Chapter 1After Wyatt realized what he had done, his face went blank.
He scrambled to his feet, his mouth opening to call my name, but he still froze for those two agonizing seconds before speaking.
"Gemma, I..."
A bitter wave of irony washed over me.
Even now, he had to stop and think before saying my name.
I knew what he wanted to say.
That it was a habit, or that he was too nervous.
After three years of being bonded, I was tired of his excuses.
I took a step back, dodging his outstretched hand.
"Don't say another word."
"I reject you as my mate, and I am breaking our bond."
"No..." Wyatt started to protest.
But the werewolves nearby, drawn by the commotion, began to swarm forward.
The unfolding drama sent the pack into an uproar.
"Oh my Goddess, did the Alpha just call out another female's name at his own bonding ceremony!"
"Lydia! I can't believe you and the Alpha... Why didn't you ever tell us?"
I turned to see Lydia standing not far away.
My own figure was completely lost in the shadow of a massive crystal chandelier.
From a distance, it looked for all the world like Wyatt was kneeling to her.
Lydia covered her mouth, her eyes wide with a joyous disbelief.
The pack members crowded around her, congratulating and teasing her, nudging her toward Wyatt.
Someone passing by shoved me roughly.
"The Alpha is choosing his Luna. What are you doing in the way? You don't belong here. You low-ranking wolves are always so clumsy."
I stumbled.
My custom gown was trampled underfoot, its hem ruined, and my meticulously styled hair snagged on someone's armband, yanking painfully at my scalp.
I stumbled out of the crowd, disheveled.
When I looked up, a wall of pack members had already formed around them.
Lydia, in her white gossamer dress, stood at the center like a bride basking in her moment.
And I was just another face in the crowd, a spectator to their joy.
Through the throng of people, my eyes met Wyatt's.
Conflict warred in his gaze.
I saw his mouth open, as if to explain.
But at the sight of Lydia, weeping with what looked like joy, he swallowed whatever he was about to say.
He smiled and slipped the platinum moonstone ring that belonged to me onto her finger.
A bitter smile touched my lips. I didn't make a scene. I didn't demand an explanation.
I just turned and quietly walked away from the celebration that should have been mine.
I walked alone on the slick, rain-washed pavement, the neon-lit streets casting a bone-chillingly cold glow.
My mind kept replaying the thrill I’d felt when I accidentally saw Wyatt’s plans for our bonding ceremony.
The gown, custom-ordered from Paris a month ago. The hairstyle I’d endured hours of styling to get just right, all while the painful resonance of our bond thrummed beneath my skin.
And today, I had been so nervous I hadn't slept a wink.
I had hugged my blanket, picturing the look on Wyatt's face as he presented me with the Luna's ring.
He was always so calm and composed; would he stutter? Would his ears turn red under the gaze of the Moon Goddess?
No matter what, I would have accepted the ring and threw myself into his arms.
I would have howled my acceptance, my voice ringing with "I do!"
If the moonlight outside the castle was just right.
And its glow coated our figures in silver, like a scene from an epic film.
If a pack member had happened to record that moment, I would have turned it into a large canvas portrait and placed it in the most prominent spot in our future den.
Lost in the memory, I couldn't help but let out a small, wistful laugh.
Beep, beep— The horn of a luxury sedan jolted me back to reality.
Now, I was walking alone beneath the dark sky, my hair a mess and my gown stained.
My phone vibrated.
A message from Wyatt.
【Gemma, I'm sorry.】
I stopped in my tracks.
【Just go with it for now. Lydia already accepted in front of everyone. Don't make her look bad.】
【I'll tell the Elders in a few days it was just a ruse to placate them.】
Chapter 2
I stared at the words for a long time, but I wasn't surprised.
The moment he’d said her name, I knew this was coming.
Just like on the Winter Solstice, when that limited-edition sapphire amulet he'd sent to the estate ended up in Lydia's hands by mistake.
When I tried to get it back, he had gently stopped me.
"Sorry, Gemma. I wrote down the wrong name by mistake."
"Just let her have it. Taking it back now, in front of everyone, would be too embarrassing for her."
A message popped up in the pack's elite group chat.
【The Alpha has booked a restaurant to celebrate his engagement to Lydia. Everyone gather at the estate's grand hall!】
It wasn't a snap decision. It was all part of the original plan for the ceremony.
Since he’d already proposed to the wrong woman, he was just letting the rest of the night’s plans fall into her lap, too.
Wyatt always did this.
Someone posted a photo of the banquet table.
It was the estate's finest: a massive feast rich with dark chocolate—something my wolf was fatally sensitive to, a fact Wyatt could never seem to remember.
But it happened to be Lydia's favorite.
Maybe this was fate, guiding him back to the right path after all.
I closed the message and opened a ride-share app.
Either way, it was time for me to make my exit.
I returned to the Alpha's city estate alone.
Pushing open the heavy oak doors, the first thing I saw was the photo from our unofficial mating ritual on the entryway table.
My steps faltered.
Wyatt hated taking pictures; I had pestered him for ages to get this one.
I remembered the day I moved into this estate, carrying the photo and spinning in circles.
Wyatt had watched me with a helpless look.
"It's just a photo. Does it really matter where you put it?"
I'd turned and shaken my head, deadly serious.
"No, I want everyone who comes in to see it first thing!"
I had carefully chosen its spot on the entryway table near the door.
Chapter 3
When the door opened, the hallway light would illuminate it first.
It was meant to announce to the world how happy the owners of this den were.
It was also my only solace when I returned home after negotiating bloody border disputes for the Obsidian Pack, trying to put down roots in this territory.
But was I really happy?
I picked up the photo frame, my fingers tracing the glass.
Even in our photo, Wyatt wore a stoic, expressionless mask.
My mind flashed with dozens of photos from the elite group chat. In every single one, he was holding Lydia, smiling with a tenderness he never showed me.
Maybe I had been the only happy one all along.
I placed the photo face down on the table and turned to start packing.
Clothes, territory maps, hunting gear... My hand hovered over my jewelry.
Hanging in the most conspicuous spot on the jewelry stand was the amulet Wyatt had given me for my coming-of-age last year.
I thought for a moment, then gathered all the gifts we had exchanged over the years.
Since I had decided to reject the bond, there was no point in keeping them.
The first year, the second year.
We'd exchanged gifts every time.
Only this year, our third, my anniversary and Solstice gifts were missing. Because he'd "mistakenly" addressed them all to Lydia.
I sent Wyatt a message.
【I've thrown everything I gave you into the estate's incinerator. Everything you gave me is in the bedroom closet.】
【Do what you want with them.】
After I finished packing, my phone remained silent.
I opened the group chat. They were having a blast; the feast had just wrapped up.
Lydia posted a status update.
【You said she was just a compromise, a responsibility you couldn't escape. It's okay, I'll always be waiting for you...】
No one replied, no one liked it. It was a message meant only for me.
I liked the post, turned off my phone, and hauled my suitcase toward the door.
Whatever happened between them now had nothing to do with me.
The moment I opened the door, I came face to face with a panicked Wyatt, reeking of alcohol and pine.
He seemed to sag with relief at the sight of me.
Then his brow furrowed, his tone instantly becoming accusatory.
"Why did you just disappear? I've been worried sick, looking for you everywhere."
I didn't answer. Laughable.
He was in such a hurry? Such a hurry that he’d finished an entire meal, celebrated with Lydia, and only then—finally—found the time to come looking for me.
Wyatt pushed past me into the estate, and the hallway light illuminated the suitcase in my hand.
His expression shuttered.
"Where are you going at this hour?"
I looked at him, my face a blank mask.
"Moving out. I'll come back for the rest later."
At my words, Wyatt didn't rush to make me stay. Instead, a flash of impatience crossed his face.
Just like all the times he’d called me by the wrong name and I’d thrown a fit, making him promise again and again that he no longer loved his ex.
He took a deep, patronizing breath and pulled the platinum moonstone ring from his pocket.
"Look, I swear you're the only one I see as my Luna, okay?"
"Today was an accident. We only went through with the feast because the fresh game was already prepared, and I didn't want it to go to waste."
He was placating me, his tone casual, as if smoothing over a minor squabble.
"I already cleared things up with Lydia. See? I even got the ring back."
"Let's just drop this."
Wyatt grabbed my hand and, without another word, tried to slide the ring onto my finger.
But it was far too big.
The moment I lowered my hand, the ring slipped right off, clattering onto the wolf-pelt rug at his feet.
The air went still.
A sarcastic laugh escaped me at the stunned look on his face.
"Another accident? Did you get the size wrong when you ordered it?"
On Lydia’s hand, the ring had fit perfectly, as if it were made for her.
For the first time, a flicker of genuine guilt crossed Wyatt's face.
He snatched the ring from the floor, coughing to cover his discomfort.
"It was a mistake. I'll get it resized by the pack silversmith."
"Don't bother," I cut him off coldly.
"I was serious when I said I was rejecting our bond. Let's just leave it at that."
Wyatt paused, slowly placing the ring back in its velvet box.
By the time he closed the lid, the guilt had vanished, and his usual arrogant mask was back in place.
"Gemma, I said I would get it resized."
He looked at me as if I were a petulant child.
"Threatening to reject our bond and running away from our den over every little thing is so childish."
His words struck me, and my breath hitched.
I was instantly back to last year. I had fought for three straight months to secure the Northlands silver trade routes, getting mild silver poisoning in the process. My reward was supposed to be a month-long retreat to the Sacred Moon Lake for purification and recovery.
I had been so happy.
Happy that my hard work paid off, happy that I could finally cleanse the toxins from my body.
But just as I had everything packed and my spot was confirmed, Wyatt's Beta informed me that the access had been transferred.
"The Alpha transferred it himself. He said you authorized it. It was given to the new Trade Diplomat, Lydia Sterling."
When I confronted him, my eyes red from crying, Wyatt had only glanced at me before looking down at his territory maps, unconcerned.
"Is that so? I must have made a mistake."
"Then get it back for me!"
Seeing him still staring at the maps, I furiously snatched the parchment from his hands.
The terminal screen showed a photo dump from Lydia's social media.
【Recovering at the Sacred Moon Lake is the best, thanks to a special someone~】
It felt like a physical blow.
Trembling, I held the terminal up to Wyatt's face, my vision blurring with tears.
"Is this what you call a mistake?"
Wyatt didn't explain. Instead, he admonished me with an icy detachment.
"The mistake was already made. I was just maximizing the benefits."
"Rewarding a subordinate is a good way to reinforce my authority as Alpha."
"Gemma, you've been with the Pack for a while now. Can't you see the bigger picture?"
His condescending tone drove me insane.
That was the first time I had ever threatened to reject our bond.
Even after he'd called me the wrong name a thousand times, the thought had never crossed my mind.
I checked into a neutral zone lodge for three days and didn't get a single message of apology.
Only then did I realize that Wyatt was banking on me loving him too much to ever leave.
Why else would I have forgiven him time and time again?
Why else, knowing he’d been dumped by Lydia for a stronger Alpha, would I have immediately abandoned my family's pack and traveled a thousand miles to his territory to start over with him?
The day I returned, tail tucked between my legs, he wore a smug 'I-knew-you'd-be-back' expression.
After taking my suitcase, he’d said coolly, "Don't act up like this again. Be more mature."
The Wyatt in front of me now merged with the man from that memory.
But this time, I refused to back down.
I repeated myself, my voice unwavering.
"I'm serious. I'm rejecting the bond."
