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Adam walked into his hotel room, almost too exhausted to even take a shower, but as tired as he was, he had to wash off the dead fish smell coating his skin. Dead tritons smelled worse than dead fish, which wasn't surprising considering they were half fish. Adam thought back over the day as he stood motionless under the hot spray of the shower, this had definitely been the craziest day of his life. He'd seen his mate for the first time in seven years, she'd rejected him, then he'd found her again and shared the most amazing kiss imaginable with her, his first kiss. A smile crept onto his face thinking about how Celie accepting the rejection hadn't stopped the sparks, they were there, they were 4th of July inside him when they kissed. But the smile dimmed when he thought of how she'd pushed him away after the kiss, how she'd asked him to leave after he'd tried to explain... would she really deny him a chance to prove himself? Had he spent the last seven years hoping in vain? He couldn't let himself think that, he couldn't give up hope now, he'd found her, she was here and so close, he could tell by the look in her eyes she was tempted. Yes, she'd accepted the rejection, but that wasn't the end, he wouldn't let it be. Goddess, he couldn't believe he hadn't thought to revoke it the second he saw her, would it have made a difference if he had? Would it have made her pause at all if that had been the first thing he said to her?

She was so beautiful, she'd taken his breath for a moment when he'd first seen her, he'd never taken much notice of her figure in high school, she'd been skinny then, but she'd filled out now and she looked amazing. That red bikini...grrr, he felt himself growing hard as he pictured it in his mind, he wanted to see it again, he wanted that sun warmed, tanned, and oiled skin against his. He wanted to feel her around him, he knew she was still pure, he could smell it on her, she'd waited for him, even though she said now she didn't want him, she'd had no man to replace him in all these years. He never felt any pain of her being with someone else, but he wasn't sure rejectors felt that pain, he didn't think they did, he couldn't remember that being one of the symptoms of rejection that they spoke of in the classes. He didn't think they did, men wouldn't be so blasé about rejecting a woman if they knew they'd be covered in bruises if she slept with others. Men were generally not that willing to suffer or deal with pain. Sure, they acted all big and bad when it came to war wounds, but when it came to that? He couldn't imagine someone like Ben wanting to chance it with such a casual rejection. Adam felt guilt seep into him thinking like that about his dead friend, in the end Ben had suffered for his stupidity, he'd paid with his life for it.

Then he thought of the fight at the canal and the mermen; sirens and tritons, he reminded himself. He still couldn't believe they existed, he'd gotten a good look at them as he was helping to drag the bodies into the woods and cover them with leaves. They were large creatures with wicked hooked teeth and viscous claws, he shuddered thinking of having one of those things come up to him in the ocean, he wasn't sure he'd ever be able to take a swim again, so much for learning to surf. Harper had chuckled when he said that, and assured him they didn't hunt during the day, especially near a crowded beach, they weren't that brave or that stupid, the only danger when the sun was up was if you were out in the deep ocean alone. Lone divers occasionally disappeared, but it wasn't like there were millions of tritons out there, they were pretty rare creatures, so it didn't happen that often. That's why encountering 5 in the area in one night had freaked them out so much.

Goddess, who would have thought mermen were real? And Harper found one and married it! Him, Adam reminded himself, HIM. He couldn't think of Matt as an it, he was a man, a creature, just like Adam. Were they really so different? No, the answer was no. He shifted into a supernatural being just as Matt did, there was no difference between them. It began to make sense now, no wonder Matt had been able to challenge Reese with no fear at all, no wonder he'd seemed to strong. He was strong, and in his natural form he was massive. Just like werewolves, that strength in his other form would translate to more strength in his human form. Adam wondered just how powerful he was, Harper had said his muscles were twice as dense as theirs, Adam was a strong werewolf, but he decided right then he never wanted to get into a ring with Matt, and he certainly never wanted to piss the guy off.

**

Harper didn't think she'd ever been so tired or drained in her whole life, but still she was awake. She lay on her side on the little gurney she'd pulled up next to Matt's tank, and she watched him sleep with the water flowing gently around him. Her mind was at one moment, completely blank, and the next overflowing with thoughts of everything that had happened today. It had undoubtedly been in the top 10 worst days of her life. Having a relaxing morning by the pool turned into having her 2nd place tormentor sitting in her living room apologizing for his behavior. Yeah. Right. His acting skills had improved, but she doubted if anything else did.

--Flashback--

"Why are you even here?" Reese snarled at her, with Callum chuckling in the background as she walked into the kitchen for a glass of water. "Oh yeah, because nobody wants your ass so you're a pathetic charity case taking up space in my house. But at least we got a maid out of this shitty deal."

Harper ignored them, just squeezed around them making sure to stay as far away as she could. She filled her tumbler with ice and water then turned to go only to find them right behind her. The glass was shoved hard against her chest causing the ice water to spill down her front as Reese slammed her backward, her hip painfully catching on the corner of the counter top. He grabbed her forearm before she could fall and yanked her back up only to slam her hard into the counter top again.

"Pathetic loser." Reese sneered. "Can't even get a glass of water without making a mess and fucking everything up. Clean this shit up and get out of here, I don't want to see your ugly face again."

Harper said nothing, just turned to grab the tea towel hanging on the handle of the drawer. She never talked back, she didn't see the point, they were going to pick on her and push her around whether she said anything or not. She'd learned, they were looking for a reaction, she didn't cry, she didn't beg, she just stood still and said nothing, if you didn't give them what they wanted they eventually got bored and went away. She was a little relieved, this was a minor run in, cleaning up a little water and changing her shirt was nothing. Reese and Callum were too scared to really hurt her, any real injuries would alert the Alpha and Luna to their behavior and spoil Reese's perfect son act. Sure, she'd have to wear long sleeves until the hand print bruise on her forearm faded, and her hip would be sore and covered in bruises for a few days, but otherwise this encounter with them had been nothing compared to the many others she'd endured. She was almost smiling when she got back to her room, she'd gotten her water and not gotten beaten up for passing Reese and Callum. It was a good day.

--Flashback over--

Harper grimaced, nose wrinkled in disgust as the memory flowed through her mind. Forgive them? Really? Another chance? They thought they deserved that? Or was this just a play for them to get their punching bag back? Did they run out of people to torment and decide to bring her home to fill the void? She snorted mirthlessly, they were getting the surprise of their lives then, because she wasn't a broken girl anymore. She'd been healed by the beautiful, amazing, creature sleeping in the tank in front of her. Some worry had eased from her mind, and she was starting to relax, she could see that the claw marks covering his chest and shoulders were healing nicely, already the skin was weaving itself back together, she'd be able to remove the stitches tomorrow afternoon and within a few days there would be no evidence of his wounds at all. They would diminish even more when he was strong enough to shift into his human form, which would hopefully be tomorrow morning.

A siren's ability to heal had astonished Harper when she'd first witnessed it. She was used to fast healing, werewolves could heal 10x faster than a human could, but a siren made that look slow, small cuts and nicks would heal instantaneously, bruises would fade within minutes, major injuries would heal within hours, and life threatening wounds would close and heal within days. It was party due to being oceanic creatures, you couldn't have bloody wounds on your body for long out there, too many creatures could smell the blood, too many creatures would be attracted to it, so wounds had to heal quickly or you didn't survive long. Life in the ocean was harsh, there were so many predators out there, it wasn't like on land, where in most cases you only had a few things to be afraid of. The ocean was filled with creatures like tritons, and sharks, which would just attack and eat you the moment they smelled blood in the water, but you also had to deal with things like giant squids, eels, poisonous snails, sea snakes, and jellyfish, just to name a few. And if you were wounded, even creatures who seemed harmless would try to feed on you the second your guard was down.

Harper turned her mind away from her negative thoughts, she stared at her beloved in the tank, and thought of their time together, their laughter, and their love, and she smiled as she finally drifted off to sleep with the sun beginning to lighten the sky. She was happy she could sleep in a little and didn't have to worry about going to the clinic. She had left messages with the service that she would not be in the office today and to reschedule her appointments or have one of the other doctors pick them up, she had no surgeries to perform and only a few patients coming in for checkups, so she didn't feel too bad about taking the day off. Mattie needed her, and he was far more important than a few appointments that weren't of vital importance.

**

Celie too lay awake staring at the ceiling of her room, the events of the day playing through her mind. Seeing Adam again had thrown her world into confusion. Her heart was still beating faster than normal, pumping both excitement and fear through her. Seeing him again had her wolf going nuts, Sira was usually quiet these days, content to live a life in the back of Celie's mind, she was happy when she could get out and run, but she had accepted life outside of a pack. She too had been tired of the insults and degradation her human had endured at the hands of the other cruel wolves. She was content with visiting the local pack and participating in runs and festivals on occasion. She thought about visiting again soon, now that she had accepted the rejection could she truly have a second chance? Was there another mate out there waiting for her? Did she really even want one?

The big question in her mind though, was could she truly walk away from Adam? Her heart was in turmoil just thinking of him, her wolf whined in her head. She'd spent seven years heartbroken over him, reliving his rejection every single night as she lay in her bed trying to sleep, she'd cried an ocean of tears for him, every single night, no matter how hard she'd tried not to, they flowed out of her eyes as she lay alone looking for peace. She'd told Harper the pain had diminished but that wasn't really true, she'd held on, even knowing she shouldn't. Celie had tried, she truly had, to move on, she'd gone on multiple dates throughout the years, but none even moved her heart at all. She'd rarely gone on more than one date with a man, they started wanting more if she did, and she couldn't even bring herself to give them a goodnight kiss. So her first kiss had been tonight with Adam, and it had been everything she'd ever imagined it would be.

Celie was surprised at herself, surprised and proud that she'd had the courage to accept his rejection. But looking into his eyes, remembering the pain, the humiliation, and the thought of the pack had given her the will to do it. She wouldn't go back to the pack, she wouldn't go back to that godforsaken shit hole. Where every single person there except her father and brothers was a cruel and terrible person. She couldn't find it in herself to believe any of them had changed. Reese said there was no more bullying going on, but Celie didn't believe it for a second. You can't change your heart like that, a person who enjoys hurting others doesn't just stop enjoying it, they just hide that enjoyment and keep others from knowing about it. Fakers. They were all fakers. Just like Reese and Callum, they'd hidden what they were doing from the adults in the pack, from his parents, the alpha and Luna, Reese had projected the good son routine, and they'd swallowed it hook, line, and sinker. That was all he was doing now, projecting that fake remorse and sensitivity.

Reese was here for one thing and one thing only, a Luna and pups. The new laws had prevented him from naming a chosen Luna, and the rejection would prevent him from ever having a second chance mate and pups of his own, so Harper was his only option. Celie was so glad Harper wasn't falling for it, so thankful that Harper had completely and totally severed the mate bond between them. Celie could tell that Reese still felt it though, the longing in his eyes when he'd first laid eyes on Harper was blatantly clear. He wanted her, he was planning to take her home with him. The sight of Matt, and the look on Reese's face when Harper introduced him as her husband had shocked Reese so much he hadn't been able to hide his feelings. He'd quickly realized that Harper would never leave Matt. Even if she had still felt the mate bond, she would never leave the man she loved with all her heart. Especially not for Reese. And Celie knew Harper did love Matt, she knew Harper was stronger than anyone, she was the strongest person Celie had ever known.

Celie could tell that Reese truly regretted the rejection, why exactly, she wasn't sure. Pick a reason, not getting a second chance mate, never having a true Luna, no pups of his own, Harper's success...who cared? She doubted it was because he realized what a beautiful and strong person Harper was, she doubted he'd realized the magnitude of what he'd lost, he never thought enough of Harper. He'd never taken the time to get to know her enough to have that understanding. Celie also wondered if Reese realized he never had a shot to begin with, he probably didn't. He truly had the alpha ego complex, being rejected was out of the realm of possibility for someone like him. He would have expected her to be grateful for his acceptance, but news flash for him. Harper hated him so much she would have rejected him if he hadn't rejected her first. She would just have done it privately, without insulting and humiliating him in the process. Harper wasn't cruel like that, even to someone who had been so cruel to her. He said he regretted it immediately after he did it, it was ironic that if he had taken a moment to consider before saying the words, waited and let it play out, Harper would have rejected him, and he would have at least had a second chance, but he wasn't even going to get that now. Good, Celie thought spitefully, she truly hated Reese for how he'd treated Harper, how he'd treated both of them, no amount of remorse or repentance on his part would ever change that.

But even as exhausted as she was sleep would not come, and she found her mind going back to Adam. Always Adam. Had he meant what he said, had he not wanted to reject her? Had he truly planned to find her that night and revoke it? He'd told her he didn't want to do it when he took her behind the school, he'd had cried real tears when he said the words, but he'd still said them anyway. He'd still chosen to be popular and to impress Reese over accepting her as his mate. She wasn't sure she could get over that, even with how she craved him. Even with her wolf whining and crying for him in her head, the hurt, the ache was still strong within her. The memories of the rejection, the memories of him turning away as she begged, those memories would never leave her. Could she lay beside him at night and forget those moments, those words? Could she forget the tears she'd cried? Every single night since he did it, every single night, no matter how hard she'd tried, those traitorous tears and fallen. Every tiny shard of her shattered heart had cracked even more with every tear, until it was nothing but a pile of sand in her chest, and still it ached, still the bond had held onto it.

No more, she thought. No more would she mourn, she'd accepted the rejection, she would wait and see. She didn't discount the idea of giving him a second chance. She'd looked into his eyes tonight, and she'd seen love, and regret, and a desperate hope for her forgiveness. For some reason, she believed him when he said it wasn't because he would never get a second chance mate, something in his eyes said that to her. And she knew for a fact that he'd never been with another girl, she'd never suffered the pain of his betrayal as Harper had with Reese, Adam had remained true to her all these years. His wolf had reached out to hers; he'd begged her, he'd apologized to her wolf over and over, even as they ran through the forest toward the fighting.

Would she let him prove himself? Could she? With those thoughts in her mind, forgiveness, and redemption, she finally drifted off to sleep as the light of dawn spread across the sky.

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