My Fiancé Chose Her So I Chose Myself Chapter 01
When a winter storm grounded every flight, the five of us from the Lakecrest pack were stranded overnight in the Denver airport.
The blizzard had severed our long-distance mind-links. Pack law dictated that companions care for the sick and weak, but it also stated that no member could be left alone in danger.
My fiancé, Travis Vale, stood in line at the service counter for forty minutes and came back with four blankets.
Five years ago, he had signed a courtship declaration at the Lakecrest pack registry, vowing to complete the formal marking after our wedding. We had no fated bond. We had only his choice and my trust.
Travis shook out two blankets and draped them over Jenna Collins, then handed the other two to Evan Bennett and his sister, Brooke.
Jenna had a weak wolf and recovered poorly after shifting. The registry had classified her as a vulnerable member, entitled to priority care.
Travis met my eyes and just shrugged.
“They only had four left when I got to the front. Natalie, your wolf’s always been strong. You’ll be fine for one night.”
At three in the morning, Jenna said she was hungry.
Evan went to the vending area and came back with four sandwiches.
Travis took his, bit into it, then called Evan back.
“Get Jenna another one. Her blood sugar drops easily. When she’s weak, she can’t even shift right.”
Evan nodded and swiped his card again.
I sat in the drafty gate area, the cold wind seeping through my coat, and watched that sandwich land in Jenna’s hands. My stomach had been cramping with hunger, but in that moment, it just felt numb.
I thought about the train to New York, when they’d booked four tickets and I had to scramble to buy my own at the last minute.
I thought about every pack dinner where they ordered for everyone else, only to realize no one had asked what I wanted.
There had always been five of us in this little circle, but their concern only ever stretched far enough for four.
Just before dawn, an announcement crackled over the speakers: the flight to Chicago was boarding.
The four of them headed for the gate, laughing and talking among themselves. No one looked back. No one used the newly restored short-range mind-link to make sure I was following.
I didn’t call out to them.
I took out my phone and opened the transfer offer from our London headquarters. The position came with work sponsorship from the Thames Riverside pack, which meant I could finally sever my residency ties to Lakecrest.
I hit Accept.
If there was no place for me in their lives, then I could leave.
…
“Natalie, watch the luggage. Jenna’s stomach is bothering her. I’m taking her to the airport medical station.”
After the plane landed at O’Hare, Travis didn’t wait for an answer before shoving the luggage cart at me. Five large suitcases were stacked high on it.
Jenna had a hand pressed to her stomach, her whole body leaning against his shoulder.
“Can you hurry up?” Brooke frowned at me. “We’ve been up all night. We’re exhausted.”
She linked her arm through Evan’s, and the two of them flanked Travis and Jenna.
“It’s still freezing rain outside,” Evan added. “Just grab the luggage and meet us at the parking garage. Don’t keep us waiting.”
The four of them disappeared toward the exit near the medical station. Not one of them looked back.
I gripped the heavy cart handle, my own stomach starting to cramp again.
I’d spent the whole night in the terminal without so much as a sip of water. No one had asked if I needed anything.
I drew a sharp breath and shoved the cart forward with all my strength.
The wheels scraped harshly across the floor. I had to stop and fight the cart back into line at every turn.
The moment I stepped out of the terminal, freezing wind whipped rain into my face, soaking through my hair and coat in seconds.
The parking garage elevator was out of service. An airport employee directed travelers up the ramp to the next level.
The weight of five suitcases was more than I could handle. The cart picked up speed on the slick downhill slope, crashing hard into a concrete barrier.
The top two suitcases tumbled into a deep puddle.
One was Jenna’s custom pink case. The other was the black suitcase Travis always used on business trips.
I just stood there in the downpour, rain running down my face and into my collar.
An airport security officer ran over, helping me lift the luggage back onto the cart.
“You’re handling all this by yourself?” He glanced around. “Your partner didn’t come help?”
I lowered my eyes to the fresh gouge scraped into the side of the pink suitcase.
“I don’t have a partner.”
Five years and a registered courtship declaration hadn’t been enough to make Travis turn around for me. Suddenly, the whole thing felt lighter than paper.
The security officer paused, then wisely didn’t ask anything else. He helped me push the cart to the rideshare pickup zone and waited until the driver had loaded the last suitcase before he left.
I didn’t go to the parking garage to find them.
Their SUV was already cramped with the four of them; there was no room for me and five suitcases.
I called a larger car and went back to my apartment in downtown Chicago alone.
Rainwater streaked backward across the window. This city, this Lakecrest territory, held the last seven years of my life.
Travis was my fiancé. Evan had grown up next door. Brooke had trailed after us since she was a little girl. Jenna had been my closest friend in college.
I didn’t know when it had all started to change, only that whenever Jenna was around, everyone else seemed to forget I was there at all.
The car stopped outside my building in the West Loop. I asked the doorman to help me bring the five suitcases upstairs.
The apartment was quiet, but Jenna’s cloying gardenia scent lingered in the air. She’d been here far more often than Travis had ever let on.
A mug painted with a cartoon cat sat on the coffee table.
Travis had bought it for her. He’d said she came over often enough to have her own cup.
I always just used the plain glass tumblers from the kitchen cabinet.
I took a hot shower and changed out of my wet clothes. When I came out, my phone was lit up with a new message.
It was Travis.
*Why didn’t you bring the luggage? Jenna’s meds are in her suitcase. You should’ve thought of that.*
Three minutes later, another one came through.
*Evan said you called a car and left. What exactly are you trying to prove? Just leave the suitcases. We’re taking Jenna for something to eat. We’ll be back later.*
I stared at the two messages. I didn’t explain that I couldn’t manage the cart, and I didn’t tell him how long I’d stood in the freezing rain.
In the past, I would have fired back a string of texts demanding to know why Jenna always came first.
And every time, he would have said I was overreacting and quoted the pack’s vulnerable-member protection rules back at me.
Now, I didn’t even have the energy to reply.
I walked into the study and opened my laptop.
The formal transfer letter from London headquarters was sitting in my inbox. A three-year term. Higher salary. Better title. The Thames Riverside pack required relocation upon joining.
I’d hesitated for a month, not wanting to leave Travis, not wanting to give up on the wedding we’d already started planning.
Now, the offer looked like an escape hatch.
I clicked into the reply box.
The sound of the keys was sharp in the quiet apartment.
*Thank you for your confidence in me. I accept the appointment to the London headquarters and will complete the Chicago office handover and pack transfer procedures by next Tuesday.*
I sent the email.
“I accept,” I said to the empty room.