At her graduation ceremony, Claire White eagerly awaited Adrian to finally make their relationship public. But to her horror, she watched as he got down on one knee and proposed to Nicole, the esteemed daughter of a powerful Alpha. Heartbroken, Claire drowned her sorrows at a bar, where she met a dangerously alluring man, Theo. Sparks flew between them, but just before they crossed the line, fate intervened desperate phone call about her father's sudden illness pulled her back to reality. With her father's life on the line and medical bills piling up, Adrian offered financial help on the condition that she became his mistress. Furious, Claire refused, only to find herself blacklisted and unable to secure a job. Just when she was at her lowest, an unexpected opportunity arose a high-paying position as the secretary to the CEO of a prestigious company. But upon stepping into her new workplace, she discovered a shocking truth her new boss was Theo. And worse still, he was Adrian' s father.
View MoreToday was supposed to be a perfect day.
“Jennifer, do you think Adrian will really propose to me tonight?” I stood in front of the mirror, adjusting my dress for the hundredth time, making sure every fold hugged the curves of my body just right.
It was perfect, and yet I couldn’t stop the nervous flutter in my chest.
Adrian and I had always dated in secret, and the only reason I had this bold idea was because last week, when I’d been ordered to clean his penthouse, I’d found a diamond ring in the drawer of his nightstand.
Jennifer came over, patted my shoulder, and tried to comfort me. “Relax, darling. If he didn’t want you, I bet the moment he first recognized you as his mate, he would’ve rejected you. But he never did. And he even bought a ring.”
“I haven’t even met his father,” my anxiety spiked again, my voice coming out hollow. “I’m not sure his father would approve of Adrian taking an omega wolf as his luna.”
Alpha wolves stood at the highest power level, while omegas were the weakest of the pack. Matches like ours were almost unheard of. Adrian was an alpha wolf, but not the brightest star in the pack—that honor belonged to his father. I’d never met the man, but Adrian’s descriptions alone made me shiver: domineering, cruel, arrogant.
“Maybe Adrian is declaring war on his father.” Jennifer laughed, giving my ass a playful slap. “He doesn’t need anyone’s approval. An alpha can choose any mate he wants. God, doesn’t that make him sexy as hell?”
I opened my mouth, ready to search for yet another reason why Adrian wouldn’t want me, but Jennifer impatiently pulled me away from the mirror and out to the graduation ball.
“It’s time,” she said, grabbing my wrist. “I bet the alpha pup is already drooling over his mate.”
Cheers erupted as the graduation ceremony began—applause, flashing lights, a sea of people. My heart pounded in time with Jennifer’s crude prophecy. I scanned the crowd and then I saw him. My mate. Adrian.
He was kneeling. My chest soared with joy and I started toward him, but suddenly another she-wolf shoved me aside. She walked straight to Adrian, holding out her hand to him.
Adrian smiled and slid the ring onto her finger.
I recognized her immediately—Nicole Montgomery. Daughter of the Moonlight Pack’s Alpha. Born into power and wealth. Her brown hair spilled over her shoulders like a waterfall, glowing under the lights. The crest of her pack hung proudly around her neck—a rank far higher than mine.
Adrian gazed up at her, his face radiating unquestionable admiration.
“Nicole Montgomery,” his voice rang through the hushed hall, “will you be my wife, my future luna?”
Her perfect little mouth formed an astonished O. Then she said yes—without hesitation.
The cheers exploded again, but to me they sounded muffled, distant—like I was underwater. Each cheer stabbed into my chest like a knife. The ring—the one I’d found in his apartment, the one I thought was meant for me—was now resting in his palm, offered to someone else.
My wolf whimpered in agony, every cell in her body wracked with pain. I felt her curl up inside me, trying to hide from the unbearable torment. My vision blurred.
“Claire?” Jennifer’s voice sounded miles away. “Claire, are you okay?” She gripped my elbow, but I could barely feel her touch.
Faint? Scream? Let him go so easily? Hell no. I would look him straight in the eye. He would see my frozen fury—not my tears.
I yanked free of Jennifer’s hand. Straightening my shoulders, face blank, I pushed through the stunned crowd toward Adrian.
He was basking in applause, his arm possessively wrapped around Nicole’s slender waist, accepting everyone’s congratulations.
The moment I drew near, the air went still. Adrian’s gaze turned cold.
“We need to talk,” I said. “Now.”
Nicole looked bewildered, but Adrian bent down, whispering something in her ear. She gave me a dismissive glance, then turned away to chat with others—as if I were just some whore clinging to Adrian’s side.
I swallowed the humiliation and dragged Adrian into a dim storage room off the hallway. The door shut behind me.
“I want an explanation!” I shouted. “Four years, Adrian. Four whole years! You can’t treat me like a fool!”
He leaned against the wall, arms crossed, a look on his face I’d never seen before—contempt.
“Oh, Claire. Really?” He laughed, disbelief dripping from his tone. “Did you honestly think the heir of the most powerful Crescent Pack in North America would choose an omega from some no-name pack?”
His mouth curved in a cruel smirk. “You were obedient. Always available. Even when I asked you to clean my penthouse, you acted like you’d won the damn lottery. Amusing, isn’t it?”
Each word drove into my heart like a dagger. Everything I’d given him was nothing but a joke to him. My wolf recoiled inside me, wounded beyond measure.
Rage roared through my veins. I slapped him hard. “You don’t get to trample on my pride like that. You bastard!”
Adrian shoved me against the wall instantly, his hand clamping around my throat. “Oh, but I can. An alpha like me can do whatever I want to an omega like you—and never pay the price.”
My throat closed under his grip, breath strangled. I clawed at his arm. He sneered, then released me. “Do yourself a favor. Walk out quietly and go find yourself a sweet little omega prince.”
His mocking grin twisted his handsome features into something vile. My stomach churned as if I’d been punched, but I still had one thing left to say.
“I, Claire White, reject you, Adrian Valmont, heir of the Crescent Pack.” My voice was ice.
Adrian blinked, then replied, “I accept.”
The pain of the bond breaking ripped through me, searing deeper than my soul. My love had been betrayed, made worthless. I wiped away the tears before they could fall and turned toward the door.
But Adrian grabbed my arm again. “Claire. If you need someone to fuck, I’ll be glad to help. You’re still a virgin, aren’t you?”
My pupils dilated with fury. I raised my hand to strike, but he caught it. “Don’t fucking touch me!” I roared, tearing my arm free.
I ran and didn’t stop until I was out of the ballroom. Jennifer caught up, her face full of concern. She took one look at me and knew. She didn’t say a word, just slipped her arm around me and steered me toward the exit.
“No, Jennifer. I need to be alone.” I pushed her away, avoiding her worried eyes. My mind was chaos. I needed alcohol—something to numb me.
I jumped into a cab.
The moment I walked into the club, I felt it—a prickling at the back of my neck. Someone was watching me.
I turned slowly, breath caught in my chest.
A tall, devastatingly handsome man stood behind me. He looked familiar, though I couldn’t place where I’d seen him. Maybe in a GQ magazine. He was too handsome. Piercing gray eyes set in a face designed to drive she-wolves wild. A strong jaw dusted with silver stubble. Broad shoulders and taut muscles beneath a perfectly tailored black suit.
Every inch of him radiated strength, control, irresistible dominance. He was more intimidating than Adrian had ever been.
He walked toward me with steady confidence and sat on the barstool beside me. His scent hit me instantly—sandalwood and mint, laced with something darker, deeper. My wolf, silent until now, growled low inside my head.
My mouth went dry. Was he here to hit on me? He had to know I was just an omega. I couldn’t place his rank, but from the way the air thickened around him, he had to be beta or higher.
He wouldn’t want to flirt with a low-ranking wolf like me. Not like Adrian had.
“Whiskey. Neat.” His deep voice rolled into my ears as he ordered from the bartender. Then he looked at me. “And a dry martini, chilled—for her.” He smiled faintly.
God, that smile melted some of my pain, made me forget where I was. “Thank you…” I managed, tongue almost tripping over the words. Maybe the alcohol would bring me back to myself.
The first swallow burned down my throat, the chill of the drink calming my storm. I arched a brow. “Do all older men order drinks for women they’ve never introduced themselves to?”
He chuckled, like a charming GQ cover model, and extended his hand. “Apologies. I’m Theo.”
Heat rushed to my face. I placed my hand in his large, warm palm. “Claire White,” I breathed, his touch nearly melting my pain away.
“Claire White… what broke the fire in those brave eyes?” Theo leaned closer, his breath ghosting over my earlobe. A shiver raced all the way to my core.
Adrian could choose another woman? Why couldn’t I?
Boldness surged. I tilted my head back. “If you want to hear the story, I think we’ll need somewhere quieter.”
Theo's POVThe morning call to Claire had become my ritual, the fifteen minutes that anchored my day before facing whatever corporate warfare awaited at VM Group. Her voice had carried renewed strength, a determination that flowed through our mating bond like electricity, reminding me why I'd fallen in love with her brilliant, unbreakable spirit in the first place."I love you too," she'd whispered before ending the call, her words carrying the kind of absolute conviction that made everything else feel manageable. "More than you'll ever know."Now, settling into my executive chair with the familiar weight of responsibility pressing against my shoulders, I felt fortified by that connection as I prepared to navigate another day of damage control and strategic planning. The theft of our research remained a wound that demanded attention, but Claire's renewed fighting spirit had reminded me that some battles were worth every resource I possessed.Charlie knocked on my office door with his
Claire's POVThe anonymous payment for my father's treatment had done more than save his life—it had ignited something fierce and unbreakable in my chest. As I sat in the hospital room watching the color slowly return to his face as the experimental therapy began its work, I felt Theo's love flowing through our mating bond like liquid fire, reminding me exactly who I was beneath the layers of false accusations and fabricated evidence.I was the mate of the most powerful Alpha as far as werewolves were concerned, and I would not allow myself to be defeated by whoever had orchestrated this systematic destruction of my reputation.That evening, I transformed the spare bedroom in our house into something that would have made any professional researcher proud. My personal laptop became the centerpiece of an operation that spanned every available surface, surrounded by backup hard drives that contained years of research data, printed molecular diagrams taped to
Claire's POVThe consultation room felt smaller with each passing minute, the weight of impossible decisions pressing down on us like a physical force. My mother sat beside me, her hands clasped so tightly in her lap that her knuckles had gone white, while Dr. Peterson waited with the patient sympathy of someone who had delivered similar news to countless families facing the intersection of medical hope and financial reality.One point five million dollars. The number echoed in my mind with the relentless precision of a funeral bell, marking time until we would be forced to accept that my father's life had a price tag we simply couldn't afford. My suspension from VM Group meant no income, no insurance coverage, no access to the kind of resources that could make experimental treatments feasible. My mother's teacher's pension and modest savings might cover a few thousand dollars of medical expenses, but not the astronomical cost of cutting-edge synthetic enzyme therapy.
Claire's POVThe fragile peace I'd found at home shattered like glass against concrete when her phone rang at two-thirty on a Tuesday afternoon. I was in the kitchen, attempting to help prepare food as a way to feel useful despite the suspension that had stripped away my professional identity, when the landline rang.My mother answered with her usual warm greeting, but I watched her expression transform from pleasant curiosity to shocked concern within seconds. The color drained from her face as she listened, her free hand gripping the kitchen counter with white-knuckled intensity that made my stomach clench with sudden dread."We'll be right there," she said, her voice tight with controlled panic as she ended the call and turned to me with eyes that reflected barely contained fear. "That was the hospital. Your father's condition has taken a sudden turn for the worse."The words drove all air from my lungs as the implications crashed over me in waves. My
Claire's POVThe drive to my childhood home felt like traveling backward through time, each familiar street corner marking another step away from the life I'd built and toward the sanctuary of unconditional love that had shaped my earliest years.I sat in my car for several minutes before summoning the courage to walk up the front path, my hands trembling as I carried the single suitcase that contained what remained of my independence. The weight of public humiliation pressed down on my shoulders like a physical burden, making each step feel like an insurmountable effort. How could I explain to my mother that her daughter—the one she'd raised to value integrity above all else—had been branded a corporate traitor by the entire werewolf community? She probably knew and that was why shed been trying to communicate.But when the front door opened before I could even knock, my mother's reaction was immediate and unambiguous. She took one look at my tear-s
Theo's POVClaire sat beside me at the head of the massive conference table, her posture rigidly professional despite the tremor in her hands that only I could detect through our mating bond. The accusations swirling around her had reached a fever pitch that threatened to consume everything we'd built together."The evidence is overwhelming," the head of our legal department declared, his voice cutting through the tense silence as he gestured toward the stack of fabricated documents that painted Claire as a corporate spy. "Bank transfers, photographic evidence, communication records—all of it points to systematic theft of our most sensitive intellectual property."I felt my wolf surge beneath my skin, every protective instinct screaming against the verbal assault being launched at my mate. The rational part of my mind understood the board's position—faced with such convincing evidence, any reasonable executive would demand immediate action. But knowi
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