Chapter 3

I went to the hospital that morning, got my tests done, and scheduled the surgery.

I had just stepped outside when I bumped into her.

Julie.

She greeted me with a sugary smile, like she’d just spotted an old friend at a garden party.

“Hi, I’m Julie,” she said warmly, as if we hadn’t both been tangled up in the same Alpha's mess.

Of course I knew who she was.

She used to be a model—tall, radiant, and so impossibly perfect it made you wonder if the Moon Goddess had handcrafted her in her free time.

Standing next to her, I suddenly became very aware of my oversized hoodie and the faint scent of antiseptic from the hospital room. She, on the other hand, looked like she'd just stepped out of a glossy magazine—glowing skin, effortless curls, not a single wolf hair out of place.

Back when Alpha Scott lost everything—his rank, his fortune, his confidence—she had left him without looking back, jetting off abroad to "pursue her dreams."

But you know how it goes.

What we can’t have always shines the brightest.

Even for Alphas.

I guess that’s why he never stopped yearning for her.

Meanwhile, I was the one who stayed. I patched up his wounds, helped him rebuild, and guarded his wolf through every full moon breakdown. And because I offered myself too easily, too willingly, I was never something he had to treasure.

Julie tilted her chin just slightly, her lips curving in a way that could only be described as smug.

“I heard from Alpha Scott that you’re his fiancée,” she said, eyes twinkling.

That word—fiancée—rolled off her tongue like a joke.

As if I were a warm-up act for her main performance.

I didn’t respond. My throat had gone dry, my molars grinding behind a forced smile.

What did it matter?

I might’ve had the title, but she had the ceremony.

He had kissed her, not me.

Held her hand, not mine.

And in front of everyone, he’d promised her forever.

“Scott probably explained about the wedding... right?” she asked, her tone sugary sweet with just enough venom underneath to make my wolf twitch.

I had no interest in her games.

“He and I are no longer mate,” I said sharply. “Whatever he does now, none of my business.”

I turned to walk away. I didn’t want to argue with someone who was dying.

I didn’t want to stoop to that level.

She wanted him—fine. Let her have him.

But just as I stepped off the curb, I heard her fall behind me.

The thud made me freeze.

I turned in time to see Julie on the ground, looking all frail and tragic, just in time for Alpha Scott to appear like clockwork.

His brows furrowed instantly.

“Julie!” he called, rushing to her side.

He knelt, gingerly helping her up as if she were made of glass. His hands hovered protectively around her like she might vanish into mist if he pressed too hard.

Then he looked at me—sharp, disapproving.

“Eva,” he said. “She’s a patient.”

Right.

A patient.

That explained everything.

Why he could stay by her side all night and not even bother to send me a text.

Why he only remembered me when morning came and guilt kicked in.

I narrowed my eyes. “She fell on her own. I didn’t do anything.” I paused, voice laced with bite. “Your wife just slipped.”

I emphasized wife on purpose. Let him stew in it.

His scowl deepened, clearly not used to me snapping back.

I had always been gentle, careful. I tiptoed around his moods. I was his safe space—his fallback girl.

Pathetic, wasn’t it?

Julie, still clinging to his arm, gave me a sheepish smile. “It’s not her fault, Scott. You know me… Sometimes I just lose balance.”

She batted her lashes, all grace and innocence.

And then it hit me.

She didn’t need to scheme or manipulate.

All she had to do was exist—weak and beautiful—and Alpha Scott would bend.

He still had feelings for her.

So much that he couldn’t even bring himself to be angry about the way she left him back then.

Alpha Scott hesitated. He looked like he wanted to say something to me, but stopped himself. Coward.

Julie reached into his hand and took a peeled orange.

He’d peeled it for her—each string of pith cleaned off, not a shred left behind.

She smiled as she turned back toward the hospital entrance.

“Well, I’ll let you two talk. I’m sure you’ve got a lot to catch up on,” she said sweetly.

Then she strolled off in her hospital gown.

I stared at that damn orange.

He never peeled fruit for me.