The party was in full swing when my world shattered into a million pieces.

I stood at the edge of the clearing, watching everyone celebrate my eighteenth birthday like it was the happiest day of their lives. They weren't celebrating me, though. They never did. They were celebrating the mate ceremony that would happen at midnight, when Damien Reed would finally claim his destined mate in front of the entire Crescent Valley Pack.

They all assumed it would be someone worthy. Someone strong. Someone with a wolf.

My fingers twisted together nervously as I watched Damien laugh with his friends near the bonfire. He looked so handsome tonight in his dark shirt that showed off his muscles. His amber eyes caught the firelight, making them glow. Those eyes had looked at me with such kindness when we were children, before everything changed.

Before my parents died and I became the pack's favorite punching bag.

"You're staring again," Maya's sweet voice came from behind me. I turned to see my cousin approaching with two cups of punch. Her blonde hair was perfectly curled, and her blue dress hugged her curves in a way that made every unmated male wolf in attendance notice her. "Here, I brought you a drink. You look nervous."

"Thanks." I took the cup, grateful for her kindness. Maya was one of the few people who still treated me like I mattered. We'd grown up together after her parents left her with the pack when she was nine. While everyone else tormented me for being wolfless, Maya had stayed by my side.

Or so I thought.

"Are you excited?" she asked, her eyes gleaming with something I couldn't quite read. "Tonight's the night you've been waiting for your whole life."

My heart raced. "I'm terrified," I admitted. "What if... what if Damien isn't my mate? What if the Moon Goddess paired me with someone else?"

"Impossible." Maya smiled and squeezed my hand. "You and Damien have been drawn to each other since you were kids. Everyone knows it. Even if your wolf hasn't emerged yet, the bond is there. I can feel it."

I wanted to believe her. I needed to believe her. Because Damien was the only thing keeping me in this pack. The only reason I hadn't run away with Oliver years ago.

"Isla!" My little brother's voice called out. Oliver ran toward me, his auburn hair—the same shade as mine—bouncing with each step. At ten years old, he still had that innocent smile that made my heart ache. I'd do anything to protect that smile. "Did you see? Beta Marcus set up the fireworks! He said they're going to be huge!"

"That's wonderful, Ollie." I ruffled his hair, and he laughed, swatting my hand away.

"I'm not a baby anymore," he protested, but he was grinning. "Oh, and Damien was looking for you earlier. He wanted to talk before the ceremony."

My stomach flipped. "He did?"

"Mmhmm. He seemed really serious." Oliver's green eyes—identical to my own—studied my face. "Are you okay? You look pale."

"I'm fine, just nervous."

Maya laughed lightly. "She's about to become the future Luna. Of course she's nervous." She turned to me with that perfect smile. "You should go find him. I'll watch Oliver."

"You sure?"

"Positive. Go on."

I handed her my cup and smoothed down my simple white dress. It wasn't fancy like Maya's, but it was the nicest thing I owned. I'd saved for months from my job at the pack clinic to buy it.

The crowd parted as I walked through, and I felt their stares burning into my back. I heard the whispers too. They weren't even trying to be quiet.

"Can't believe she actually thinks he'll choose her."

"Wolfless waste of space."

"Her parents were traitors. The whole bloodline is cursed."

I kept my head high and ignored them like always. Let them talk. After tonight, everything would change. Damien would claim me as his mate, and they'd have to show me respect as their future Luna.

I found Damien standing near the tree line, away from the party. His back was to me, and his shoulders looked tense. My heart hammered as I approached.

"Damien?" I called softly.

He turned, and my breath caught. He looked... conflicted. Sad, even. His amber eyes swept over me, and something flickered in them before he looked away.

"Isla. We need to talk."

"I know." I tried to smile. "I'm nervous too, but—"

"I can't do this anymore."

The words hit me like a physical blow. "What?"

"I can't keep pretending." He ran a hand through his dark hair, frustration radiating off him. "You've been waiting for this day, thinking we're mates, but Isla... you're not my mate."

The world tilted. "What are you saying?"

"I found my mate three months ago." His voice was flat, emotionless. "I've been trying to figure out how to tell you, but there's no easy way."

Three months. My mind spun. Three months he'd known and said nothing. Let me plan for this night. Let me hope.

"Who?" The word came out as a whisper.

He didn't answer. He didn't have to.

Maya stepped out from behind a nearby tree, and the pitying expression she'd worn earlier was gone. In its place was a smirk of pure triumph. She walked right up to Damien and wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her body against his.

"Surprise," she purred.

I stumbled backward. "No. No, this is... Maya, you said..."

"I said a lot of things." She shrugged. "You're so easy to fool, Isla. So desperate to believe someone actually cares about you."

Damien at least had the decency to look uncomfortable. "Maya, that's enough."

"Why? She needs to hear it." Maya's blue eyes locked onto mine with pure venom. "You really thought someone like Damien would want someone like you? A wolfless nobody whose parents were killed for betraying the pack?"

"My parents weren't traitors," I said through clenched teeth. "That was never proven."

"Because they died before Alpha Reed could question them properly." Maya laughed. "Everyone knows they were selling pack secrets. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it?"

"Stop it!" Damien's voice carried Alpha authority, and Maya fell silent. He turned to me, and I saw genuine regret in his eyes. "Isla, I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you like this. When we were kids, I thought... but things changed. You never got your wolf, and I need a strong Luna. The pack needs—"

"A strong Luna," I finished bitterly. "I understand."

"Do you?" Maya tilted her head. "Because you look like you might cry. How pathetic."

Something inside me cracked. All the years of abuse, the bullying, the loneliness—it all came rushing to the surface. My hands clenched into fists.

"You're my cousin," I said to Maya, my voice shaking. "I trusted you."

"And I used you." She grinned. "Someone had to keep you distracted while I worked on stealing your future. It was almost too easy."

Damien frowned. "Maya, I said that's enough. We agreed we'd do this gently."

"Oh please, like there's a gentle way to reject her." Maya rolled her eyes. "Let's just get this over with. The ceremony starts in ten minutes anyway."

"Ceremony?" I looked between them. "What ceremony?"

"Our mating ceremony, obviously." Maya held up her hand, showing off a beautiful ring I'd never seen before. "We're making it official tonight. In front of everyone. I'm going to be Luna, not you."

The ground felt like it was dropping out from under me. "Tonight? You're doing this tonight, on my birthday?"

"The Moon Goddess has a sense of humor," Maya said sweetly.

I looked at Damien, really looked at him. "You were going to let me walk into that ceremony thinking I was your mate. You were going to humiliate me in front of the entire pack."

"No, I—" He stopped, seeming to realize that's exactly what was about to happen. "I wanted to tell you privately first. That's why I asked you to meet me."

"How considerate." I couldn't stop the bitter laugh that escaped. "You got to ease your conscience, and I get to watch my cousin mate with the man I've loved since I was five years old."

"Loved?" Maya's eyebrows shot up. "Oh Isla, that's so sad. He never loved you back. Did you really not know?"

Yes. No. I didn't know what I knew anymore.

"I need to go," I whispered, backing away. "I need to find Oliver. We're leaving."

"You can't leave the pack," Damien said. "Where would you go?"

"Anywhere but here." I turned and started walking, then running. I heard Maya's laughter following me through the trees.

I ran past the party, past the staring faces, past the decorations that were meant to celebrate my mating. Someone called my name, but I didn't stop. I couldn't stop. If I stopped, I'd fall apart, and I couldn't afford to fall apart. Not yet. Not when Oliver needed me to be strong.

I found him exactly where I'd left him, eating cake with Beta Marcus. Oliver took one look at my face and jumped to his feet.

"Isla? What's wrong?"

"We need to go. Now."

"But the ceremony—"

"There is no ceremony. Not for us." I grabbed his hand. "Please, Ollie, just trust me. We need to leave right now."

Marcus stood up, his hazel eyes concerned. "Isla, what happened?"

Before I could answer, a howl pierced the night. The pack Alpha's howl, calling everyone to gather. My stomach dropped.

"Too late," Marcus muttered. "You have to go to the clearing. Alpha's orders."

"I can't."

"You have to." His voice was gentle but firm. "Running now will only make it worse. Face it head-on, and then you can decide what to do after."

Oliver squeezed my hand. "I'll be with you," he promised. "Whatever happens."

So I let them lead me back to the clearing, where the entire pack had gathered in a circle around the ceremonial fire. Alpha Reed stood at the center, his grey hair gleaming in the firelight. He was Damien's father and had led this pack for thirty years. He'd also been the one to declare my parents traitors.

"Brothers and sisters," Alpha Reed's voice boomed. "Tonight we gather to witness a sacred bond. My son, Damien Reed, has found his mate."

The crowd murmured excitedly. I stood at the back, trying to make myself invisible. Oliver pressed against my side.

"Please welcome our future Alpha and Luna!"

Damien walked into the circle, his hand clasped with Maya's. She was radiant, practically glowing with happiness. The pack erupted in cheers.

I felt numb. Hollow. Like someone had reached inside my chest and scooped out everything important.

"However," Alpha Reed continued, and the crowd quieted. "There is one matter we must address first. Isla Hart, step forward."

No. Please no.

"Isla Hart!" the Alpha's voice cracked like a whip.

Oliver's hand tightened on mine. Marcus gently pushed me forward. The crowd parted, and suddenly I was standing in the circle, illuminated by firelight, completely exposed.

"Isla," Alpha Reed said, his voice cold. "It has come to my attention that you have been harboring expectations regarding my son. Is this true?"

My throat was too tight to speak. I managed a small nod.

"Speak up, girl."

"Yes," I forced out. "I thought... I believed we might be mates."

Maya's tinkling laugh rang out. "How delusional."

"Silence," Alpha Reed commanded, though his lips twitched with amusement. "Isla Hart, my son has found his true mate in Maya Hart. Do you accept this?"

What kind of question was that? Did I accept it? Like I had a choice?

"I..." My voice cracked. "I don't understand. The mate bond—"

"You don't have a wolf," Alpha Reed cut me off. "Therefore, you cannot feel a mate bond. Whatever childish infatuation you developed for my son was one-sided and based on fantasy, not fate."

The crowd murmured agreement. Someone shouted, "Wolfless freak!"

"This is your own fault," the Alpha continued. "You let yourself believe a lie. Now, Damien wishes to formally reject any claim you think you have on him so he can move forward with his true mate. Do you accept his rejection?"

I looked at Damien. Really looked at him. Searching for any sign of the boy who used to sneak me extra food when the pack shorted my rations. Who told me my parents were heroes, not traitors. Who promised he'd protect me when we grew up.

That boy was gone. In his place stood a man who couldn't even meet my eyes.

"Isla Hart," Damien said formally, his voice carrying to every corner of the clearing. "I, Damien Reed, future Alpha of the Crescent Valley Pack, reject you as my mate. I sever any bond that may exist between us. You have no claim on me, now or ever."

The words hit like silver bullets, burning through my chest. Even without a wolf, I felt something inside me tear. Some small thread I hadn't known existed snapping in two.

"Do you accept?" Alpha Reed demanded.

I opened my mouth to say yes, to end this nightmare, to take what little dignity I had left and leave this pack forever.

But before I could speak, the air pressure changed.

Power rolled across the clearing like a tidal wave, so strong it drove people to their knees. I stayed standing, frozen in place, as three massive wolves emerged from the tree line.

They shifted mid-stride, becoming men. All three were huge, but the one in the center was a giant—easily six and a half feet tall with shoulders so broad he looked like he could carry the world on them. Black hair with silver streaks framed a face that was beautiful and terrifying at the same time. Scars traced across his exposed arms and neck.

But it was his eyes that held me captive. Bright blue eyes that cut through the darkness and locked onto me with an intensity that stole my breath.

The entire pack had dropped to their knees, heads bowed. Even Alpha Reed had bent, though his face showed fury at being forced into submission.

The man walked straight toward me, his eyes never leaving mine. The crowd parted like water before him. He stopped inches away, so close I had to tilt my head back to maintain eye contact.

"Mine," he growled, and the word resonated through my bones.

Then he turned to Damien with a look of pure rage.

"Touch her again, and I'll rip your arms off."