Pain of rejection

At Nightshade Pack, dawn's pale fingers crept through the cracks in Alpha Cade's curtains, painting sickly stripes across his sleep-ravaged face. He hadn't slept. Not a wink. Every dream, every closed-eye moment had been a torment, the feeling of Zyra making love with the Lycan bugged him.

Zyra his rejected mate is now bounded to another, happy with him and all he feels is pain.

The knowledge sat in his gut like a lead weight, a dull ache that pulsed with a rhythm that mirrored the absence of her heartbeat next to him.

Even though he knew he caused her pain alone.

The kind of pain he was feeling wasn't physical pain, not in the way a broken bone or a ripped muscle screamed. This was a soul-deep ache, a hollowness that resonated through every fiber of his being.

He pushed himself upright, the sheets clinging to his damp skin. The room, once a haven, felt suffocating. The scent of her lavender sleep oil, once a comfort, now mocked him with its fading presence. He threw the covers back