Chapter 1
Today was the fifth anniversary of my marriage to Damian Wolfe.
I held the custom-made silver cufflinks I'd designed myself and pushed open the door to his office on the top floor.
A woman's flirty giggles and sultry moans came from inside.
"Damian, when are you going to divorce that useless woman? I can't wait any longer," the woman said.
"What's the rush? I only gave her the claiming bite because of the shipping pack backing her. Now that all thirteen docks in the North are under my name, it's time to get rid of this pawn," Damian replied.
I froze in place.
Five years ago, when he was cast out by his pack and left with no one, I poured everything I had into helping him claw his way up to become the Alpha of the North.
He gave me the claiming bite and told me I was his fated mate, his one and only Luna.
I believed him for five whole years.
But now, in our bed, he was holding another woman, calling me a useless pawn.
The claiming bite on my neck burned, and my wolf was howling inside me.
I didn't push the door open to confront him.
I only looked down at my three-month baby bump and then stepped into the elevator.
Damian would never know that the real owner of those thirteen docks was never him.
*****
The elevator doors slid shut in front of me.
The metal walls reflected my pale face.
The claiming bite on my neck throbbed with pain.
It was the werewolf bond biting back at me.
Whenever a mate betrayed, the pain from the claiming bite was unbearable.
I leaned against the elevator wall, cold sweat soaking through my silk shirt.
My fingers were still wrapped around the silver cufflinks with "D&C" etched into them.
The elevator reached the lobby with a ding.
I tossed the gift box into the trash can.
As soon as I stepped out of the revolving doors, my phone buzzed in my bag.
Damian's name flashed on the screen.
I hit the answer button.
"Were you at the office?" Damian demanded, his tone cold.
He offered no greeting and showed no panic about being discovered in his affair.
"The front desk said you went upstairs. Where did you go?" Damian pressed.
"I went back home," I replied.
"Went back home?" he sneered on the other end of the phone. "Chloe, did you forget what day it is?"
I gritted my teeth, trying to endure the deep ache in my stomach.
"Today is our fifth anniversary," I said.
"If you remember, then why didn't you bring up the authorization papers for the South Shipping Project?" Damian snapped, not bothering to explain. "Didn't you know Lillian's back today?"
Lillian was his first love, the same woman he was fooling around with in his office earlier.
"The authorization papers are in my safe," I said.
"Have someone deliver it right now," he ordered. "Lillian's welcome party is tonight. She needs this project as her ticket back into the inner circle."
"That's my family's business," I said.
"Your family's business?" Damian's voice shot up. "Chloe, are you out of your mind?
"If it weren't for me, those rust buckets your family owns would've gone under years ago.
"I'm the one calling the shots in the North now.
"If I say hand it over, you hand it over.
"Don't make me come back and get it myself."
He hung up on me.
The dial tone echoed in my ear.
A wave of nausea hit me hard.
I grabbed onto a streetlight and retched.
I was three months pregnant. With my mate's betrayal weighing on me, my wolf was so drained that I could barely keep myself upright.
A black Maybach pulled up in front of me.
The window slid down, and Damian's assistant, Thomas, looked out. "Ma'am, Alpha Damian sent me to take you back for the documents."
Thomas didn't bother to get out of the car.
Nor did he call me Luna.
"No need. I'll take a cab," I said.
"Alpha Damian's orders. We need those documents right now," Thomas said, stepping out of the car and blocking my path. "Ma'am, don't make it hard for me.
"Miss Carter is waiting."
I glanced at the assistant I had picked up off the streets and promoted to this position.
Now he was nothing but Damian's most loyal lapdog.
"What if I refuse?" I asked.
Thomas replied coldly, "Alpha Damian said if you don't cooperate, he'll cut off the payments for your mother's care."
I shuddered.
My mother was in a nursing home, kept alive by expensive life-support machines.
Damian was stooping this low to threaten me.
"Did he really say that?" I asked.
Thomas kept his face blank as he repeated, "Alpha Damian's exact words are: 'No need to keep what a disobedient dog cares about.'"
I pulled open the car door and slid inside.
The air inside was heavy with an overpowering perfume.
It was the perfume Lillian always wore.
"Take me to the villa," I said.
*****
Half an hour later, the car stopped in front of our matrimonial home.
I went straight to the study on the second floor.
I entered the code and opened the safe.
Then I took out the authorization papers for the South Shipping Project.
When I turned around, Damian was already standing in the doorway.
He was still wearing the same white shirt he'd had on in the office.
His collar was open, and I could see a few fresh red scratches on his neck.
"Took you long enough," Damian said, striding over and snatching the papers from my hand. "Guess I had to come back and keep an eye on you myself."
"Damian," I said, locking eyes with him. "How are you going to explain taking this project to my father?"
"Explain?" Damian flipped through the papers. After confirming them, he let out a cold laugh. "That old bastard of a father of yours probably has only a few months left.
"Once he's dead, the entire shipping empire will be mine.
"Why would I need to explain anything to him?"
He rolled up the papers and tapped my shoulder with them. "Chloe, know your place.
"You're only a breeding tool.
"For five years, you still haven't given me a single pup. It's time to step aside and let someone useful take your place."
I clutched my stomach and took a step back. "Are you going to divorce me?"
"Divorce? That's way too good for you," Damian growled, stepping in so close that it felt overwhelming. "Lillian's wolf needs pure-blooded bone marrow to keep her alive."
"Yours happens to be exactly what she needs.
"After we've sucked you dry, maybe I'll let you die with an intact body."
He turned and walked out.
At the top of the stairs, he stopped. "You have to be at the welcome party tonight.
"Wear your best clothes.
"Raise a glass to Lillian.
"If you make me look bad, I guarantee your mother won't survive the night."