Catherine Webb's POV: Today should have been the seventh time Derrick Vance and I finally made it through our bonding ceremony. Even with a burning fever, I had personally checked every last detail of the venue. Derrick barely noticed. His attention was entirely on Caroline Vance, his adopted sister, whom he was fussing over inside the dressing room. Meanwhile, the guests outside had already begun whispering among themselves. "This makes seven attempts now, doesn't it? Think they'll actually finish the ceremony this time?" "Hard to say. If Caroline doesn't feel well, Alpha Derrick might abandon the altar without a second thought." "Does it matter? Catherine worships the ground Alpha Derrick walks on. He could reject her a hundred times, and she'd still come running back." No one in the pack doubted how completely I loved Derrick. Yet throughout our three years together, he had repeatedly called off our bonding ceremony at the last possible moment, and Caroline was always the reason. Each rejection from an Alpha tore through me with unbearable physical pain, leaving my body so weak that sometimes I could barely get out of bed. And Derrick's response was always the same. "Carrie is my sister! She's been sickly since childhood, so why is it wrong for me to give her extra care? You're supposed to become the Luna of the Bloodmoon Pack. That means learning to accept every member of this pack without constantly making everything about yourself! Carrie is genuinely ill. How long are you going to keep putting on this miserable performance for everyone? You don't even have a wolf, so don't pretend you understand rejection pain. Stop making things up just to win sympathy!" He always shut me out completely and ignore every bit of my suffering until I was the one forced to crawl back. I would apologize to him and Caroline just to keep us together, and only then would he graciously decide to forgive me. I squeezed my eyes shut and forced down the familiar ache gathering behind them. Seven attempts had already worn me down. At this point, I wanted nothing more than to see this ridiculous bonding ceremony finally reach the end. Instead, only minutes before the ceremony was due to start, Derrick abandoned the altar and canceled on me yet again. None of the guests even looked surprised as they began gathering their things and leaving. I rushed toward the dressing room and arrived just in time to see Derrick lift Caroline into his arms and head for the exit. "Carrie's having a serious allergic reaction! This could turn dangerous fast, so I'm taking her straight to the hospital!" Derrick looked impatient even through his worry. "We're canceling the bonding ceremony. I'll make it up to you another time." "Another time?" I dug my teeth into my lower lip as heat burned behind my eyes. "You promised me, Rick. You swore before the Moon Goddess that this would be the last time. You said you'd never destroy our bonding ceremony again..." That was enough to make Derrick snap. He stared at me with such fury that anyone watching would have thought I was his enemy instead of his fiancée. "This is an emergency! Carrie could die if I waste time here! Tell me what's supposed to matter more right now—her life, or some pointless ceremony?!" His voice rose until every word felt like it struck me directly. "Catherine, I know you've never liked Carrie, but do you seriously have no compassion at all? Would you only be happy if she collapsed and died right in front of you? How can you be this cruel?" Cruel? Apparently, asking my own fiancé to stay long enough to finish our bonding ceremony was enough to make me cruel in his eyes. The old me would have fallen apart. I would've cried until I couldn't breathe, grabbed his sleeve, and begged him to understand how badly another rejection would hurt and how desperately I needed us to complete the ceremony. I had done that because I loved him and kept convincing myself that his obsession with protecting Caroline was the only thing clouding his judgment. This time, though, I looked at Derrick glaring at me over another she-wolf and listened to him accuse me all over again, only to realize something inside me had gone completely still. I held his gaze, and even I was surprised by how calm my voice sounded. "You're right. Her health comes first. Take her." I stepped aside and left the doorway clear. Derrick stopped cold. He had obviously expected me to beg and argue like always. Judging from his expression, he had even prepared another round of lectures before realizing I wasn't going to give him the chance. "You're finally acting reasonably, Cathy." Relief loosened his expression, and even his voice softened. "Don't worry. Once Carrie is safe, I'll make it up to you. Next time, I'll give you the most spectacular bonding ceremony you could ever ask for." Next time. There was always another next time. I met his eyes and gave him a faint, almost gentle smile. "There won't be another bonding ceremony for us, Derrick. If you don't want to bond with me, I'll simply find someone else," I said quietly. By then, Derrick had already stopped paying attention. With Caroline in his arms, he rushed down the hallway without looking back, and all I saw was his figure disappearing into the distance. I kept watching until he finally vanished from view, feeling strangely detached from the entire scene. Not a single tear fell, and I felt no urge to break down. My hand slipped into the concealed pocket of my gown and pulled out my phone. Before I could reconsider, I dialed a number I hadn't touched in ages. The man who answered was none other than Kellen Griffin, Alpha of the Shadow Pack. He also happened to be Derrick's most bitter rival. Everyone knew Kellen as a ruthless, merciless leader who never hesitated to crush anyone standing in his way. He was known for avoiding she-wolves, and rumor claimed he wouldn't allow one to come within mine feet of him. There had been one exception, though, at a banquet six months earlier. Derrick had abandoned me that night in the middle of a gathering filled with powerful elites, all because Caroline called him in a panic. His sudden departure had left me humiliated in front of nearly the entire pack. I had been preparing to escape the room when Kellen suddenly blocked my path, casually holding a glass of wine. Right in front of everyone, he tore into Derrick without mercy. "A man who throws away his own fiancée whenever he feels like it has no business calling himself an Alpha. I'd never disgrace myself by abandoning mine. Catherine, if you're finally tired of that worthless bastard and want a mate, say the word. I'll bond with you tonight." Silence had swallowed the ballroom instantly. No one misunderstood his intention. Kellen had clearly made the offer to humiliate Derrick and provoke him in front of the entire crowd. I hadn't believed he meant any of it, either. Now, however, that reckless taunt had become the only escape route I could see. The call went through. "Hello." Kellen's deep voice came through the phone with enough weight to send a chill along my spine. I drew in a slow breath, steadied myself, and went straight to the point. "Kellen, do you still mean what you said six months ago? Derrick and I are finished, and I need someone else to bond with." Silence stretched between us for five long seconds. Then Kellen's deep, dangerous laugh sounded through the receiver. "Catherine, are you sure you understand who you're talking to? If you become my mate, you won't get to change your mind later. So don't come regretting this." My eyes lifted to the mirror, where a pale, exhausted bride in an immaculate white gown stared back at me. Then I asked him calmly, "Would you leave your fiancée at the altar because another she-wolf called for you?" "Never." Kellen's reply turned hard and absolute, carrying the confidence of an Alpha who considered the very idea beneath him. "Only a coward would do something that pathetic." "Then that's enough for me." I watched my own reflection as a bright, determined smile slowly spread across my face. "Come get me from the Bloodmoon Pack's ceremony hall. I won't regret choosing you."

Catherine's POV: The heavy, intricately carved doors of Bloodmoon Hall had been kicked wide open from the outside. Against the bright light stood a tall, commanding figure, who then strode straight across the hall's threshold. His custom-made black suit fit him with extraordinary precision, emphasizing his broad shoulders and narrow waist. The fabric closely hugged his powerful build, giving him an austere, almost untouchable appearance. Still, he had loosened his tie and left his collar slightly open, revealing the pale line of his collarbone and a glimpse of the muscle below. It was Kellen. He really had shown up! Only a brief ten minutes had passed since I had ended our phone call! With long, threatening strides, Kellen crossed the hall and climbed the altar steps in just a few moments, staring down at me. His piercing blue eyes tightened, and I could almost feel the force of his scrutiny as it passed over me. "Have you lost the ability to speak, or are you simply stunned?" His lengthy fingers gripped my chin, tilting my face upward against my will. There was a dangerous coldness in his voice. "Catherine, you didn't call me just to mess with me, did you? Are you trying to use me to provoke that worthless Derrick?" The coarse calluses covering his fingertips felt hot against my skin. "No!" I answered without a moment's hesitation, holding his gaze firmly. "I'm completely finished with him! Even if Derrick were to die this very moment, it wouldn't matter to me!" How could I possibly risk playing games with a man like Kellen? Everyone throughout the entire werewolf world knew that Kellen, the Alpha who led the Shadow Pack, was utterly merciless and cold-blooded. Ever since he had assumed leadership of his pack, innumerable she-wolves had pursued him. Some had even undressed completely and climbed into his bed, but he had cast them out without offering a single merciful word. People spoke of Kellen behind his back as a soulless monster. Others believed the Moon Goddess had placed a curse on him, condemning him to a lonely death without ever finding a mate. Although he had agreed during our phone call, I had spent those ten minutes believing he wasn't serious. I hadn't thought he would really show up in person, much less arrive so quickly. "You'd better be telling the truth." With a dismissive snort, Kellen let go of my chin, but he continued watching my face intently. Taking a deep breath, I struggled to bring my turbulent emotions under control. The terrible hurt of Derrick's rejection continued to pulse through every nerve in my body. There was no time to reconsider my decision. I extended my hand and took hold of Kellen's broad, warm one. Kellen's body plainly went rigid, and a brief look of surprise appeared in his eyes. But I wasn't about to give him the opportunity to withdraw his hand, so I pulled him toward the altar's center. "Now that you've arrived, let's get it done." After biting my fingertip, I allowed a single drop of blood to land on the Vow Stone embedded in the altar. Kellen examined my determined profile, his lips forming a faint, inscrutable curve, before cutting his own finger. Our separate drops of blood came together on the stone's surface. The sound of an ancient incantation filled the vast hall and echoed around us. A shaft of silvery moonlight pierced the dome overhead and bathed the two of us in its glow. At that very moment, the excruciating pain that had been ripping through my body disappeared completely, as though it had never existed. Replacing it was an intense, all-consuming surge of power, both warm and absolute, that flowed into me through our clasped hands. Glancing downward, I saw the black emblem of a Shadow Wolf taking shape above my collarbone. An identical bond mark then emerged on Kellen's neck, reflecting the one that had appeared on mine. With that, the mating ceremony ended. As I gazed at the mark, my thoughts suddenly deserted me. I now had a mate. At last, I had gone through the mating ceremony I had dreamed about for so long. But the man standing beside me, whose soul was now forever joined to mine, wasn't the one I had spent three long years trying desperately to satisfy. Instead, both men were greatest rivals. Kellen's low, deep, gravelly voice sounded from somewhere above me, carrying a pointed warning that made my skin prickle. "What's the matter? Are you looking at that mark because you're already having second thoughts?" He had leaned down over me. His warm breath skimmed my ear, while the sheer force of his dominance seemed to weigh heavily on my body. "It's already too late to change your mind, Catherine. You're mine for all eternity. You'll be my mate and will never belong to anybody else but me." The undisguised possessiveness in his words made my skin burn. I came back to my senses and vigorously shook my head. "I'm not having regrets. It's just that—" Everything simply seemed so unreal, almost as though I were dreaming. I parted my lips to offer an explanation, but Kellen interrupted before I could speak. He stood upright again, straightened his cuffs, and spoke with the understated authority of someone accustomed to issuing commands. "If you don't regret it, then we're leaving. Get into the car. You're going home with me." "Home?" I stood motionless, looking at him in bewilderment. "What home? Whose home?" My confusion clearly entertained Kellen. He raised a sharply angled eyebrow and replied as though stating an obvious fact, "We're mates, so naturally we'll be going back to our home. From this moment forward, the Shadow Pack's packhouse is yours as well." Our home. Those two simple words struck the most tender, carefully protected spot in my heart. I had grown up an orphan, without anyone I could ever depend on. Eventually, the Bloodmoon Pack welcomed me and brought me up. Determined to repay their generosity, I exhausted myself working for them and cared for Derrick more than I cared for myself. More than anything, I had wanted to create a genuine family with him. I longed for a place that would shelter me from life's storms, where a light would always be waiting just for me. That longing was why I had forced my heart into forgiving Derrick more than once, even as he repeatedly broke every promise he had made because of Caroline. I had convinced myself that showing him enough patience and understanding would eventually persuade him to give me a home. Instead, all that came back to me was despair that grew steadily worse. I had never imagined that a man I had encountered only twice in my entire life would so readily offer me today the home I had wanted for three years, the very thing Derrick had always been unwilling to give me. My eyes stung with gathering tears. Lowering my head, I blinked repeatedly and fought to keep them from falling. "I... I can't leave quite yet," I responded softly, moving my head from side to side. All at once, the room seemed to turn bitterly cold. Kellen's expression grew severe, and the final trace of amusement vanished from his blue eyes, leaving only a cold, menacing look. "You can't leave? Are you seriously planning to remain here and wait around for that miserable fool to return?" "No!" I recoiled, frantically waving both hands. "My bags, my identification card, and half my essential belongings are still in my place! I need to go back and pack first. Then I'll come home with you!" Only then did the murderous intensity surrounding Kellen diminish, although just a little. He gave a contemptuous snort, and the tightness in his jaw eased almost imperceptibly. "It's just a few worn-out clothes. What could you need that the Shadow Pack doesn't already have?" Despite the disdain in his voice, he wrapped a muscular arm around my waist and guided me toward the exit. "All right. I'll take you back to collect your things." I gave him a compliant nod in response. Before long, we arrived at the enormous black SUV waiting with its engine running outside the hall. I had scarcely sat down in the passenger seat and begun searching awkwardly for the seat belt buckle when Kellen cast a shadow over me. Reaching across my body, he caught the seat belt strap between his long fingers and pulled it toward me. He secured the buckle in place. Its sharp fastening noise sounded unusually loud inside the enclosed vehicle. Every part of me from my shoulders downward stiffened, and I held my breath. Having been raised in an orphanage, I had formed few close connections and had almost no experience being around men. Even throughout my three-year relationship with Derrick, delicate Caroline had constantly come between us and demanded his attention. He could hardly spare the time to share a meal with me, much less get physically close. Now, however, Kellen had moved much too close to me. He was near enough for me to inhale the clean, crisp fragrance of cold pine coming from him, mingled with a richer, more intoxicating scent that seemed to surround me completely, like a net. The force of his Alpha scent swept over me, sending my heart pounding so fiercely I thought it might burst through my rib cage. Rather than retreating, Kellen braced one hand on the back of my seat and angled his head toward me. A mischievous glint appeared briefly in his deep, dark blue eyes. "How did your face get so red?" he asked in his deep voice, sounding quietly amused. "Your heart's beating so fast. What exactly is going through your mind, Catherine?" Embarrassed at being caught so obviously, I wanted the ground to open up and swallow me. I pressed myself against the seat and stammered, "I... I'm simply not accustomed to having someone this close to me..." "You're not accustomed to it?" Kellen raised an eyebrow. Far from moving away, he brought himself even closer, until the force of his dominance seemed to engulf me. "In that case, you'd better learn to get comfortable with it quickly." His voice sank into a low, rough murmur. "We're mates now, and there will be a great deal more physical contact than this." I stared at him, my eyes widening in utter disbelief. Could those words really have come from the famously merciless Alpha who supposedly couldn't bear being around she-wolves? What had happened to the man supposedly condemned by the Moon Goddess to die without a mate? At that moment, he seemed far more like a predator sizing its prey! Kellen immediately recognized the astonishment on my face. Yet instead of withdrawing from me, he gave a deep, dark chuckle. "What's with that expression?" His long fingers gently swept across my flushed cheek, while an unmistakably purposeful look settled into his eyes. "Or am I not right? We're mates, after all. Even kissing shouldn't be a big deal, should it?" His voice softened into a whisper, with his nose coming so close that it nearly touched mine. While speaking, he tipped his head, staring down at my lips, and leaned toward me without hesitation.

Catherine's POV: Every thought vanished from my head, and I instinctively shut my eyes as tightly as I could. Was Kellen really about to kiss me? My pulse raced while his warm breath brushed the edge of my lips. The overwhelming presence of a top-ranking Alpha left my entire body weak. Yet the forceful kiss I was expecting still did not happen. A playful chuckle sounded just inches away from my face. I opened my eyes in surprise and found that Kellen had already straightened up and moved away from me. With one arm draped over the steering wheel, he watched me through dark blue eyes filled with playful amusement. "What are you so nervous about?" Kellen lightly tapped the steering wheel with his slender finger, speaking as casually as ever. "I was only joking. I never thought our pack's new Luna would be this easy to tease." After a brief pause, his voice softened with an indulgence he seemed entirely unaware of. "There's no reason to be afraid. I'll give you all the time you need to adjust." Only at that moment did I realize he had been teasing me from the very beginning! My heart finally settled back into my chest after feeling as though it had climbed into my throat, and I released a long, unsteady breath. Even so, beneath my relief was an unexpected feeling of disappointment that I couldn't explain. I had never known what it meant to have a family. Ever since I was a little girl, I had dreamed of having a mate who was truly mine, someone I could be completely comfortable with and never have to hold anything back from. Instead, the fiancé I had loved for the past three years left me standing alone at the altar. As for the man sitting beside me, love probably had nothing to do with his decision to bond with me. He had likely done it to get back at Derrick and embarrass him. Both of us would have to give this some time. I was looking down, trying to collect myself, when the phone in my hand suddenly vibrated. A notification appeared on the lit screen from an account I had chosen to receive alerts from. Caroline had posted something. The moment I took a look, that slight disappointment disappeared and a cold feeling began spreading through me instead. Caroline's latest post contained a collage made up of nine pictures. The photos showed her looking pale and frail in a private hospital room, with Derrick seated beside her, apparently worried as he carefully fed her soup by the spoonful. One picture focused closely on him holding her hand against his cheek. She had accompanied the pictures with a caption clearly designed to draw sympathy. "However badly my body aches, being able to open my eyes and see you right there makes every bit of suffering worthwhile. Meeting Derrick was the luckiest thing that ever happened to me." The comments beneath her post were already in an uproar. "Wow, what an incredibly caring Alpha! Caroline and Alpha Derrick really are such a perfect match for each other!" "They absolutely are! Those two should've gotten together long ago. Who does Catherine think she is? She's a pathetic loser without a wolf and nothing but a joke." "I'll put 100 bucks on Catherine making a huge fuss over all of this, then crawling back to apologize to Alpha Derrick in the end anyway." "I'll take that bet! My guess is she can't even hold out for three days!" "Three days? You're giving her far too much credit. I give her less than a single day before she starts crying and begging Alpha Derrick to take her back!" Among the flood of insulting comments, Caroline made a point of replying to a comment. "Everyone, please don't say things like that. Catherine is Derrick's fiancée, and she's supposed to become the Bloodmoon Pack's Luna. Derrick is only worried about me because I'm unwell. Please don't take it out on Catherine. I'm the one to blame..." That carefully calculated display of noble selflessness only made the public even angrier with me. People kept ridiculing me for being so pathetic and declaring that Derrick had always loved Caroline and no one else in his heart. The sight of Derrick's affectionate profile in the pictures left me feeling sick to my stomach. In the past, seeing a post like that would have reduced me to tears over how unfair it was. I would have frantically called Derrick and demanded an explanation, only to face his cold criticism and disdain. Then, terrified of losing him, I would have buried my hurt and lowered myself until I finally gave in. This time, though, watching that same familiar performance unfold before me struck me as nothing but completely absurd. Thankfully, I had finally come to my senses. I went through the post without emotion. I neither cried nor grew angry; I simply pressed liked it and commented calmly, "I wish you both a happy life together. You should just get together already." Only a few seconds passed before my phone began ringing, and the ringtone I had assigned to Derrick sounded as ominous as a funeral bell. For a moment, I froze at the name flashing across my screen. Then I glanced toward Kellen, who was sitting behind the wheel. Kellen had clearly noticed. He tilted his head, a sharp dark glint flashing in his blue eyes, and lifted an eyebrow. "What? Aren't you going to pick up?" "Derrick's calling." I looked him directly in the eyes and showed him my phone. "Since you're my mate now, I figured I ought to let you know first." My words seemed to please Kellen quite a bit. The threatening look faded from his eyes. He relaxed against his seat, crossed his long legs, and raised his chin with a casually arrogant air. "Go ahead and answer. Put him on speaker." With a nod, I answered Derrick's call and switched it to speakerphone. As soon as the connection went through, Derrick's angry shouting filled the car. "Catherine! What the hell were you thinking when you went and left a comment like that? Don't you even realize your spiteful little reply has now made Caroline a target for everyone else? What are they supposed to think of her now? They're going to believe she's a shameless woman who has come between us! When you didn't cause a scene at the hall earlier today, I assumed you'd finally learned how to behave yourself. I should've realized you were still busy scheming behind my back! I'm incredibly disappointed in you! I'm ordering you to remove that comment immediately and make a public post apologizing to Caroline! If you refuse, you can forget about our bonding ceremony!" He spoke with an air of patronizing generosity, although the threat beneath his words was unmistakable. Once, hearing him threaten to cancel the bonding ceremony would have sent me into a panic. I would have begged his forgiveness again and again, terrified that he might actually abandon me for good. But now I remained completely composed, listening until his angry rant ended before giving him one very simple answer. "Okay." The other end of the call immediately went completely quiet. A full five seconds went by before Derrick could speak again, sounding unable to believe what he had heard. "What? Do you have any idea what you just said?" I settled against the passenger seat and replied without emotion, "Of course I do. I said okay. We don't need to have a bonding ceremony." "Catherine! Quit pretending you don't care!" Derrick was furious at having his authority questioned. "You think I'm not serious?! Listen carefully to me. You haven't even got a wolf, and you're completely worthless! No one else in the whole entire werewolf world would ever accept you as a mate apart from me. Throw as many fits as you want, but don't come begging on your knees when you regret this later!" "I'm not going to regret anything." I gave a small laugh, putting an end to his never-ending tirade. "There's one more thing I need to set straight with you, Derrick. I already have a mate. I found him just a moment ago." "That's a load of crap! You can't fool me with such an obvious lie!" Derrick scoffed at me through the phone, sounding utterly confident and openly scornful. "Who'd ever choose someone who doesn't even experience pain from a bond?" Suddenly, the conversation felt tiresome to me. There was simply no point in saying another word to someone as self-absorbed as he was. "Whether you believe me is your decision. It doesn't change the fact that we're finished." My tone hardened as I noticed Kellen out of the corner of my eye. "And if I stay on this call any longer, my new mate won't be happy." I ended the call before Derrick had a chance to respond again. I blocked Derrick's phone number and immediately removed it from my contacts. I completed both actions without hesitation. Once I had finished, I put my phone away in my bag and breathed out deeply. It was as if the enormous weight pressing down on my chest for three years had at last broken apart. "You made that decision without hesitating." Kellen had observed everything without speaking, an unreadable expression passing through his eyes. "Are you certain you won't end up regretting it?" I faced him and held his eyes steadily. "Derrick belongs to my past. From today onward, I'm going to live my own life." For a while, Kellen simply looked back at me without saying a word. Then he faced the road again, placing his large hands back on the steering wheel. Still, I couldn't be quite sure whether the faint, dim lighting inside the car had fooled my eyes. At the very moment the SUV began moving, I thought I had seen the Shadow Pack's Alpha, a man widely known for being cold, merciless, and bloodthirsty, let his usually tightly pursed, thin lips curve into a smile that was remarkably warm and filled with pure pleasure.