#Chapter 1: A secret mother

Claire's POV

“You’re my mommy, right?”

I heard my 4 years-old son Andy calling another woman "Mommy." But I couldn’t do a thing to stop it.

I stood frozen in the doorway to Alpha’s office, holding Andy’s brightly colored dinosaur lunch box in a hand that had gone numb with shock.

Inside the office, my fated mate Nathan, stood with his back to me, staring out the window and speaking with a woman I didn’t know.

And my son Andy sat in her lap, the woman’s arms snugged around him.

Two pack members walked by.They glimpsed the scene in Nathan’s office and laughed together quietly.

“They look like a perfect match, don’t they?”

“I heard Sabrina is Andy’s biological mother. After all, They’re already close to an engagement! It’s quite the perfect arranged marriage.… though I don’t know why they haven’t made it public.”

As they walked by, they bumped into me and made disgusted faces. “...Eww, an omega?! Why is an omega here?!”

I was knocked to the ground, letting out a painful cry. One of them quickly pulled the other away. “Shh, keep it down, that’s the Alpha’s nanny!”

— Yes, that’s how others saw me—the Alpha’s nanny.

But the truth is, Alpha Nathan and I are fated mates, and we have a wonderful pup, Andy.

...But we’re not married.

It’s all because of my low status—I’m just a wolfless omega orphan.

When I was still a pup, abandoned and found by the people of the pack, I became an omega orphan with no known identity.

As Andy grows older, he becomes sad about not having a mother and is incredibly curious about the truth. I’ve wanted to tell him countless times, but Nathan believes Andy will be the next heir to the pack—if others find out he has an omega mother, it would bring great shame.

I love Nathan and Andy more than anything, but I’m not allowed to reveal my true identity.

So, I can only remain silent, like a true nanny.

In the office, Alpha Nathan frowned. “Andy, get down from Auntie Sabrina.”

Nathan, so tall and handsome, with a commanding presence. The woman with the refined, elegant air around her.

And his ex, Sabrina, with the refined, elegant air around her.

They seemed to say something and then laughed together. Andy's cute laughter echoed. It was as if they were the real family.

I felt tears building up inside me, and knew I wouldn’t be able to keep them from falling for much longer. But as I tried to get up from the floor, I met Nathan’s gaze from the office, and I saw his expression harden, his face growing cold.

Nathan walked to the doorway. When he saw me, his expression hardened, his face grew cold.

“Claire,” Nathan said, his gaze sharp, “Why are you here? This isn’t your place.”

...It sounded like I had caused him a great deal of trouble, when all I wanted was to bring my son the lunchbox he had forgotten.

He had promised—once his position as Alpha was secure, he would elevate my rank so I wouldn't have to stay an omega, no longer subjected to discrimination..

He had promised—he would reveal my true identity, and we would become a legitimate couple, like any other mate. He had promised that one day, my child would call me Mom.

It was like a dam burst, and all the sadness and frustration buried for years came flooding out. Tears instinctively spilled from the corners of my eyes.

“Not my ‘place’? ...” I forced a smile, uglier than tears. "You had Andy call that woman mom—have you forgotten our promise?”

“Claire - ”

Nathan frowned. He wanted me to keep my voice down, so no one would hear.

And the shame of that burned in my stomach. My own mate was worried someone might realize we were together.

Nathan rubbed his brow and gave me an order.“This isn’t the time or the place for this conversation, and you know it. And Andy is fine - you give him all the love and care he needs.”

 “...But, I am one step away from becoming the next Alpha President, Claire. I don’t need your drama right now.”

He stepped even closer, close enough that I could smell his aftershave.

That was the scent of the mate I loved. But hearing those words, all I felt was endless sadness and anger.

"So, what you need now is 'her,' right?" I said. "Her status is higher than mine, she's so noble, and you need her to be the mother of your son to help you succeed, is that it?"

“I’ve given everything I have to you, Nathan. To you and our family. All I wanted was to be loyal to my mate for life, to hear my son call me mom - And none of it matters, does it?”

Nathan’s eyes darkened. He hated when anyone caused a scene, but especially when a scene involved him. He’d been raised as a royal, always above it all and I knew I was pushing him.

I just didn’t care anymore.

Nathan frowned, as if he thought I was nothing but a nuisance. “Claire, Andy is just a child, playing pretend. That 'mom' doesn’t mean anything.”

“As for everything else—go home, Claire. This isn’t a place for an omega. Stop with your baseless jealousy. You're not going to become Luna, not anytime soon.”

...Baseless jealousy?

My eyes burned with the tears I now refused to let fall. I could hardly believe it.

Did he think I was suffering because I wanted the title of Luna?

I took care of the family, took care of him, endured everything—did he think it was just for the title of Luna?

Anger bloomed inside me like a firework.

Nathan saw my tears, and for a moment, he seemed to hesitate. But before he could say anything, a voice rang out.

"Claire, what are you doing here?"

Andy said, his chubby face scrunching up. He was being held in that woman’s arms. "I thought omegas weren’t allowed in the Alpha Hall. You should be at home, doing your nanny job."

He was four, getting tall for his age, still so young but growing more like his cool, confident father every day.

And then the woman stepped out of the office, reaching out to touch Nathan’s arm with a casual familiarity. A wave of expensive perfume followed her.

“Darling, what’s the matter?” She turned to look at me curiously. “Who is this?”