Damon felt like the air had been squeezed out of his lungs, every breath ripped away until his chest burned. He had only been away for a few months, and Quinn had never shown interest in any man but him.
The thought of her belonging to someone else clawed at something deep inside him, something primal and possessive that he had no right to feel yet could not stop.
"Quinn, if this is a joke, please drop it."
Quinn lifted her left finger, the diamond on her engagement ring catching the light, throwing sparks that felt like daggers aimed straight at his heart. "Do you believe it now?"
Damon's throat was dry, sandpaper rough, every word scraping as it formed. Quinn was his mate. He could feel it now with the restoration of the mate bond, a pull so fierce it ached beneath his ribs, but she was already getting married? The universe could not be that cruel. It could not.
