Chapter 2

Amelia Johnson POV

The air in the corridor felt especially cold because of the disinfectant smell.

I stood there, feeling like all the blood in my body had been frozen by this chill.

I watched the two people embracing tightly in the distance.

Nathaniel lowered his head, softly comforting Sophia who was crying in his arms. The lines of his profile were as gentle as if he were a different person.

That was the tenderness I hadn't earned even after four years.

I could barely breathe.

It took me a long time to move my stiffened legs again, walking toward them step by step.

Nathaniel heard the sound and looked up.

The moment he saw me, the tenderness that flashed in his eyes quickly faded, replaced again by that familiar coldness.

"What happened?"

I forced myself to speak.

Nathaniel looked at me with those terrifyingly calm eyes and spoke slowly:

"Sophia had an accident. The wound is long, and she's lost a lot of blood."

I instinctively asked:

"What?"

"She needs a blood transfusion."

Nathaniel looked at me as if stating a fact as mundane as the weather, completely unrelated to her:

"My blood can not only save her but also prevent the wound from scarring."

"You want to give her your blood?!"

Alpha blood did indeed have powerful healing abilities.

But that didn't mean it should be used at times like this, especially not for the reason of preventing a human from having scars.

This was absurd.

He would go this far for Sophia?

"I didn't call you here for your opinion."

Nathaniel coldly interrupted me.

"Just to inform you."

"Nathaniel, you can't do this!" I stepped forward, my voice trembling with urgency. "Losing a large amount of blood is dangerous even for you. This is too risky!"

"Dangerous?" A mocking smile curved Nathaniel's lips. "That's none of your concern. My decisions aren't for you to question."

"I'm your mate!" The words burst out, carrying a desperation I hadn't even noticed in myself.

"Mate?" The mockery in his eyes deepened. "Remember your place, Amelia. You're just a conveniently suitable arranged marriage partner when I needed one. Now, move aside."

I see.

So my only value as his mate was to be a silent background prop when told he'd decided to risk himself for another woman.

How ironic.

"Fine."

I stepped back, feeling all the strength drain from my body.

Nathaniel released Sophia and helped her sit in a nearby chair.

He comforted her with gentle words, then turned and strode toward the treatment room.

Just as the door was about to close, I called out:

"Nathaniel!"

He stopped and turned to look at me without emotion.

For a moment, I wanted to ask him:

In these four years, did you ever care for me, even for a second?

But meeting those cold eyes, I knew the answer would only disappoint me more.

In the end, I only said:

"Be safe."

His gaze seemed to flicker slightly, but he said nothing in the end.

He turned and went to give blood without hesitation.

I finally understood completely.

His love for Sophia was profound enough that he would give his precious blood for her.

And my four years of devotion and waiting were nothing but a joke.

In the corridor, I sat on the cold bench.

Sophia walked out of the hospital room, wiped away her tears, sat down beside me, and spoke in a gentle tone:

"I'm sorry for troubling Nathaniel again because of me. You know, when I first learned about you, I was really angry. But he said you were just a tool he used to deal with Alpha William. With you around, Alpha William wouldn't make things difficult for me, and I could have more freedom."

I knew what this meant.

Alpha William was an extremely strict werewolf alpha.

He didn't allow any female werewolves to leave the pack, or even go to bars alone.

He was even stricter with Nathaniel's mate.

He forbade me from leaving the pack, required me to wait at home when Nathaniel returned, demanded I personally take care of all of Nathaniel's needs.

So Nathaniel knew this life was restrictive, but he didn't care about me, so he couldn't see my pain.

"You know what? One year, he secretly flew to Paris just because I casually mentioned I liked a certain vintage pendant that was about to be released."

Sophia smiled and continued to provoke me.

"But I was still angry at the time, so I threw the jewelry box right back at him."

I remembered that pendant.

When Nathaniel returned from Paris that time, he casually tossed an exquisite velvet box to me, his tone indifferent:

"Someone gave it to me. I don't like it. You deal with it."

I was so happy when I opened it and saw the necklace.

I thought it was the first and only gift he'd ever given me.

I treasured it at the bottom of my jewelry box, never daring to wear it, often taking it out and looking at it for hours.

It turned out that what I treasured was just the garbage Sophia had disdainfully thrown away.

"And another time,"

Sophia's voice drifted over leisurely,

"I was in a bad mood late at night and posted something really sad on social media. Guess what? He actually flew to New York overnight to be with me. Even though I didn't want to see him, he stood in the rain all night."

I remembered that time. When Nathaniel came back from his business trip, he was soaking wet and pressed me hard beneath him, taking me fiercely.

I naively thought at the time that it was proof of his longing for me after our separation, a breakthrough in our relationship.

It turned out that wasn't love at all, much less genuine feeling.

It was just him venting all his unfulfilled desire for another woman on me, a substitute he could use whenever he wanted.

"These four years,"

Sophia's voice was full of pride,

"I ignored him, wanted him to give up, but Nathaniel pursued relentlessly. Every day he had someone send me a bouquet of lisianthus."

The flower language of lisianthus is unchanging love, eternal waiting.

I felt dizzy and disoriented.

He didn't like having any plants in the house. He said he was allergic, so I, who had always loved fresh flowers, hadn't bought a single one in four years.

Yet he easily ordered flowers for someone else for four entire years.

I was a complete fool.

Four years of arranged marriage, an elaborately planned deception.

"I'm leaving."

I didn't want to hear her continue.

I stood up and pushed through the hospital doors, finally breaking into a run.

I was afraid that one second later, I would completely drown in this four-year-long fantasy.