Page 2 of Mated to Fenrir
"I didn't bail on all of them," she protested.
I sighed. "It's not that I don't want to find my fated mate, of course I do, but it's just more complicated than that, and I'm not sure if I can keep going through all of the pain that comes with getting it wrong."
"Todd?" she guessed.
I nodded. "My wolf was convinced he was my mate." I touched my hand to my chest, feeling her stir within me at my thoughts. "She reacted so strongly to him when we met, andI thought that maybe he was it. But you know what happened there."
"Could she have been wrong?"
I sighed. "It's more complicated than that." I took a sip of my wine and tried to find the words to explain how fated mates worked for wolves.
Anise didn't prompt me, presumably realising that I was working through my thoughts in order to tell them to her.
"Fated mates isn't really a one-and-done thing. So, you could be my fated mate right now, and my wolf would be reacting to you. If you were a wolf shifter, anyway."
"Go on?" She took a sip of her wine, looking rather intently at me.
"Then we could meet again in ten years' time, and you'd no longer be my fated mate. Fate is about more than just the right person. It's about the timing too. What I need in a fated mate now, isn't what I'll need in a fated mate in ten years, or twenty."
"Doesn't that just mean you'll fall out of love with the person you're with?"
"Are you planning on falling out of love with Kuk?" I asked.
"I don't want to, no."
"Then it's exactly the same. The idea is that my mate and I would work on our relationship, and in doing so, we would stay one another's fated mate. It's about fitting well together now and in the future. So Toddwasmy fated mate when we met, which meant that he had the potential to be perfect for me, and that was why we fit so well together for the first few months. It was only after that that things started falling apart. It's not totally his fault, I didn't work on our relationship as much as I should have done either, and it makes it hard to have the wolves inside us insisting that something isthe thing, and then it not being as simple as that."
"It's not as simple as that for anyone else either," Anise reminded me.
"I know." I sighed and ran my hand through my hair, getting tangled in the thick waves before giving up. There really was no taming it sometimes. "Not a lot of the early mate bonds last for wolves. Everyone is too young, and they think that's all it takes, so don't put in the work they need to."
"And now that means you're not looking?"
"Yep. No more dating apps, no more parties, mixers, or anything like that. I'm going to be focusing on other things, and if my fated mate makes themselves known, then I might pursue something, but I'm not going to actively try and make it happen."
"So now isn't a good time to mention that Adelaide got us tickets to the Jinx Masquerade next weekend?"
I raised an eyebrow. "How did she manage that?"
"I think Horus is the one who got them," Anise admitted. "I'm sure Adelaide will tell us more when she gets here."
"Well, I suppose a masquerade isn't the same as trying to date," I mused.
"Excellent. Then you'll be needing a mask."
"Where are they even hosting something like that?"
"Their hotel. They have a grand ballroom or something like that."
"Ah. Then I guess we should get some dresses." Even if I wasn't looking for my mate, looking fabulous in a ballgown at an exclusive party wasn't something I was going to say no to.
"I thought you might be harder to convince."
I shrugged. "I've sworn off finding my fated mate, not off fun," I responded.
Anise smiled at me in a way that made me glad I'd said yes. Spending time with my friends would be worth it, even if it did mean heading to another event hosted by the Jinx Dating Agency.
Chapter 2
