Destined to be a Replacement Mate

The door clicked open behind me.

I turned, startled, only to find Isaac entering—radiating warmth, his eyes sparkling with that familiar charm that once made my heart flutter. But the brilliance wasn’t for me. It never truly had been.

“Not close to whom?” he asked casually, amusement lacing his voice.

I didn’t hesitate. “You,” I answered, blunt but trembling.

His brows rose in mock surprise. Without waiting for an invitation, he stepped in and wrapped his arms around me. The gesture that once brought comfort now made my stomach churn.

“Really now?” he whispered, breath warm against my ear. “Strange. You’d think all those nights we spent together meant something.”

I tried to wriggle free. My eyes, unwillingly, landed on a faint smear of lipstick on his collar—one that wasn’t mine.

The sting on my wrist sharpened like a warning, reminding me of the burns I’d tried so hard to ignore. My composure slipped. I blinked back tears, but they came anyway.

Isaac’s teasing faded. Alarm replaced it as he noticed my wince. He grabbed my arm and pushed back the sleeve.

“What the hell—Wendy, how did you get these burns? When? Why didn’t you say anything?”

His voice was thick with concern, but it only deepened the hollow echo in my chest. Had he truly forgotten what happened at the banquet? Or was he pretending?

I didn’t answer.

Hours earlier, I’d spoken to my brother. His voice had carried a mixture of hope and unease—probably sensing something I wouldn’t admit outright.

“Wendy Dale… has someone hurt you?”

There’d been a pause, heavy on his end of the line. I smiled then, light and practiced, despite the bitterness rising in my throat.

“No. I’m fine,” I lied. “I’ve just decided that since I’m going to marry anyway… does it really matter who the groom is?”

He didn’t buy it. “You didn’t sound too thrilled about marriage last time we talked. Why the sudden change?”

Because I had wanted to marry Isaac. Because I thought I mattered to him. Because I was wrong.

I shook my head at the memory and gave a laugh that sounded far too hollow. “I’ve come to terms with things. Besides, I’m not getting any younger. Might as well get it over with before I’m completely undesirable.”

“Don’t say that,” he snapped gently. “You’re not some expired commodity. Look… I’ll have someone brief you about the one we’ve chosen. You deserve to meet him before anything’s finalized.”

“That won’t be necessary,” I’d said quickly, steeling my voice. “I trust you and the rest of the family. Just pick whoever you think is suitable. I’ll go through with it.”

There’d been a pause, then a sigh—deep, resigned.

“When are you coming back then? The pack will want to prepare everything. Are you sure you don’t want to meet him at least once?”

“No. The sooner we act, the sooner this mess can be cleaned up. Let’s hold the ceremony a month from now.”

“Got it,” he said. Then, with hesitation: “By the way… Isaac’s first love, Candice—she’s back. Have you spoken to him recently? Maybe invite him to the wedding. He might bring… closure.”

So he knew. Of course he did.

“No point in that,” I replied, my voice low. “We’re not close.”

Now, standing in Isaac’s arms, those words tasted like ash.

And as I looked into his face, so concerned, so confused by my silence, I couldn’t decide which truth would hurt more—the one I held, or the one he pretended not to know.