Chapter 2
1314 Words
SYDNEY'S POV
The soft wind of the night continued to whip my hair to and fro while I stood outside with my suitcase next to me. I was already out of that house, finally.
The flamboyant red sports car pulled over right in front of where I stood, and an even more flamboyant woman was in the driver's seat twiddling her fingers at me as she wound down the windows.
It was Grace.
Grace was not only my best friend, she was also my business partner and the daughter of the Alpha of the Nightbloom Pack, a small but fiercely independent pack on the borderlands. We've been inseparable since our college days. And because we both shared a passion for fashion, we both decided to turn our dreams into reality by co-founding Luxe Vogue, a fashion-forward online shopping website that quickly became a favorite among young trendsetters.
Grace had a keen eye for design, so she was in charge of designing stunning clothing collections, while I focused on designing jewelry at our equally jointly-owned studio, Atelier. Atelier was a high-end fashion studio catering to elite clientele. Our business acumen and creative vision catapulted us into the world of high-ranking millionaires.
I stepped into the passenger's seat of Grace's car, sighing and immediately clicking my seatbelt in.
"Finally willing to leave that bastard and return to work?" Grace quipped with a mischievous grin.
"I really don't understand why you would waste three years of your life to take care of an asshole who doesn't love you at all."
I rolled my eyes, "Because I was blind, but now I can see. ”
Grace chuckled, starting the car. "Well, I'm glad your eyes are wide open now. We've got a whole lot to run, we can't have you distracted by some guy who doesn't appreciate you."
I chuckled, resting my elbow tiredly on the car door. From the onset, Grace had always hated my marriage to Alexander. She had tried, in her way, to convey her disapproval, both indirectly and directly.I was glad we could finally freely talk and make jests about it.
"So, where are we headed now?"
"To the airport, of course. I've got a sudden urge for a short trip."
Grace leaned back in her seat, resting a hand on the car door while the other stayed on the steering wheel. "Well, needed anyway."
"That reminds me," Grace said, "A company is interested in buying the website. And I kid you not, it's an insane offer. I'm tempted."
"I'm really not in the mood for work right now. We'll talk about that when I return," I said, glancing at Grace. Grace nodded understandingly. "Totally get it.”
I really needed this trip, to get my mind out for a bit, to revel in my freedom from Alexander and the suffocating routine I had fallen into.
Grace pulled into the airport. As the car came to a stop, I dialed a number.
"I'm here now, where are you?" I spoke first.
Grace looked at me curiously. "Who was that?" she asked.
"You'll see," I grinned cryptically.
While we waited in the car, a man in a sharp suit approached the car. He was Asher, my trusted lawyer from the Shadowmoon Pack, who had helped me draft the formal request to dissolve the mate bond with Alexander.
Asher opened his briefcase and took out an envelope containing the documents. “Here,” he handed me the papers. I glanced through them one after the other, feeling an overwhelming feeling of finality wash down on me.
"Do you need some more time to go through them?" Asher asked. I shook my head, determined. "No, where do I sign?"
He pointed to various areas on the pages, "Here, here," flipping through them, "over here and here," he directed. Then, he handed me a pen.
I signed each page and spot that required my signature.
"I'll have Alpha Alexander receive a copy as well and will send yours too,” he said as he placed the papers back in his briefcase.
“You can have them sent to my mail.”
“Will do,” he said.“Once the papers are signed, your mate bond dissolution request will be submitted to The Elders council. Provided there are no asset disputes, your mate bond will be officially severed within thirty business days”
I nodded, “Thanks,” shaking his hand.
"It's my duty," he replied, smiling.
Grace looked at me, "So, are you going to kill my curiosity now?"
I looked at her and replied, "That was Asher from the Shadowmoon Pack. I signed the formal request to dissolve the mate bond with Alexander.Everything will be easier if I give up my share of the pack's wealth"
Grace let out a dramatic scream, "Are you crazy? You're actually giving up on asking him for compensation? He's the Alpha of the Nightscar Pack, you could get a hundred million in assets!"
I chuckled bitterly, "It doesn't matter. I just want to dissolve this bond as soon as possible! I'm a successful businesswoman by myself,I don't need him to raise my value."
Grace shook her head, "But still, a hundred million…” she looked so pained, so much so I nearly chuckled.
I shrugged, "Let him keep his wealth to himself, I just want to move on with my life."
“Aww, girl. I totally get it.” Grace reached out and squeezed my hand, "I'm here for you, no matter what."
"And that's all that matters to me," I smiled and squeezed her hand in return.
"Alright, let's get your things," she said, getting out of the car to help me pull my suitcase from the backseat and raising the handle tall.
"Tell all the eligible Alphas, the Queen is back!" I announced loudly into the wind.
"Woo-hoo! The Queen is back, everyone!" Grace hooted after me.
Alexander’s POV
I pulled into the driveway of the house, exhausted. Another long day of managing both the pack and the GT Group had left me drained, and all I wanted was to unwind and relax. I stepped out of the car and loosened the collar of my shirt, eager to get inside and finally relax. When I entered the house, I saw Sydney sitting there, staring at me with her usual blank look. I barely spared her a glance while heading straight for my study.
"I want to break the mating bond," Sydney said before I could even reach the sanctuary of my study.
Breaking the mating bond?After I returned home from a long day of exhausting work, I heard my Luna wants to break our mate bond? Ridiculous was the first word that came to my mind, and ridiculous it was indeed. The Shadowmoon Pack, Sydney's pack, had formed an alliance with the Nightscar Pack through our mating bond. As part of the agreement, Sydney's family's company merged with the GT Group, which I owned. This was a contract that benefited both parties in every sense of the word. Sydney was only a woman I'd married, who depended on her parents and me for survival.
Breaking the mating bond, huh? It was obviously her new way of crying for attention, like she was fond of doing. It used to be the pitiful demeanor she carried around her, which was enough to convince an outsider that she was being treated wrongly, even though that had never been the case. We'd been keeping up the mated couple facade for three years already.
Now she was pulling a new stunt, which I wasn't going to fall for.
The next morning, I entered the dining room to have breakfast before leaving, but all I was met with was an empty table.
Every morning Sydney would be here preparing breakfast, but now no steaming coffee, no fresh pastries.
she was nowhere to be seen.
- Writer
