, and I wore his ring."

My gaze swept over her, slow and blunt.

"What about you? What are you to him?"

The smile disappeared from her face.

"Let me tell you what you are. A responsibility he had to take on because of Gemma. A charity case kept around out of guilt. You’ve spent years chasing a man who doesn’t even see you, and somehow you still haven’t figured that out." I stepped closer. "So where exactly does all that superiority come from? Because from where I’m standing, between the two of us, the one who truly has nothing is you."

Eliza’s face went white, then red, then twisted tight with fury she couldn’t let out.

I turned and walked away without another word.