Chapter 3

I ignored August, whose face had turned beet red, and turned to leave.

But I hadn't gotten far when he grabbed me. Then, he questioned me coldly, "Sophia, you don't want my money? What's that supposed to mean? Are you trying to cut all ties with me?"

I looked him straight in the eye. "Since we've already broken up, it's better not to have any further entanglements to avoid misunderstandings."

My thoughts drifted to Ryder, who was always jealous.

He wasn't prone to unreasonable jealousy, but he had a fierce sense of territory. If he caught another werewolf attempting to touch me in public, that poor werewolf would certainly be in for a serious reckoning.

But August glanced at Hailey, clearly thinking he'd figured everything out.

"Our Alpha is throwing a welcome party for the Lymerian pack's Alpha in three days. I'm planning to take you to experience the high life. But first, you'll need to change out of that ugly outfit. I don't want you embarrassing me—"

Before he could finish, I cut him off firmly."No thanks."

Hearing me turn him down again, August's expression darkened. The hand holding the check froze mid-air, and his jaw clenched so hard I could hear his teeth grinding.

"Sophia, I see your temper has certainly grown, but you still can't seem to shed that somewhat cheap demeanor. If you don't want to go, fine. I'll take Hailey instead."

Hailey's eyes lit up when she heard August was taking her to the party. She quickly chimed in, "August, I'll make sure to behave. I won't embarrass you, I promise."

I had no interest in getting dragged into their drama any further. I turned and walked away briskly, leaving them with one parting line. "Let's hope you're both still this confident three days from now."

I rushed out of the arrival hall, and only after taking a breath of fresh air did my nausea ease a bit.

Three years ago, my parents arranged a mate bond for me in another pack. Under pressure from my parents, I begged my boyfriend of seven years, August, to become my mate. I was hoping to go through with it first and explain later.

August agreed. Yet, outside the Pack Affairs Department, I was surprised to see not only August but also his first love, Hailey.

"Hailey's pup needs to be registered with the Aurelis pack. I need to officially become her mate first. I'll form a mate bond with you as soon as her pup gets legal status, which is expected in about a month. It's just for the pup, so don't overthink it."

Watching August walk into the office hand in hand with Hailey, I gave up on him completely. That very night, I agreed to the mate bond my parents had arranged.

A month later, I went through with the ceremony and formed a mate bond with Ryder. A year later, we welcomed our first pup.

I recently found out I was pregnant with our second pup. If it weren't for wanting to visit my parents, I wouldn't have come back to the Aurelis pack at all, and I definitely wouldn't have run into August.

…

Three days later, I showed up at the party alone, wearing light makeup and a casual outfit.

The moment August saw me, his eyes lit up, and a smug smile tugged at his lips. "You said you weren't coming, but your body's telling a different story.

"But if you're trying to win me back, you'll need to at least please me. At an event like this, you should be dressed properly, something worthy of my status."

I ignored his sudden bout of narcissism and tried to walk past him to my seat.

But I barely took two steps before August grabbed my arm in irritation. "Sophia, I'm talking to you. Didn't you hear me? Our seats are over here. Where do you think you're going?"

I shook off his hand and replied calmly, "That's your seat. Mine is over there."

Following my gaze, August looked toward the seats reserved for the most esteemed guests. His expression turned sour in an instant.

Hailey shot me a venomous glare, then pointed at my bracelet and shouted, "Sophia, how did you sneak in here? You're here to cause trouble, aren't you? And how dare you show up wearing that fake bracelet?"

Her voice was so loud that it immediately drew everyone's attention.