Chapter 1

At 2:00 am, the lock on the apartment door clicked.

Silas Locke stepped inside, the sharp scent of alcohol clinging to him. When he spotted me sitting in the living room, he paused for a moment.

“Why are you still awake?”

I looked up at him but said nothing.

“There’s something I need to tell you.”

He walked straight over to the sofa and sat down, rubbing his temples.

“Thea got everyone worked up and challenged us to a round of that stone-wheel game at dinner tonight. Unfortunately, I wasn’t lucky enough to win. She’ll be taking your place at the engagement ceremony the day after tomorrow. She’ll stand beside me and go through the entire ceremony.”

My fingers tightened around my glass until my knuckles turned white.

I thought he would at least come up with some excuse to cover up what he had done. Instead, he laid the whole ridiculous wager bare before me without a hint of shame.

“So, does that mean the engagement ceremony the day after tomorrow will be yours and Thea’s?"

Silas frowned, his voice carrying a hint of exasperation.

“Lyra, don’t make this into a bigger deal than it is. You know what Thea’s like. She just loves getting caught up in the excitement. She has never really experienced anything grand growing up. She’s just curious and wants to have some fun.

"You’re always so sensible. Don’t stoop to arguing with a young girl over something like this.”

I held his gaze and replied, “But I’m your fiancée.”

He leaned closer and gently covered the back of my hand with his.

“Don’t worry. I’m only letting her join in for a little fun. Once she’s had her fun, you’ll still be the one at the center of the ceremony. This is just a formality, not the actual marking ceremony.

“Once I become Alpha, I promise I’ll arrange the grandest marking ceremony imaginable for you. Every Alpha from every pack will be there to witness it. Your gown, the ceremonial procession, the moonstone crown... I’ll spare no expense to make sure every detail is perfect.”

As I stared at the man before me, I realized that, for the first time, he seemed terrifyingly unfamiliar.

Six years ago, the werewolf packs held a joint combat assessment.

My team had accidentally wandered into an abandoned training ground contaminated with wolfsbane.

During the previous round of combat, I injured my lower leg. The poison seeped into the wound, and before long, I began showing signs of losing control of my wolf.

According to the assessment rules, any team that strayed from its designated route had to remain where they were and wait for rescue. No one was allowed to turn back on their own. Doing so would automatically disqualify the entire team.

Back then, Silas and I barely knew each other. When he realized I had not reached the finish line, he willingly gave up his guaranteed first-place finish.

He followed the traces of my scent, charged straight back into the training grounds, and carried me out on his back.

Only later did I learn that he was the heir to the powerful Nightmoon Pack.

He spent the next six months pursuing me. He traveled constantly between our two cities, all just for the chance to see me.

My father warned me more than once that the Nightmoon Pack was riddled with competing factions and complicated rules.

Silas’ mother, Evelyn Pritchett, was especially notorious for her domineering nature.

“Lyra, if you choose him, you’ll have to sacrifice far more than you can imagine.”

When Silas found out, he voluntarily withdrew from several social engagements that might spark misunderstandings.

He even made his position perfectly clear in front of all the elders. “No one gets to interfere with or dictate who I choose as my mate. Lyra is the only woman I will ever recognize as my Luna.”

I had seen for myself how he had once put me above everything else.

That was why, throughout the six years that followed, I kept convincing myself that his attachment to Thea Borne was nothing more than an old habit. That he was simply looking out for her.

“Lyra, are you even listening to me?”

Silas squeezed the back of my hand, trying to pull me out of my thoughts. I withdrew my hand and looked up at him. “But you already made me compromise once, three years ago.”

The smile on his face froze.

Three years ago, Thea used another stupid wager to postpone our ceremony on the eve of our engagement. Silas had urged me to be understanding back then too.

He said three years was not a long wait. It would give him time to consolidate his power within the pack before becoming Alpha, and then he could give me the grandest ceremony imaginable.

That was the first time I had ever fallen out with him. I packed my things in the middle of the night and returned to my father’s territory.

When Silas heard I left, he abandoned all his duties within the Nightmoon Pack and went straight to the gates of the Werewolf Council’s headquarters.

He stood outside in the pouring rain for two whole days. His fever spiked until he finally collapsed, leaving them no choice but to rush him to the emergency room.

The first thing he did after waking up was clutch my hand tightly and swear to me in a hoarse voice. He promised he would never again use our future together as a bargaining chip just to keep Thea happy.

Looking at his deathly pale face, I eventually lost my resolve.

I believed he was making me wait because he genuinely wanted to give me the very best. That was why I never complained. I swallowed every grievance and endured it all for three years.

Now, he was asking me to endure it all over again.

“Why are you bringing up the past?” Silas rubbed his temples, his voice laced with unmistakable impatience. “I already apologized to you three years ago. I nearly lost my life over it, too. Wasn’t that enough to make up for what I did?”

“What if I refuse to agree this time?” I stared at him, asking each word slowly and deliberately.

His expression darkened. He rose to his feet and looked down at me.

“Lyra, don’t be unreasonable at a time like this. We have the rest of our lives together. Do you really have to make such a big deal out of one ceremony? If you can’t even show this little tolerance, how are you ever going to be a proper Luna of the Nightmoon Pack?”

At that moment, I finally saw things for what they were.

Three years ago, Silas had genuinely been terrified of losing me.

Now, he was simply certain that no matter how far he pushed me, no matter how many times he asked me to give in, I would eventually do exactly what I had done three years ago.

I would swallow my pride, forgive him, and stay by his side.

“I got it.”

I looked at him, forcing down the bitterness rising in my throat.

Silas seemed to think I had finally come around. The tension visibly drained from his expression.

“Once the ceremony is over, I’ll personally take you to choose the moonstone for our official marking.”

He reached out and gently ruffled my hair.

“Just let Thea have her way this time. I’ll make it up to you in every way I can.”

“All right,” I answered in a soft voice.

He headed upstairs, satisfied that the matter was settled.

I took out my phone. A message from my father had just appeared on the screen.

[All right. I’ll send someone to bring you home the day after tomorrow.]