ARIA’S POV

After Kael left that day, it finally sank in. This was my life now. Not a dream. Not a prank. There was no waking up from any of it. I was here for a reason, and he approached me only because of that reason. Nothing more. I meant nothing to him, and every memory he left behind sat heavy inside me. I tried to erase them, but they clung to me like scars. I kept telling myself I deserved this. I killed my own mate, and maybe this was the moon goddess’s punishment.

I spent the ...