Chapter 1🌸🌸
I should have known something was wrong.
My boyfriend, Alan, hadn’t answered any of my calls all day, but I convinced myself he was just busy. I even made excuses for him. He was the Beta’s son, maybe the elders had given him more responsibilities or he was caught up in meetings .
Holding his favorite bottle of wine, still wearing my heels and flushed with victory from court, I stood outside his apartment. I had just won a big case and wanted to celebrate with him. I had no idea I was about to walk into the moment that would destroy my life.
I slipped the spare key into the lock and stepped inside.
Silence, then a muffled moan.
I froze.
The bedroom door was half open. My heart pounded so hard I could feel it in my throat, and the air smelled faintly of lavender candles.
Alan was on his knees, pleasuring a woman.
No. No, no, no.
The wine slipped from my fingers and shattered on the tiles.
Alan looked up. So did his mistress.
Geneviève.
My best friend.
She gasped, her lips parted in shock, but it didn’t last. She straightened, pushed her curls back, and met my eyes. Her face, once so familiar after years of midnight confessions, suddenly felt foreign.
“What... what is this?” I stammered.
Alan stood, shirtless, covered in sweat, his lips still wet from her. There wasn’t a trace of remorse in his eyes. He looked at me like I was the one intruding.
“Marissa? What are you doing here? Why didn’t you call first?”
My head spun. I wanted to laugh and scream at the same time.
I looked at Geneviève. A sob clawed up my throat. Unfazed despite her nakedness, she calmly got up, grabbed Alan’s shirt, and slipped it on.
“Riss, I know this is hard,” she said softly, like she was talking to a child. “But maybe it’s for the best. You had to know.”
I took a step back. “Know what? That you’re a traitor?”
Her eyes glinted before she sighed. “I won’t apologize for choosing my happiness.” She shrugged, like a queen above consequence, untouched by my pain.
“My boyfriend makes you happy?” I spat. “Geneviève, are you out of your mind? How could you?”
“Maybe if he didn’t have a girlfriend who tried to be too perfect, he wouldn’t have looked elsewhere.” A smile tugged at her lips, as if she’d waited for this moment all along.
I slapped her. The sound cracked through the silence.
Without hesitation, she slapped me back, hard. My cheek burned.
Alan’s fingers dug into my arm, his grip harsh and punishing.
Their betrayal stole my breath. It was the death of my friendship with Geneviève. Every memory of laughter and secrets now felt like a lie.
“Why?” I cried. “Why would you do this to me?”
My voice broke, raw with humiliation.
Alan answered for both of them. “Because she understands me. And she doesn’t make everything about herself.”
Geneviève smiled, slow and cruel. “And for your information, I’m ten weeks pregnant.”
She rested a hand on her belly. I choked on air, horrified.
Alan had never loved me. Geneviève had never been my friend. The floor tilted beneath me as nausea rose, knowing their future was already growing inside her.
“You should go,” Alan said, still gripping my arm while Geneviève slipped into the bathroom and slammed the door. “She respects me. You never did. No one wants a woman who treats her man like a servant. Maybe one day you’ll understand why you always end up alone.”
His voice cut deep, sharp, and mocking. My skin burned where he’d touched me.
“Thanks,” I said flatly. “At least you’re honest about using me for my father’s status. But don’t think you’re safe. Karma remembers.”
“Karma?” He laughed, smug. “That’s what losers say. Everyone knows you despise men. You dream of a perfect mate, but you’ll die alone. Even a gamma would think twice before putting up with a woman like you. You’re a nightmare, and I’m lucky Geneviève isn’t.”
———
Six months later
Alan’s version of karma seemed accurate. He had done everything to ruin me, despite my career as a lawyer and the fact that my father was the pack’s Alpha. He’d rallied his followers, especially the males I’d rejected. Not because Alan was right about me, but because I had been stupid and in love.
As for Geneviève, I wasn’t surprised our friends took her side. Many now ignored me, turning away in public like heartbreak was contagious. Their wedding announcement had spread like wildfire, and every congratulatory whisper felt like salt on an open wound.
I’d fought back with proof, screenshots, and messages, but it didn’t matter. My father hadn’t supported me. Instead, he scolded me for tarnishing the family’s image. When I threatened to leave the pack to escape the humiliation, he warned me that leaving meant becoming a rogue, stripped of protection, hunted, and cut off from my inheritance, my license, even my name. Just thinking about it made me sick.
That night, Alan and Geneviève arrived at my father’s grand ball. It was the Unity Festival of the Southern Wolves and Lycans, hosted by Alpha Marcus, my father. The political elite filled the hall; Alphas, Betas, business magnates, and above all, the Lycans.
Near the bar, drink in hand, I tried not to explode when they approached.
She glowed, like she was carrying my life as a trophy.
“Marissa!” Alan said cheerfully, an arm around her. “Good to see you. We missed you at the wedding.”
I forced a smile, heart pounding.
“I must’ve lost the invitation.”
Geneviève leaned closer. “Too bad you couldn’t make it. Alan thinks you’d be the perfect godmother. Isn’t that... fitting?”
My gaze dropped to her belly. The nerve of her. I laughed, because the alternative was screaming.
“How sweet. Two pieces of trash that found each other.”
Geneviève’s smile faltered. Behind me, Lilith, my stepmother, brushed her jeweled fingers against my back, her touch fake and cold.
“Rissa, darling,” she said in a syrupy tone, her rings digging into my skin, “be polite. We have important guests.”
I didn’t turn. “Not surprised. You always protect your own.”
Lilith gasped in outrage, but I kept my eyes on the traitors. Geneviève recovered her poise.
“Oh no, Luna Lilith. I’m so sorry if I stirred up old grudges. I didn’t realize Marissa was still... bitter.”
Her eyes gleamed with victory, as if she’d won some cruel game.
I took a sip of my drink. “Takes talent to steal a man and still look like a consolation prize. At least I dodged the STD you two probably share.”
Geneviève’s eyes narrowed, but before she could reply, the room went silent.
The Lycans had arrived.
Heads bowed as power filled the air. Even I, bitter as I was, lowered mine. Lycans outshone Wolves in every way.
The King and Queen entered first, draped in black and violet. Then came their son, Justin, heir to the throne, destined to rule before the year’s end. His name alone made packs tremble.
I hadn’t dreamed of anyone in years. Five years with Alan had broken my heart. But when I saw Justin, I understood the whispers. Tall, dark-haired, a face that commanded attention, every movement full of authority. Even the Alphas seemed to fade in his presence. My gaze drifted to the woman on his arm.
Heat rushed through me. At first, I thought it was from Alan and Geneviève, or maybe the alcohol. But it grew stronger, joined by the scent of pine, cedar, and rain-soaked earth.
It felt like a forest after a storm, the air alive with primal energy.
I gasped.
Then my wolf woke up.
Mate.
The word rang through me. A pure wave of recognition hit my soul.
Justin. The future Lycan King. Magnificent. Powerful. Mine.
I wasn’t broken. The universe hadn’t forgotten me. I had a bond, a real one. For the first time in months, I felt whole.
Tradition said the male spoke first. If he refused, the shame lasted a lifetime. But after everything I’d endured, I was done waiting for someone to give me worth. The bond pulled me toward him like a magnetic force.
I stepped forward, eyes locked on him. We were inches apart. My fingers trembled with the urge to touch him. The pine scent deepened.
And then, the impossible happened.
He walked past me as if I didn’t exist.
No glance. No pause. Nothing.
My wolf, who had howled with joy seconds earlier, whimpered in confusion. The euphoria shattered, replaced by a crushing void. I stood breathless. The noise of the room faded, and the weight of rejection hit me harder than all of Alan and Geneviève’s betrayals combined.
