Harry

There is nothing like seeing your own brother getting rejected by his mate to put things into perspective for you.

I mean, he was completely broken by it. Here I thought Jessica's death was the lowest point of his life. I was wrong, Goddess rests her beautiful soul.

Aaron took a long time to get up and do anything. Our parents had to pull him up and nearly carry him to his room. He was destroyed.

They spent a long time with him, comforting and talking some sense into him. The Goddess didn't give him a second chance only for him to squander it.

I cannot believe my brother is the first werewolf in history to get a second chance mate. I guess the Goddess must have run out of straight men to pair Rhiannon with or something.

I mean, she could definitely do better than my brother. Just saying.

Out of all the sins my brother committed, I cannot bring myself to judge him for thinking this was some sort of set up. I know in my heart my mate could never pull something like that off. Landon has no reason to come up with something like that or even to humiliate my brother. There is no punishment worse than having your mate killed.

Besides, even if my mate were an evil mastermind, no werewolf in the world has ever been given a second chance mate - as far as I know. So this would be the dumbest revenge plan ever.

In fact, it was so outrageous that it had to be true. More often than not, real life can do much worse than anything our minds can conjure up. Even the brightest mind cannot make this stuff up.

My brother... a plain straight white guy from a small town in Texas got a second chance mate? A fierce black woman who literally called him 'a washed up loser and murderer'. Damn! Harsh, even if he deserved it.

He is a murderer, though he didn't do the killing himself. But then again, if I am judging people by that metric, so are my father and my mate. They all had people killed under their orders, we were at war between our packs after all.

I hope to Goddess all of them are done with the killing, but I also worry that my mate's shooter hasn't been apprehended as of yet. Honestly, I am just glad he got home safe and sound after the meet and greet.

Yes, I checked. Of course he texted me as soon as he returned to Regency Falls. We have been texting each other on a daily basis, though up until recently it was mostly about the unmated exchange program.

14 couples got mated that day. Fourteen. Yes, I do mean including my brother. I have been getting presents and thank you notes from all the former unmated pack members. They are all thrilled for finally being matched after years of waiting.

Yeah, not a single rejection like that bastard Ares pointed out. But none of them are mated to Barnetts.

I am sorry, scratch that. Only one rejection, of course. But that doesn't count. Rhiannon had every right to reject my idiot brother for the way he treated her. This made the 'Meet and Greet' feel like hell even after all the successful matings.

After a few days of getting his meals inside his bedroom, Aaron finally started leaving his bedroom again. At least, to share a meal with his family. I know he feels guilty for bringing this upon himself, but I cannot wish rejection upon anyone. Not even him.

I know it sounds hypocritical of me, but I cannot fault him for the way he reacted. Anyone would do the same. It was too incredible to be believed.

"Good morning, mom, dad, brats." Aaron entered the dining room to have breakfast for the first time since the rejection.

"Who are you calling brat? I'm 2 years younger than you." I glared at him. My parents are already giving us the evil eye for the argument.

"Good morning, son. I'm glad to see you back on your feet again." Mom smiled radiantly at him.

"Thanks, mom. I had to get out of the funk. Life is not over, I just had a setback." He said, forcing a smile.

"I'm glad you're back, Aaron. I missed you around here." Dad spoke, feeling good about his son's presence among the family.

"Guys, he only stayed in his room for a couple of days. He wasn't sick or anything like that!" I scoffed. My parents are treating him as if he was the one who survived a shooting. The only shooting he was involved in was when he shot off his own mouth.

"You should have empathy for your brother, Harry. It's not easy to recover from rejection!" Dad snarled at me, irritated. Mom was not happy at my outburst either.

"I was sick, just not in the traditional sense of the word. Excuse me for caring about my mate and being rejected by her." He shot back, peeved at me.

"If only you hadn't accused my mate of orchestrating the most ridiculous and outrageous revenge plan ever. MAYBE you shouldn't have accused her of molesting you!" I snapped at him, annoyed.

Both my parents gasped at this and my father growled at me. His dad glare was off the charts this morning. The look of disapproval on my mom was also on point.

"How was I supposed to know she was telling the truth? No one has ever been mated twice in history!" He defended himself, baffled.

"The eyes were a dead give away." I scoffed.

"Enough!" - Dad yelled, raging. - "I won't have the both of you arguing again! Your brother reacted based on the information he had at the time. He was still grieving his first mate. How was he supposed to know he would ever be mated again and with a person from their pack?"

My dad was fiercely mad. I hate when he is defending my brother, but I get the need to protect his fragile state of mind. I mean, sort of.

"No one could have known that would happen, dad! But thinking so little of my mate, thinking he would stoop so low didn't help matters. Also, no one in their right mind would ever disrespect the Moon Goddess by faking a mate pairing! Especially with a person who is already mated!" I rebuked, irritated.

"I know, alright? I know it was stupid of me for thinking that. But I didn't know what to think!" Aaron exclaimed, remorsefully.

"For future reference, no unmated self respecting woman would ever pretend to be your mate just so she could humiliate a grieving widower." I deadpan, much to my family's chagrin.

"I am aware of that now, moron!" He cursed at me.

"Plus, why would she force a kiss on you?" I wondered with a disgusted look on my face.

"Leave your brother alone, Harry!" Dad interjected, glaring at me.

There was a brief silence in the room where my brother was pensive.

"Oh my Goddess! I know why she kissed me!" He yelled all of the sudden, as if realizing something.

"She kissed me so that the mate bond would be triggered in me. Since my eyes didn't shine, she figured it was the only way to cause a reaction from my wolf. She took it upon herself to ignite the mate bond within me. That's why my mate mark healed. She literally jump started my wolf into acknowledging our bond!" He realized after a moment and all of us were flabbergasted by the discovery.

"Oh my Goddess!" I am mesmerized by this, shocked at the revelation.

"But how would she know a kiss would cause that effect on you?" Our little brother asked, perplexed like the rest of us.

"She didn't. But she felt she had no other choice. None of us believed her, so she had to take drastic measures and nothing in the world affects us more than our mate's touch." My mom chimed in, realizing what was staring in our faces since the whole thing happened.

We were all baffled at the turn of events. Even after the whole mating gone wrong happened, there was still so much to unpack...

"Why do all this just so she can reject him afterwards? Why trigger the mate bond if she didn't want to be mated to him?" I pondered, puzzled. My brother grimaced at my words, but it was not a jab at him. It was a genuine question.

My mom smirked at me with a knowing glance.

"That's because you don't know women, Harry. She wasn't about to leave our house discredited, with people thinking she was deranged. It was about validation. She felt she had no other recourse, so she had to leave on her own terms. I respect that." Mom stated, a hint of pride in her tone.

"I agree with your mother. She had to prove it to all of us, mainly to her mate..."- Dad glanced at Aaron as he said that. - "That she wasn't confused or crazy. That she didn't seek him out at random. I'm guessing she didn't even want to kiss him. But she was desperate to be believed. All of us were looking at her as if she was a lunatic."

Our parents' words settled in our minds like gospel. Of course she wanted to be believed. Who would want to be humiliated in front of two Alphas? Who would want to leave our house having people think they are crazy.

"I get it now, mom. I finally understand why she rejected me. What she really wanted was for me to believe in her in the first place. She wanted to be validated by her mate, but instead I acted as if she was a stalker." Aaron spoke in a saddened tone, the truth settling into his head.

Mom didn't say anything, but her facial expression was speaking volumes. My brother is right. She didn't reject him for the same reasons I rejected my mate. No, not really. What she wanted was to have her feelings validated by her person.

Aaron sobs at the sad realization. All of us felt his sadness so palpable in the room.

"I'm so sorry, brother. You didn't deserve to be rejected. What she expected of you, no man would respond in that way. It was nearly impossible to believe." I comforted him, patting his shoulder from across the table.

"Was there any moment when you believed your mate orchestrated the whole thing to get back at your brother?" Mom questioned me with a raised eyebrow.

"NO!" I replied, emphatically. Almost offended by her question.

"That's the reaction she expected, Harry. Blind faith in your mate. You might not know what was happening, but you never doubted that Landon had any malicious intent. You defended him to your brother. That's how a mate is supposed to act. And that's what she wanted from hers, to be believed even when no one else did." Mom lectured me in a firm tone.

Suddenly, all the recent events came crashing down onto me. Feelings, attitudes, every single time that I spent together with my mate, everything he told me, how he acted towards me and my family...

Everything that has ever happened since I got mated to Landon flashed before my eyes as if it all led to this very moment, to a single realization.

Now I am crying just like my brother. Both my parents frowned in worry for their children.

"You're right, mom. I get it now." I conceded, seeing the wisdom in her words. Moms rule. Tears fell from my face, I am overwhelmed with all kinds of feelings, but mainly of regret.

After a moment of us crying, I finish my coffee and reach a decision.

"Mom. Dad. I'm taking my car to Regency Falls. I need to speak with my mate." I announced before I got up from the table, decisive.

Aaron immediately turned to me, still crying.

"May I come too?" He asked me, tearfully.

"There's no guarantee that she'll see you, Aaron. I don't know anything about her. You could just be wasting your time in a frivolous pursuit." I warned him, fearfully. I didn't mean to be cold, but he shouldn't get his hopes up.

"I have nothing left to lose, Harry. I don't have anything to do with myself here. At least I need to try." He insisted, in tears.

I wanted to say no, but I am not heartless. I can totally relate to him, even though our situations are not the same.

"We leave in five minutes." I declared, rushing out of the dining room, drying my tears.

I stuffed some clothes in my bag, brushed my teeth and texted my mate we were coming. I would surprise him if I was going alone, but I am not going to blindside him with the person who had his father killed.

Less than an hour later, we arrived at Regency Falls. The warriors on duty in the pack house were immediately suspicious of my brother as soon as we entered. In a moment, we were welcomed by Luna Felicia and my mate, who looked happy to see me but intrigued by my brother's presence.

"Welcome back, Harry. So good to see you." She smiled at me, offering a warm hug.

"It's great to be back, Luna. May I present to you my older brother, Aaron Staedler." I introduced him, who was frozen next to me in fear of what reception he would expect from them.

"Welcome to Regency Falls, Mr. Staedler." She reached out her hand to him, cordially.

"Let me start by saying, I deeply regret the actions in which your mate's life was taken. I was incredibly foolish and I want you to know I've regretted that ever since. My deepest condolences, ma'am." Aaron spoke in a somber, remorseful tone.

Both she and Landon were taken aback by his words, but she was a true Luna.

"Thank you for saying that, Mr. Staedler. I appreciate it." She shook his hand.

"Hi, mate." I turned to a very surprised Landon.

"Hi, Harry. Is everything alright? Did you come here just to accompany your brother?" He inquired, a bit suspicious of my - our - presence.

"No, it was his idea to come here!" Aaron interjected, looking at Landon. I glared at my brother's 'intrusion'.

"Everything is fine. No, it was my decision to come here. My brother asked to come along and I couldn't say no under the circumstances. But I told him she might not want to see him." I replied, sideways glaring at Aaron. He looked uncomfortable.

"Can I offer you some refreshments? Are you guys hungry?" Luna offered, gently.

"I know you have no reason to help me, Alpha. But I beg you, can you please direct me towards her? I'll take any kindness you can show me." Aaron stared deep into Landon's eyes as he spoke.

He gulped awkwardly and glanced at his mother, who was also taken aback by the request.

"She's working right now and cannot be disturbed while on shift. But I can notify her of your presence. You're welcome to wait here, but I can't guarantee that she'll want to see you. And I'm not taking you to her house either." Landon replied in a stern tone.

"Thank you, Alpha. That's all I can ask for. I do appreciate it and I'll take you up on your kindness." Aaron said in a hopeful tone.

"If you follow me, I can show you to a room where you can wait for her." Luna motioned him to walk with her. A warrior followed them both a few steps behind.

"Can I talk to you in private? I'm sorry to disturb you, I know you have Regent duty." I asked my mate, expectantly. I came here with a purpose and I need to get this off my chest.

"Of course, Harry. Let's go to my office." He offered without missing a beat.

"Before you go, I owe you an apology. I'm sorry for the wild accusation the other day. I didn't know what to believe and I was very confused by everything." Aaron turned back to speak to my mate, remorsefully.

"It's fine. Even I didn't believe in my friend either. I don't blame you for that strong reaction." He replied, graciously.

"Thank you, Alpha. But I should have believed her. I failed as a mate. I should've followed my brother's example, who believed in you. He never wavered for one second, he knew you had nothing to do with that." Aaron said, making me blush.

"Shut up, Aaron!" I got flustered as my mate stared at me, swooning. Landon was smiling wide as we walked to his office.

https://youtu.be/LKaXY4IdZ40

A|N: Favorite. Song. Ever.

If you think about it, it's amazing that it took me this long to include in a book of mine. But it was a complete coincidence for it to match with the theme of this chapter.

It still amazes me how I can write something completely at random and have it match with an idea I only develop later. Honestly, I never feel as smart as when I'm writing. LoL

Love,

Léo.