Semua Bab Signed Away Under the Full Moon: Bab 1 - Bab 10

That day, Kaelan sat in his study while the fireplace roared. On the wall screen, a news segment was covering Vera's return from a southern healing retreat to Blackthorn territory. She wore a black dress with her dead mate's wolf crest pinned to her chest, and the reporter called her "the most heartbreaking widow in the North."Kaelan's eyes stayed on the screen.Even when I placed a stack of documents in front of him, he signed without really looking.On top was a jewelry transfer list. At the bottom was my application to cancel the mate ceremony.Under pack law, an unsealed mate ceremony could be revoked if both the Alpha and his future Luna signed. Kaelan probably thought it was another gift list, so he signed quickly.When the pen finished the final stroke, guilt flickered across his face. “This is the last time, Eve. After the ceremony, you’ll be my Luna. Whatever you want, crowns, gowns, jewels, anything in Blackthorn’s vault, you can choose it yourself. You won’t have to take ap

Late that night, I returned to Blackthorn Manor.Kaelan was already there. He stood in the living room, his expression awkward. When I came in, he stayed silent for a long time before saying quietly, "Thank you for helping me tonight."I handed my shawl to a maid and looked at him calmly.He explained, "Vera just came back. Her mental state is still unstable. If I told everyone you were my mate tonight, she would feel like she had no place left at all."I didn't remind him that she was never supposed to be standing in my place.Kaelan continued, "After the ceremony in three days, I'll make you public. You'll be the only Luna of Blackthorn."I nodded. "Okay."My obedience seemed to unsettle him. He took two steps closer and tried to hug me. When his arms came around me, all I smelled was Vera's perfume on his sleeves. It covered the scent that used to belong to him, the forest, cold fir, and Alpha blood.I used to love his embrace. Now it felt like holding a stranger.Kaelan seemed to r

Kaelan lowered his head and saw the name he had signed with his own hand.At that moment, the strongest Alpha in the North stood on an empty altar and, for the first time, heard his wolf let out a howl so broken it was almost out of control.Kaelan had always believed Evelyn would wait for him.She had waited too many times. Waited for him to come back from Vera, waited for him to make up for a birthday, waited for him to set a new ceremony date, waited for promises that had been delayed until they barely resembled promises anymore.So he had never imagined there would come a day when she truly stopped waiting.He gripped the cancellation application so tightly his knuckles turned white. His wolf surged through his blood, forcing several younger werewolves nearby to step back on instinct."Where did she go?"Elder Maren did not answer.Kaelan lifted his head sharply. His voice dropped until it was frightening. "I asked you, where did she go?""Alpha," Maren said, "she is no longer your

The next morning, Noah arrived downstairs at the guesthouse right on time.His car was old but clean, and the passenger seat had a thin blanket and a bottle of warm water waiting on it."Mr. Reed, how did you know I was staying here?" I asked."Nine out of ten outsiders who come to this stretch of coast stay at Maggie's," he said. "The tenth usually gets lost."I paid him a generous guide fee.Noah looked at the transfer notice with a wounded expression. "Since we're being this formal, can you stop calling me Mr. Reed? You could call me Noah.""Fine, Noah," I said. "Make sure I have fun today."He smiled. "Yes, ma'am. Anything for my rich client."Harbor City looked nothing like the North.Noah took me to a seaside food stall. Just as the vendor was about to sprinkle rosemary into the soup, he stopped her. "She doesn't like rosemary."I paused. I really didn't like rosemary. Only Kaelan knew that.But Noah said it so naturally that I didn't think too much about it then.That afternoon,

Kaelan still seemed desperate to hold on to something.He looked at the trench coat I was wearing and suddenly said, "You left with almost nothing. But all the jewels and gowns are still at Blackthorn. Eve, if you really don't care about me, why did you keep everything I gave you?"I froze for a moment before I realized what he meant.Those things. The necklaces, crowns, gowns, and jewels he had sent after every broken promise.I almost laughed. "Kaelan, those were your apology gifts. How do you have the nerve to ask me about them?"His expression stiffened."I didn't bring them because they disgust me," I said. "Every single piece reminds me that you left me for Vera again. Did you think I loved them that much?"His throat moved, as if the words had cut deep."If you feel bad about it, I can have everything sent back," I said. "I don't want a single piece."He shook his head quickly. "That's not what I meant.""Then what did you mean?"He looked toward Noah standing beside the car, an