Chapter 1

　　Eva's POV

　　The worst day of my life began with Julian smiling at me like I was the only person in the room—because everyone knew we were perfect together.

　　I believed them. I believed it. We were a match made by the moon goddess; everyone knew that and wished for a union like ours.

　　I had never doubted our love. And now I was ready to spend forever with him.

　　Today was finally the day we made it real.

　　The Frostwood Hall had never looked better. White flowers covered every surface, chandeliers burned warmly above a room filled with both our packs, every important face dressed and waiting.

　　My mother was already crying in the front row before the ceremony even began. My father, the Alpha, sat beside her, straight-backed and proud.

　　My heart raced when I walked through those doors, but when Julian's eyes found mine, I forgot everyone else in the hall.

　　He had a nervous grin on his face, the kind that made me fall in love with him all over again. I couldn't help but laugh softly. He was adorable.

　　I walked toward him and felt nothing but certainty.

　　"You look beautiful," he said quietly when I reached him.

　　"I know," I said.

　　He laughed under his breath and took my hands in his.

　　The pack elder began to speak. The old, formal words spoken at every Chosen Mate ceremony for as long as anyone could remember.

　　I had sat through other people's ceremonies thinking I understood what those words meant.

　　I hadn't. Not until they were mine.

　　Julian stepped closer when the time came. He brushed my hair back gently and tilted my head to the side. His breath was warm against my neck.

　　"I love you," he whispered.

　　His teeth sank in. I gasped at the sharp sting, but it faded into something warmer, spreading through my chest as the bond clicked into place.

　　When it was my turn, I met his eyes. He nodded. I leaned in and bit down, feeling the bond settle into something I thought nothing could break.

　　The room erupted. My mother openly sobbed. Julian kissed me, soft and certain, and the crowd roared around us.

　　"Forever," he murmured against my lips.

　　"Forever," I said back, unable to hide my joy.

　　Then the doors flew open.

　　The sound silenced the entire hall. I turned, still smiling, expecting something celebratory, a late guest, a blessing, anything that made sense.

　　A boy came running down the aisle instead.

　　He was small, maybe five years old, his suit rumpled and too big for his frame. He wasn't looking at the guests, the decorations, or the altar.

　　He was looking at Julian. He ran until he reached him and threw both arms around his legs.

　　"Daddy! Daddy, I found you! Mommy said you were getting married and I had to come find you!"

　　The room went completely still.

　　I looked at the boy. Then I looked at Julian.

　　Julian had gone white. He stared down at the child with an expression I had never seen before, something between devastation and guilt.

　　I would have thought this was a joke, but I'd known Julian since before we could form words. His reaction made it impossible to do so.

　　The guards moved to pull the boy away. He screamed and clung tighter to Julian's leg.

　　Maeve, Julian's mother, was on her feet, cutting across her row, her voice high and frantic as she grabbed the boy's arm.

　　"This is nothing," she said, turning to the room. "A confused child. He wandered in. He doesn't know what he's saying. Julian is not his father, please everyone just—"

　　But her hands were shaking. Her words came too fast. Maeve, the Luna of Ironwood, was always composed.

　　My chest tightened. Her reaction convinced me of the opposite.

　　The boy cried out when her grip tightened. Julian moved before anyone else. He pushed his mother's hands away and pulled the boy behind him.

　　"Don't hurt him," he said.

　　His voice was sharp. Instinctive. The voice of someone protecting what was theirs.

　　The hall fell silent in a different way.

　　I stared at the child, at the jaw that looked like Julian's, at the eyes that were unmistakably familiar.

　　"Julian said his son was out of the country; how is he here?" one of his ridiculously loud cousins said, her voice echoing through the silent hall.

　　The air grew heavier.

　　Julian looked at me. The guilt on his face was answer enough, but I needed to hear it.

　　"Is he yours?" I asked. My voice came out flat and controlled. I didn't know how.

　　He opened his mouth. Nothing came out.

　　"Tell me he is not your son." I took one step toward him. "Look at me and say it."

　　He couldn't. I watched him try and fail, and I felt the crack spread through my chest.

　　I slapped him. Hard. The sound cut through the silence, his head turning with the force. He didn't touch his face. He slowly looked back at me with the same eyes I had trusted my entire life.

　　"Eva." His voice broke. "It was one night. A mistake. I didn't know she was pregnant, I swear. I never meant for any of this…"

　　His phone buzzed. He looked at the screen and went even paler.

　　"Cynthia tried to kill herself." His voice dropped. "Eva, I have to go."

　　I stared at him. Something twisted violently beneath the fresh mark on my neck. My wolf stirred uneasily, the bond pulling toward him while every part of me wanted to recoil from him.

　　Cynthia was the Beta's daughter.

　　He wanted to leave. Walk out of this hall, in front of both our packs, and go to her. After everything. After the ceremony. After promising me forever.

　　"If you walk out of this hall," I said quietly, "don't come back. Not today. Not ever. I mean that."

　　He looked at me for a long moment. I watched the war in his eyes. I thought I would win it.

　　He took the boy's hand and walked away.

　　I stood at the altar and watched him go. The room dissolved into noise around me. My father's guards pushed through the crowd toward me.

　　My mother stood across the hall, her face white with fury. But everything felt so unreal, like I was watching it happen to someone else.

　　I held up one hand, and everyone stopped.

　　I found one of Julian's friends near the wall and looked at him until he started talking. He told me what he knew.

　　I left the hall alone.

　　I took one of the parked vehicles and drove myself to the hospital, finding the right corridor from the direction the nurse gave.

　　The door was partially open.

　　I stopped outside it. Something made me pause. I looked through the gap.

　　Julian was sitting on the edge of the bed. Cynthia leaned into him, her bandaged wrist resting across his knee, his arm around her shoulders as it belonged there.

　　"I'll explain everything to Eva," he said softly. "She'll understand."

　　I scoffed and pushed the door open.