Chapter 31
DEREK
The moment my hand left Elena’s, I already regretted it. The dance was over, but my wolf was still pacing beneath my skin, growling, restless. She had been in my arms for mere minutes, yet it was long enough to remind me of everything I had lost. Everything I had thrown away.
The Alpha in me versus the obvious Luna in her. Erebus vs. Nox. The push and pull for control. The carefully orchestrated game that we played for domination.
When she had fallen, I had cursed myself for the childish impulse to tease her. To try to tame her. We were two beasts, she and I. Suddenly, I longed to turn into my wolf and run beside hers. Even the pain of the change called to me.
I watched as she stepped away, her expression composed, unreadable. It shouldn’t have affected me this much, but it did. The warmth of her body still lingered against mine, but she didn’t spare me another glance.
Instead, she was immediately surrounded.
Alphas flocked to her, drawn in like moths to a flame. Some I recognized from school, others from council meetings. But the one that made my blood heat in irritation was Jacob Halford of the Red Ridge Pack–my longtime rival, the arrogant bastard who had made it his life’s mission to get under my skin.
And now, he was standing way too close to Elena, a smirk playing on his lips as he murmured something into her ear. Erebus snarled.
I watched as Cassandra approached her, said something that was probably cruel, and watched as Elena responded coolly.
And then… and then. The Alpha and Luna of the Moonstone Pack swept into the ball. I hadn’t had much call to interact with Moonstone’s Alpha, though I knew he and my father had been bitter enemies.
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They approached Elena, and Cassandra said something. The look the Moonstone Alpha gave her after that was as cold and sharp as a frost–covered dagger.
At his words I felt as though someone had slipped that dagger between my ribs.
“Are you saying that my daughter is my son’s mistress?”
His voice was dangerously quiet, but that was no match for the silence that followed his question. Everyone in the amphitheater turned to look.
He murmured something else to Cassandra, but I couldn’t hear it above the roar of blood in my ears. Elena moved to his side and he escorted her away from the dance floor and up onto the dais that had been built for use of the elders and the more powerful packs.
As my pulse began to regulate and the murmurs in the space began to ramp back up, two
words stuck out:
“Moonstone Princess.”
The words hit me like a punch to the gut.
Elena wasn’t Mason’s lover. She was his sister.
The realization was a slow, excruciating burn, unraveling everything I had thought I knew.
She had never been a rogue. She had never been beneath me.
She was the Princess of Moonstone–my pack’s historical enemy.
I staggered back a step, my breath caught somewhere between a snarl and a gasp. My wolf was reeling, lashing at the revelation, furious at my ignorance. Furious at the lies I had
swallowed whole.
I had treated her like she was nothing. I had dismissed her, humiliated her, thrown her away like she was some lowly rogue.
But she wasn’t.
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She was everything.
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I wanted to storm across the room, shove Logan away from her, demand answers–Why didn’t you tell me? Why did you let me believe you were a rogue? Why did you let me push you away?
But I couldn’t move.
Because I knew the answer.
She didn’t remember. When she was with me, she didn’t remember her own past. And I hadn’t helped her.
a
I had done this. I was the one who had refused to see beyond my own bias, my own fear. And now, I had no claim to her.
I watched, helpless, as Elena maneuvered through the sea of adoring Alphas and Lunas, engaging effortlessly in conversation, charming them without even trying. She wasn’t just holding her own–she was dominating the room.
It should have been me beside her.
But I had given up that right.
The night pressed on in a blur of murmured conversations and shallow distractions. Cassandra clung to my arm, laughing too loudly at jokes I didn’t remember telling. I responded mechanically, my mind miles away, my focus always drawn back to Elena.
And then, Logan stepped forward.
I saw it before it happened. The way he straightened, the way he lifted his champagne glass, the way the entire room quieted in anticipation.
The moment Logan glanced at Elena, a possessive glint in his eyes, I knew I was about to witness something I did not want to see.
Then, his voice rang out.
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Chapter 31
“I’d like to make an announcement.”
My heart slammed into my ribs.
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Elena stiffened. I saw it–just for a split second, the flicker of unease in her eyes. But she didn’t stop him.
“It’s an honor to stand beside this incredible woman.” Logan’s voice was smooth, practiced, dripping with false sincerity. “Look around you,” he went on, “at all she’s done. I’m sure we can all agree that this is one of the most spectacular Alpha Balls in recent memory.”
There was scattered agreement, heads nodding, and a few of the more prominent Lunas clapped.
Logan pulled Elena in closer to himself. “And it’s not just my honor to stand beside the woman who made this all possible,” he said. “It’s my honor to call her mine.” He reached down and grabbed a glass of champagne, holding it up in salute.
A passing waiter handed me a flute as well and I took it robotically.
“Please join me in raising your glasses to Princess Elena of the Moonstone Pack. My future wife,” he looked down at her with such tenderness that it made my stomach roil. “My future Luna!”
The room erupted in applause.
I couldn’t hear it.
All I heard was the shattering of something inside me, something vital and raw.
I felt my hand go numb, the champagne flute slipping from my fingers and crashing against the marble floor. I barely registered the sound. My vision tunneled, my entire world narrowing to Elena and Logan standing together, the entire amphitheater celebrating them.
She didn’t correct him. She didn’t deny it.
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My chest tightened, a low growl rumbling in my throat. My mate. My mate.
Logan knew.
He knew.
And he had taken her anyway.
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The crowd closed in around them, clapping Logan on the back, offering congratulations, and praising Elena, Luna’s offering up advice and already talking dresses, color schemes,
flowers.
I thought back to our own wedding day, the first time I saw her in her gown. It was six years ago, but I could recall the moment with such clarity that it was almost a presence beside
- me.
I should have left. I should have walked away.
But I couldn’t.
Because in the split second that Elena lifted her gaze, locking onto mine across the crowded space, I saw something no one else did. Just for a moment no longer than a breath.
It wasn’t joy. It wasn’t love.
It was regret.
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