Chapter 1: Shattered in the Moonlight

BUTTERCUP

“Harder Draven, don’t you dare hold back tonight,” I said.

I gasped the words against his neck as he pinned me to the wall in the side room, my legs wrapped tight around his waist. His large arms gripped my thighs and his fingers were digging in just right. The full moon was already pulling at him, making his silver eyes glow hotter than usual.

“You’re mine, Buttercup,” he growled low, his voice was rough like gravel. “Say it again.”

“I’m yours,” I moaned, my nails scraping down his bare back. “Only yours.”

He thrust deep, stealing my breath. The music from the main hall thumped through the walls, but all I could hear was his ragged breathing and the slapping sound our bodies produced. He kissed me like he was starving, biting my bottom lip, then soothing it with his tongue. For two years, these stolen moments kept me alive. The ruthless Alpha who ran the whole damn city turned gentle only for me. Or at least that’s what I believed.

“Fuck, you feel so good,” he muttered against my throat, his hips were snapping faster. “I can’t get enough of you.”

We finished hard and fast, the way we always did before pack events. He helped me fix my dress, his fingers surprisingly soft as he brushed my messy honey-blonde hair behind my ear.

“Stay back,” he said, not meeting my eyes fully. “I’ll find you after.”

I smiled up at him full-heartedly like an idiot. “Promise?”

Draven leaned down and kissed my forehead. “Promise, little one.”

He left first, like always and I waited for him for five minutes, then slipped out and joined the crowd in the grand hall. The pack house was crowded. It was a full moon gathering like it always was. There were werewolves in sharp suits and expensive dresses who laughed and drank while the scent of moonflower incense hung thick in the air. I kept my head down, playing the quiet human servant everyone thought I was. Only Draven and I knew the truth.

I stood near the back wall, my heart still racing from our quickie. My thighs ached pleasantly. Every time he touched me, I fell deeper. He saved me from hell two years ago. Took me in when no one else would. Made me feel wanted. Desired and loved, even if we had to hide it.

The room suddenly quieted. Draven stepped onto the raised platform at the front, he was tall as hell at 6’5”, his muscles filling out his black shirt perfectly. That claw tattoo on his chest peeked out from the open collar.

He's my Alpha...My everything.

I smiled softly, waiting for him to look my way.

Then he extended his hand.

And a tall woman with sleek black hair and icy blue eyes took it, stepping up beside him as if she belonged there. She wore a blood-red gown that hugged every curve. She is the one whom they called 'Seraphina Voss'. I knew her face from the pack photos. She's the daughter of an allied mafia family. She's very beautiful in that cold, sharp way that made men nuts.

I felt my stomach twist in a way that wasn't diarrhoea, it was obviously from seeing her.

Draven’s voice boomed across the hall, strong and commanding. “Tonight, under the full moon, I present my fated mate.”

The crowd gasped and then erupted into cheers.

No. No, this wasn’t happening.

He lifted her hand higher. “Seraphina Voss will be your new Luna. The Moon Goddess has spoken and our packs will unite under this bond.”

Everyone clapped and howled. Someone popped a champagne. I couldn’t move, I couldn't feel my legs. My legs felt nailed to the marble floor. The same man who had been buried inside me twenty minutes ago now held another woman’s hand and smiled at the crowd like everything was perfect.

Seraphina leaned in and whispered something in his ear. He nodded, then scanned the room slowly.

Then our eyes finally met.

For one second, something raw flashed across his face. Could it be pain? Or regret? It was gone so fast I might have imagined it. His silver eyes locked on mine across the sea of happy werewolves. My chest tightened so much that I thought my heart would stop.

'Why?' I wanted to scream. 'You promised.'

Instead, I stood there frozen, tears burning my eyes and the room spun. The cheers sounded far away. All I could feel was the ghost of his hands on my skin and the cold slap of reality hitting me.

Draven looked away first, turning back to Seraphina and pulling her closer.

The crowd chanted “Luna! Luna!...” while my world burned down around me.

I pressed a hand to my stomach, fighting the urge to throw up right there in front of everyone. The man who saved me...The man who fucked me like I was his whole world just minutes ago. He had chosen her in public without warning me.

My breathing came too fast and the scars on my back from my old life started itching, reminding me exactly who I was...just a human girl who never deserved an Alpha.

Draven glanced my way one last time. That same flicker of pain crossed his face before his expression went blank again to a cold expression.

I couldn’t breathe BECAUSE what the hell was I supposed to do now?