Chapter 1

Ten minutes before our mating ceremony, Kael and I came across a video posted by his first love.

"It's all his fault. He's a lying, cheating bastard. He never deserved me in the first place."

The comments were brutal.

"Didn't this guy cheat on his mate? What was the other woman's name again? Aria?"

"Thank the Moon Goddess, she's about to complete her mating ceremony. Her new mate is ridiculously hot."

Even after years of being branded a homewrecker, I still went pale at the words.

Kael's expression darkened. He shot to his feet, his Alpha aura flaring as he pulled out his phone.

"Sable, have you lost your mind? Take that video down. Now!"

My eyes stung.

For three years, Kael had fought with Sable over the rumors she'd spread about me.

More than once, she'd clawed at him in a rage, leaving bloody scratches across his neck and shoulders.

Every time, he'd come back to me promising to make things right.

This time, I meant to stand beside him. Face her together.

But at the corner of the packhouse, I stopped dead.

Kael stood in front of Sable, eyes bloodshot, voice shaking with fury.

"Who was that man in the video with you? Are you planning to take him as your mate?"

Sable slapped him across the face.

"Weren't you supposed to be completing your mating ceremony today? What right do you have to question me?"

Kael let out a weary sigh. "Feel better now?"

Their eyes met. Then, without another word, they pulled each other into a kiss.

Sable's nails raked down his neck. He hissed in pain.

"You always leave me covered in scratches."

She bit down on the side of his throat, right where his scent gland pulsed beneath the skin. "How does that compare to your mate?"

Kael let out a low, breathless groan. "You know the answer. Aria is just the one I'm settling for."

Pain seized my chest. The documents for our mating ceremony slipped from my hands and scattered across the floor.

So this was what the last three years had been.

I'd endured one humiliation after another, all so the two of them could keep feeding their endless obsession with each other.

If their love was a war neither of them could walk away from, I was done being the casualty.

---

A silver shirt clasp rolled across the stone floor and came to rest at my feet.

"I hate you, Kael!"

"Then keep hating me, Sable. At least that way, you'll never let me go."

Kael silently wiped the blood from the bite on his throat.

I bent to pick up the clasp and walked toward them. When he looked up and recognized me, he froze.

"Aria? What are you—"

I forced myself to stay calm and held out the clasp. "You dropped this."

The easy, familiar smile came, the one that had always meant a few soft words would smooth everything over.

Then it died. He yanked his shirt closed.

Too late. I'd already seen it.

The mark on his chest.

Six months ago, he'd promised to have it removed before our mating ceremony.

Just like he'd promised to complete the ceremony itself, he'd postponed it again and again. And now I finally understood why.

The mark that once bore Sable's initials had been refashioned into a little house, three names woven through its silver runes.

Kael. Sable. And their dead pup.

A family of their own. A family I'd never been part of.

Sable gave me a mocking smile. "You really are pathetic, Aria. You knew he loved me, and you still insisted on becoming his mate."

Kael frowned. "Sable, shut up."

Her eyes reddened as she glared at him. "I gave birth to his pup, Aiden. I lost that child. And now you won't even let me speak about him?"

The words struck Kael like a blow. For a moment, even he seemed unable to respond. Then he glanced at me, his voice suddenly soft.

"Aria, I'll make this right. I'll get you justice."

With that, he grabbed Sable by the arm and dragged her deeper into the narrow passage, away from the crowd.

There it was again.

Every time Kael swore he'd get me justice, he vanished into some private world with her.

When she accused me in front of the whole pack of stealing her mate, he vowed to defend me—then spent three days at her den, coming back only to say, "She's emotionally unstable. Cut her some slack."

When she climbed our wall at midnight and pounded on the door until my hands shook, he held me and promised to settle the score.

Instead he took her on a two-week trip to help her "recover." All I got was a message.

[I'm taking her away for a while. Get some sleep, sweetheart.]

And today, Sable had managed to ruin our tenth attempt at completing the mating ceremony.

Our tenth. And our last.

When they finally emerged from the passage, I noticed a new silver-moon brooch pinned to Sable's chest.

It matched the crescent-moon cuff links on Kael's sleeves. They were a pair.

Kael's collar was still open, his throat covered in fresh bite marks.

He reached for my head as though he had every right to touch me.

"Aria, let her keep the brooch for now. I'll get you something even better."

I instinctively turned away. His hand stopped in midair.

Sable burst out laughing. Her white ceremonial dress swayed as she moved, the delicate silver-threaded lilies along its hem catching the light.

My throat felt painfully dry. "Where did you get that dress?"

Kael stiffened. He shifted slightly, as if trying to shield her from my view. But Sable only raised an eyebrow.

"Kael bought the fabric for me and had it custom-made. The scraps are in your hands, aren't they?"

I looked down. Everlasting lilies, hand-woven from silver thread and white fabric.

My smile hurt.

The last time our mating ceremony had been canceled, Sable had sneered at me in front of the entire pack.

"Not even a proper bouquet for your big day? Some mate he's turning out to be."

I'd never cared about flowers. But Kael had taken my hand that day and walked away with me, his expression solemn.

"Completing a mating ceremony is a once-in-a-lifetime promise, Aria. If everyone else gets something special, you should, too."

He'd spent ten nights on that bouquet himself, weaving each flower until it was perfect.

I'd treasured it, believing every petal carried a piece of his heart.

Now I knew. The flowers I'd treated as priceless had been cut from Sable's leftovers. Even my promise was made of what she didn't want.

My fingers tightened around the bouquet.

"Hey, aren't you two number twelve?"

A young pack attendant approached us, her face lighting up with recognition.

"Wait, you're that couple from the mating videos, right? People said you'd broken up, but you're actually completing your ceremony today? Congratulations!"

Kael instinctively glanced at me. Sable had already slipped her arm through his.

"Thank you for supporting us!"

I almost laughed.

Whenever a follower appeared, they played the perfect couple, and I stood nearby, pretending I wasn't the woman who'd supposedly torn them apart.

I'd protested before. Every time, Kael had looked at me with quiet disappointment.

"Aria, just play along. It's for your own good."

"If she thinks we're on good terms, she'll stop spreading rumors about you."

"Come on, sweetheart. It's just an act. Be reasonable."

I'd spent years trying to be the understanding one. The patient one. The mate who didn't make unreasonable demands.

This time, I finally understood what he'd meant by being reasonable.

He wanted me to accept whatever scraps he left behind.

I lifted my head and smiled. "Of course. Congratulations to you both. I hope you're happy together."

Then I placed the bouquet in Sable's hands.

And walked away.

I hadn't made it far when another attendant hurried out of the bonding hall. "You're up! We need you inside for the ceremony!"

Before I could answer, a hand closed gently around mine.

"That's us."

I turned, startled.

The man beside me met my eyes, steady and unhurried, and didn't pull me toward the hall or demand an explanation.

He just waited, letting me decide.

Then, so quietly only I could hear:

"Hey. Do you need a new groom? How about completing the mating ceremony with me instead?"