Chapter 1
When Alpha Lucas knelt before me, I simply watched him in silence.
A strange sense of inevitability settled in my heart.
Two days earlier, Alpha Lucas had accompanied me to the pack hospital for a prenatal check–up.
I was brimming with excitement, imagining what our pup might look like. Would they inherit Lucas’s icy–blue eyes or my unruly curls?
But my blissful musings were interrupted when I was nearly bumped by a woman.
Alpha Lucas pulled me into his arms, holding
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me tightly.
“Alpha Lucas?”
Just that simple word made his grip around me stiffen.
I turned to look at the woman and froze.
It was Omega Camille. Alpha Lucas’s ex–mate.
She was pale, almost frail, a stark contrast to my ever–expanding body.
“It’s been a while. When did you get back?”
Alpha Lucas’s voice was calm, polite, as he kept his hand tightly clasped in mine.
He was reassuring me.
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Alpha Lucas and I had been married for four
years.
I didn’t think the presence of his ex–mate would affect us in any way, but it didn’t.
His wolf stirred beneath the surface. I could feel it.
My heart thudded against my ribs, and my wolf Aurora growled faintly in my mind. “We don’t like her”
Omega Camille didn’t answer his question; instead, she glanced at my pregnant belly.
She clutched a medical report in her hand, biting her lip, her face marked by a visible
sorrow.
“Alpha Lucas, I’m in the final stages of cancer. I have only a month left.”
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The silence hit like a slap.
“What are you saying? That can’t be possible!”
Alpha Lucas’s grip on my hand loosened instantly, his wolf howling internally at the
news.
“Lucas…” My voice was sharp enough to cut through his daze.
But his attention wasn’t on me anymore.
“Alpha Lucas, it seems you’re happy now. That’s all I needed to know.”
Omega Camille gave us a long, lingering look before quickly walking away.
Without a second thought, Alpha Lucas
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moved to follow her.
He glanced back at me just before taking his first step, then hesitated.
He pulled me into a tight embrace, whispering gently in my ear, “Emily, please take a cab home. I’ll explain everything later.”
He didn’t wait for a response.
And then he was gone–gone after her.
I watched as he caught up to Omega Camille, his hand grabbing hers, the very same hand that had been holding mine just moments
ago.
My wolf snarled in fury, her anger a roaring blaze in my chest.
“He’s our mate!”
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I turned away, swallowing the lump in my throat.
I vaguely recalled that Omega Camille and Alpha Lucas had been together for five
years.
One year longer than my four with him.
And that terminal diagnosis it was a blow Alpha Lucas couldn’t ignore.
I silently hailed a cab, and headed home.
The driver, a friendly old wolf, peered at me through the rearview mirror. “You alright, Luna? You look so pale.”
I forced a weak smile. “I’m fine.”
“Alpha not with you?” he asked, glancing at
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my rounded belly.
The question hit harder than it should’ve. I caught my reflection in the window. My face was pale–almost as pale as Omega Camille’s.
A stranger cared enough to ask about me, but my mate? He was holding another woman’s hand.
“I’m fine,” I lied, placing a protective hand over my belly. Aurora huffed angrily, pacing in my mind.
“Sure?” she challenged. “Because I’m ready to tear something apart.”
I ignored her. I had to. For now, at least.
