Chapter 1

My parents, Richard and Helena Hale, were the Alpha and Luna of the Westmere pack.

I was their only daughter, and they'd spoiled me rotten from the start.

My wolf awakened when I was six. My father spread the news through the whole pack right away. He couldn't wait to name me Alpha heir, and he started giving me pack business to handle.

But I could never sit still. I'd much rather be out on the training grounds than buried in pages of tiny print.

One day, while I was sneaking out, I ran smack into a young werewolf dressed in rags.

That was the first time I met Evan.

It was also how I learned that my late uncle had left behind a son.

Under pack law, once a new Alpha was chosen, every other wolf with Alpha blood had to leave the pack and fend for themselves.

When my uncle died young and my father became Alpha, he didn't have the heart to throw Evan out, so he let him stay.

But once I was named Alpha heir and my parents went off traveling, it was up to me whether Evan could stay.

He seemed shy. He hardly dared to speak to me, afraid I'd lose my temper.

I felt bad for him. So I promised to behave and take my pack duties seriously. In return, Evan could stay with me.

He treasured that chance.

Every morning before sunrise, he had all my paperwork organized. He even took care of all the social obligations I couldn't be bothered with, and he was great at it.

Before long, he was handling my paperwork whenever I went out to have fun and keeping the pack in line whenever I was training.

When my father found out, he called me in and gave me a lecture. I just smiled sweetly at him.

"Evan's good at the boring stuff, and I'm good at fighting. That's just smart teamwork!"

My father never could say no to me. He gave in and made Evan my assistant, letting him handle pack affairs on my behalf.

At the start of every year, I would evaluate Evan's performance over the past year and decide whether he could keep his position. If he failed, he'd be kicked out of the pack.

Evan was a sensitive kid back then. The moment he heard that, he tensed up.

My father laughed to put him at ease.

"Relax, it's just a formality. Lorelei's counting on you so she can slack off. She'd never have the heart to send you away."

For the next 13 years, Evan submitted his annual report to me at the start of every year.

Every time, I fought to stay awake, flipped through a few pages, and stamped it with my seal.

Evan would look half amused and half exasperated.

"You trust me that much? Aren't you afraid I'll sell you out?"

I'd sprawl across the desk, eyes half closed, and wave him off.

"Come on, it's you and me. I picked you myself!"

Over time, anyone in the pack with a problem went to Evan first.

I was happy to let them.

13 years went by in a blink.

Evan fell in love with Winona, the Emberwind Alpha's daughter.

But Victor didn't think Evan's status was high enough for his daughter, so he kept pushing Winona to give him up.

When Evan came to beg me for help, I was out on the training grounds doing some target practice.

I hit the target and turned to look at him.

"You really want to be with Winona? Like, mates-for-life serious?"

He turned red and nodded.

I dragged him straight to my father. I whined and pleaded and threw a full-blown tantrum until he agreed to adopt Evan. Then I convinced him to go to the Emberwind pack himself and arrange the match.

After one meeting with my father, Victor agreed to the match on the spot.

To boost Evan's status, I signed over three of Westmere's territories to him. And to welcome Winona into the pack, I gave her a villa outright.

After that, Winona's attitude toward me completely changed.

She brought me homemade sparkling drinks and went weapon shopping with me. She had zero interest in training, but she still insisted on keeping me company.

On the day of the mating ceremony, she stopped to talk to me right before she stepped up to the altar.

"Lorelei, I never had a sister. From now on, you're the closest thing I've got."

I was so happy that I gave her my favorite custom-made bracelet.

Early the next morning, I brought her some Almas caviar as a treat.

Evan wasn't there. She was alone.

When she saw me, she smiled and came over to take my hand.

But the moment we were inside, she let go, and her smile slowly faded.

"Lorelei.

"Aren't you tired of this whole sister act yet?"