An Unexpected Summer

APRIL’S POV

You ever hear the saying, “Some roads should never be taken”?

Well, tonight I took one of them… and I’m not sure I’ll make it back.

Today was supposed to be perfect. A day I was to be filled with joy like no other.

And why was that? Because It was my wedding day, and my twenty-second birthday. The day I would finally prove I was more than just the wolfless daughter living in my twin sister’s shadow.

Well, spoiler alert: it wasn’t anything close to perfect.

Infact one could say it was just pure tragic and horror.

Now let me take you back for a second.

My hands trembled as I stared at my reflection in the mirror. After years of whispers and sideways glances, after being called weak, cursed, and broken, today I would finally become Luna.

The Luna of the Black Shadow pack!

Excitement filled me!

I would be called Mrs. Blackwood. The rejection, the shame, all of it would finally end.

Damn, It had to.

Before I could stand, my phone buzzed on the nightstand.

“Hello, birthday girl! Or should I say, our latest bride-to-be?” Stephanie’s voice burst through the speaker, filled with warmth and her usual teasing.

“Thanks, Steph.” I couldn’t keep the smile out of my voice.

My mouth was literally tearing apart, unable to contain it.

“You can call me anything you want.” I added.

“Well, someone’s in a good mood.”

“Of course I am. But where are you? You’re supposed to be here helping me get ready..I can’t be late, I don’t want to...”

Before I could finish my sentences my bedroom door flew open.

“Surprise!”

Stephanie swept in like a hurricane, her arms full of makeup bags and hair tools. She had a huge grin on her face, looking far too pleased with herself.

I burst out laughing despite the nervous energy inside me. That was Stephanie, my loud, loyal, and utterly shameless bestie. She was my only real friend in a pack that looked at me like I was a stain on their perfect bloodline.

“Sit down, ugly,” she ordered, shoving me toward the chair.

“Let me turn you into a freaking goddess.”

“Sure, sure. Whatever makes you happy.”

I sank into the chair and watched as Stephanie worked her magic. She lined my eyes with precision, dusted shimmering powder across my cheekbones, and painted my lips a soft rose. With every brushstroke, I looked less like April Quinn, the disappointment, and more like someone who belonged.

Maybe today, I finally would.

“Where’s May?” I asked, trying to keep my tone light. “Isn’t she supposed to be here? She’s my maid of honor.”

Stephanie’s hand paused for just a second.

“I think she said she had to oversee the final preparations at the hall.”

Of course she did. May always had something more important to do. Something that made her look indispensable while I sat waiting in the shadows.

“There.” Stephanie stepped back, her eyes bright with satisfaction. “You look perfect…I deserve some accolades girl”

I turned to the mirror, and my breath caught.

She was right. For once, I looked like I belonged in this world. Like I could stand beside an Alpha without looking like a mistake.

“Now get dressed before your dad sends a search party.”

I stood and reached for the gown hanging on the closet door. It was a vision in white, with lace and silk that shimmered beautifully under the light. I’d spent months choosing it, imagining this exact moment.

As I slipped into the dress, the fabric settled around me. Stephanie zipped it up, then moved behind me, holding a delicate silver chain.

“This is my gift to you,” she said softly, fastening it around my neck.

I looked down. A wolf pendant rested against my collarbone. It was small, intricate, and beautifully carved.

For a moment, I could have sworn my reflection’s eyes flashed blue in the mirror.

I blinked quickly, and they were brown again.

‘Did I just see my eyes glow blue?’

It had to be my imagination, desperate for something I’d never have.

“A wolf pendant for a wolfless girl,” I said with a sad smile, brushing my fingers over the cool silver.

“Hey.” Stephanie grabbed my shoulders and spun me around, her expression suddenly fierce. “Don’t you dare call yourself that. You’re my best friend, not some cursed nobody.”

“Steph—”

“I’m serious, April. Your wolf is in there. I know it. And if you say the word ‘wolfless’ one more time, I’ll personally cut out your tongue, feed it to you and kick your ass.”

Her threat was cute.

Tears pricked my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. Not now. Not when I was so close to everything changing.

Besides, Steph would definitely kick my ass if I ruined her makeup.

“Thank you,” I whispered with a small smile.

She pulled me into a quick hug, then grabbed my hand.

“Come on. You’re late, and your father’s going to lose it. Trust me, if it comes down to it I’m blaming it all on you”

What a betrayal!

We rushed downstairs. At the entrance to the ceremony hall, Stephanie squeezed my hand one last time before slipping inside. I stood alone before the heavy doors, my heart pounding so hard I thought it might crack a rib.

This was it. The moment I had been waiting for. After today, everything will change.

I pushed the doors open.

The scent hit me first: white roses and champagne, elegant and almost suffocating. The hall was decorated exactly how I’d imagined it, with soft lights, trailing ivy, and candles flickering like tiny stars.

For a moment, I felt a flicker of gratitude toward May. Maybe she had actually cared enough to make this beautiful for me.

Then I saw their faces.

Almost every member of the pack had turned to watch me enter, but not a single person was smiling.

There were cold stares, frowns, and expressions of open disapproval.

I forced my chin up and kept walking. I didn’t want to care about what they thought of me.

That’s when the rotten whispers started.

“I can’t believe she’s going to be Luna.”

“This is a disgrace. What is the Alpha thinking?”

“Someone needs to stop this,” a middle-aged man hissed, his face twisted in disapproval.

“You want to challenge the Alpha?” his companion shot back. “Go ahead. Get yourself killed.”

The first man fell silent, but his glare remained fixed on me.

“She can’t even shift. Not like her sister.”

“Cursed. That’s what she is.”

I dug my nails into my palms, the pain grounding me. I wouldn’t let them see me break. After today, I’d be Luna, and they’d have no choice but to respect me.

At least, that’s what I kept telling myself.

My eyes found Luke waiting at the altar.

He looked every inch the Alpha he was: tall and handsome, with broad shoulders filling out his dark blue suit. His brown hair was slicked back, and his expression was calm and unreadable.

He had this powerful, untouchable aura around him, and somehow, by some miracle of fate, he was mine.

“Go get him, baby girl,” Stephanie whispered from her seat.

I smiled, but it felt fragile.

At the altar, May stood in a soft lavender dress, perfectly poised as my maid of honor. She was my twin. My opposite. She was everything I wasn’t: strong, confident, and beautiful in a way that demanded attention.

She was everything our father valued.

And yet, tradition dictated that I was the heir. The eldest. The one who should inherit it all.

Not that it had ever felt that way.

Still, I clung to hope as I reached the altar. Maybe today, I’d finally step out of her shadow.

Then I noticed something.

The way Luke and May were looking at each other.

It wasn’t the way friends looked at each other. There was something familiar in their eyes, something that made my stomach tighten.

They looked like lovers sharing a private moment.

My heart began to race, but I quickly pushed the thought aside. I was probably overthinking things. There was no reason for me to suspect anything.

Right?

“Are you ready?” the officiant asked, cutting through the fog in my mind.

“Yes.” I turned to Luke, forcing myself to meet his eyes.

He stared back at me with a blank, cold expression.

“Do you, April Quinn, take Luke Blackwood as your husband and Alpha?”

The officiant looked at me, and I returned his gaze with a smile and a nod.

“Yes. Yes, I do.”

He turned to Luke.

“Do you, Luke Blackwood, take April Quinn as your bride and Luna?”

Luke’s jaw tightened.

He didn’t answer.

A few seconds passed, and the silence began to feel unbearable. I glanced at him, waiting for him to say the words. Waiting for him to smile, take my hand, and put an end to all the doubts I had been fighting since I walked into the hall.

But instead, he said the words that shattered my world.

“No. I don’t.”

The hall erupted in gasps, but all I could hear was the roaring in my ears. My vision blurred, and my knees went weak.

No. No, this wasn’t real. I must have misheard him.

“Luke, what do you mean?” My voice came out weak. “You’re my mate.”

Luke stepped back as if I’d tried to touch him with something diseased.

“Mate?” His lip curled. “I won’t bind myself to weakness. I refuse to accept a wolfless Luna.”

He turned to face the crowd, his voice ringing with authority.

“I, Luke Blackwood, reject April Quinn.”

The words hit me hard. My chest tightened, and my breathing stopped. I couldn’t breathe.

“No… you can’t…” I whispered, but the words barely made it past my lips.

Then I saw Luke stretch out his hand.

But it wasn’t toward me.

It was toward May.

My twin sister.

For a moment, I couldn’t understand what I was seeing. I stared at his outstretched hand, then at May, who stood beside him without looking the least bit surprised.

My mind went blank.

‘What the hell is going on?’