Emma's Mate (Book 1)

Chapter 25 ✔️

Author's note: This section contains mature content that may not be suitable for readers under the age of 18. 🔞

Readers under the age of 18 are advised to skip this section.

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Ashton Williams

I couldn't believe it. Emma had just expressed her desire for me, for us to take our relationship to the next level. She wanted to mate with me, to make what we had into something even more profound. Hearing her say those words was like a shock to my system. It felt surreal, like a dream I never wanted to wake up from. How could this be happening to me, Ashton Williams, the guy who had once believed in love but had since shut himself off from it?

I had always thought Emma would never believe me if I told her I had fallen in love with her. After all, my reputation had changed so drastically over the years. I wasn't always known as a playboy. That came after Emily broke my heart. Before her, I believed in love-I thought it was something sacred, something to cherish. But when Emily shattered my trust, everything changed.

Emma, my best friend and my mate, saw through the walls I built around myself. She saw the real me beneath the layers of charm and bravado I had constructed to keep others at a distance. She saw the vulnerability I had hidden for so long. And now, she had confessed her love for me, shattering all the doubts and insecurities I had carried with me since Emily's betrayal. Emma's love was like a soothing balm to my wounded soul, something I never thought I'd find again.

I remember meeting Emily five years ago. She seemed perfect-everything I thought I wanted. I fell hard and fast, convinced she was my mate. For a year, I lived in that illusion, thinking our love was unbreakable. But then, the cracks started to show.

It was little things at first, the way she would turn away when I tried to talk to her, or the way she always seemed to be distracted. I wanted to believe her excuses-that she was just stressed about school. But deep down, a gnawing feeling told me something was wrong.

And then came that night, the night that changed everything. I had planned this perfect evening for her, to surprise her, to show her how much I cared. But when I walked into her apartment, hope in my heart, I was met with the cruelest sight. There she was, in her bedroom with another boy, tangled in his arms, kissing him like I didn't even exist.

In that moment, everything inside me shattered. It was as if the ground had been ripped out from under me, and I was left free-falling into an abyss of pain and betrayal. I wanted to scream, to yell at her, to make her feel even a fraction of the hurt she had caused me. But all I could do was turn around and walk away, my heart splintering with every step I took.

For months, I wandered aimlessly, lost in a fog of heartbreak and anger. How could she do this to me? How could she throw away everything we had for a meaningless fling? I had given her my heart, my trust, and she had crushed it without a second thought.

That night, I made a vow to myself. If love could bring such pain, I wanted no part of it. I decided to become what everyone thought I had become after Emily-cold, unfeeling, a playboy. I'd keep things casual, never letting anyone get too close. It was easier that way-safe. I wouldn't let anyone in again.

But then came Emma. Sweet, beautiful Emma, with her kind eyes and her gentle heart. She changed everything. She made me believe in love again, showed me that it wasn't just a game to be played, but a gift to be cherished. With her, I felt seen, understood in a way I never had been before. Her love was healing me, bringing light to places I had kept dark for so long.