Taylor Medina and I shared a lifetime of love.

After my death, he removed his crown and knelt before the Lycan King, pleading only for a Luna's title to honor me.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back at fifteen.

Taylor came to my pack to propose.

Priceless gifts, hundreds of businesses.

But it was my sister, Louise Bennett, he sought to mate.

Taylor, fearing I might cause trouble, looked weary.

"Eden," he said, his voice soft but firm, "I loved Louise all my life, so I can only mate with her. But I’ll treat you like a sister and care for you forever."

I sighed lightly, turning away without hesitation.

Fine. I was meant to leave this pack anyway.

Fifteen days later, I would be gone.

====================

The day Taylor Medina came to propose was bright and clear.

Priceless gifts, vast territories, a hundred businesses.

The offerings were a hundred times more extravagant than in my previous life.

I was slightly surprised, but a secret joy bloomed in my heart.

No one knew I was reborn.

In my past life, Taylor and I were inseparable, our bond unmatched.

After my death, he even knelt before the Lycan King in the grand hall.

Just to secure a Luna’s title for me.

Everyone envied my fortune.

A lowly Omega from the Bennett Pack becoming a Luna was indeed a stroke of unimaginable luck.

When the servant came to inform me, I waited all morning.

Taylor stood tall and commanding, bowing to my stepmother, Paula Herrera.

"I’ve come today to propose to the Bennett family’s daughter," he said, his voice steady. "I hope you’ll grant me this honor."

Paula, knowing Taylor and I were acquainted, smiled and asked, "Are you here for Eden?"

"No."

I froze.

Taylor suddenly turned, his gaze piercing through the beads of the curtain to my sister, Louise, his eyes softening.

"Eden and I are merely packmates, nothing more.

"My heart has always belonged to one person—Louise Bennett."

His words were tender, but they left me disoriented for a long time.

I remembered once when he helped me get ready.

My brows unlined yet dark, my lips unpainted yet red.

Every detail was perfect.

The only flaw was the blush on my cheeks, too vivid.

I complained to Taylor, but he simply gazed at me, a smile playing on his lips.

"You’re beautiful just as you are," he said.

At the time, I didn’t think much of it.

Now I realize my sister loved buying blushes and adored the rose-petal look.

The rose-petal look was intoxicating, a subtle allure.

It seems, in my past life, Taylor’s heart was always with Louise.

If Louise hadn’t died young, this bond would never have been mine.

On my way back to the pack house, Taylor Medina intercepted me.

He looked me up and down, his voice calm but laced with skepticism.

"Eden, you’re back, aren’t you?"

I lowered my gaze, focusing on the faint floral scent lingering on my skin.

Before I found my mate, I used to love the scent of wildflowers.

After I became his mate, Taylor insisted I adopt a more refined scent—one that Louise Bennett favored.

"Alpha Taylor," I replied, keeping my tone neutral. "I’m not sure what you mean."

Taylor paused, then smiled faintly.

"That’s good to hear."

After a moment, he added, "But I know how you feel about me. Louise has mentioned it often. She almost rejected the mate bond because of you.

Eden, I’ve loved her my whole life, and I will only ever mate with her. But I’ll treat you like a sister, care for you as family."

The man I’d once called my mate stood before me, his words cutting deeper than any rejection.

I took a shallow breath, steadying myself.

"Alpha Taylor, I understand."

He seemed surprised by my calm response.

Just as he had in our past life, he reached out and grasped my wrist, his touch familiar yet distant.

"Eden, I’ve wronged you. But I’ll make it up to you. There are many promising young wolves in the Medina Pack. I’ll find someone suitable for you."

The scent of pine and snow—his dominant Alpha aura—filled the air, and for a moment, I was back in our old life, sharing quiet moments that felt like forever.

The question slipped out before I could stop it.

"Why Louise?"

Why her and not me?

Taylor didn’t hesitate.

"Louise is radiant, lively. She brings color to my life. And she’s the daughter of an Alpha—a better match for a future Alpha like me."

So that was it.

I’d always suspected, but hearing it confirmed was still a blow.

The last flicker of hope I’d clung to finally extinguished.

I gently pulled my wrist from his grasp.

Taylor looked momentarily taken aback, but I felt oddly at peace.

In this second chance, I’d thought of so many things to say to him.

How we’d grown old together in another life.

How I’d endured his mother’s cruelty because I believed in us.

How the wildflowers outside our home had bloomed so beautifully, and how we’d shared warmth and laughter beneath them.

How, even in death, I’d felt the heat of his tears.

But all those words tangled in my throat, and in the end, only one sentence escaped.

"I understand."

Alpha Taylor, I understand.

This time, I won’t be your mate.

I unfolded the letter from my senior sister, Livia Hill.

Her words were clear—since the Bennett Pack had treated me so poorly, I should consider moving to Greenwood.

Though Greenwood lacked the grandeur of the capital, it would offer me safety, a sanctuary away from the toxicity that had consumed my life.

I had been torn.

Part of me still longed for a life with Taylor Medina, my mate, despite everything. The bond between us, though strained, still pulsed faintly in my chest, a reminder of what could have been.

Yet another part of me yearned to return to the pack I had once called family, to the sisters and brothers who had stood by me when Taylor’s family had cast me aside.

But Taylor made the decision for me.

He rejected me.

The words still echoed in my mind, sharp and unrelenting. “I, Taylor Medina, Alpha of the Medina Pack, reject you, Eden Mendez, as my mate.”

The pain of that moment had been excruciating, the bond between us shattering like glass. Yet, in a strange way, it freed me.

I no longer had to choose.

Now, I could focus on the one thing that had always grounded me—my mother’s legacy.

Among the few possessions I had left of hers were several paintings she had created during her lifetime.

They were old, the colors faded, but they carried her essence, her spirit.

I ran my fingers over the canvas of her favorite piece, *Autumn Mountains*.

The strokes were delicate yet bold, a testament to her talent and passion.

Tears welled in my eyes as I whispered, “Mom, we were both so foolish, weren’t we?”

My mother, Seraphina, had been a skilled artist, a protégé of the renowned healer and painter, Lawson Oliver.

Garrett Bennett, the former Alpha of the Bennett Pack, had come to Greenwood seeking a commission.

Instead, he found her.

He pursued her relentlessly, his aura and commanding presence impossible to resist.

They had their marking ceremony in Greenwood, and I was born soon after.

But my mother never knew that Garrett already had a mate back in the capital, Paula Herrera.

He had intended their affair to be fleeting, a momentary indulgence.

But my mother loved him too deeply.

When she followed him to the capital, she walked into a scene that shattered her heart—Garrett and Paula, entwined in their bond, their love on full display.

Paula, ever the shrewd Luna, insisted on bringing my mother into the pack, adding her name to the registry.

But it was no kindness.

My mother withered under the weight of humiliation and heartbreak.

She died young, her hands gripping mine, her eyes filled with tears of regret.

“Eden,” she had whispered, her voice trembling. “Your mate… choose one who loves you… who protects you.”

I had promised her, through my own tears, that I would.

But now, looking back, I realized how naive I had been.

My mother and I had both made the same mistake—we had tied our worth to the love of men who could never truly cherish us.

Perhaps it was time to let go of that dream.

Perhaps happiness didn’t lie in finding a mate but in finding myself.

As I stood there, my mother’s painting cradled in my arms, I felt a resolve harden within me.

I would honor her memory, not by chasing the love of an Alpha, but by embracing the life I had built for myself.

The bond with Taylor was broken, but I was not.

And for the first time in a long time, I felt free.