Chapter 1

During the eight months I carried our pup, Dominick and his Beta, Anne, booked hotel rooms nearly two hundred times. I knew, of course. Every whisper, every lingering glance, every scent of her on his clothes—they all screamed betrayal. But I chose to ignore it, focusing instead on the life growing inside me. The pup was precious, a future heir to the Silver Moon Pack, and I refused to let Dominick’s infidelity tarnish that. Still, the night before my due date, as I stood in the shadows of the packhouse stairwell, I overheard Dominick’s voice, low and reassuring, carrying through the cold air.

"Relax, Anne. We used your essence in the ritual, so the pup won’t inherit Bridget’s weakness. Once the pup arrives safely, I’ll reject her. Just give me a little more time, alright?"

His words struck me like a claw to the chest, tearing open old wounds and leaving them raw. Seven years of a mate bond, seven years of pretending, seven years of holding onto the fragile hope that he might change—all of it shattered in an instant. Exhausted, I called my father, the former Alpha of the Silver Moon Pack, my voice steady despite the storm raging inside me.

"Father, I’ve repaid the debt to Dominick’s family. Now it’s time for you to fulfill your promise."

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"Bridget, you’re about to give birth to our pack’s future heir. If there’s an issue with Dominick, talk it out. You’re both adults; don’t let trivial matters cloud your judgment," my father said, his tone dismissive. He chuckled lightly, as though I were a pup throwing a tantrum. "After the pup’s born, you’ll see things differently. Don’t let these emotions affect your health."

"Dominick has betrayed me, Father. He doesn’t deserve to be my mate or the pup’s father," I stated, my voice calm but firm. A moment later, my body began to tremble uncontrollably. Despite the warmth of the packhouse, a chill seeped into my bones, as if the Moon Goddess herself wept for the bond I was about to sever.

"Enough," my father snapped, his alpha tone cutting through the air. "As your father, I know Dominick’s character. You’ve been overly suspicious since you became pregnant. The mate bond, though arranged by me, was something you agreed to. I never forced you."

I smiled bitterly, my wolf stirring restlessly in the back of my mind. *Naive,* she whispered, her voice laced with pain. *You believed his lies.*

Fifteen years ago, my father had been rushed to the healer’s den, his heart failing due to a congenital condition. Dominick’s father, a skilled warrior and healer, saved his life, even using his own resources to cover the cost of the treatment. When Dominick’s father died in a skirmish with a rival pack, leaving behind an eleven-year-old Dominick, my father adopted him, raising him as his own son and grooming him to become the next Alpha.

For over a decade, Dominick and I were inseparable. When my father built the Silver Moon Pack into a dominant force in the region, he promised to leave its leadership to Dominick. I had no objections; after all, when Dominick was eighteen, he declared I would be his Luna once he ascended to Alpha. My father was thrilled, though he made me one promise: if Dominick ever wronged me, I could reject the bond. I’d accepted it lightly, quietly hoping such a day would never come.

Until the second year of our mate bond, when I discovered Dominick’s first betrayal. He’d returned from a patrol with Anne’s scent clinging to his skin. We’d argued fiercely, but Dominick brushed it off, claiming he’d been helping her after a training accident. He was never careless, never indiscreet, yet his weak excuse failed to convince me. That night, Dominick knelt outside our bedroom, his alpha aura subdued, his voice broken as he begged for my forgiveness.

"Bridget, my heart will always belong to you alone. If I ever betray you, may the Moon Goddess curse me forever."

I’d let it go, believing him, unaware that it was the first crack in what would become a shattered bond.

A sharp pain in my abdomen snapped me back to the present. Glancing down, I saw the sheets soaked with blood and amniotic fluid spreading beneath me. The pup was coming, and with it, the end of everything I’d once held dear.