[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her":3,"chapter-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-179":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","My Sister Stole My Mate, And I Let Her",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},764753,1010,"Chapter 179 TAINTED PAST","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-179",179,"\u003Cp>CELESTE’S POV\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first thing I felt was the weight in my skull.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Heavy. Pounding. Like someone armed with dumbbells was trying to punch their way out from behind my eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The second thing was panic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My limbs were tangled in silk sheets. In a bed that wasn’t mine—gigantic, luxurious. Sterile chill from a temperature-controlled suite curled around my skin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My eyelids felt like they had been welded shut, mascara stiff against skin still tight from dried tears. I forced them open and winced, instantly regretting the action when pain screamed in my skull.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I pushed myself up on weak arms, pressing one hand to my throbbing temple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I blinked, taking in the room through blurry vision—white ceiling, gold-lit marble, velvet drapes, polished wood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Confusion, threaded with icy dread, tightened around my insides when my eyes dropped to a towel draped across the chair and recognized the crest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Vesper Grand Hotel. LA’s werewolf community’s most ridiculously opulent monument to wealth and prestige. My favorite hotel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What the hell?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, the memory of last night slammed into my aching skull.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Luna Noire. Whiskey. The three wolves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Come on, sweetheart, we’re just trying to be friendly.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Don’t touch me.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Don’t play hard to get. It’s not hot.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, no, no—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nausea roared with panic as my fingers scrambled over my body—dress still on, hair undone but not trashed. No soreness. No bruises. No unfamiliar scent on my skin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I hadn’t been touched.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Relief, sharp and humiliatingly vulnerable, washed over me in a wave so strong, I sagged against the pillows piled behind me and closed my eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, more flashes flickered across my memory.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Touch her again, and I’ll break every bone in your worthless body.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My eyes flew open again, wide.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The voice echoed in my mind—dark, dangerous. Familiar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And then there was the face...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One I thought I’d buried with the severing of our bond.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that couldn’t have been real.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I pressed my palm to my chest, half-expecting to feel the echo of him still there. But there was only hollowness, muted and distant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mate bond had been cut clean. There was no tug left. No warmth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Surely I had been mistaken. Too much whiskey. I’d had a long, awful day before then. Yes, that had to be it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A soft electronic beep echoed from the doorway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My head snapped up as the suite door swung open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Brett Mercer stepped inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time froze. The room detonated around me as shock extinguished every other emotion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I closed my eyes and squeezed tight, despite the sharp pain the action elicited. I counted softly to three. That was what one did when one hallucinated, no?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When I opened my eyes again, though—he was still there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My mate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Well, ex-mate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And he looked...wrong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not the boy who once knelt at my feet with worship in his gaze. Not the desperate man begging for scraps of my affection.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not even the bitter, broken mate who’d swallowed wolfsbane to completely sever our bond before I could destroy him further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This Brett stood taller. Cavalier. A cold kind of self-assuredness sat in his posture like a second skin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His clothes were still simple—black jeans, a fitted dark shirt—but they fit differently now. Like they were chosen, not grabbed from whatever thrift store he could afford.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Broader shoulders pulled against the fabric; the sleeves were rolled up, exposing strong veins and bulging muscles I did not recognize. A gold, expensive-looking watch glinted around his wrist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His jaw was sharper, softened by a shadow of stubble. His hair was slightly longer, tousled in a way that seemed intentional instead of neglected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stopped when he saw me awake. There was no flicker of relief. No “thank gods you’re okay” or tortured pining.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just a cool, distant once-over. His eyes—honey-brown I’d always thought were too expressive—were unreadable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re up,” he said flatly, closing the door behind him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sound of his voice was like a slap to the face. Just those two words and a flood of memory, of buried past, threatened to drown me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I dragged my chin up. “You.” My voice was hoarse, my throat tight. “That was really you?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The gruff, commanding voice. The way the wolves had immediately scattered. It was impossible. Brett Mercer did not carry that kind of authority.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And yet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He shrugged once, like rescuing me from three potentially dangerous wolves in a bar at 3 a.m. was no different from picking up groceries.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What happened?” I demanded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You were about five seconds from getting dragged into an alley,” he said flatly, crossing to the minifridge like I wasn’t even worth facing for this conversation. “I intervened.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I hated how my pulse stuttered with humiliation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He retrieved a bottle of water from the fridge, and I automatically stretched my hand out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He paused, arched a brow. And then took a long drink of the water.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My jaw unhinged. I didn’t know if I was enraged by his blatant dismissal or mesmerized by the way his Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had he always been so...suave? So smooth? Had his presence always commanded a room?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I snatched my gaze before he could catch me looking. I was going out of my damn mind, that was for sure. This was Brett, for goddess’ sake.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And then you brought me here?” I said, my voice still hoarse. “To this suite?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It was the closest hotel,” he said casually.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I laughed, ignoring the scraping against my throat. “You expect me to believe you could afford this place?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We were in the presidential suite; it cost more than some packs’ yearly revenue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brett rolled his eyes and pulled out a black card from his back pocket, tapping it on the marble counter. “No. But you could.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My eyes narrowed on the familiar card. Then my head swiveled to the nearby chaise where my purse lay, unzipped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You used that?” My voice shot higher.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His brows lifted lazily. “You had it. I used it. You didn’t wake up on the street in a pool of your own vomit. You’re welcome.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The laughter that bubbled out of me held absolutely no humor. I shook my head, staring at the black card—Kieran’s black card—between Brett’s fingers like a reminder of everything I had lost.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in a way, it brought everything into perspective.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, Brett couldn’t afford this room. He once slept in his car for a week straight because he got kicked out of his apartment for being six months behind on the rent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stood, head light. “So you’re still as broke as ever. That hasn’t changed.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His jaw flexed slightly. But his voice stayed calm. “Jumping to conclusions was always your favorite pastime.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The casual familiarity in his tone gave me whiplash. Which was he, distant? Familiar?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I crossed my arms, steadying myself with pride. “Let me guess—you think saving me gives you a chance?” I said with acid sweetness. “You think I’ll fall to my knees at your feet in gratitude?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A thin, almost bored smile touched his lips. “Don’t flatter yourself.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My pride flared. “Oh, please. You booked the presidential suite at the exact same hotel I used to talk about nonstop when we were together. Don’t insult me by pretending that’s a coincidence.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He crossed his arms along his chest, and my eyes were drawn to the way his muscles rippled. When did those come in? “It is. Believe it or not, Celeste.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The way he said my name—flat, like it meant nothing—sent an unexpected sting through my chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t,” I snapped. “And if you think you’ll get another shot at being my mate—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We’re not mates,” he cut in, voice cool. “Not anymore, remember?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reminder sliced sharper than it should have.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We had a bond,” I snapped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Once, yes,” he said calmly. “But you smothered and poisoned it until it died a slow, agonizing death.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Anger surged hot beneath my skin. “Don’t act like you were faultless. You were always jealous. Weak. You couldn’t handle what being with me meant.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And you couldn’t handle the fact that someone loved you more than power,” he said quietly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That shut me up. My lips parted, a surge of indignant retorts rising to the surface—but no words came.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brett’s voice stayed leveled, emotionless. “Relax, Celeste. I’m not here to win you back. I don’t want you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The blow landed so hard my ears rang.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Get out,” I hissed, unsure if the dull ache was my wounded pride or...something else. “This suite is booked under my account—courtesy of my fiancé. You’ve done your good deed. Now leave.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I folded my arms and forced a smirk. “And next time, try to be a little more subtle with your pining.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His eyes darkened—not hurt, just calm irritation. Like I was a yapping chihuahua he had no patience for.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not that I owe you an explanation, but I’m in town on business. I stopped for a drink and saw what was happening. That’s all. It could have been anyone in trouble; it’s just unfortunate that it was you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My eyes flared. “Unfortunate?” I shrieked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I only stayed,” he continued, like I hadn’t spoken, “because I sensed Kharis in distress.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stiffened at the mention of my wolf. Gods, I hadn’t heard her name in ages. It sounded simultaneously intimate and foreign on his tongue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The hollowness in my chest that I’d gotten used to suddenly began to throb.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You sealed her,” Brett said, the first sign of emotion creeping into his voice—agitation. “What the fuck, Celeste?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Stay out of it,” I spat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Are you really that ashamed of me?” he asked quietly. “So much you’d rather smother your own wolf than ever reveal you once mated with me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That was a mistake,” I hissed. “I’m going to be Kieran Blackthorne’s Luna. I can’t have a tainted past.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the first time, his expression shifted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something dark. Something...disappointed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Tainted,” he repeated softly. “That’s what loving me was?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I swallowed. Couldn’t answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He nodded once. “Got it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He walked toward the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something ugly twisted inside me. “So you just...brought me here and what, now you’re done? That’s it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He paused at the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The bond is gone, Celeste,” he said quietly, resigned. “There’s nothing left of it; no excuse left to punish her. Stop keeping Kharis locked away like she’s some inconvenience you wish never existed. Like she’s me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The air left my lungs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He glanced back, distant again. “Free her. Or one day, you’ll break in ways you can’t recover from.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My voice trembled. “Why do you care?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t,” he said. “Not anymore.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I wanted to hit him. I wanted to scream. I wanted to tear something apart because he was too composed, and I was not.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Brett I used to know used to desperately cling to me like I was his anchor. Now it felt like he was the anchor—and I was the one drifting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I just stood there, immobile, as he opened the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone outside cleared their throat. “Alpha Brett, are you ready to go?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everything inside me stalled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alpha?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brett didn’t look back at me again as he walked out, the title hanging behind him like one gigantic question mark.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But surely I’d heard wrong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The door began to close.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alpha.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I lunged forward before I even realized I’d moved and caught it before it shut completely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alpha??\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Curiosity roared louder than pride.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I rushed after him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The hallway outside the suite was just as luxurious—thick carpet, golden sconces, silence that screamed wealth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brett was already walking toward the elevator, hands casually in his pockets, like being called Alpha was the most normal thing in the world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone walked beside him, a step behind, but I was tunnel-visioned, and nothing existed in that moment except for the man who had once held a part of my soul.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alpha.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brett.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Breath unsteady, I followed him, my bare feet sinking into the plush carpet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brett!” I snapped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t turn as he pressed the elevator button.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Brett! Hey—you don’t get to just—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The elevator dinged open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stepped inside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t walk away from me!” I yelled, pulse screaming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That made him pause. His head dipped slightly, like he was weighing something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He finally looked at me—not surprised I followed, not amused, just...knowing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You always did love hierarchy more than people,” he said in that infuriating flat tone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The doors began to close. “Goodbye, Celeste.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wait—” I started.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A hand clamped over my mouth from behind just as the doors slid shut.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And darkness swallowed everything.\u003C\u002Fp>",2100,"2026-06-03T02:27:49.404Z",1,"novelbin.me","0d4d1a56b3b9f175fdb304ee752e81905a34953178b1a7d27cf5f21325ca2bc0","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-180","my-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-chapter-178",488,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fmy-sister-stole-my-mate-and-i-let-her-cover.jpg"]