Chapter 1

At two in the morning, when the pack elders' urgent summons came, I had just crawled out from beneath my childhood sweetheart, the Alpha heir Slade.

My body was still aching from his rough possession.

As the only human healer in the entire Blackwood Pack, I was ordered to prepare herbs as a gift for Slade's marriage alliance with the Thorne Pack.

I gently lifted Slade's arm from where it was wrapped around me. After a night of passion, his powerful Alpha body was still radiating a feverish heat.

I assumed this was just another wolf princess he needed to turn away, so I poked his chest playfully and asked with a smile,

"Slade, what excuse are you going to use the 99th time? That you've suddenly developed an allergy to the princess?"

He rolled over and kissed my forehead, his eyes heavy with sleep.

"My sweet girl, this time the herbs must be prepared by you, and you alone. The success of this alliance rests on your shoulders."

I froze.

For the past ten years, I had been his secret solace, the one who soothed his violent rages every night.

I thought I would earn a formal bonding ceremony, sooner or later.

But in that moment, I understood. I was just a convenience, a body for him to use.

If that was all I was to him, then I would burn everything we had to the ground.

I made a call to my old mentor at the National Institute of Medicine, Professor Sterling.

"Professor, that research position regarding gene... is it still open? I'm ready to return to the human world."

But when that arrogant Alpha, who claimed we were 'just friends' and 'strictly professional,' discovered he could no longer catch even a faint scent of me in the air, he completely lost his mind.

...

Just two hours earlier, for the thirtieth consecutive day, he had taken me with a wildness that felt like he would tear me apart.

"Look at me, Eloise."

I was completely lost beneath him, my nails digging bloody lines into his broad back.

"Slade... please..."

I moaned, feeling his terrifying size stretch me open, a brutal possession that staked its claim deep inside me.

After he finished, I curled up in his arms, my fingers tracing the scar on his chest that I had stitched myself.

His fingers idly played with my hair, twisting the strands.

"By the way, darling," his tone was casual, "Wear something pretty tomorrow night. You're attending the Moon Goddess's Blessing Ceremony."

My head snapped up, my heart pounding in my chest.

I had slept with him for years, but he had never allowed me to attend any official pack ceremonies.

"Slade," I pushed my aching body up, my voice filled with disbelief. "Is it because... you're going to announce it? We can finally go public?"

"Go public?" He let out a low, amused laugh, reaching out to pinch my cheek affectionately. "Oh, Eloise, you have such a vivid imagination."

"The ceremony is to welcome my fated mate, Rosalind Thorne. You know, the actual future Luna?"

His voice was gentle and coaxing, like explaining a simple concept to a child, yet every word was a precise needle stabbing into my heart.

My mind went blank. "If she's your Luna, then what have we been all these years? What was all of this?"

The smile on Slade's face didn't falter. He leaned in, nuzzling the crook of my neck, his breath hot against my skin.

"Don't be silly, sweetheart," he purred. "Don't tell me you actually thought a human could be the Luna of Blackwood?"

"You're my favorite little human, isn't that enough?"

I stared at him, tears welling in my eyes, but I stubbornly refused to let them fall.

"When... when did this happen?"

"Six months ago." He slid out of bed, unbothered by his nakedness.

"For the expansion of the pack, for the continuation of the pureblood line. Don't pout, you really should meet her. She satisfies everyone's imagination of what a perfect Luna should be."

I suddenly remembered that for the past six months, he had been frequently leaving for "territory patrols."

Each time he returned, I was waiting in bed for him, soothing his exhaustion with my body.

It turned out that all along, he was busy arranging a marriage with another she-wolf.

I followed him into the bathroom.

The mirror reflected my pale face, my neck and chest covered in his bites and fingerprints.

An hour ago, I had thought of them as medals of love. Now, they were brands of shame.

"If it's an alliance, do you love her?"

"Love?" He turned on the shower, grinning at me through the steam. "Maybe later, who knows?"

He stepped out of the shower, water tracing the powerful lines of his musculature.

This was the body that had once driven me to madness, the body I had given myself to.

And now, I wished I could erase every memory of it.

"Rosalind is young, of pure blood, and powerful. She brings the land rights of the Thorne Pack with her."

He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist, his thumb casually tracing the line of my spine, sending a shiver down my back.

"And you... my sweet Eloise, you have your own special place."

Yes. I was an obedient body. A pleasant, convenient tool with no strings attached, for his pleasure.

I just stood there, feeling the evidence of his climax trickling down my inner thigh. The sticky sensation had never felt so filthy.

By the time I had dressed and forced myself to walk out with some semblance of calm, Slade was already fully dressed and on the phone.

"About that research on the 'Wolf Venom Neutralizer.' I need the original manuscript. I'm giving it to the Thorne Pack as a betrothal gift."

"Also, prepare the finest red velvet gift box. That garish shade of red. It suits a Luna's station."

Hearing those words, my nails dug so deeply into my palms that they drew blood.

That research was my life's work. To prevent Slade from being injured by wolf venom in battle again, I had pulled countless all-nighters, even using my own blood for experiments to achieve that breakthrough.

Now, he was taking my life's work and giving it away as a gift to please another woman.

I couldn't help but look at him. He had a satisfied smile on his face, one I had never seen before.

But I knew it wasn't for me.

A wave of heartache washed over me, and the water glass in my hand slipped, landing with a soft thud on the expensive carpet.

Slade turned, his eyes still smiling. "You heard everything? Good. Save me the trouble of explaining. Be a dear and have that report on my desk by morning, hmm?"

He grabbed his jacket and started to leave but paused at the door.

"Eloise," he winked, looking me up and down

"Wipe that tragic look off your face. It doesn't suit you. You know I treat you better than anyone."

"Just be my good healer, and nothing has to change between us in the bedroom. Okay?"

His voice faded with the click of his leather shoes on the floor.

Thump. The door closed.

I sat on the floor, laughing until the laughter turned to tears.

I don't know how long I sat there.

It was deep into the night, the moonlight casting cold patterns on the floor, when I finally stood up and walked back to my private healing lab.

I opened the safe. Inside lay the core manuscript of the research, along with all the herbs and rare specimens he had given me over the years.

I took out a lighter. The flame licked at the paper, crackling as it turned my work into a pile of worthless black ash.

"Miss Eloise..." my assistant breathed, stepping into the room. His eyes were wide with shock as he stared at the flames.

I nodded, my face devoid of expression. "None of it matters anymore."

Not just these things. This relationship, this Alpha... I was done with all of it.

I took out my phone and dialed an encrypted number.

"Professor Sterling? It's me. I've made my decision."

"Eloise? That's wonderful news. The Institute has been waiting for a mind like yours. If Blackwood won't appreciate the genius in their midst, there are mountains of gold waiting for you out there."

"Seven days," I took a deep breath. "In seven days, the name Eloise Vance will disappear completely from the Blackwood Pack's territory."