The golden Luna Doctor

Chapter 4

NINE YEARS LATER

___________________

-THEIA-

"Happy Valentine's Day, Theia." Ethan's voice stirred me from sleep before he planted a soft kiss on my forehead.

"What time is it?" I asked him, my voice sluggish. My groggy body was screaming for more sleep.

He glided next to me on the bed, settling down and picked up a mug from the nightstand. "It's almost five. Sorry for waking you a bit early, but I brought you coffee. I wanted us to have breakfast together before you leave for your shift."

Sitting down, I gave him a quick kiss. "Happy Valentine's Day to you too."

Grabbing the tray on the nightstand, he placed it on my lap. "Eat, honey, before it gets cold."

The tray had a plate with heart-shaped waffles drizzled with honey and topped with sliced strawberries—my favorite. I cut a piece, and the delicious aroma of the warm waffles hit me instantly.

I took a bite, smiling at him. The taste didn't quite match its appearance—Ethan wasn't the best cook. But the thoughtfulness of bringing me this warmed my heart more than any meal from a five-star restaurant ever could. "Thank you, Ethan. I love it. You are only getting your present later though." I lifted the coffee mug to my lips and savored a sip of the heavenly drink. "I wish we could spend more time together today. I'll never understand why you prefer to take the night shift at the hospital. It's a nightmare!"

"Well, not for a hematologist. It's really quiet during the night and I can concentrate much better in the lab. The down part is being away from you." he grimaced, a pang of sorrow crossing his dark eyes.

"Yes, but the ER is a living hell at night. I dread it every time I have a night shift." I stabbed the strawberries with my fork and stuffed them all in my mouth. They tasted way better than the waffle.

Ethan took a sip of his mug and checked the clock on the nightstand. "You have to hurry up otherwise you're going to be late, baby."

Checking the time, I realized that I had only twenty minutes to get ready. "S.hit!"

I jumped out of bed, and took a quick shower. With a comfortable pair of jeans and a blue top, I tied my light brown hair in a ponytail, getting ready in no time.

But before I stepped out of the house, Ethan turned to me, his eyes narrowed and his lips formed a thin line. "Aren't you putting on your engagement ring?"

Oh, crap. Not this again!

Ethan and I have been a couple since we met in med school. He's a few years older than me and was a teaching assistant in our class. He showed interest in me right away, but although I found him incredibly handsome, I wasn't initially attracted to him. We became friends, and eventually, we started dating. We both applied for a residency program at the same hospital and have been living together ever since.

It was a little more than one year after we started dating when he proposed on New Year's Eve. We went to a fancy party and just after midnight, he raised a toast and asked me to marry him in front of all of his friends.

I know that for some women it could be a dream, but for me, it was a nightmare.

My blood froze and I couldn't breathe. I didn't want to marry him. It felt too soon; I wanted to at least finish my residency and become a doctor first. That's been my main focus ever since I left my pack years ago and never went back. Moving far away from the place I once called home, I hid myself deeply in the human world.

Without my wolf, I am just another human. Part of me died that day together with my parents and my wolf. Over the years, I kept slowly forgetting what they looked like, how they smelled or how they sounded.

The day that the Silver Moon Pack attacked us took away everything that mattered to me. I wanted to give up, but the memory of my wolf giving up her own life just to save me pushed myself to keep moving forward.

Shortly after arriving in the city, I changed my last name to Pierson. I wasn't sure if the Silver Moon pack was still searching for me or if they assumed I had died in that waterfall, but I couldn't risk it. There was no way I would let them take me back alive.

My past is a blank page in the book of my life. No one will ever know my true history, not even Ethan. Everything I've shared with him about myself is a fabrication. The only truth I told him was that I lost my parents when I was seventeen. But I said it was due to a car crash.

Maybe that's why I can't fully commit to him. I do love him, but would he still love me if he knew where I truly came from?

When he proposed to me in front of everyone, I felt a surge of hatred. I loathed that he had put me in an impossible situation, one where I had to say yes, even though every fiber of my being was screaming for me to say no. So, I took his ring, slipped it on my finger for that one moment, and removed it as soon as I got home, tucking it away from my sight in my nightstand drawer.

The ring was practically burning my hand.

I pressed my fingertips to my temple, a headache brewing inside my head. "Ethan, I've told you countless times—it's too soon for us to get married. You agreed to wait until you finished your fellowship. Why are we having this conversation again?"

"Because I love you," he shouted angrily. "Is it so wrong to want the woman you love to wear your ring?"

His handsome features showed so much bitterness that I barely recognized him. His dark irises appeared almost black, and his light blond hair and fair skin gleamed menacingly under the light from the nightstand lamp.

With quick strides, I closed the gap between us. "I love you too," I said softly, placing my hand on his cheek. "Can we avoid fighting today? I was hoping we could have a nice dinner later. We haven't spent much time together lately, and I miss you."

He closed his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath to calm down. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to ruin our Valentine's Day."

"It's all right. I understand." I gave him a gentle kiss before hurrying to the door, grabbing my purse along the way. "I'll meet you here after my shift, okay?"

He muttered goodbye, and I hurried to my car, hoping for a miracle to get me to the hospital before my supervisor noticed my lateness.

But before I got to the hospital, I saw an explosion up far ahead on the road. Smoke billowed into the sky, and a crashed car was overturned on the roadside.