The Night That Ended Me

CHAPTER ONE

~ARIEE~

Tonight was going to be special. After four whole years, I was finally going to give my boyfriend something special.

I stood outside the Grand Bear Hotel, breathing in slow counts to calm my racing heart. I hugged the gift bag closer to my chest. Inside was a black silk box that held the watch I’d saved for months to buy. It was simple, elegant, and exactly his style.

Tonight was not just our fourth anniversary but his twenty-third birthday. The surprise party I’d planned for weeks was waiting upstairs: gold balloons, a three-tier chocolate cake, fairy lights, as well as our friends laughing and ready to cheer when he walked in. And later… just us. I would finally give him my virginity. The one thing I’d kept safe all this time, only for him.

My cheeks burned as a tiny squeal escaped my lips. I couldn’t wait to see his face when I told him. I couldn’t wait for his hands to be on me, and his lips whispering how much he loved me.

I glanced at my reflection in the mirrored entrance doors. The red dress I wore clung to every curve—my full hips, my soft stomach, and my thick thighs. For a second the old thoughts rushed in. The weak orphaned omega. With no wolf, and no parents. Too curvy, too plain, too fat and never enough.

I squeezed my eyes shut. Stop.

Brandon always told me that I was beautiful, sexy and Irresistible. He’d trace my hips with his fingers and growl how perfect I was. How he couldn’t get enough. He loved me.

I straightened myself, adjusted the big satin bow perched on my head, and smiled at my reflection. I looked good tonight. And Brandon was going to lose his mind when he saw me.

I pushed through the doors.

The lobby smelled like fresh lilies and lemon polish as I walked straight to the reception desk.

“Hi. Carter reservation, room 1408. Key card, please.”

The woman checked her screen and smiled. “The card’s already been collected, miss. About thirty minutes ago.”

My stomach dipped. “Oh… really?”

Then it hit me. Chelsea. Of course. My best friend knew every single detail of the surprise. She must have come early with the decorations and some of the others.

I laughed softly. “Right, silly me. Thank you!”

I hurried to the elevators, with my nerves buzzing under my skin. There were good nerves, of course. Excited nerves. My palms were damp, and my heart thudded happily.

On the fourteenth floor, I heard the noise before I reached the door. Loud laughter. Music pulsing. And voices shouting over each other.

I grinned. They were already in party mode. Perfect.

I stopped at room 1408, took one last steadying breath, and threw the door open.

When I did, the room exploded with color and sound. Fairy lights draped the walls. Balloons bobbed against the ceiling. And a massive gold banner screamed HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRANDON.

And in the middle of it all— Brandon was on one knee.

Chelsea stood in front of him, with her hands clasped over her mouth, and eyes sparkling with tears.

Chelsea’s friends, the high-bloodline crowd who barely acknowledged me, surrounded them, with their phones out, cheering and whooping.

Brandon held up a small velvet box. He took out a massive diamond that caught every light in the room.

I blinked. How come he was here this early? He wasn't supposed to arrive until…

“Chelsea Brooks,” he said, his voice clear and confident, “will you marry me?”

My heart squeezed so hard that I couldn’t breathe. And for one dizzy second I thought…

Then it clicked. Oh my goddess! Brandon was planning to propose to me tonight. He was just rehearsing the proposal for me. And that he asked Chelsea to help him get it right. That’s so sweet.

I blushed, smiling like an idiot, with warmth flooding my chest.

“Yes!” Chelsea cried. “Yes, yes, yes!”

Then he slid the ring onto her finger.

Brandon surged to his feet, wrapped his arms around her waist, and kissed her. It was a deep and hungry kiss. He kissed her the same way he kissed me when we were alone.

At the sight, my smile immediately froze. The gift bag slipped from my numb fingers and hit the carpet with a dull thud.

The room immediately erupted with cheers like everyone was aware of this and I was the only fool in their midst.

I stared at them, with my mouth open, and chest caving in.

Then the words tore out of me.

“What’s going on?”

The room immediately grew silent as heads snapped to me.

Chelsea pulled back from the kiss, with her lips red and swollen, as she looked straight at me.

While Brandon wiped his mouth slowly, with a small smirk tugging at the corner. No iota of remorse at all.

“Chelsea… what is this?” My voice trembled as I asked. “Why… why are you kissing my boyfriend?”

I looked around. At the banner, at the ring flashing on her finger, and at the cheering faces now frozen in awkward silence.

My voice shook. “Is this a prank?”

Chelsea tilted her head. She lifted her hand, letting the diamond sparkle.

“It’s not a prank, Ariee.” Her voice was sweet, almost gentle. “It’s real. Brandon and I have been dating for a while now.”

I felt the floor tilt under me.

“A while?” I repeated in utter disbelief. I looked at Brandon. “How?”

He shrugged. Like this meant nothing.

“Answer me!” My voice cracked. “Have you been cheating on me? Please… tell me she's lying…”

“She’s not,” he said flatly. “And I haven’t been cheating on you.” And then a pause followed, letting the words hang. “We were never in a relationship to begin with.”

The words didn't make sense. My brain rejected them the way a body rejects poison.

Brandon stepped closer. His eyes were cold, and empty.

“You really thought I loved you?” Brandon’s voice cut through the room, filled with hatred and mockery. “An Alpha like me mingle with a freak like you?” he went on, louder, enjoying every word. “Wolfless. Orphaned. Useless. How could I possibly drag the Knight name through the mud with something like you?”

Everyone burst into mean laughter, from every corner. Phones were out, recording every second of this humiliation.

“It was all a game, Ariee,” Brandon said, smirking wider. “Everyone in this room knew about it except you. They wanted to see how long I could string the pack's charity case. And I managed to set a record of four years. I deserve a medal, don't you think?.”

My knees buckled as I clutched at my dress, blinking rapidly as tears brewed in my eyes. “But you were my mate… you said you loved me…”

Brandon barked a laugh. “Are you dumb? You are not my mate, Ariee. I never chose you. Never even marked you. You have no wolf so even rejecting you is pointless because there's no bond between us,” Each word sliced through me but he wasn't done yet. “You wouldn’t even let me fuck you. Did you really think I wouldn’t get bored?”

He stepped closer. “Look at you. Who would even want a body like that? You're pathetic.”

Tears streamed down my cheeks in torrents. My teary eyes locked with Chelsea.

“What about you Chelsea?” My heart clenched. “We were best friends…”

Chelsea moved beside him, smiling sweetly. “Best friends? Oh please , that was all fake from day one. You were too stupid, and too desperate for love to see it. Did you really think you were just lucky to date that pack's biggest playboy and become friends with a noble’s daughter? Come on, Ariee. This is not a fairytale.”

That’s when the memories slammed into me. Memories of Chelsea belittling my efforts all the time, rolling her eyes at my thrift-store dresses, mocking my jobs, and then hugging me with fake apologies. “Sorry, babe, just teasing.” I’d always told myself she was joking. She wasn’t.

My heart was breaking so much I wanted to scream. “How could you…”

“Shut up,” Brandon snapped. “And what's that cheap knockoff dress you're wearing? Did you come here to embarrass yourself?”

“Oh Brandon,” Chelsea laughed suddenly. “You'll never guess what she was planning when buying that dress. Dear Ariee here wanted to give you a special gift.”

I began shaking my head, a wave of shame sweeping over me.

He looked me over slowly as she continued.

“She was going to give you her virginity. She's been saving it for you,” Chelsea mocked. “She's hopelessly in love with you.”

Brandon grinned. “I still want it though. I mean, it won’t hurt to fuck some sense into that pathetic wolfless skull of hers. Besides, squeezing those tits and gripping that fat ass looks tempting.”

The room roared with cruel and endless cheering.

“Oh, that’s no problem…” Chelsea walked up to me with a wicked smirk. Before I could even blink, she grabbed the front of my dress, and ripped it the rest of the way down.

The thrift red lace Victoria secret lingerie, the piece I spent my last cent to buy, came into plain sight.

I tried to pull the torn fabric together, with my hands shaking, but everyone stared, and laughed louder with their phones clicking.

Hot tears ran down my cheeks and I shoved Chelsea with everything I had. She stumbled back and hit the floor hard.

“Aish! I knew this was going to be annoying,” she sighed, then signalled at the rest of the group. Before I could make a run for it, several hands grabbed me.

“Let go of me!” I sobbed, struggling against them but my efforts were futile. I could only watch helplessly as Chelsea poured a glass of juice and emptied a wrap of powder into it. Mischief glinted in her eyes when she glanced at me.

“Now, let’s get you in the mood, shall we?”

Struggling was pointless as she forced the drink down my throat. I didn’t know exact;y was it was but I could tell I was going to be in a lot of trouble. So with the last strength I could muster, I stepped on as many toes as I could and yanked myself free.

With that, I turned and ran, sobbing so hard my throat burned.

“After her! Don't let her get away, you idiots!” Chelsea barked behind me.

Tears streamed down my cheeks in torrents as I ran. The footsteps behind me were like drums in my ears. They were chasing me.

My legs burned as I pushed forward, turning a corner so fast I nearly slipped. My fingers brushed the wall for balance, and that was when I felt it. Something was wrong.

My skin felt… hot.

A strange warmth spread through my veins, starting from my chest and crawling outward—slow, invasive, suffocating. My breath hitched.

No.

No, no, no…

What did she give me?

My steps faltered and hallway tilted slightly. The lights above blurred into streaks as a wave of dizziness slammed into me.

“Stop…” someone laughed behind me. “She’s already slowing down!”

Panic surged, cutting through the haze and I forced my legs to move. But the heat kept rising. It coiled low in my stomach, unfamiliar and terrifying, making my thoughts scatter. My throat went dry, my pulse erratic, my body reacting in ways I couldn’t control.

This wasn’t normal. This wasn’t right.

Another turn… And then I saw it.

A door.

Black. Unmarked except for a small sign bolted to it.

RESTRICTED AREA. KEEP OUT.

My instincts screamed at me to stop. But the footsteps behind me were getting closer.

I didn’t think.

I shoved the door open, slipped inside, and slammed it shut behind me—pressing my back against it as I struggled to breathe.

Before I could even exhale in relief, the aura in the pitch-dark room flared and a terrifying chill ran down my spine. A powerful intoxicating masculine scent slammed into my senses. Hard.

My body heated at a terrifying rate and with horrified eyes, I realized that why. That powder in the drink… it was an aphrodisiac.

“Oh Ariee! You're utterly screwed.”