The moment we stepped out of the store, Zoe glanced at me, her eyes laced with worry.
“Rae…”
I shook my head, my voice flat. “I’m fine.”
Howard stopped being my father the day he signed the divorce papers with my mother. I’d buried him in my heart long ago. But what cut deeper than his existence was the collateral damage I had caused—the way my uncle’s already fragile company took another hit because of me. The way Joe had been dragged into the mess.
And Darius. Always Darius. Always Emma’s protector, her knight in shining armor, even if it meant cutting me down. Not once. The silver-sharp betrayal tore at my heart until it felt like a fresh, bleeding wound.
“He’s never been on our side.” My wolf’s voice was low, bitter, and edged with hatred.
“I know,” I murmured back in my mi
