Chapter 1

Eyra’s POV

[Dave: Let’s get a divorce.]

The message from Dave—my husband—made me freeze instantly. My hands were shaking so badly that the thing I’d been dying to show him just fell to the floor, and I didn’t care anymore. My attention was now entirely on the short message displayed on the screen, which I hadn’t taken my eyes off for a moment.

I hoped I’d misread it...

I hoped he was just playing a prank, that this was all part of an anniversary surprise to make up for his absence last night.

However, no matter how many times I pressed the exit button and then returned to the chat between Dave and me, the message didn’t change.

He really did send that message and didn’t say anything else besides that.

[We’ll talk about everything at home. Happy anniversary, Dave.] I replied with trembling hands.

My chest felt like it had been struck by a sledgehammer, my stomach sank, and a nausea I’d never felt before suddenly washed over me. I ran quickly to the bathroom and threw up everything I’d eaten for lunch yesterday. Every last bit. Until only bitter fluid came out when the nausea returned.

I staggered out of the bathroom, stared blankly at the entire room, sat down on the bed, and turned to the other side—the side where Dave had never once slept.

We’ve been married for three years. Yet, all this time I’ve endured his cold demeanor, hoping things would change.

He was forced into it, I know. But out of all the she-wolves who adored and respected him so much, why me? Why did he choose me, only to leave me to endure such a cold, loveless marriage?

After several years without any physical contact, last month came as a surprise to me. Dave had returned from a business meeting in Miami. He was drunk and finally touched me for the first time.

That one night changed everything—I’m pregnant with his pup.

I wiped away my tears and let out a heavy, deep sigh as I recalled the time. Dave promised he’d come home last night, but there was never any sign of him, except for the bad news he sent me minutes ago.

“Sign this right away so the process goes more smoothly. You can hire a lawyer and charge the bill to my account,” he said, the moment he finally came home.

He didn’t even give me the slightest chance to speak.

“Why, Dave?” I stammered, trying to hold back the sobs that almost broke because Dave hated to see me crying. “What is it about? I thought you intended to make things right when you said you’d come home–”

Dave raised his hand, cutting me off. “You already know the answer. Do I have to repeat it?”

I felt as if I’d been jolted by the flat, cold tone of his voice; I just kept my head down, clenching my hands while enduring the throbbing pain in my chest. He didn’t look at me at all—I could understand why, because that’s how it had been for the past three years. However, I never expected this to happen.

“I...” I paused, pulling out the doctor’s report that confirmed yesterday’s test results. A small laugh escaped me as I spoke to him. “I’m pregnant, Dave. I’m carrying our pup.”

Hearing my words, Dave—who had been trying to avoid eye contact with me—turned sharply toward me, staring at me. His jaw tightened, his gaze fierce, his eyes were red, as was his face.

Before long, he snorted with a cynical, mocking laugh.

“Don’t you have any other way, Eyra? After tricking me into sleeping with you, now you’re telling me you’re pregnant?”

“W-what?”

Right, he wouldn’t believe me… I knew that. But the most painful part was how he accused me of tricking him into sleeping with me.

He was drunk the night we had sex. If he wanted to accuse me of taking advantage of him, then he should’ve known the answer already.

After three years in a loveless marriage—without ever feeling his warmth—that night felt like a dream come true to me, even though he wasn’t fully sober. How could I refuse it?

Dave stood up from his chair. Without looking at me, he turned around and started to leave. But at the doorway, his steps halted.

“You don’t need to make a scene just to prevent this divorce. It’ll never work,” he said, then walked away.

I stared at his back—which slowly receded, then disappeared—feeling utterly shattered. Three years of enduring life as nothing more than an accessory because he needed me to be his “luna” to satisfy the elders’ demands. Now, it had to end so bitterly.

***

I sat in front of the vanity table, staring at my reflection there. I looked haggard and lifeless after reading Dave’s divorce papers.

Yesterday, he promised he’d come home. I prepared dinner, a gift, and a pregnancy test with a positive result that I wanted to show him, but I’d finally spending the night alone. No celebration, no happy smiles over the good news I had planned to share with him, except just agonizing loneliness.

I snapped out of my reverie and looked at the papers in my hand with a sense of unease. I’d tried to tell Dave the truth—that I was pregnant with our child—just as the elders had hoped we’d have an heir soon. But he didn’t believe me.

A message came in, and I checked it without enthusiasm. It was from Dave, urging me to sign the divorce papers right away.

I set the divorce papers on the bed, but not my phone. Then one notification caught my attention, so I immediately checked it and found some news articles on the pack’s website, and my heart seemed to stop beating.

[After disappearing for three years, top model and member of The Night Hunter Pack, Elara Smith, has finally returned]

Elara?

Dave’s first love, Elara Smith, has returned? Is this the real reason why Dave insisted on divorcing me?

I quickly checked the publication date of the article, and it was exactly as I’d suspected—it happened last night, when Dave left me waiting until I fell asleep at the dining table and woke up to a divorce message from him. There were also several photos and videos showing the beginning of their encounter.

With trembling hands, my chest about to burst, and tears ready to spill, I pressed the “play” button on the screen, and everything I shouldn’t have seen was right there.

The video showed Dave walking in and finding Elara curled up near the lobby entrance.

He pulled her into his arms without a second thought. He held her tightly and at the very last moment, he kissed her on the lips.

My hands were shaking violently. My phone slipped from my grasp and fell onto the bed.

How stupid of me… to ignore my intuition—leaving me waiting all night, still hoping everything would finally get better.

Now he wanted a divorce—undoubtedly—because of Elara’s return, and I can do nothing but weep over my misfortune.

I reached for my cell phone and clutched it tightly against my chest, then glanced at the documents I’d left on the bed. I don’t know what I’m feeling right now. She’s back. So that means, even if I cried my heart out, Dave would never choose to keep me.