Chapter 4 You Are Just a Nursemaid

For as long as Leah could remember, she'd known her place in the world.

Chloe, born into privilege, had everything handed to her. Her mother had been a low-ranking wolf. Chloe lived in bright, spacious rooms, surrounded by servants, draped in designer clothes, given the best of everything. As the illegitimate daughter—the dirty secret—Leah occupied the lowest rung of the pack hierarchy, just like every other omega.

The day Marcus Sinclair returned to the pack with Gloria Hayes and her infant daughter, no one could believe it. They all assumed Marcus had been trapped, seduced by some scheming woman. From that moment on, Leah became Chloe's personal shadow, assigned to follow her everywhere.

Every mood swing, every tantrum—Chloe's emotions always fell on Leah. For years, Leah thought that was her fate. Until Chloe ran from her wedding.

To appease the Rourke Pack's fury, the family hastily shipped Leah off to Ethan instead.

Leah knew Ethan intimately—a familiarity born from years of standing in for her sister. Chloe had bigger ambitions than becoming Luna of some backwater territory. She couldn't care less about her fiancé. Most of the time, it was Leah who negotiated with Ethan, spent time with him, handled everything in Chloe's place.

During her three years with Ethan, Leah never received the treatment a proper Luna deserved. But she couldn't deny those three years had been more peaceful than any day she'd spent at the Sinclair Pack.

She'd devoted herself to caring for Ethan. At first, it was just another assignment—something she had to do. She couldn't let anything happen to him. He was her future mate, at least on paper.

Even when Ethan spiraled into depression after the broken engagement, even when he lay near death from his injuries, Leah stayed by his side. Day after day, she changed his bandages, fed him, managed everything. She'd thought she was slowly winning him over, that he'd finally accepted her.

But now, standing in this dust-covered room that clearly hadn't been touched in years, the irony hit her like a slap. Three years, vanished into thin air. In the end, she was still just the Sinclair Pack's lowest-ranking bastard daughter.

Ethan had never truly accepted her. Three years proved it—Chloe would always be the moon hanging high in the sky, while Leah was nothing but dust clinging to borrowed light.

Behind her, a maid's cold voice cut through the silence. "Ms. Sinclair, we've been looking everywhere for you. The Alpha wants to see you."

The Sinclair Pack's Alpha, Marcus—the father she'd never been close to.

Leah followed the maid in silence toward the heart of pack territory.

Busy servants stopped to stare as she passed, taking in her disheveled, strange appearance, studying that face that was both familiar and foreign. Shock registered on every face.

"Is that Leah? Why's she back looking like that?"

"I thought she'd secured her position as Luna of the Rourke Pack."

"That's old news. Ms. Chloe Sinclair's coming back—naturally, Leah can't stay in Rourke Territory anymore."

Similar whispers followed her down the hall. Irritation prickled under her skin. Leah quickened her pace, leaving the gossip behind.

Marcus sat at his desk, cold eyes fixed on her. "I recall you belong to the Rourke Territory now. Why have you returned without permission?"

Leah pulled out the chair across from him and sat. The gesture made Marcus's brow furrow, but Leah was too exhausted to care about honoring his Alpha authority anymore.

"The answer's obvious, isn't it?" Her tone was flat. "I've outlived my usefulness. No one cares where I go."

Marcus set down his coffee, his voice carrying a subtle threat. "Seems Ethan spoiled you. Look at how you're acting—is this how you address your father?"

"Maybe." Her tone remained even, neither humble nor defiant.

Marcus gave a cold laugh. "Well, that privilege ends now. Forget the past three years. Return to the Sinclair Pack and remember your place."

Leah felt a bitter laugh rise in her throat. She'd never had any privileges to begin with.

But she refused to back down. She tilted her head with a mocking smile. "This is about Chloe, isn't it?"

Marcus looked momentarily surprised, then understanding crossed his face. He'd guessed why she'd returned in the middle of the night. His tone turned casual. "Seems you understand your position perfectly."

Leah's hands clenched. She forced down the emotions churning inside her. "No need to dance around it. Just tell me why you wanted to see me. We don't have anything else to discuss."

"Chloe will marry Ethan." Marcus looked down at her, his tone absolute. "These three years you spent in Rourke Territory? Consider it caring for Ethan on Chloe's behalf. He needed someone during his recovery. Chloe wasn't available then—that was your value."

"Caring for him?" Leah repeated the words quietly, the absurdity washing over her.

Marcus nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "Exactly. You were his mate in name only—he never marked you, never publicly acknowledged you to the pack. Technically speaking, you were never really his mate. Merely a temporary nursemaid brought in to wait on him while he recovered from his injuries."

Nursemaid.

The word stung worse than any witch's poison.

"Tomorrow there'll be a welcome reception. We'll make the official announcement then." Marcus's tone remained calm and measured, completely oblivious to the pain cutting through her. "The marriage alliance between the Sinclair Pack and the Rourke Pack will proceed as planned—with Chloe. Leah, your assignment is complete. You handled things adequately these past three years. I'll give you a settlement—enough to buy a small house outside the city where you can live comfortably."

Leah finally found her voice, each word edged with suppressed fury. "I spent three full years in the Rourke Pack. When conflicts arose, I negotiated and mediated. At every ceremonial gathering, I represented the Rourke Pack. When enemies invaded our territory, I organized the evacuation and sheltered the omegas and children."

"Enough." Marcus cut her off sharply, impatience bleeding into his tone. "Chloe can do all those things—and she'll do them better than you ever could."

White-hot anger flooded through Leah. "But Chloe wasn't there for those three years! She ran off with some outside Alpha, abandoned the family, broke the engagement, left Ethan when he was critically injured. I was the one who stayed. I took her place and handled everything!"

"You took her place?" Marcus shot to his feet, his palm slamming down on the desk.

He strode over to Leah, looming over her. At well over six feet tall compared to her barely five-foot frame, the size difference created an overwhelming sense of intimidation.

A mocking smile curved across Marcus's lips. "Leah, have you ever truly understood your place?"