Chapter 2

Charlotte was curled up in Sebastian's arms, her voice sweet and coaxing.

"I just don't want our Luna to work herself too hard."

Sebastian snorted.

"These things are the Luna's responsibility to begin with. She does nothing, and she even leaves the pack without permission. Giving her this project is the least I can do, isn't it?"

With a single sentence, he reduced me to nothing.

In the past, I might have argued or tried to reason with him. Now I understood that no matter how much I said, in Sebastian's eyes it would only sound like excuses.

I was already numb. I had no desire to waste any more words.

When I didn't respond, Sebastian assumed my silence came from guilt. His tone softened slightly.

"Selena, this isn't just a job. It's training for you. If you can't produce results that stand out, how are you supposed to earn the respect of the pack as Luna? Look at Charlotte. She worked until three in the morning last night. She's more capable than you, and even more hardworking. If you don't take this chance to strengthen your standing among the wolves, Charlotte will surpass you soon enough."

Charlotte laughed lightly beside him.

"I'm not that amazing. If Selena was chosen as Luna, she must have something special. Otherwise, why would she have been selected at all?"

Sebastian let out a mocking laugh.

"If she were even half as sensible as you, I'd wake up smiling from my dreams. You secured all the partnerships for the pack this year. What would the pack even do without you?"

Their carefree laughter rang in my ears.

I didn't speak or argue.

Anyone with eyes could see the results I had delivered. Sebastian knew it too. He was just pretending not to.

After seven years together, he believed no matter what he did, I would forgive him for the sake of our past.

"Alright," Sebastian said. "Charlotte and I still have to meet another pack's Alpha tonight. Don't hold us back on your end. Finalize the cooperation as soon as possible."

He hung up before I could reply.

Less than two minutes later, a new update from Charlotte appeared on my screen.

The photo showed two hands tightly intertwined, fingers locked together.

I recognized the watch immediately.

One of those hands belonged to Sebastian.

I scrolled down.

An earlier post from Charlotte, timestamped four in the morning. She was sitting in a bar with Sebastian, drinks on the table.

So that was the "work" Sebastian had mentioned.

A date.

I let out a cold laugh and didn't bother confronting him.

I already knew how it would end. Even if I shoved the evidence in front of his face, he would twist the story, find a dozen excuses, and somehow turn it all back on me. Then he would give me another cold shoulder.

And every time, I was the one who caved first.

I went to the bookstore and picked up several medical textbooks. Ever since graduating from university, I hadn't touched medicine again. If I was going to become a healer, I needed to catch up fast.

When I got home, my phone chimed.

It was a payment notification.

Sebastian had swiped my card again, one hundred and fifty thousand dollars gone in one transaction for a necklace.

Logically, as a pack Alpha, Sebastian should never be short on money. He had even less reason to spend his mate's earnings.

But back when he became Alpha, he had built his reputation on frugality. He preached thrift, opposed extravagance, and the wolves adored him for it. That image was part of what secured his rule, so he had to maintain it at all costs.

To keep anyone from tracing his bank statements, almost all of his personal spending came out of my salary.

I believed a family was something built together by both of us, so I never made a fuss about it.

But lately, I realized Sebastian wasn't just using my money for necessities. He bought sports cars and luxury items. Worse, he frequently used my card to buy gifts for Charlotte.

From bags costing hundreds of thousands to makeup worth only a few thousand, it was all bought with my money.

Yet for all these years, I wore my clothes until they were threadbare, and he never once thought to replace them. The gifts he gave me were always roadside wildflowers or a pebble he picked up from the beach.

When I confronted him about it, he simply said that as an Alpha, he had to set an example and couldn't give gifts that were too extravagant.