Chapter 1

In seven days, Charles will pay for his choice. And I will be at my true Alpha mate’s side.

When my father heard Quinn volunteer to marry the wolfless Charles, his face went pale.

"Quinn, don't be ridiculous."

He turned on me, his voice stern. "Naomi, you are the eldest. This family alliance is your responsibility."

"In his condition, Charles needs a caretaker. Quinn isn't suited for that."

Sitting nearby, Charles was a picture of cold indifference, radiating the frail aura of a diminished wolf.

He wasn't the least bit embarrassed, as if he wasn't the one being ostracized by everyone in the room.

This was nothing like my past life.

Quinn clung to our father's arm, her voice a saccharine whine. "Daddy, I don't care about any of that. I just love Charles."

"Nonsense! Do you have any idea what losing his wolf means? He's weaker than the lowest-ranking omega! He’s no different from a human!"

It was the first time Father had ever been so cold to Quinn.

"Besides, in his current state…"

Charles's mother, Victoria, shifted uncomfortably but didn't dare contradict my father.

She chose her words carefully. "I heard Naomi's grandmother left her a moonstone with healing properties, one said to work wonders on such injuries."

"If Naomi agrees to mate with Charles and brings the moonstone as her dowry, our Sterling family will establish a two-million-dollar healing fund for her."

My stepmother and father both gasped. Their combined income was barely fifty thousand a month.

But Charles suddenly scoffed. "Mom, that’s just a myth. How else would a nobody like Naomi snag an Alpha willing to mate with her if not for some sob story? The only mate I want is Quinn."

Victoria turned her gaze to me. "Naomi, is it true? There’s no moonstone?"

My grandmother was a renowned healer among the packs. The moonstone she left me was legendary. Even the Elder Council in the Capital had once summoned her to treat an important figure.

The stone was real.

But I shook my head.

Charles snorted. "See? I told you she was a liar."

Victoria’s expression soured, while my father and stepmother adamantly refused to let Quinn marry a crippled wolf with no future.

But Charles spoke again, his tone infused with a chilling confidence. "I've already found a cure. Once I'm healed, I'll be back at the company."

"If Quinn marries me, she'll want for nothing."

Quinn nodded emphatically. "That's right, Mom, Dad. I know a powerful healer who can definitely cure Charles."

My father and stepmother looked skeptical. Victoria saw their distrust.

"Quinn, stop making empty promises. Let Naomi go through with the alliance. She grew up with her grandmother; she knows how to care for the infirm. Even if your healer fails, Naomi can look after him."

Victoria hadn't completely given up on me. Having lived in New York, she knew my grandmother's legendary reputation.

Quinn immediately erupted. "That healer only trusts me! If Charles doesn't marry me, he won't get treated. It's your choice."

Charles went even further, snatching a fruit knife from the table and pressing it to his wrist. "If I can't have Quinn, I'd rather die."

Stark white with fright, Victoria had no choice but to negotiate, raising her offer until my father and stepmother finally relented.

I watched the whole charade with cold detachment, speaking only at the end.

"I have no objection, but Quinn is not to take anything my mother left me."

Quinn shot me a triumphant look. "Who wants your hand-me-downs? Charles will buy me everything new."

"But, there is one thing. That antique necklace from your grandmother."

Charles’s hands tightened on the armrests of his wheelchair, his eyes locked on me.

Even Quinn’s fingers trembled with tension.

They both let out a visible sigh of relief when I nodded without a word.

Quinn rushed straight to my room and fetched the necklace.

Charles took it. He and Quinn eagerly opened the locket, sharing a furtive, gleeful glance.

Then he looked at me, his expression frigid. "Naomi, I know you have a crush on me, but my heart belongs to Quinn. After we're mated, don't you dare pull some stunt like killing yourself for attention."

Seeing his desperate attempt to push me away, I had to suppress a sneer.

In my last life, he chose to mate with me, afraid of dragging Quinn down with him.

Then, after I healed him, he tormented me to death, blaming me for the loss of his 'true love.'

If he despised me so much, I would gladly grant his wish.

I replied coolly, "Just make sure you two stay out of my life."