Chapter 2

Five days before the bonding ceremony, I went to the pack’s atelier for the final fitting of my Luna gown.

The head seamstress adjusted the train while three members of the ceremony committee inspected the moon-gold crest and the accessories required for the ritual.

By the time I changed into the third gown, Rowan still had not arrived. The embroidery grew heavier on my shoulders as I waited before the mirrors. Forty minutes later, a car finally stopped outside.

Rowan entered with Celine behind him. She carried several crystal boxes.

“The council added another vote,” Rowan said. “Celine was nearby, so I brought her with me.”

Celine placed the boxes on the table. “I held him up. I was reviewing the ceremonial favors for the allied pack representatives and couldn’t decide between the designs.”

“Why were the favors being redesigned?”

“I approved the change.” Rowan opened one box and removed a gold-rimmed goblet engraved with the Blood Moon Pack’s crest. “The birchwood boxes you chose were too plain. Celine’s design suits the ceremony better.”

The committee members exchanged glances.

They had already approved my design. Each birchwood box held a moonflower candle, a gold emblem, and a handwritten note for the visiting delegation. I had spent half a month studying the customs of every allied pack.

Rowan had told me to handle everything. Now that the boxes were finished, he had given the arrangement to Celine.

“The new order has already been paid for,” he said. “Canceling it would create another expense.”

“Then save it for the next pack celebration.”

Celine’s smile faded. “I knew you were busy preparing for the bond, so I offered to help. I see now that I overstepped.”

“You did.”

The committee stopped taking notes, and the seamstresses looked away.

“I’ll repay the deposit and leave you to finish the fitting,” Celine said.

Rowan handed her a glass of warm water. “I approved the design. You are not paying for anything.”

He finally turned to me.

“The order is settled. The ceremony is five days away, and I will not delay preparations over favor boxes.”

Rowan had remembered that cold aggravated Celine’s injury and ordered a servant to close the window beside her.

I had waited forty minutes beneath several pounds of embroidery. He had yet to ask whether the gown fit.

The head seamstress broke the silence. “Elara, should we take in the waist any further?”

Before I could answer, Celine noticed the gold gown displayed nearby. Small moonstones covered the satin, and the future Luna’s crest was embroidered at the waist.

“That’s beautiful. Is it for the bonding ceremony too?”

“It is Elara’s gown for the formal reception,” the seamstress replied.

Rowan followed Celine’s gaze. “Try it on if you like it.”

Everyone stopped moving.

Celine turned toward him. “That is Elara’s reception gown. It wouldn’t be appropriate.”

“It is a dress.” Rowan gestured for the seamstress to take it down. “You are close enough in size. A few minutes will not damage it.”

The seamstress remained still. “Alpha, the gown has already been fitted to Elara. Tradition requires that no other woman wear it before the bond is completed.”

“It can be cleaned afterward.”

Rowan looked at me, his patience fading. “Celine has just gone through a mate rejection and has struggled since returning. She only wants to try on something beautiful.”

“I don’t consent.”

Celine stepped back. “Then forget I asked. I didn’t mean to make anyone uncomfortable.”

Rowan took the gown from its hanger and placed it in her hands.

“Go try it on.”

The ceremony committee watched in silence. Everyone knew the gown belonged to Rowan’s future Luna, yet he still gave it to another woman.

Celine emerged from the dressing room half an hour later. Moonstones gleamed at her waist, and the gold wolf crest spread across her skirt.

She turned before the mirrors and looked at Rowan. “What do you think?”

His gaze lingered on her.

“It suits you.”

Celine met my eyes in the mirror. “Better than it suits Elara?”

Rowan gave no answer.

I removed my veil and handed it to the seamstress. Only then did he look at me.

“Where are you going? You still have two gowns to try.”

“I’m finished.”

“The ceremony is in five days. We cannot delay the alterations.”

I stepped down from the platform and avoided his hand.

“You think Celine and I are close enough in size. She can try the rest for me.”

As I reached the dressing room, Celine called to Rowan.

“The moon-gold clasp at the back is stuck. I can’t open it.”

Rowan walked behind her and lowered his head to examine the clasp.

He was supposed to fasten it for me before our bonding reception.

Instead, his fingers settled at Celine’s waist and opened the clasp meant for his future Luna.