Chapter 1
The Moon Goddess must have been laughing at me.
That was the only explanation I could think of as I sat alone in the dining hall of the Moon Howlers Pack House, watching the candles on the table burn lower with every passing minute. Tonight was my third wedding anniversary with Alpha Jude Walker, yet the seat across from me remained empty, just as it had on countless nights before.
Outside, silver moonlight spilled through the towering windows, bathing the room in an almost dreamlike glow. Wolves celebrated tonight. The pack square echoed with music and laughter as families gathered beneath the full moon, offering prayers to the Moon Goddess for prosperous mates and strong bloodlines.
I had arranged this dinner myself.
His favorite roasted venison rested untouched beside herb-seasoned potatoes. The berry wine had long since lost its chill. Even the moonflower cake I had baked from scratch had begun to dry around the edges.
Everything was perfect. Everything except him.
I glanced at the clock again.
Eleven forty-seven.
I reached for my phone, hoping the screen would finally light up with his name.
Nothing.
Not even a simple message saying he would be late.
Three years ago, Alpha Magnus Walker—Jude's grandfather—had personally chosen me as his grandson's Luna. The elders had opposed the decision from the beginning. I wasn't born into an Alpha bloodline. Worse, I carried no trace of a wolf.
A wolfless woman could never strengthen a pack.
That was what everyone believed.
But Alpha Magnus had ignored them all.
"A Luna is chosen by character, not blood," he had declared.
I had believed him.
Perhaps that had been my greatest mistake.
Because Jude had never wanted me.
His heart had belonged to someone else long before our marriage, someone the entire pack adored.
Helen Ashford.
His first love.
The she-wolf destined to become Luna until her family disappeared beyond the Northern Territories five years ago.
When she vanished, Jude buried every emotion beneath cold indifference.
Then his grandfather arranged our marriage.
Not for love. Not for fate. Simply because the old Alpha was dying.
I spent three years convincing myself that kindness could become love.
I learned every meal Jude preferred. I memorized the exact temperature he liked his coffee. Every full moon, while other mates danced beneath the sacred tree, I remained awake waiting for him to return from patrols that somehow always lasted until dawn.
He never complained. He never praised me either.
Our bond existed like two strangers sharing the same roof.
At exactly half past midnight, my phone finally vibrated.
My heart skipped.
It wasn't Jude.
It was a notification from the pack's social platform. Someone had posted a picture.
I opened it without thinking.
My breathing stopped.
Jude stood beside Helen inside Silver Fang Restaurant, the most expensive place in the capital. He was pulling out a chair for her while she smiled up at him.
The photographer had captured something I never thought I would see.
His smile. Soft, warm, and unprotected. Not the distant politeness he wore around everyone else.
Not the cold expression that greeted me every morning.
This smile belonged only to her.
The caption beneath the photo was painfully short.
‘A destined Alpha and his true Luna.’
Thousands had already liked it.
I enlarged the picture. Then I enlarged it again.
I stared until my screen dimmed and I had to touch it to wake it once more. Three times.
After the third time, I finally admitted the truth I had avoided for years.
That wasn't courtesy. It wasn't friendship. That was love.
The kind of love I had begged fate to give me.
The kind he had never once shown me.
Three years.
Not once had he ever looked at me that way. The candles burned out one after another.
No tears came.
Perhaps I had cried enough over the past three years that there were none left.
On our third wedding anniversary, my marriage didn't shatter.
It simply… ended. Quietly.
Like a thread stretched far beyond its limit before finally snapping without making a sound.
*****
The following morning, sunlight filtered through the kitchen windows.
For three years, breakfast had always been waiting before Jude came downstairs.
Eggs exactly three minutes soft. Fresh venison. Orange juice.
Everything prepared according to his habits.
This morning, the stove remained cold.
On my way home yesterday, I had wandered into a small grocery store.
Without thinking, I picked up a jar of blueberry jam.
Only after opening it did I realize why.
The sweet fragrance carried memories I had forgotten.
I loved blueberries. Not venison. Not meat pies. Not the heavy breakfasts Jude enjoyed after training.
Somewhere over the past three years, I had slowly erased every preference that belonged to me.
Today, I spread the purple jam across warm toast before pouring myself a cup of black coffee.
Simple. Quiet. Mine.
Footsteps echoed behind me.
Jude entered wearing his training uniform, silver eyes briefly scanning the empty stove before settling on my breakfast.
A faint crease appeared between his brows.
"You didn't cook."
I took another bite before answering calmly.
"I wasn't hungry for a full breakfast."
Silence lingered.
Then he spoke as though discussing today's weather.
"Helen has returned to the capital for a while. She isn't familiar with the territory anymore, so I'll be accompanying her these next few weeks."
There was no apology. No explanation. Merely information.
As though his wife deserved only a notice.
"I see," I replied.
His brows knitted together again. Perhaps he had expected tears. Instead, I simply finished my toast.
That afternoon, we drove toward the annual charity banquet hosted by the Lycan Council.
Halfway there, Jude's phone rang. He answered almost immediately.
His expression softened. "What's wrong?" A pause. "I'll come."
He ended the call before glancing toward me. "Helen isn't feeling well. You'll attend the banquet alone."
For a long moment, I watched the road ahead before letting out a quiet laugh.
"So I'll go as your Luna while my Alpha spends the evening with another woman?"
His jaw tightened. "Beatrice."
"If someone asks where you are, what should I tell them?" I asked, unable to stop the bitterness creeping into my voice. "That you're busy taking care of your former mate?"
"Don't make this difficult," he said coldly. "Helen needs me."
"I know." I looked out the window at the forest rushing past. "She always needs you. And I've always been expected to understand."
Without waiting for another word, I unfastened my seatbelt.
The car had barely stopped at a traffic signal when I opened the door and stepped onto the roadside.
The autumn wind carried the scent of pine and distant wolves running beneath the afternoon sun.
Behind me, Jude called my name once. Only once.
Then, moments later, his black SUV sped past me.
Toward Moonstone Hotel. Toward Helen.
I stood alone on the roadside, watching until the vehicle disappeared beyond the trees.
For the first time in three years… I didn't chase after it.
…After all, I was the other woman even after getting mated to him, ever after being his Luna.