his tone measured, but with an authority that seemed to t

" Her voice thrummed with genuine excitement, and a bright smile lit

e on his lips. But what she saw troubled her. His jaw was tight, and an unreadable shadow clouded his eyes-a flicker of g

tail, nothing could dampen

heady joy. Her fated mate was Peter, the heir destined to lead the Goldblade Pack. The man she had known since childhood, now bound to her by the sacred w

. Even though she had woken alone, Peter's absence hadn't worried her. She understood the weight of his responsibilities. Perhaps he was already planning for the future their union would bring. He had not yet

her warmly, their open smiles erasing any doubt. They had all witnessed the scene the night before, during the celebration for her retu

ack sister had exclaimed, t

t Luna," another had

g, every hand on her shoulder strengthened the silent promise she made to herself: she would be the Luna that G

given her, she felt ready to officially share her joy. She was waiting for only

ment. She told herself it was just a misunderstanding. In a few

grave, "we need to talk about what happened last

She blinked, certai

ammered, disbelief cracking her voice. "He's my mate.

that would make sense of the nightmare taking shape. But her father was silent, and

o should have been hers. Neither of them would meet her eyes. Peter's jaw remained clenched, hi

red, her voice breaking unde

pha's child. For years, she has been preparing to become this pack's

hysical blow, shattering the

lpha does not find his fated mate before the age of thi

hing grew

d, her voice cracking into

s clenched, as her wolf ho

objected. No one contradicted her.

n, her voice tight with fury. "No pack member imagined Peter

his destined mate. But Kathy is already carrying his child. We cannot

nyielding. "Amy... this is necessary. The pa

s around her blurred behind a

Her parents. Her Al

utterl

but she fell silent at the look on Amy's face-a

ounded love and restrained fury. "And you? Wh

voice. "I know this is hard for you. But I cannot let my heir b

shed thr

ut abandoning me," she pleaded.

emained trapped in her throat, because she feared

s been preparing for years. She ha

work harder than anyone. I'll make whatever sacrif

ad. "I'm sorry, Amy. I won't give up Kathy. She will

she repeated, he

termined to become the best possible Luna, the ideal mate, Peter's unwave

vacant. Someone else had already occupied it lon

red into distant murmurs. The betrayal sank

had just c