Chapter 4

The humiliating words stung, but I felt strangely numb. I forced a smile and replied, "Congratulations. You should take good care of her, Grote."

A flicker of guilt crossed Grote's face at my thoughtfulness.

"I'm sorry, Renata. This was an accident, but the pup is innocent. You're going to be my Luna. Surely you're generous enough to accept this, right?"

I kept the smile fixed on my face as I looked at him. "Of course."

I was leaving him anyway. Whether I accepted the pup or not didn't really matter.

"I'm glad you feel that way. You know, if you'd managed to get pregnant at any point in the last seven years, you'd already be my Luna."

He tightened his hold on Christine and continued sincerely, "Christine is in this state because of me. I can't turn my back on her now."

How poetic. He'd once said the exact same thing to me—that he wouldn't turn his back on me and wouldn't let anyone hurt me.

In the end, he was the one who tore my heart to shreds.

A single tear escaped and tracked down my cheek.

Grote saw it, and for some reason, he felt bad for me. He reached out to brush the tear away, sighing as he made another promise.

"Don't worry. My love for you has never changed. I'm just asking you to bear with this for a while and help me take care of Christine, okay?"

So he did know this was something I had to endure.

But it was too late. My heart was already closed to him.

"How could I possibly complain?" I whispered.

Sensing the shift, Christine tugged at Grote's sleeve and gestured for him to set her down.

"Ms. Bowers, I know you're angry, but please, let me keep this pup," she said, her voice trembling.

Suddenly, she cried, as if her tears had been summoned on command. "I know you hate me. I know you're furious. But I… I…"

She took a step toward me, looking small and pathetic, as if I were the villain tearing two lovers apart.

"I truly love Grote. Please, just let me have this pup. Don't make me abort it. I'll leave once the pup is born. I promise. Just please!"

Before I could react, she dropped to her knees with a heavy thud and began slamming her forehead against the floor.

I looked down at her coldly. Nausea rolled through me so violently that I had to cover my mouth to keep from gagging.

I remained silent. Grote's heart ached as he watched Christine's frantic display. He hurried to help her up.

"Stop it! Get up, Christine!"

But seeing that I wouldn't relent, she kept hammering her forehead against the floor, seemingly determined to draw blood.

I wasn't about to fall for such a pathetic ruse. Sickened by the performance, I turned to leave.

"Just say yes, Renata! Don't make this harder for me!" Grote grabbed my arm, forcing me to agree.

I spun around, my eyes blazing as I glared at him. "Don't touch me!"

I had reached my limit.

But in the next second, Grote lost control. A sharp slap landed hard on my face. "Don't push it! Christine is bleeding! How can you be so heartless?"

The metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. I spat a red glob onto the floor.

My head spun from the impact. Even my self-healing abilities couldn't dull the throbbing in my cheek.

He hadn't held back at all. An Alpha's strength was more than I could endure.

The pain radiated through my entire body, leaving me trembling.