Chapter 4

The hot water poured over Daniela’s shoulders, washing away the blood, sweat, and dust that had clung to her throughout the Tournament. Three weeks of fighting disappeared down the drain, leaving only the sting of healing cuts and the dull ache buried deep in her muscles. The wound across her neck had already begun to close, the torn skin slowly knitting itself together as steam filled the bathroom.

She closed her eyes and rested a hand against the tiled wall.

The physical pain barely registered anymore.

What hurt was everything that had happened after the fight.

She had defeated every opponent placed before her. She had beaten Williams in front of every Alpha in the Allied Territories. None of it mattered. Her father had looked her in the eye, dismissed everything she had accomplished, and chosen Williams anyway.

That wound wasn’t one her wolf could heal.

Josephine shared every bit of her anger and heartbreak. The emotions rolled through their bond until Daniela could hardly tell where her own feelings ended and her wolf’s began.

“I gave him everything,” she whispered bitterly. “Everything.”

Frustration boiled over.

Her fist crashed into the wall beside her, leaving a web of cracks across the ceramic tiles. The sharp pain in her knuckles did nothing to calm her.

With a slow breath, her hand drifted to the pendant resting against her chest.

The broken chain had already been replaced, but the silver charm felt strangely warm beneath her fingertips. It gave off the faintest pulse, almost like a tiny heartbeat hidden inside the metal.

Her stomach tightened.

She had come dangerously close to losing control in the arena.

For a single terrifying moment, whatever had lived inside her since birth had almost escaped. If the pendant hadn’t been there…

She refused to finish the thought.

Thousands of wolves had been watching. Her father would have seen everything.

He wouldn’t have hesitated to cast her out.

Right now, that almost sounded like a better future than the one waiting for her.

She would rather spend the rest of her life drinking wolfsbane than marry Alpha Charles Pendragon.

The bathroom door opened without warning.

Daniela stiffened before the familiar scent reached her.

Frank.

Her heartbeat betrayed her immediately.

She shut off the shower, wrapped a towel around herself, and stepped into the bedroom.

Frank stood beside the cabinet near her bed, studying the framed photograph that always sat there.

It had been taken years ago.

A younger Daniela sat on her mother’s lap, both of them smiling at the camera. Her mother’s bright red hair framed a kind face, and her warm amber eyes looked almost identical to Daniela’s own.

The resemblance had always been impossible to miss.

“Frank,” Daniela called.

He looked over his shoulder and smiled.

“There she is.”

She relaxed a little.

Then his grin became far too mischievous.

“How’s my future stepmother doing?”

Daniela stared at him in horror.

“Oh, absolutely not.”

She groaned loudly as she walked to the wardrobe and pulled out a clean shirt and a pair of jeans.

“Never say those words together again. Ever.”

Frank laughed, clearly pleased with himself.

“I had to.”

“It wasn’t funny.”

“It was a little funny.”

She shot him a look that made him raise both hands in surrender.

The smile slowly faded from his face.

“Jokes aside, this is serious.”

Daniela stopped folding her clothes.

“I know.”

“Your father announced the marriage in front of every Alpha there. That isn’t the kind of decision people pretend never happened.”

She clenched her jaw.

“I’m not marrying him.”

“You know George won’t care what you want.”

“I don’t care what he wants either.”

Frank walked over and sat on the couch by the window.

“So what’s your plan?”

She sighed as she pulled on her clothes.

“I wish I knew.”

There was a long silence.

“I’ve been trying to think of something since I left the arena, but every idea seems worse than the last.”

As she changed, Frank turned his back without being asked.

That simple gesture made her smile despite everything.

Their fathers had been close friends for years, and the two of them had practically grown up together. They trusted each other more than anyone else.

At least, they trusted each other with almost everything.

There was one secret Daniela had never been brave enough to share.

Frank still had no idea she had been in love with him for years.

She glanced at him while buttoning her shirt.

The familiar ache returned.

Sometimes she wondered what life would have been like if the Moon Goddess had chosen them for each other.

If Frank had been her mate, everything would have been different.

But they were both well past eighteen.

If fate had intended them to be together, the bond would have revealed itself by now.

Instead, someday another woman would find herself standing where Daniela had always wished to be.

The thought hurt more than she cared to admit.

Frank broke the silence.

“The wedding is in three days.”

“I know.”

“My father’s already helping prepare the invitations.”

Daniela let out a tired laugh.

“That’s the part that bothers you?”

“No.” He looked at her seriously. “The part that bothers me is that nobody’s asking what you want.”

She walked over and sat across from him.

“What would you do if you were me?”

Frank didn’t answer right away.

Finally, he rubbed the back of his neck and said, “My first thought was to convince your father this is the worst idea he’s ever had.”