Chapter 2

Selene POV:

The acceptance confirmation from the Alpine Crest Pack arrived within the hour. The program started in two weeks. The location was a secluded, high-altitude territory in the Swiss Alps, a world away from the lies suffocating me here. It was perfect.

I drove back to the penthouse, the place I once called our home. Now, every object seemed to mock me. The photo on the mantelpiece of us smiling on a beach, his arm wrapped tightly around me. The delicate moonstone necklace he'd given me on our first anniversary, a stone meant to symbolize the Moon Goddess's blessing on our union.

A wave of physical revulsion washed over me.

I found a box of large, black trash bags under the sink. With a fury I didn't know I possessed, I began to purge. The photos went first, the sound of shattering glass a grim satisfaction. The moonstone necklace followed, its silver chain clinking against the glass shards. Every gift, every souvenir, every single thing that tied me to him and to the five years of lies went into the bags.

When I was done, the apartment felt stark and empty, stripped of all warmth. I started packing my own things-my clothes, my architecture books, my drafting tools. My life.

Damien didn't come home that night.

He finally appeared the following evening, walking in as if nothing was wrong. He wrapped his arms around me from behind, burying his face in my neck.

"I missed you," he murmured, his voice a low rumble.

But all I could smell was her. Cassandra's cloying perfume, a scent like nightshade and deceit, clung to his skin. And underneath it, the faint, milky scent of a pup.

I stiffened and pulled away.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his brow furrowed with fake concern.

I decided to test him one last time. "I was thinking," I said, keeping my voice steady. "Maybe you were right to wait, but... I really want a pup, Damien. To solidify our bond. To make us a real family."

His expression tightened. "Selene, we've been over this. The pack needs my full attention. There are rogue threats on the border. And tensions with the Silver Creek Pack are... delicate. It's not the right time."

Another lie. The right time just wasn't with me.

As if on cue, his private communicator buzzed on the counter. He glanced at the screen and quickly flipped it over.

"It's my Beta," he said, his tone clipped. "An emergency report. I have to go."

He kissed my forehead, a gesture that felt cold and meaningless, and hurried out the door.

I waited until I heard the elevator doors close before I walked to the counter. He had been in such a rush, he'd left his backup communicator behind. My hands trembled as I picked it up.

The screen lit up with a new message. It was from Cassandra.

"Rory has a fever. His wolf is restless. He keeps asking for his Alpha father."

A sharp, cramping pain seized my abdomen. I doubled over, gasping. The lies, the stress, the heartbreak-it was all a physical weight pressing down on me. I stumbled to the bathroom and threw up, my body convulsing with the force of my grief.

The next day, I didn't go to my studio. I went to the pack's Healer, alone.

She was a kind, elderly woman who had known me since I first joined the pack. After a few tests, she came back into the examination room, her face beaming.

"Congratulations, my dear," she said, her voice warm. "You're carrying a strong, healthy pup."

She patted my hand.

"Six weeks along. The Alpha will be thrilled. An heir is on the way."