Chapter 1

Before the age of thirty, I had been rejected twice.

The first time was by Alpha Easton of the Crimson Pack. On the very day of my healer's checkup, I caught him sleeping with the rogue wolf I had taken in and sheltered.

Not only did he refuse to apologize, but he also exiled me from the pack when I broke down and confronted him.

The second time, I married my childhood friend who had pursued me for ten years—Alpha Quinn of the Ridge Pack.

He never complained about Easton harassing me year after year.

Nor did he mind that after three years together, I still hadn't conceived a pup.

In our most intimate moments, he would nip at my ear and whisper, "If you don't want to carry a pup, you don't have to. Having you is enough for me."

Yet on the day of our mating ceremony anniversary, he suddenly brought home a strange woman and ordered the Betas to throw my luggage out of the Alpha manor.

I asked in a trembling voice, "What is the meaning of this?"

Holding a cigarette, he looked at me like I had told a joke.

"Yara, you're nothing more than Easton's rejected mate. And now, I don't want you either."

Quietly, I hid the healer's test results in my hand.

The test result burned against my palm like fire.

It scorched me over and over.

I looked at him, no longer desperately demanding answers like I had the first time.

Because the woman's smug gaze and her rounded belly said everything.

I picked up my purse and turned to leave.

Quinn crushed his cigarette butt and stepped in front of me, a vengeful satisfaction flickering in his eyes.

"You kept in contact with Easton behind my back, and I never said a harsh word. You refused to give me a pup because of him, and I never blamed you."

"Now that I'm having a pup with someone else—without even making you carry it—why are you looking at me like I'm the one who wronged you?"

His grin widened, growing more self-righteous by the second.

"We grew up together. She's just a mistress. It won't threaten your position as Luna."

A familiar, dull ache bloomed in my chest.

He was right.

I had been through this before. I was experienced.

So this time, I didn't waste my breath. I simply slapped him across the face.

"Quinn, you make me sick."

Gaps of air were sucked in around the room.

The smirk vanished from Quinn's face. He seized my wrist, his gaze turning icy.

"You dare call me sickening? You've had two mates yourself. What right do you have to demand absolute loyalty from me?"

The test stick in my palm finally snapped under the pressure.

It broke in two, the jagged plastic digging into my flesh.

I felt no pain, but tears slipped down my cheeks.

Quinn's eyes flickered with panic, and he instinctively softened his tone.

"Fine. I promise you, once the pup is born, I'll send her away."

Looking at the face I had known for over a decade,

all I felt was profound estrangement.

His fingers brushed against what I was holding, and he paused. "What's in your hand?"

I jerked away and threw the broken pieces into the trash can.

Lowering my eyes, my voice was barely a whisper.

"Nothing important. Just unwanted trash."

I meant the pup.

And I meant myself, discarded for a second time.

Quinn frowned, about to question me further,

when a cry of pain from behind drew his attention away.

The woman gently rubbed her stomach as she lowered her mask.

With a single glance, I froze entirely.

She was the very same rogue Easton had pinned against the window—the lone wolf I had sheltered for years, who turned out to be an undercover agent from the Shadow Creek Pack.

Three years had passed.

Chloe was as radiant as ever, her skin glowing and flawless.

That was how Easton had described her back then.

He had said he couldn't resist her.

He had said that even lying in my bed, his heart and his dreams were filled only with her.

My previous departure and sacrifice

had only earned her a chance to sink her claws into my second man.

And she had conceived his pup before I could.

Judging by the size of her belly, they had been together for quite a while.

Biting my lip until the metallic taste of blood filled my mouth, nails digging into my palms, I walked toward them step by step.

"Yara..."

Chloe acted as if she had just recognized me, grabbing my hand with faux delight.

"After parting ways in San Francisco, I never imagined you'd come back to New York. We really are fated. Even our taste in Alphas is exactly the same..."

Without a word, I raised my hand and swung.

Slap!

The blow didn't land on Chloe. It hit Quinn.

He had shielded her with his body. Holding his cheek, his face darkened completely.

"Yara, there's a limit to throwing tantrums! Two slaps are more than enough!"

"She's delicate and carrying my pup. Don't take your anger out on her! Do you really want a repeat of how pathetic you were three years ago?"

My body shuddered violently.

It felt like being thrown right back into that snowy night.

After I caught Easton in the act,

he dropped all pretense, demanding coldly:

"A woman's shelf life with me is three months at most. With you, it was a whole year. I already made an exception for you, so what more do you want?"

"Even if I love you, I'm not going to give up the entire forest for one tree."

To force me into submission, he used every brutal Alpha method at his disposal—cutting off my pack resources, stripping me of every penny, and driving me out of the pack territory like a stray dog.

In the dead of winter, during a heavy blizzard, covered in bruises, I was pinned into the snow by a gang of rogues.

Blood stained the white beneath me; my face was deathly pale.

Then Quinn dropped from the sky like a savior. He fought off the rogues, his eyes bloodshot as he pulled me tightly against his chest.

"Don't be afraid, Yara... I'll protect you with my life."

How utterly laughable.