Chapter 2

My hand trembled, and the phone almost slipped from my grasp. I forced myself to stay calm and replied, "I haven't had a chance to check yet."

Heather shot me a suspicious look and reached for her phone.

When I turned to leave, she raised an eyebrow and said, "Why are you acting so weird today?"

Before I could answer, her phone buzzed with a new message.

Her eyes lit up the second she glanced at the screen.

"I'm going out for a while," she said abruptly, and hurried to her room.

I followed and watched from the doorway as she pulled out a fiery-red slip dress and held it up to the mirror.

The neckline plunged low, the back was almost completely bare, and the hem was barely long enough to cover her thighs. My usually well-behaved sister had transformed into someone ready for a nightclub.

"Heather, are you going on a date?" I couldn't help asking. "Isn't that a bit…"

She turned and cut me off with a sharp glare. "Can you stop being so uptight? You get to complete your mate bond, but I'm not allowed to go on a date?"

"You can, but what kind of date requires such an outfit?" I pressed, worried some opportunistic werewolf was taking advantage of her.

Heather rolled her eyes and turned back to the mirror to fix her hair.

"Eliza, I'm not a kid anymore. I'm just dressing up. You get to be marked by an Alpha and become Luna, but I can't date around? Are you worried I'll look so good it'll make you look frumpy?" she said bitterly.

"That's not it—"

I tried to explain, but she grabbed her purse and headed for the door.

"Heather!"

I ran after her, but she slammed the door in my face with a loud bang, cutting off my words.

I stood frozen on the spot, my mind a tangled mess.

The messages, Kingsley's promises, Heather's strange behavior—it all twisted together in my chest until I could barely breathe.

Determined to know the truth, I grabbed my coat and rushed out. I jumped into a car and drove straight to the address from that message.

Soon, I arrived at a couple's hotel in the pack's territory. Out front, neon lights flickered as couples came and went. I ducked down in the car, peering through the window like I was the one having an affair instead of catching one.

Then, I saw Kingsley, who'd told me he was away on pack business. He wore a crisp suit and carried a bouquet of red roses, with one arm wrapped around Heather.

The way they stood together so intimately pierced straight through my heart. I clamped my hand over my mouth, my nails digging into my palm until I tasted blood.

Outside the car window, Kingsley draped his suit jacket over Heather's shoulders with a warm tenderness.

His fingers brushed her lips as he murmured with a low laugh, "Eliza loves you so much. How'd she let you sneak out this late? Hmm?"

She stood on her tiptoes and bit his earlobe, her red dress grazing his pants.

"I threw a tantrum. After all, she spoiled me rotten. Whenever I lose my temper, she just gives in and never asks questions."

My blood ran cold as the truth hit me. All those slammed doors and cold shoulders I had chalked up to teenage rebellion had been hiding this reality all along.

Heather continued, "She's probably sitting at home right now worrying herself sick, losing sleep over me."

Watching my beloved sister's smug expression, I felt like a silver blade had pierced through my heart. My love for her had become the very weapon that cut me deepest.

Kingsley didn't contradict her. He just smiled and pinched her cheek, his eyes drowning in affection.

"You little minx. You're too clever for your own good. But she's still your sister, so stop making her angry all the time. I won't let you bully her."

Her face suddenly twisted with jealousy. She grabbed his tie and pressed herself against him.

"After you and my sister complete the mate bond, will you still see me?"

Heather's voice turned soft and breathy, the end of her sentence becoming seductive.

Kingsley's movements stilled, and his expression cooled.

"Once the ceremony is done, I'm sending you abroad to study. No one will know you there. You can start a new life and date new guys. We shouldn't see each other anymore."

She froze, her red dress flowing around her.

"Why?" Her voice turned shrill. "What does Eliza have that I don't? She's so pathetic and submissive—"

"Shut up!" Kingsley suddenly grabbed her chin, his gaze turning dangerously cold.

Heather winced in pain but didn't dare struggle. She knew better than to defy an Alpha. She also knew she held no real place in Kingsley's heart.

"I won't let you talk about her like that." His voice was soft but ice-cold. "I've told you before that she'll be my only Luna. Don't get any foolish ideas."

Hearing him declare my status should have made me happy, but instead, I felt nothing but bitterness.

I remembered how Kingsley once told me he despised adulterers. His father had an affair and abandoned him and his mother, so he hated betrayal and infidelity more than anything. And now, he'd become exactly the kind of person he claimed to hate most.

Heather's eyes instantly welled with tears. She stood on her tiptoes to kiss his throat, her voice turning pitiful.

"I know, I was wrong… Can you hold me? Please?"

Kingsley stared at her coldly. She kept apologizing, making herself small.

I felt my heart shatter. My precious sister, who only ever threw tantrums at me, actually knew how to grovel and apologize just to flirt with my mate.

Kingsley's expression finally softened. He gently took her hand and led her into the hotel.

I never imagined there'd come a day when Kingsley's tenderness would disgust me so completely. I bit down hard on my lip, tears pooling in my eyes as pain squeezed my chest until I could barely breathe.