Chapter 1

The agony of August’s rejection was too much. I blacked out under the weight of the pain.

I woke up in my bedroom.

Following the notification from my phone on the nightstand, I reached out in a struggle. The screen’s glare blinded my eyes. There was a new post on Anna Morgart’s social media feed.

A photo showed August Sterling staring at Anna with downcast eyes, his gaze tender.

It was the same look I had longed for through many sleepless nights.

However, I didn’t feel the sting I had expected. Only a wave of hollow composure ran through me.

I was given the Luna title on my eighteenth birthday.

With the Moon Goddess’ blessing, I was named August’s fated mate.

I considered the bond as a gift from the Moon Goddess since my parents had always favored Anna.

Here I thought that I could have a family of my own, a mate who actually cared about me.

Alas, my mate’s heart belonged to Anna as well.

At our first mating ceremony, Anna broke a glass and cut her hand.

Scooping her into his arms, August bolted to the infirmary without so much as a glance at me.

Despite my pleas through mindlink for him to come back, he tore hard into me.

“Sophina Morgart! Anna is your sister! How can you be so selfish when she’s bleeding?”

Little did he know, I was hunched over in excruciating pain from his silent rejection.

The second time, the ritual didn’t go on because Anna had a craving for the pastries in the shop corner.

Many incidents of a similar nature ensued. August was always absent, tending to Anna’s little requests.

The suffering he put me through slowly killed my expectations.

I had long given up on a love that was never meant for me.

A throbbing pain split my head, and I drifted back into a hazy sleep.

Late at night, I was yanked violently out of bed.

I opened my eyes and met August’s burning rage.

“Sophina!” His grip over my wrist was tight, and his voice boomed in the silence of the room. “Anna’s pet is dead. She barely had a bite to eat in the last couple of days. Yet, here you are, sleeping through all this without a care.”

Before, I would have broken down in the face of his accusations, desperately explaining that his rejection was hurting me. I would have begged for even a trace of his affection.

However, he never once believed me or spared me with the slightest bit of care.

I was drained at this point, so I gave him exactly what he wanted.

“I’m sorry.”

My voice was hoarse and rough.

In the faint moonlight through the window, August finally had a good look at my discolored face.

He froze. By the time he spoke again, his voice carried a stiff concern.

“Why didn’t you tell me that you were unwell. Have a good rest. I’ll get you some medicine.”

I closed my eyes.

In the past, I would rejoice over his show of concern. At last, he had noticed me.

Yet now, his empty words stirred nothing within me.

By the time I came to, the nightstand was bare as expected.

I saw neither water nor medicine.

Smiling to myself, I dragged my heavy body down the stairs.

Halfway down, I caught August’s gentle voice coming from the kitchen.

“Careful, it’s hot. Take your time.”

My footsteps halted.

There was August, wearing an apron I’d never seen him touch. He was focused on frying eggs, the way Anna liked them.

Sitting at the table, Anna propped her chin against her arm and smiled.

The intimacy between them was nothing like I had ever encountered before.

My mind wandered back to the time when we were first paired together.

With callous eyes, August said, “Cooking isn’t my thing, and I have no plans to learn.”

In the next five years, I was the one in the apron, in charge of all the meals.

I paid close attention to his tastes, keeping tabs on his every preference.

Even when I winced at the hot, scalding oil on the back of my hand, I never once voiced my pain.

In my mind, the pain meant nothing as long as he savored what I made.

As it turned out, he wasn’t incapable of cooking.

His motivation was simply never for me.

As August cooked up a storm for Anna, I realized the last five years of my life had been a joke.