All Chapters of The Enemy's Bride: Chapter 1 - Chapter 6

At six years old, I lost my parents.I still remember the night the wind carried screams through our home. The scent of blood and smoke. Little hands clutching my mother’s torn dress while the Silver Crescent warriors said “shh” and pulled me away. By morning, the only things left of my life were a necklace around my neck and a name I was too young to understand the weight of. At twenty-one, I lost the only family I thought I had. The Silver Crescent Pack raised me. They taught me how to bow, how to smile, how to carry myself like the future Luna I was supposed to become. For fifteen years I was a good orphan. The grateful one. I memorized Alpha Lucien’s favorite tea, the way his jaw tightened when he was lying, the exact pitch of his voice when he said my name like I belonged to him. Because everyone insisted he was my destiny. The Moon Goddess had paired us. The elders had blessed it. My entire life was a road paved straight to his side. A week before our wedding, I overhe

The silence that followed my proposal was almost unbearable. Rowan didn't laugh. He didn't look offended. He simply stared at me as though trying to decide whether I'd suffered a blow to the head on my journey here. Finally, he spoke. "I receive unusual requests." His voice remained maddeningly calm. "But this one is new." "I'll take that as a compliment." "I didn't intend it as one." "I know." The corner of his mouth threatened to move again. It was the closest thing to amusement I'd seen from him. "You've crossed into enemy territory," he said, "without an escort, without a treaty, and most importantly without permission from your Alpha." "I don't need his permission." His gaze sharpened. "An interesting answer." I held his eyes. "It's also the truth." For a long moment, neither of us spoke. The fire crackled quietly between us. Rain drummed against the windows. Rowan walked back toward his desk, poured two cups of tea, and placed one in f

My fingers tightened around the edge of Rowan's desk as he picked up the recorder. Rowan picked up the recorder but didn't press play. "You expect me to believe this?" "I expect you to listen. You haven't yet." His thumb traced the edge of the device. "A recording can be edited." "I know." "A conversation can be taken out of context." "I know." "So tell me why I shouldn't assume this is an elaborate attempt or scheme to drag me into Silver Crescent's politics." I held his gaze. "Because if I wanted to manipulate you, I would've come with tears instead of evidence." His expression remained unreadable. "You assume tears would work." "They might've." "They wouldn't." "I figured." A long silence settled between us. His office suddenly felt much larger than it had a moment ago. "If I press play," Rowan said, "and this turns out to be exactly what you claim..." He set the recorder back on the desk. "...everything changes." "For whom?" "For you."