Chapter 1
My sister had just broken up with her alpha boyfriend after a terrible fight, so she'd gone to a tropical island resort to get away.
That evening, several close-up photos came through of her and a powerful werewolf's defined, muscular torso, alongside the caption: I'm going to find myself a new alpha, stronger, better-looking, and twice the wolf he ever was!
I reached to open the image, but Darius snatched the phone from my hand before I could. He chuckled low in his throat. "She only ever knows how to lead my sweet Luna astray. Don't you go getting any wild ideas from her." Then he swiped the photos straight from my device.
I sighed, helpless. "She's hurting so deeply. Three years they were together; you know how much she loved him."
For all those three years, she had never told me which clan her boyfriend belonged to. She had never shown me his face, never arranged for us to meet. His clan, she'd always said, was in a time of great unrest. For her own safety, they had kept their bond a secret.
Darius frowned thoughtfully as he listened. "I'm traveling to the Turner Clan on business tomorrow. Take care of things here while I'm gone."
He was gone for a full week. The day he returned, my sister also came home from her trip.
The moment she saw me, she pulled out her phone, glowing with excitement, and began showing me photographs. She wanted to share everything: the ceremony, the vows, the formal binding ritual she and her "ex-boyfriend" had performed together on that island.
But when I looked at the image, my heart gave a sharp, sickening lurch.
In the corner of the frame, partially visible beneath a tailored suit sleeve, was a cufflink. I knew it instantly.
It was the very one I had personally placed into Darius's suitcase before he left.
I leaned in, hoping to see it more clearly. But Addison pulled the phone away before I could. Still, I had seen enough. I had caught the glint of the wolf's head crest emblazoned on its face, the family crest.
She went on, happily recounting every detail of their binding ceremony. It had been held at the clan's remote borderlands, she told me. The entire island had been strung with heart‑shaped balloons—a private ceremony, no guests, no witnesses, nothing but the two of them. She said that the moment their mate's bond had snapped into place, she had felt a happiness so complete it was like nothing she had ever known.
A happiness I had never felt. Because Darius and I were not fated mates. We had gone through the formal binding ceremony, yes, but three years had passed, and a mate bond had never formed between us.
Every time I brought it up, he always said the same thing: "There's too much unrest and infighting among the clans right now. Once I have secured my position and hold power firmly in hand, then we will speak of forming the mate bond."
I had believed him—every word. I had told myself he was protecting me, putting my safety first, and I had never once doubted him.
Addison kept talking, her voice bright and eager. "I really thought he meant to end it. Can you imagine? I went ahead and messaged a few other wolves, to make him jealous… and he absolutely lost his mind. He spent the entire night showing me I was his. Wouldn't let me rest, wouldn't let me go," a sly grin appeared on her lips, "and he even went through my phone and deleted every single other man's contact, every last one of them," Addison added with a laugh.
Her excitement was palpable. She held up her hand and flashed a dazzling diamond ring. It was custom-made, enormous, several times the size of the simple band on my own finger. "And then he slipped this onto my finger," she said, her voice softening. "Kissed me until my shoulders ached and I couldn't breathe."
She pulled the neckline of her dress aside to show me. Dark, unmistakable marks of possession bloomed across her skin. The sight burned into my eyes, sharp and stinging.
I forced my lips to stay neutral. I nodded slowly and asked, "Which clan is he Alpha of?"
Addison had been with him three years. Three years, and I had never seen his face, never known his name, never learned who he truly was.
The bright smile on Addison's face faltered, just for a heartbeat. She lowered her gaze. "His clan is torn by internal conflict. He doesn't want our relationship made public, not yet, to keep me safe."
Same excuse. Again.
"But… aren't you his Luna? Won't you go to his clan with him?" I pushed.
"When he has settled everything there… we'll see." Addison brushed the question aside, then reached into her bag and draped a fine silk scarf gently around my neck. "I knew this would look perfect on you, sister." She smiled at me, warm and gentle and familiar, and suddenly my doubts felt foolish and unkind.
Addison was my own flesh and blood. We were only two years apart. But growing up, our parents had always favored her; she had inherited every single one of their best qualities. Every elder who met her adored her and sang her praises. Our parents bought her beautiful dresses, lovely hair clips, and every new toy she wanted.
And Addison… she would always share everything she had with me. If she saw me crying, she would scold our parents for being unfair, stamp her feet, argue, and cry herself to make sure I was treated fairly in this house.
She has always been good to me. I told myself I was seeing things and that it was nothing more than my own insecurities.
I had just finished thanking her when Darius walked through the door.
