Leah found herself at Sam’s house, the guys chowing down on the food that Emily had made. All but one were present—her imprint was out doing another check around the forest. Leah felt out of place, everyone talking and laughing, Sam and Emily holding onto each other with soft smiles. His lips pressed against the scars on Emily’s face, making her laugh out loud, and Leah swore she felt her eye twitch.

She hated it. She hated the fact that Sam had imprinted on Emily, even though she now knew he hadn’t had a choice. But it still hurt to see her ex-fiancé and her cousin acting like the perfect engaged couple. She hated how the pack looked at her with pity. She hated every second of it.

Seth looked at his older sister and held out a muffin to her. He was one of the only ones who never looked at her with pity—at least not to her face. She took the muffin with a thin smile stretched across her lips and began picking at it, her eyes frequently darting toward the door, waiting for the one person who made these gatherings almost bearable to return.