Chapter 2

Ignoring Larry's taunts, I turned and walked away.

That evening, I attended the formal dinner before the alliance ceremony.

The pack's senior members were already seated.

The old Alpha smiled as he introduced them to me.

"Larry should be here any minute," the Alpha said, glancing at the time with a slight frown.

Ten minutes later, the hall doors finally opened.

Larry strode in, looking sharp in a suit, but I picked up something else on the air.

His own masculine, Alpha musk was tangled with the sweet perfume of another she-wolf.

Chloe followed close behind him, her cheeks slightly flushed and her dress a little wrinkled.

"Sorry, everyone. Had to take care of something urgent," Larry said nonchalantly as he walked to the main table.

Everyone could smell the mingled scents, but no one dared to say a word.

Larry sat down next to me, and Chloe took the seat on my other side.

"Not angry?" Larry whispered, his voice laced with challenge.

I cut into the steak on my plate, my movements graceful. "Why would I be?"

He narrowed his eyes, seeming unsettled by my reaction. "Most she-wolves would be jealous."

"I'm not most she-wolves."

Larry tapped his fingers on the table, his powerful Alpha aura rolled off him in waves.

But tonight, I was unnervingly calm.

His aura washed over me like a harmless breeze.

He sensed it, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.

"You've changed, Reina," he said, his voice low. "There's a power in you... it's stronger than I remember."

I put down my silverware and turned to him. "I'm always growing."

Larry reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a fine, black velvet box.

"Since you're here, I suppose it's time I gave you this." He opened the box. Inside lay a silver crest, engraved with the Blackwood Pack's wolf head symbol.

"Ah, the mate's crest," the old Alpha observed.

All eyes were on us.

According to tradition, if I accepted the crest, I was publicly accepting our mating.

Larry picked up the crest, about to hand it to me.

"Oh!" Chloe suddenly cried out, her elbow accidentally bumping Larry's arm.

The crest slipped through his fingers, landing with a soft splash in Chloe's wine glass.

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!" Chloe scrambled to her feet as red wine splashed onto her dress. "I'm so clumsy!"

Larry immediately stood up, dabbing at her dress with a napkin. "It's fine, it was just an accident."

He fished the crest out of the wine glass and carefully wiped it clean.

"It's soaked in wine and covered in Chloe's scent now," Larry said, a glint of malicious satisfaction in his eyes. "But that's okay. You two are good friends, after all."

He turned to Chloe and said gently, "As an apology, you can have it."

A flicker of joy crossed Chloe's face, but she quickly waved her hands. "No, I can't! It's for Reina!"

"She won't mind," Larry said, looking at me with a challenging glint in his eyes. "Right, Reina?"

The entire hall fell silent.

Everyone waited for my reaction.

For an Alpha to give his mate's token to another woman in public was a blatant humiliation.

Memories of my past life flooded back.

He had shamed me just like this before, mocking my bloodline for not being pure enough, for not deserving his respect.

Back then, I had cried and begged for his forgiveness, only to be met with more ridicule.

But this time, my heart was still.

I slowly stood up, ready to leave.

"Sit down," Larry commanded, his Alpha voice cracking like a whip as his aura slammed down. "Where do you think you're going?" he snarled, his voice low.

I stopped and turned to face him.

"We're fated mates, Reina," he said, his smile smug. "Throw whatever tantrum you want. You'll always come crawling back to me. The Moon Goddess herself decreed it. You can't fight fate."

Larry stepped closer, his voice turning flippant. "Instead of acting all high and mighty, you should just accept reality. Our union is inevitable."

I stared at him silently before speaking.

"And who," I asked, my voice dangerously quiet, "said I would accept a tainted bond?"