Damon.

　　I growl slowly as I mull over the thought in my head. I noticed the way she changed after I took her away from the clutches of those people who kidnapped her and now, days later, she rejects me. Did she find someone else there to replace me with? I ball my hands into fists, willing to punch anything but just at that moment, our drinks arrive.

　　I instantly notice that while mine is filled with a very high alcohol content of whisky, Keiran's is topped up with low content beer. I almost chuckle at the difference, but I stop and instead down my drink in one go. My beta tries to ask me about my condition again, but I shrug him off and continue to happily drown my sorrows with the alcohol.

　　After some more tries without success, he leaves me alone and focuses on watching me. I sigh in relief, that's why I always bring him along when I go out. I know that whatever happens, he has my back and somehow he will find a way. A part of my head dismisses my thoughts as selfish, but right now the alcohol is beginning to take effect and I don't know what to do again.

　　I look towards the bachelor party still ongoing, and I suddenly have this urge to crash it. There's a guy celebrating his last day of singlehood and the rest of his days married to his mate, yet here I am, single to stupor. The Alpha of the most powerful Pack, rejected by his mate and cursed to perish as a lone wolf. What would I tell the elders of my pack? That my mate rejected me without reason and dismissed me from her presence, without so much as a backward glance?

　　That I was being ridiculed by her and lost with no other hope of getting her back? I shake my head in weary and down another glass, signaling to the bartender to fill it up again. Even him looks at me with worry and he shares a look with Kieran, but I ignore the both of them and stand up. My steps are wobbly on the ground which suddenly looks very elevated, but I laugh out and grip the glass in my hand as I stumble my way over to the real party.

　　My beta once again tries to stop me and before he can ask what is wrong with me again, I shrug his hands away and wiggle a finger at him. "Let me be. I'll call you if I need you. You can go do something else, maybe read that book of yours," I suggest and make the shooting motion.

　　As I turn to walk away, I hear him grumble about how I pulled him away from the books and instead brought him here. I drown out his words and focus my attention on the supple bodies of the strippers and it doesn't take a minute before one of them notices me approaching. That's when I notice that they are all topless and my eyes immediately zoom in on her pearly brown nipples.

　　My dick throbs at the sight and the girl gives me a flashing grin as she twirls and begins to grind her hips against my crotch. Against my better judgment, I grip her waist with my hands and begin to move to the music. A few feet away, the men began to chant loudly and within seconds, most of the girls were dancing wildly around me.

　　A few of them begin to rub my arms and I reciprocate the favor, running my large hands across their chests and feeling the soft skin of their breasts. I begin to enjoy it, drinking away my sorrows as I have a bit of fun. Subconsciously, I know the night will soon be over and I would have to face my problems as well as Carlisle.

　　According to her, she'll leave the next day and I certainly know that I need to see her before she leaves. Maybe, she would have a change of heart. As I continue to think about her, my body loses interest in the dance going on around me. I quickly struggle to get out of their reach, but they continue to dance around me seeing it as a game of sorts. Finally, they seem to get the message and just as I'm about to walk away, I misstep.

　　The empty glass tumbles out of my grasp and as I fall to the floor in shock, the last thing I remember is Kieran rushing towards me with a shout. As soon as my head hits the floor, I black out.

　　•

　　•

　　KIERAN

　　Thankfully, I'm watching Damon display his drunken state as he brazenly flirts with the topless girls. Internally, I wonder why he would be doing that considering his Alpha status and the fact that he has just met his mate. The Damon I know wouldn't do this sort of thing, mate or no mate.

　　As I struggle to comprehend the reason for his behavior, I notice him falling to the ground with a shocked look crossing over his features. I quickly dart to his side and catch him in time just before his head hits the tiled floor. Ignoring the surprised looks on the faces of everyone else at the club, I hoist him on my left shoulder and begin to carry his unconscious body out of the club.

　　Soon I move forward towards the car and place him inside as the driver begins to move back to our pack. On the way, I hear him say his mate's name over and over again. Each time he says it, a look of pain shows up on his face. After some minutes of him doing it, I conclude that Carlisle is the reason for his state. But I still can't fathom what has happened.

　　We soon reach the pack and just as I'm carrying his body out of the car, the door to the house opens and his mother steps out. A look of surprise shows on her face and she rushes forward to me, wrinkling her nose at the stench of alcohol emanating from Damon.

　　"What happened?" She asks frantically and I quickly tell her about her son's erratic behavior at the club. She looks at his sleeping form in silence for some moments before she instructs me to carry him to his room. It seems like whatever is going on with him, she knows about it too. I nearly ask her what is happening, but I hold myself back and instead focus on laying his bulky form on the master bed. Damon's mother will most likely not tell me what's wrong, so I'll have to wait till morning to hear it out.

　　Some seconds after I drop him, she dismisses me and instructs me to come back the next morning while she takes care of him. I obey and step out of the room as I enter mine to have some rest.