Chapter One

Melissa

I have loved Kelan since I was a five-year-old girl who stood crying at the ice cream booth, as the vendor had just sold the last vanilla cone to the Alpha’s son. I remembered looking at the boy with envy until he walked over and handed the cone to me without a second thought. That was the moment we became inseparable, and our parents began teasing about a wedding that would unite our families and secure the pack’s future.

Those plans were the only thing that kept me going after the fatal accident that took my parents’ lives during my junior year of school. I went from being a socialite daughter of the pack to living hand to mouth with my Aunt Leyla, who was married to the pack’s omega.

I had to learn how to survive without the luxury I was born into, but I blended in nicely because I had my best friend Kelan by my side.

Today was June sixteenth, and it marked my eighteenth birthday, the day I might finally find out if Kelan felt the same way I always had. I tried not to let my hopes get too high, but every little thing felt like a sign.

"Wear the blue one, Melissa. Blue suits you very well," Cindy suggested through the video call as she inspected the options I held up to the camera.

"Oh no, girl! I prefer the red one," I countered as I tossed the blue dress onto the bed and held the silk red dress against my body. "With red nail polish and red lipstick, it is going to make me look hot."

Cindy laughed over the phone as I slipped into the red dress and turned to show her the fit.

As I twirled in front of the camera, I thought I heard Cindy murmur something under her breath, almost too quiet to catch.

“What did you just say?” I asked, tilting my head, unsure if I imagined it. She smiled and shrugged. “You… look gorgeous,” she said louder, like it was nothing.

"What do you think? These heels?" I asked her as I smoothed the fabric down my hips.

"You look amazing, but you should use black heels and a black purse," she advised me while applying her own makeup on the other side of the screen. "A pair of stilettos would be better."

"No, not the stilettos. I don't want to wear anything that Kelan bought me," I rejected the idea as I moved to my shoe rack. "I don't want him to think he bought my whole wardrobe, and especially not on this day."

"Well suit yourself," Cindy sighed as she went back to blending her foundation.

My phone began to ring again, and I saw Kelan’s name flashing on the screen.

"I will call you back," I told Cindy and immediately ended the call so I could answer him.

"Hey babe," Kelan greeted me the moment the connection clicked.

"Hey boo," I replied with a smile that I couldn't suppress.

"Happy birthday to you," he began to sing loudly and off-key. "Happy birthday to you!"

"Don't even block my ears with your horrible voice," I laughed as I pressed the phone closer to my ear.

"I can't wait to see you, Mel. I have a special surprise for you," he told me with excitement in his tone. "You know you will always be by my side, and we would always be buddies even when I become Alpha."

I listened to him and felt my hopes rising as I knew what this meant.

"I have a secret I have been hiding, and today makes it the right day to show you," he added.

"I can't wait," I whispered.

"I will send my driver to get you," he promised before hanging up.

I dropped the phone on the bed and ran out to the living room, where my aunt was sitting. This certainly had to be it…the day Kelan would choose me as his mate.

"I just got off the phone with Kelan, and it seems today he is going to mark me as his mate!" I screamed.

Aunt Leyla jumped up and pulled me into a tight hug.

"I can't wait, Mel. We will finally be out of this poverty," she cheered as she squeezed my shoulders. "Go and finish getting ready."

I rushed back to dress up, and my aunt came in to arrange my hair until she declared that I looked perfect.

The driver arrived ten minutes later, and the car took me straight to the event center where Kelan had rented out the entire hall.

Kelan was waiting at the door when I arrived, and he took my hand before handing me a massive bouquet of flowers.

"Happy birthday, my love," he said as he looked at me with appreciation.

"Thank you," I smiled as he led me inside.

Our friends began to sing the happy birthday song as we walked in, and everyone laughed and brought their gifts to our table. I spent the next hour enjoying the moment, having some cake and taking selfies with everyone who came to wish me well.

The music suddenly went low, and I looked up to see Kelan standing on the small stage with a microphone.

He used a fork to clink his glass to get everyone’s attention.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he announced.

The room went quiet, and he began to speak.

"I want to thank everyone for coming to celebrate Melissa," he started as he gestured toward me. "Melissa has always been a very big part of my life from childhood days to high school, and now we are already even becoming adults."

I smiled and felt the heat rising in my cheeks.

"On this great day, I have finally decided to state who my mate is," he declared. "Who I truly choose."

I blushed harder, and I heard the crowd go 'awwwn' around me.

"For this reason and to honor Melissa," he cleared his throat and looked straight into my eyes.

I blushed, blowing him a kiss. My heart swelled, and I held my breath. This was it….He would finally choose me. Right?

“Today, I would be mating Cindy," he smiled and looked toward the side of the stage.

The whole room tilted as I froze in my seat. The crowd looked at him in shock as he reached out and took Cindy’s hand.

He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it before he bent down to her neck.

I watched in horror as he marked her with his teeth, and she did the same to him before they began to kiss passionately in front of everyone.

The shocked crowd began to clap hesitantly, but I couldn't move.

Tears rolled down my eyes, and I didn't know what to say. I just opened my mouth in shock. Wasn't this the same Cindy who had helped me get ready this morning? How could she do this to me? How could she take my man?

I stood up and immediately rushed to the bathroom to avoid causing a scene, but I heard footsteps behind me. Kelan was following.

"Melissa, wait!" Kelan called out as he followed me into the hallway.

"Are you okay?" he asked as he grabbed my arm. "Why did you just dash off like that?"

I pulled my arm away and faced him.

"Just this morning, you told me how you wanted us to be together," I questioned him as the tears fell faster. "How you wanted me to be your mate."

"Mate?" Kelan looked at me with genuine confusion. "I didn't say mate."

"What do you mean you didn't say mate? When you were calling me babe and telling me the I love yous?" I demanded.

"So you were with Cindy all this while?" I asked as the realization hit me. "Both of you were having a thing?"

"Come on, Melissa," Kelan sighed and rolled his eyes. "Don't be a child."

I looked at him and realized I didn't know this person at all.

How could I have ever thought he would choose me? Everything I believed, everything I hoped, was a lie. The boy I loved, the friend I trusted, he was gone, replaced by someone I didn’t even know. What was I going to tell Aunt Leyla?

"Melissa!" Kelan shouted as he followed me. "Melissa!"

I didn't answer him as I ran into the night. I passed through cars and buses that honked loudly as I walked in front of them, and the sky began to pour.

“Get off the road, you silly bitch!” one driver cursed.

But I couldn't. The betrayal tore through me, and my wolf Mia took over and forced the shift. I ran into the woods on four legs, unsure of what my life would become.