I Ended Our Mate Bond on Our Anniversary

For three years Sylvara Thorne has served as Lucien's second-in-command in the Thorne Pack, and for the same three years she has been his hidden mate. When rogue hunters trap her in a cursed forest and demand the pack's treasure for her life, Lucien never answers. He is elsewhere that night, with Tahlia, Sylvara's younger sister. Rescued from the icy river by a wandering river wolf, Sylvara finally sees the truth: the mate bond she cherished was never returned.

On the eve of their third lunar anniversary, she prepares a gift of release. In the lodge kitchen Lucien serves her bitter melon, a dish meant for Tahlia, and signs her documents without reading them, then leaves at Tahlia's call. The first severs her place in his pack; the second ends their mate bond. Blood from a shattered plate stains her hand, and he never notices.

As the truth of her birth and Tahlia's place in the Winslet clan surfaces, Sylvara dials a number she has not used in three years. Red Ralston, the alpha she once left behind, answers at once, giving her thirty days before he comes for what is his.