Chapter 1

“We shouldn’t be doing this,” I giggled, breathless, as Caleb’s lips trailed down the side of my neck, his hands already tugging at the hem of my dress.

He didn’t stop.

His voice was low, thick with mischief. “Just a few minutes. No one’s going to know, Delilah.”

I bit down on my lip, trying to focus, but his fingers brushed over my thigh and all coherent thoughts scattered like petals in the wind. “But we can wait until tonight. We’re going to be bound today, Caleb. Officially. You can have me every night—”

He silenced me with a kiss that curled my toes. His mouth was demanding, hot, and familiar in all the ways that made me melt for him. My back arched involuntarily as his palm slid to the curve of my hip, gripping me with an urgency I didn’t have the strength to deny.

“We’ve waited long enough,” he growled softly, pressing me back against the wall with his body. “You’re mine. My Luna. My Queen. And I want you now.”

Before I could argue again, if I even meant to…he lifted me effortlessly. My legs wrapped around his waist, my hands tangled in his hair, and then we were on the bed, limbs and mouths and heat. The scent of cedar and sin clung to his skin, making my head spin.

“Caleb…” I whispered, already lost.

“Say my name again,” he murmured, dragging his lips down my collarbone.

“Caleb,” I moaned, breath hitching as he kissed lower, his teeth grazing my skin.

He undressed me like he’d done it a thousand times in his dreams. Each piece of clothing discarded with reverence and hunger. His body hovered over mine, broad, muscled, every inch carved like the gods molded him for sin. My breath caught when he pushed into me slowly, deeply, like he wanted to claim me from the inside out.

It wasn’t fast. It was worship.

It was him whispering, “You’re mine.”

Me answering, “Always.”

It was skin on skin, bodies crashing, breathless moans swallowed by desperate kisses. It was the kind of love that didn’t feel like it could ever break.

We clung to each other, until the world blurred and only we existed, his touch, my heart, our bond just moments from being sealed forever.

Until the knock came.

Three sharp raps on the door that dragged us back to reality.

We froze.

“Shit,” Caleb cursed, rolling off me. We scrambled for our clothes, breathless, flushed, hearts still pounding. I tried to tame my hair, shaking fingers fumbled with the laces of my dress.

“They’re going to know,” I whispered, cheeks burning.

“I don’t care,” Caleb said with a smirk, brushing his thumb along my cheek. “You’re mine, Delilah. You’ll always be mine.”

I smiled, heart skipping, that stupid flutter of hope rising in my chest. For a moment, it felt like magic. Like everything was finally falling into place.

Until we opened the door.

Valen, Caleb’s beta stood there stoic as ever, arms crossed over his chest. “They’re waiting,” he said simply, eyes flickering between us with a knowing look. “You both need to come now.”

We followed him out.

The garden had been transformed for the ceremony, torches burned in iron stands, flowers decorated the arch under which we would stand. Pack members filled the space, some murmuring excitedly, others craning their necks to catch sight of us.

I spotted Seraphine, the Moon Goddess, standing near the altar in her flowing silver robes, her ethereal face lit by the moon’s glow. My best friend Islode gave me a wink from her place among the Gamma ranks, looking gorgeous as ever in her black ceremonial gown. I smiled at her, nervous but elated. She knew how long I’d waited for this.

Some of Caleb’s relatives were there too. Everyone… except Malric.

Not surprising.

The mysterious, cold Lycan leader never appeared unless absolutely necessary.

Caleb’s hand found mine as we stepped forward, toward the Moon Goddess. My heart pounded harder. This was it. The moment I became Luna. The moment I became his.

Seraphine raised her arms and began to speak. Her voice echoed with celestial authority.

“We gather here beneath the blessed moon to witness the union of Alpha Caleb Vane and his fated mate. Let their bond be witnessed by the Moon. Let it be blessed.”

A shimmer passed through the air, the bond of the ceremony already beginning to form.

I squeezed Caleb’s hand, trembling. He didn’t look at me. His eyes were locked ahead, unreadable.

“Now,” Seraphine continued, eyes glowing, “let the chosen Luna step forward and receive the mark of bond.”

She paused.

Then her lips parted, and I waited to hear my name.

“Islode Sable,” she declared.

The world stopped.

My hand slipped from Caleb’s as my chest turned hollow. Murmurs erupted all around us. My ears rang.

What?

What did she just say?

I turned, frantically scanning the crowd.

“No,” I said, voice barely a whisper. “No, that’s a mistake. That’s… that’s wrong.”

Islode stepped forward gracefully and poised.

I blinked at her, heart crashing against my ribs. “Islode…? What… what’s going on?”

She met my eyes with a calm I didn’t recognize.

“I’m sorry, Delilah,” she said softly. “But this is how it’s meant to be.”

“No,” I said, louder now. “This was never part of the plan! Caleb, say something!”

He didn’t meet my gaze.

“Caleb!” I demanded. “What’s happening?!”

Islode’s voice was silk. “He belongs to me.”

I turned to Caleb, my heart shattering in real time. “You said I was yours.”

Caleb stood. His eyes finally met mine and they weren’t filled with love. They were steel.

“My Luna,” he said coldly, “cannot be a traitor.”

“What do you mean, a traitor?” I asked, barely able to breathe. My voice cracked, but I didn’t care. My legs felt weak. “Caleb… what did I do?”

He didn’t flinch. Didn’t look away. Didn’t blink.

“You went to the people of Nytheria,” he said coldly, “and told them our secrets. You gave away our weaknesses.”

“What?” I took a shaky step forward. “No—no, I didn’t. Caleb, that’s not true. I didn’t tell anyone anything. You know I didn’t! I’m always with you. When would I even have the chance to…”

“You chose them over us,” he cut in sharply. “And for that, you must be punished.”

My heart plummeted.

“Punished…?” I whispered. “What are you saying?”

He didn’t even hesitate.

“You’re to be cast out,” Caleb said, his voice ringing through the silence. “And executed.”

The world around me spun.

“No.” I stumbled back, shaking my head violently. “No, Caleb, please. You can’t do this. You know me! You love me.”

I reached for him instinctively, my fingers trembling.

A guard stepped in front of me, shoving me back. “Don’t touch the Alpha.”

“I didn’t do anything!” I cried, my voice rising with desperation. “Caleb, please! Don’t do this to me!”

He looked down at me with eyes I didn’t recognize. No warmth. No softness. No trace of the man who had just whispered I was his.

Only ice.

Only hatred.

“I’m sorry,” he said again, voice like stone. “But you have to go.”

“No…” I choked out. “No, please…”

“Valen.”

The Beta stepped forward without question.

Of course he would.

He never questioned.

“Take her,” Caleb ordered. “Finish it.”

The moment Valen’s hands clamped around my arms, I screamed. “Let go of me! Caleb! Caleb!”

I kicked, I thrashed, I fought with everything I had but Valen didn’t budge. His grip was like iron. I could feel the eyes of the entire pack on me, but no one moved. No one helped.

“Seraphine!” I cried out, looking toward the Moon Goddess, tears pouring down my face. “Please! Please, do something!”

She didn’t move.

Her face was blank. Her arms crossed.

My scream tore through the ceremony grounds as Valen dragged me away.

I was nothing now.

No Luna. No mate.

Just a traitor they wanted to erase.

We reached the edge of the woods, the shadows swallowing us whole. I was still begging. Still fighting. Two guards had joined Valen, carrying me deeper into the trees like I weighed nothing.

“I didn’t do anything,” I kept crying. “You have to believe me. Please, don’t kill me. Please.”

They didn’t answer.

Eventually, Valen stopped walking. The moonlight shimmered off a stream nearby, quiet and cruel.

He motioned to the two other men. “Leave us. I’ll handle it from here.”

They looked at each other, but obeyed, vanishing back into the trees.

He dropped me onto the soft earth, and I stumbled, falling onto my knees. My face was wet with tears, my whole body shaking. I turned to him, the only person left between me and death.

“Please,” I whispered. “I’ll go. I’ll leave the territory and never come back. Just don’t kill me. I didn’t do anything. It’s all a setup. Please, Valen. You have to believe me.”

He didn’t respond.

He began stripping off his shirt, preparing for the shift.

The claws were already forming on his fingers. His eyes glowed faintly under the moonlight. His power crackled in the air.

I backed away slowly, my hands raised in front of me. “Please,” I sobbed. “Please…”

Valen looked at me.

Something flickered in his expression. Something almost human.

Then he whispered it.

“I’m sorry.”