**ISABELLA**  I kept my head down, pretending to read the book in front of me, even though exams were over and the classroom buzzed with excitement. It was the last day of school life, a day meant for laughter, pictures, and bittersweet goodbyes. Not for me though. I was invisible. Just the loner in the back row, the one no one noticed.  I was Isabella Trevelyan. "Bella" The sound of my name broke through the chatter, startling me. I jerked my head up, my heart racing, only to find him. Maximilian. He had been standing at the door to the classroom, leaning against the frame as if he owned the entire world. Every pair of eyes in the room turned to him. Of course, they did. He was the center of attention wherever he went, even when he didn't ask for it. The sharp planes of his face, his tousled dark hair, and that maddeningly confident smirk...it was no wonder every she-wolf in the room hung on his every move. Even mated she-wolves couldn't resist him. "What's he doing here?" I thought, panic and confusion flaring inside me.  The girls in the room began calling his name, their voices lilting with flirtation. He returned their attention with a lazy, playful smile, and the air buzzed with their excitement. But he didn't stay with them long. No, he started walking toward me. Gossip erupted like wildfire and every eye became fixed on me.  I wanted to shrink into my seat, to disappear entirely, but it was too late. He stopped in front of my desk, his arrogant expression only adding to the magnetism of his dominating aura. "Why aren't you answering my calls?" he raised an eyebrow, his voice casual yet commanding. My heart raced, but I kept my eyes low, fighting the blush that threatened to rise to my cheeks. "My phone must've been on silent," I lied, shoving my phone deeper into my pocket.  The truth was, I'd been ignoring him on purpose. I knew he had plans with Lola after school. I had just been waiting for him to leave with her first so that I could leave for the pack.  He tilted his head slightly, studying me, then shrugged. "Alright, let's go home," he said, twirling his car keys. "Dad called, he wants us back at the pack early for tonight's full moon party," he explained.  I nodded quickly, scrambling to gather my things. The weight of jealous stares burned into my back as I hurried after him. The whispers followed me out of the classroom. "She's so lucky to be Maximilian's stepsister!" "Ugh, I wish I were her." I clenched my jaw, bitterness curling in my chest. Lucky? There was nothing lucky about being the stepsister of the prince of the school. If anything, it was a curse. Maximilian walked ahead of me down the hallway, his commanding presence drawing girls to him like moths to a flame. Some even tried to stop him, their voices dripping with flirtation. "Maximilian, do you have plans tonight? Let me come over," one of them purred, batting her lashes. "Not tonight. I'm kind of busy," he replied with a wink, brushing her off with the ease of someone who had done it a hundred times before. I recognized all of them. Some of them were from our pack, girls he'd been with at some point, girls who had warmed his bed but only once. Maximilian rarely repeated his conquests.  By the time we reached the parking lot, I was suffocating under the weight of it all. Watching him with those girls was a special kind of torture, one I endured every day. It was a living hell to see him with those girls when I had feelings for him!  Yes, I was in love with my step brother, Maximilian Vance, but he did not know. And he definitely could not know it because... "Get in," he stated, nodding toward his car.  I stopped, staring at his black expensive car. For the past few years, I rarely sat in his car to avoid being a third wheel in the car with his girls. But today the situation had strangely changed.  "I'll take the bus," I muttered, already turning to leave. "You can go with Lola, like you planned."  I was actually surprised when he showed up to my classroom. Why had he come?  "I broke up with her," he said casually, unlocking his car. I froze, his words cutting through my thoughts. Broke up? Lola was beautiful, confident, and perfect. Moreover she was a high ranking she-wolf from a reputed pack. She had lasted longer than any other girl in Maximilian's life. "Why?" I asked before I could stop myself.  "She said she fell in love with me," he replied with a chuckle, as if the idea were ridiculous. "Same old problem."   My chest tightened painfully. That was why I couldn't let him know how I felt for him. Love was the line that he drew in the sand. The one thing he couldn't tolerate. The moment anyone fell for him, he cut them off without a second thought.   That was Maximilian Vance. Handsome, arrogant, untouchable. My stepbrother. The next Alpha of the Black Mountain Pack. And still, I couldn't help myself. I'd fallen for him.   It had started when I was thirteen, an innocent crush blooming into something deeper over the years. Maximilian was always there, my shadow, my anchor. He made me feel safe in a world where I often felt out of place. But as the years passed, things changed. He grew into a man strong, confident, and devastatingly handsome. And with that came the girls, one after another, each more beautiful than the last. Suddenly I realised that I could never be one of those women that he kissed or touched. His girls saw me as a hindrance, in their way. Slowly it made me realize that things could not be that way they used to be Maximilian. Meanwhile, I became the joke of the pack when on my sixteenth birthday, my wolf never appeared. I was wolfless, a failure in the eyes of everyone around me. Maximilian shone brighter than ever, while I faded further into the background.  He had so many people surrounding him that I automatically grew more and more distant. It was impossible to be with him so I began to pull away. I avoided him at school, avoided seeing him with other girls.  I tried to distance myself, to escape the torment of being near him while knowing I could never have him. But it didn't work. My heart refused to listen. Tomorrow, I will turn eighteen. And despite all my efforts, my love for Maximilian had only grown stronger.   Sadly no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stop loving him. Now, with my eighteenth birthday just a few hours away, that love burned stronger than ever. It consumed me, suffocated me. And no matter how much it hurt, I knew I could never let him find out. I climbed into the car, knowing that this was another mistake. But I couldn't stay away because it might be the last time we stay together.  My school life was over and the only reason to be together was too.

**ISABELLA**  Black Mountain Pack  Maximilian parked his sleek car in front of the packhouse, just like he always did. On the surface, I sat there calm and composed, but my heart told a different story. Every now and then during the ride, our hands brushed against each other, and I felt like my world tilted slightly off balance. It had been so long since I'd been in his car, and a small, selfish part of me wished the journey had lasted forever. But, like all good things, even this ride had come to an end. "Bella," his voice called softly, snapping me out of my thoughts. "Huh?" I blinked, realizing he was waiting for me to get out. "Oh, right." As I fumbled with the seatbelt, I noticed a small box resting in my lap. "What's this?" I reached out for it in surprise. "Your graduation gift," Maximilian said, flashing that devastatingly handsome smile of his, the one that made my heart flutter in ways I couldn't control. My chest tightened. "You got this for me?" It had to be a cruel dream. The moment I would be happy, I would wake up in the reality where he would be expecting me to get out of the car.   "Open it," he urged, smiling in that casual, boyish way that made it impossible to say no. I hesitated, nervous but excited, as I lifted the lid of the box. The contents stole my breath. "A pendant..." I whispered, frozen as I stared at it. It looked familiar. Way too familiar.  My gaze darted to his neck, where I noticed his pendant was gone. My heart skipped a beat. That pendant he'd worn for as long as I could remember. I gasped. "Is this... your pendant?" His lips quivered into a knowing smile. "You've liked it since we were kids," his heavy voice was warm, "I promised you I'd give it to you when we both graduated. So here it is." Before I could say anything, he reached over and affectionately ruffled my hair, sending my heart into overdrive. I quickly lowered my head, letting a curtain of hair cover my face in order to hide the blush creeping up my cheeks. "T-thanks," I mumbled, my voice barely above a whisper. "A simple 'thanks' won't do, Bella," Leaning closer, his voice dropped to a teasing whisper near my ear. "I'll be expecting a gift in return." My breath hitched. His proximity was intoxicating, his warm breath brushing against my ear and sending shivers down my spine. His earthy and masculine scent engulfed me, making my thoughts spiral. He was so close. So dangerously close. I dared to wonder... if I tilted my head up just slightly, would our lips meet? Would it be our first kiss? But I couldn't bring myself to move.  Somehow, I managed to stumble my way to my room after that, though I had no recollection of how I got there. As soon as the door closed behind me, I leaned against it, clutching my racing heart. My knees felt weak, and my emotions were in complete chaos.  His closseness...still broke me the way I could barely heal.  Walking to my dressing table, I pulled the pendant out of my pocket and stared at it for what felt like an eternity. The white gold glimmered under the light, and I couldn't help but smile, though my chest felt heavy. Maxillian really the most precious possession of his.  It was more than a beautiful gift. It was a piece of him. A part of Maximilian I could hold on to, even when everything else felt uncertain. I did not know how long I stared at it. But I wanted to be lost in it.  "Isabella, you're still not ready?" My mother's voice broke the moment. The Luna of Black Mountain Pack. Luna Amelia.  Mom entered without knocking, as usual, her tone carrying that usual air of disapproval to find me in my normal clothes. I quickly slipped the pendant back into my pocket. "I just got home, Mom," I responded evenly, knowing it wouldn't matter to her either way. "The party starts in an hour," she said, her voice tinged with urgency. "Hurry up and get ready." I sighed. The full moon party...a pack tradition I had no interest in. It was loud, crowded, and nothing more than an excuse for wolves to find their mates or vent their heat. And since I had no wolf, I was invisible there, just as I was everywhere else. As I began rifling through my closet for something simple to wear, my mom thrust a shopping bag into my hands. "Wear this tonight," she said with an unusual smile. I frowned, surprised. It had been years, more than a decade since she'd bought me anything. Cautiously, I peeked inside and pulled out a white dress with delicate floral patterns. I was stunned.  "Go and try it," She pushed me to change into them as soon as possible.  I wore it and I was speechless of its beauty. The fabric was rich and soft.  "Do you like it?" she asked. I nodded, my eyes fixed on my reflection in the mirror, still in disbelief over her unexpected gesture.  "Then let's..." she was about to start when I interrupted her.  "Mom..." I murmured, shifting my gaze to meet her smiling one. "Is there something you want to tell me?" A dead silence fell between us. I probably sounded strange to anyone else, but deep down, I knew my mother better than anyone. For her to come into my room with such beautiful clothes and ask if I liked the dress, instead of simply ordering me to wear it, was completely out of character for her. Her smile faltered, and for a moment, she looked almost... hesitant. "Bella," she began, her voice soft yet firm. "You need to start packing your things. It's time for you to leave this pack." Her words landed like a slap. I just froze in horror.  The silence stretched between us as I struggled to process what she'd just said. "I don't mean this to hurt you," she continued, tightly gripping my hands. "But you're wolfless, Bella. You don't belong here. Alpha Jonathan only allowed you to stay because of me, but... you're not like us. You're more human than wolf. And it's starting to strain my relationship with Alpha Jonathan." Her desperation to hold Alpha Jonathan, Maximilian's father, was so intense in her eyes that she looked completely a different person.  She did not even notice the way my entire body had turned cold and trembling. Each word was a dagger, sharp and precise, slicing through my heart.  "I hope you understand," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "It's for the best." I forced a smile, though my chest felt hollow. "I understand. I will leave."  Relief washed over her face instantly. "Good. You'll be eighteen shortly and officially an adult. It's the right time for you to move out." She gave my hand one last squeeze before turning to leave without caring where I would be going after being kicked out of the pack. "Make sure you don't forget anything when you pack." She added.  Ofcourse, she did not want the inconvenience my return would create if I left something behind and had to return to get it.   The door closed behind her, and I crumpled to the floor, my legs no longer able to hold me up. I knew this day would come. Ever since my sixteenth birthday, when my wolf never showed up, I knew my place in the Black Mountain Pack was tenuous at best. My mother had hinted at it many times, though I tried to ignore it. But I didn't expect it to come so suddenly, so brutally.  Tears pricked my eyes as I pulled the pendant out again, clutching it tightly in my hand. Tonight would be the last time I saw Maximilian. And this pendant... it wasn't just a gift. It turned out to be our goodbye.

**ISABELLA** The full moon party was delayed for some reasons but finally started around past eleven-thirty. The sound of soft music drifted through the air, mingled with laughter and the occasional howl of wolves enjoying themselves. Even from my room, where I was packing my luggage, I could hear the lively festivities in full swing. But I didn't care. No one would notice I wasn't there. No one ever did. After an hour, a sharp knock at my door jolted me out of my thoughts. I hesitated for a moment before walking over and opening the door just a crack. Standing there was Maximilian.   "Max? What are you doing here?"  I asked in a surprise.  He leaned casually against the doorframe, but his piercing gaze zeroed in on me. "Checking on you, obviously. Why aren't you at the party?" My heart raced. He noticed? But how? Maximilian was always the center of attention at these events, surrounded by she-wolves vying for his time. How could he have possibly realized I wasn't there? "I... I was tired," I stammered, struggling to maintain composure. "Just thought I'd rest." His eyes flickered down from my face, taking in the flowery dress I was still wearing. "Resting? In that dress?" Shit. Before I could come up with an excuse, his lips curled into a playful smile. "Come on. Young guys are having a separate party," he said, taking my hand without waiting for a reply. "Wait...this dress..." I panicked. He glanced over his shoulder, his gaze warm and unwavering. "You look beautiful, Bella." Heat crept up my cheeks, and my heart hammered in my chest. I wasn't bad-looking, but when he called me beautiful, it felt like I truly was. For a moment, I allowed myself to smile as I walked beside him. I never thought that before I left I would get a chance to spend some time with him. I was not that good around people but it was fine as long as I was with Maximilian.  Of course, just as quickly, the moment shattered. Maximilian suddenly groaned, stopping in his tracks and letting go of my hand sharply. "Max?" I asked, alarmed. "What's wrong?" His face was flushed, his breathing labored. Beads of sweat glistened on his forehead. "It's my rut," he growled, his voice low and strained. My eyes widened. "Rut?" As a wolfless woman, I'd never experienced a heat, but I'd heard and seen plenty about ruts. The sight of Maximilian struggling, his wolf eyes glowing to take control and his shirt clinging to his damp skin, was unexpectedly erotic. My pulse quickened as I took in his disheveled breathtaking appearance. So this is what he looks like during his rut? My mind betrayed me with forbidden thoughts. I wondered how he might look fully naked, his body..." "Fuck," he muttered under his breath, tugging at the buttons of his shirt, some popping free in his desperation. His eyes met mine, burning with intensity. "Bella... Can you help me?" My breath caught in my throat. Help him? What did he mean by that? Did he want me to have sex... My throat got dry but my heart quickened with the thrill and happiness when he stated.  "Send Ket to my room," he groaned, cutting off my thoughts. "Ket?" I froze and my all hopes and happiness shattered..  Of course. He didn't mean me. He wanted another woman. My heart twisted painfully, but I forced myself to nod. "I'll... I'll find her," I murmured, stepping away. I took a total of ten steps with a bleeding heart, then the power went out. The venue was immediately plunged into darkness, and frustrated groans echoed from the distance. The generator would kick in soon. Probably a minute or two but for now, it was pitch black. I stopped in my tracks, staring at my hands. Then, slowly, I turned to glance toward Maximilian's room. He was inside, groaning softly in need.  My feet carried me to his door before I could second-guess myself. Twisting the doorknob with shaky hands, I stepped inside, the darkness cloaking us both. "Ket?" His voice was a low rumble, thick with need. I didn't respond. Instead, I reached for the light switch and flipped it off, ensuring we remained in the shadows. He groaned impatiently, his breathing ragged. I could see his vague outline, his large frame perched on the edge of the bed, his body tense. Swallowing hard, I moved closer. 'He won't know,' I said in my mind.  People said that I was scentless too so he would not know. That's what I believed. I grabbed a cloth from a nearby table and stepped behind him, hesitating for just a moment before blindfolding him. He was confused and surprised for a moment, tried to resist until I touched his face to calm him. He froze at my touch, his breathing hitching for a brief second before he relaxed. The blindfold slipped into place, and I shakily exhaled, my resolve hardening. I glanced at the clock where it was going to be midnight in a few minutes. I was going to be eighteen.  This was the last time I would see him. I'd leave in the early hours of the morning, and he'd forget about me soon enough. But I didn't want to leave with regrets. If I wanted to move on from him, I wanted to have him just this once. I wanted to lose my virginity to him.  I wanted to only share this moment with him.  I  gently pushed him onto the bed and let my desire take over.  He would....never know.