Heartbeat Stars

My Alpha mate's childhood sweetheart and I are pregnant at the same time. To protect her reputation, he announces to the public that her pup is his. However, he claims that my pup is a bastard that I conceived after having an affair with another man. I go from being the noble Luna to a despised slut everyone scorns instantly. When I question my mate, Simon Latham, he shrugs and says, "Xandra has always been a goody two-shoes. She won't be able to handle the gossip from being pregnant without a mate. You're the Luna. Isn't it your duty to help your people?" On that day, any form of affection and love I ever felt for him die down completely. I secretly schedule an abortion and book a plane ticket. From now on, I will leave Simon for good.

Yo, con mi trastorno cognitivo, entré a un juego de terror. Para los demás, lo grotesco y espantoso es puro horror, pero en mi percepción, se transforma en belleza y pureza. Así que, mientras todos luchan por sobrevivir, yo vivo esto como un juego de citas y crianza. Trato al duende con apariencia de niña como una hija, al conde Vampiro de las tinieblas como a un esposo guapo, y a los espectros ancianos como a padres a los que venerar. La primera vez que vi al conde, cubierto de sangre seca y con el rostro desfigurado, se me sonrojaron las mejillas. —¡Qué guapo eres! El conde se quedó desconcertado y preguntó en voz baja: —¿De… de verdad soy guapo?

Une semaine avant la cérémonie d'union avec l'Alpha, il a soudainement changé le lieu pour la forêt des lucioles. Un ami a plaisanté : « C'est juste parce que Lily Moreau voulait voir des lucioles que tu as modifié l'endroit de la cérémonie sans prévenir Alice Durand ? Et si elle se présentait à l'ancien lieu ? » « En plus, Alice a choisi les rives du lac de Lune. Elle va accepter ? » Julien Richard a répondu avec désinvolture : « Elle a bien accepté de subir de graves brûlures pour me sauver, alors changer le lieu de la cérémonie, elle ne va pas me désobéir pour ça. » « D'ailleurs, elle s'est occupée de toute l'organisation de la cérémonie elle-même, elle va certainement remarquer que j'ai modifié l'endroit. » Derrière la porte, j'ai écouté leur conversation en silence, puis je suis partie sans rien dire. Le jour de la cérémonie d'union, Julien m'a appelée d'urgence depuis la forêt des lucioles. « La cérémonie va bientôt commencer, où es-tu ? » Calme, j'ai regardé les reflets scintillants à la surface du lac et ai répondu : « Je suis déjà arrivée, et ma cérémonie va aussi bientôt commencer. »

Eine Woche vor der Markierungszeremonie verlegte mein Verlobter, Alpha Max Schwarz, den Veranstaltungsort plötzlich in Glühwürmchenwald. Freunde scherzten: „Nur weil Sanna Glühwürmchen sehen will, änderst du eigenmächtig den Ort und sagst es nicht mal Luca! Was, wenn sie vor leeren Stühlen steht?“ „Außerdem war Mondseeufer doch Lucas Wahl! Glaubst du wirklich, sie würde dem zustimmen?“ Max erwiderte lässig: „Sie hat für mich bereits schwere Verbrennungen in Kauf genommen. Da wird sie mir doch in so einer Lappalie folgen.“ „Außerdem kümmert sich Luca um jede Kleinigkeit der Zeremonie. Sie wird die Änderung bestimmt mitbekommen.“ Ich lauschte unentdeckt vor der Tür, sagte nichts und schlich davon. Am Tag der Zeremonie rief Max mich nervös im Glühwürmchenwald an. „Zeremonie beginnt gleich, wo bist du?“ Ich blickte auf das funkelnde Seeufer und antwortete leise: „Ich bin schon da, wo ich hingehöre. Meine Zeremonie beginnt auch gleich.“

I had been Joey Jensen's mate for six years when I was kidnapped by rogues while trying to protect him. After finally making my way back to the pack, I discovered he already had another she-wolf, Courtney Ogley, by his side. Worse, he even made my son, whom I had almost died giving birth to, call her "Mom". Heartbroken, I went to the Werewolf Council and demanded an explanation from Joey. Under pressure from the entire pack, Joey reluctantly exiled Courtney. But from that moment on, he blamed me for everything. He said it was my fault he lost his beloved, and that I had robbed our son of his mother. Even my own mother resented me, saying I had torn the family apart. Surrounded by coldness and endless accusations, I slowly slipped into despair. Later, when the pack declined and was overrun, I was captured and sentenced to be beheaded. Just as I prepared to face death calmly, Joey stepped forward and fought the wolves alone. I carried him on my back and escaped, but his injuries were too severe. He was already dying. With his last breath, he said, "Consider my life a repayment to you. If there's another life, please don't stand in the way of my happiness with Courtney." I agreed through tears. But in the end, I was beheaded anyway. When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the very day I returned to the pack.

Alaric y yo habíamos acordado fugarnos juntos. Pero él cambió de opinión en el momento en que firmé los papeles para dejar la manada. De pie, fuera de la mesa del rincón en el bar del hotel, lo escuché hablar con sus amigos. —¿Engañaste a Sophie para que dejara la manada solo para tener más tiempo a solas con Vivienne? ¿No te preocupa que pierda la cabeza cuando se entere? Alaric le dio un sorbo perezoso a su bebida. —¿Por qué lo haría? Está tan obsesionada conmigo que se aferraría a mí todo el día si pudiera. Solo tengo que decirle lo que quiere oír después y me perdonará, garantizado. Además, la familia de Vivienne tiene verdadera influencia. Ese tipo de respaldo podría inclinar la balanza en mi lucha por el puesto de Alfa. Sophie simplemente tendrá que lidiar con eso. Cada palabra me atravesaba hasta que no pude respirar. Luché contra el impulso de entrar de golpe y enfrentarlo, y en su lugar me di la vuelta. Al llegar a casa, saqué mi teléfono y busqué hasta el último contacto de mi lista. —Papá. Ese emparejamiento arreglado que mencionaste... acepto.

I'd been with Alpha Adrian Grant for eight years, but he never once allowed me to go public with our relationship. On the eve of my birthday, I learned he'd bid on a priceless moonstone ring at auction. I could barely contain my excitement—I thought he was finally going to claim me openly. But on my birthday, I saw the photos on the news. Adrian, kissing another she-wolf. And on Vivian's hand—the one wrapped around his neck—was the very moonstone ring I'd been dreaming about. It hit me like a bolt of lightning. I drove toward Moonlight Forest, but halfway there, a pack of rogues ambushed me. Desperate, I reached through the mate bond, trying to connect with Adrian. Every single time, he shut me out. Just when I'd given up hope, a passerby drove the rogues off and rushed me to the hospital. My pup was gone—lost in the attack. I called Adrian through my tears, over and over. On the twenty-fifth try, the call finally connected. But the voice I heard wasn't his. "Ugh, so annoying. You promised you'd spend today with me—just me. Why are you taking calls from other she-wolves?" Adrian immediately set me aside, his tone turning honey-sweet as he soothed the woman in his arms. "I know, I know. I'll ignore her. She's just some orphan with no family—how could she possibly compare to you?" Their smug laughter pierced through the phone like a knife to the chest. But what they didn't know was this: I was the true daughter of the Oceanridge Pack Alpha—his only heir. Vivian Blake was nothing more than a girl my family had taken in out of pity. I opened the mind-link to my father. "Dad, I'm coming home. And that arranged mating you mentioned—I agree. But I have two conditions. First, remove Vivian from the pack. Second, cut all ties with Crescent Moon Pack and pull every cent of funding we've ever given them."

I transmigrated into the werewolf world by accident. The Moon Goddess found me and told me I had to win over an Alpha to complete my mission. Five years into my pursuit of the female Alpha, Serena, she ditched me at the office again. Meanwhile, it was Adrian — the one who'd been antagonizing me all this time — who actually called. "Just so you know, when you called Serena, she was right here with me. She wasn't too busy with work to pick up — she just didn't want to." I was stumbling down a pitch-black road, shivering in the cold wind. I sniffled hard and stammered, "C-Can you call me a cab? I don't have any money, and it's so dark out here — I think someone's following me." A beat of silence. Then his voice came through, noticeably urgent. "Hey — don't cry, alright? You're making it sound like I'm the one bullying you." "Fine, fine. Send me your location. I'll come get you." "Such a pain in the ass."

During a company team-building event, I collapse from a seafood allergy. Yet my fiance, Frederick Scott, rushes Beatrice Sutton, who only twisted her ankle, to the hospital. I come close to dying because I don't get treatment in time. Later, Frederick explains, "Beatrice is my best friend's sister. He's seriously ill now, and I promised him I'd take care of his sister. I swear I'll keep my distance from her from now on." This isn't the first time I've heard an excuse like that. On our fifth anniversary, Beatrice accidentally deleted a work file and burst into tears out of worry. When Frederick heard about it, he left me stranded on a mountain and drove back to the office himself. I spent a whole day and night walking home through the rain. On Christmas, Beatrice's house lost power. Frederick was worried that she might be scared of being alone, and he rushed over to her place without even telling me, leaving me out in the snow waiting for him until dawn. These kinds of things have happened countless times. Afterward, he always brushes them off with the same excuse. I've long since lost all faith in him and no longer believe a single word he says. I pick up my phone and call the company that keeps reaching out to me. "I've decided to accept your offer from last time. I'll bring the core technology with me."

Four years ago, Alpha Matteo Donovan was drugged. On that crazy night, I became his cure. From that moment on, I was his most trusted Beta by day and his lover by night, tangled up in his sheets until dawn. Just when I started drowning in the heat of his gaze, his first love, Sabrina Monroe, came back. To please her, Matteo threw me to the pack’s borderlands, where it was rogue-infested. He even tore up Mom's keepsakes right in front of me. When I finally gave up and applied to leave the pack, Matteo suddenly began to look for me like he had gone mad.