Chapter 1

On the day of my bonding ceremony with Vincent Sawyer, the future Alpha, the moonstone ring meant for me, the future Luna, has mysteriously disappeared from the ringbox. In its place sits a can tab that has already gone black from oxidation.

The guests' cheers die down immediately. They all turn to look at me after that.

Amid the silence, Vincent's childhood sweetheart, Sharon Anderson, walks out from the crowd. She raises her left hand and waves, the moonstone ring perched on her ring finger. Then, she pulls out a matching ring before sliding it onto Vincent's finger.

"You must be scared out of your wits, huh, Angelica? I'm actually wearing the ring right now. This can tab is no ordinary item, you know. Vincent had given it to me when we were still pups. It resembles everlasting love that will never fade away. Now, I'm giving it to you."

Sharon's words strike me right in my heart. I tremble violently, feeling as if my heart is being cut into a million pieces.

However, Vincent just chuckles. "Sharon always comes up with silly ideas. She's just joking around, Angelica. Don't take her actions to heart."

"Oh, I won't."

I toss the can tab into the bonfire, a dry chuckle escaping from my lips. "This bonding ceremony is canceled."

Vincent grabs my hand before pulling me into his arms.

"Stop messing around, Angelica! We found the ring, didn't we? This bonding alliance will affect the future of our packs! You're not the one calling the shots here!"

I squirm out of Vincent's grasp, catching a trace of sickly sweet scent lingering around him—one that isn’t mine at all.

"While it's true that the Moonlake pack is going to form a bonding alliance with the Brownstone pack, my future mate isn't necessarily you."

...

I stared at the soda can tab that Vincent Sawyer, my future mate, had slid onto my finger. For a long time, I couldn't utter a word.

The loud music and the sounds of chatter, which made up the boisterous atmosphere, died down instantly. The guests' murmurs soon filled the room.

"What's that? It looks like a can tab…"

"Is this a joke? Is Vincent, the future Alpha of his pack, seriously giving a can tab to his future Luna as her ring?"

"Where is the moonstone ring? I've attended this ceremony just to see what it looks like!"

I gripped the hems of my bridal gown tightly. The can tab's rough material dug into my finger so much that it was starting to hurt.

With great difficulty, I attempted to lift the corners of my mouth to squeeze out a smile.

"Perhaps it fell somewhere."

Then, I looked at my assistant, Nancy Jenkins. "Nancy, I want you to check the lawn and the car right now."

Both my and Vincent's packs had poured a lot of money and effort into preparing this bonding ceremony. We had even invited the elite werewolves from the other packs to this ceremony.

No…

We couldn't allow a scandal to break out because of one missing ring.

Soon, Nancy rushed back to my side while panting heavily. "I didn't find it anywhere. Could it be that a greedy rogue has stolen it?"

I shook my head. No rogue would be this bold to pull off such a feat.

Besides, the ringbox was kept in my private safe the whole time. This morning, I had personally entrusted it to Vincent.

Did Vincent do something to the ring?

However…

I didn't want to suspect him at all.

"Maybe we should delay the bonding ceremony," Vincent suggested coolly, as though he had just suggested that we should reschedule our dinnertime.

"No!" I answered hastily, my tone shrill.

I didn't want to drag out the bonding ceremony at all. Every piece of lace sewn onto my bridal gown was crafted by the best tailor in the pack. The lace was worth as much as the military budget set aside for a town.

Also, 300 florists had spent 72 hours meticulously decorating the venue of the bonding ceremony just so it could become a dreamy, fairy tale-like backdrop for this ceremony.

If we were to delay the bonding ceremony, everyone's hard work would be ruined.

Nancy grew very anxious. She gathered all the soldiers and had them search the grounds carefully for the missing ring.

The soldiers took down the fences and moved the rose arch away from the venue. Then, they began questioning every driver and guest in the venue.

Just like that, the sacred ceremony was instantly overridden by chaos.

"You think we stole your ring?" someone exclaimed angrily. "Is this what you think, Ms. Morrow? We demand an explanation right now!"

"Are you certain that you've safeguarded the ring properly, Ms. Morrow? Are you sure you didn't lose it somehow?"

"Let me out of here! I'm not attending this ceremony anymore!"

Because of the chaos, the guests became extremely rowdy and agitated.

I stood in front of everyone while holding the bouquet. Hostile gazes were pinned on me from all directions. However, no matter how hard everyone searched, there was only a ring made of a soda can tab in this venue.

When the elder in charge of officiating the bonding ceremony glanced at his watch for the third time, Vincent's mother approached me.

"We're running out of time, Angelica. If no one can find the ring, you should just get someone to buy a new ring as soon as possible. This is just a small issue, you know."

Get a new ring? That sounded like a good idea.

However, I had personally designed and crafted the missing moonstone ring with my own hands. How could I possibly let any other ring replace the fruit of my labor?

Upon detecting my lack of response, Vincent turned to me, a hint of displeasure apparent in his eyes.

"That's enough, honey. It's just a ring. If it's gone, then it's gone. Everyone's still waiting for you."

I ground my teeth together and forced myself to swallow my grievances. Just as I was about to nod, I heard another commotion coming from the guests. They turned to look at the source of the commotion. Some of them soon parted ways to form a path.

It was Vincent's childhood sweetheart, Sharon Anderson. She emerged from the crowd in a white, fancy dress.

A bright smile was plastered on her face as she raised her hand, which showed the moonstone ring that emitted a soft glow. Everyone could see the ring from where they stood.

"Are you looking for this ring, Angelica? I didn't mean to take it away. I just wanted to try it on because I love how pretty it is."

After squeezing the guests away, Sharon made her way to Vincent. She even made a face at him teasingly.

Vincent merely flashed her a small, gentle smile in response.

Their little interaction was like a thorn lodged into my heart, making it hard for me to breathe. Once again, silence loomed over the venue.

Nancy stared at the ring on Sharon's finger. She looked so furious that she was about to explode on the spot.

"Sharon Anderson, you swapped Angelica's ring out for a can tab! You knew that everyone was looking for it! Why didn't you reveal it earlier?"

Sharon cast a dissatisfied glare in Nancy's direction, as though the latter had spoiled her mood.

"I was just trying to hype the ceremony up! Isn't it a lot more exciting to see everyone on their feet and moving about?

"Besides, the can tab has a special significance to it. When Vincent first gave me the tab, he told me that it means 'everlasting love.' Isn't this the perfect gift for his future Luna?

"This is my blessing to you two, you know. Don't tell me you're mad at me because of this!"

Sharon pulled out another moonstone ring before sliding it onto Vincent's finger with a smile on her face. She acted as though she were the actual Luna this whole time.

"Now that you two have already exchanged the rings, let's get the ceremony going, shall we?"