Chapter 1

Right after the heat of our Mate Ceremony night, Alpha James cupped my face in his hands.

"There's something I need to tell you," he whispered.

I hummed lazily, leaning into his touch.

"I can't mark you. I already marked someone else years ago."

I froze. My nails dug straight into my palms.

"Who?"

"An arranged match from my parents. An Alpha's daughter. She's wolfless, Emily. You know what that means in our world." He sat up, looking down at me with deep affection. "You're the one who truly matters to me. But she can't survive without my protection. I can't just abandon her."

"Why are you crying?" A frown creased his forehead, genuine confusion in his eyes. "We had the ceremony. You wear my token. Everyone in the pack sees you as my chosen Luna. Is a bite mark really that important?"

I took half a step back until my spine hit the cold bedroom wall.

"We're done, James."

He paused, then let out a low chuckle. "Stop talking nonsense."

"Then reject her. Break your mate bond with her," I demanded.

Silence fell over the room. After a long pause, James finally spoke. "She took care of my parents for seven years. Even if she's just a duty, she earned her place. I won't be a dishonorable coward."

*Seven years.*

I calculated the timeline, and a wave of pure nausea hit my stomach.

Seven years ago, we had just finished our warrior trials. He was moving from the training barracks into the Alpha Manor, and I was helping him pack. Back then, he took a urgent Mind Link, stepped out onto the balcony, and returned saying it was routine pack business. I believed him.

In reality, it was the summons for his marking ceremony. His partner was the Crimson Pack Alpha's daughter—a wolfless girl.

"Don't look at me like that." He stepped closer, reaching out to wrap an arm around my shoulder. "There's nothing between us. It's just a title on paper. We've been together for ten years. How could she ever compare to you?"

I shoved his hand away, the sickness clawing up my throat.

His face hardened. "Emily, be reasonable. Throwing away ten years over a formal mark? How are you going to explain this to your parents? What about all our plans?"

The door clicked shut behind him, soft as a sigh.

I dropped to my knees by the toilet, dry-heaving until tears blurred my vision.

At three in the morning, I dragged my suitcase from the closet and shoved my clothes inside in a frantic mess.

My phone screen lit up.

His mother had posted a photo on Instagram: *[Steak dinner made by my sweet daughter-in-law. Delicious.]*

The photo showed an elegant dining table set with silverware. In the top-right corner, a familiar cuff appeared.

I recognized that watch. It was the very first gift I ever bought him, paid for with three months of my saved rations.

Earlier today, he told me he had an official dinner with allied pack envoys.

I tapped the like button, then unliked it a second later.

His mother had no idea that the like came from the secret lover her son had hidden away for seven years.

At 3:17 AM, I stood in the elevator, watching the floor numbers tick down.

When the doors slid open, cold wind whipped against my skin. Only then did I realize I was wearing nothing but a thin knit sweater.

My phone buzzed.

*Dad.*

I stared at the name for a long time before swiping to answer.

"Emily?" My father's voice was gentle. "James called. Did you two have a fight?"

I kept quiet.

"He's been so good to you all these years. Your mother and I have seen it all. Tell me, has he ever wronged you?"

*Wronged me?*

I thought back. No, outwardly, he never had.

The year a rogue bit me, he carried me on his back all the way to the pack clinic. He tripped along the gravel road, skinning his knees, blood soaking through his jeans. By the time my parents arrived, he had already bandaged himself and was limping around the kitchen, brewing healing herbs for me.

When he first took over as Alpha, things were chaotic. He went three straight days without sleep and still ran into border skirmishes. He sat on the council steps all night, coming home only at dawn. The first thing he did was take a shower, then push his damp hair against my neck: *"Smell this. Nice, right? New body wash."*

Only later did I learn he was terrified of me smelling the rogue blood on him.

He was good to me.

Yet he was already another woman's marked mate. A woman without a wolf who couldn't survive without him—so he refused to leave her.

"Emily? Are you listening?"

"Yeah."

"I need to tell you something."

"Dad, I have something to tell you too."

The words sat on the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed them down.

What could I say? That their daughter had been lied to for a decade? That their prospective son-in-law had claimed another woman seven years ago?