aside, frowning in displeasure.
“Why are you looking at wedding dresses?”
At first, I thought he had found out about the wedding, and I was about to explain
But then he said something that made me realize just how ridiculous my thoughts had been.
“Ophelia, are you trying to pressure me into marriage? I told you I’d make you my Luna. You don’t need to play these games to hint at me it’s kind of tacky.”
Chapter 3
“You misunderstood, I’m
But he waved me off, not listening to my explanation.
“I’ve got things to do. I’m leaving now. And honestly, stop doing things that drain my feelings for you.
The door slammed shut, and the room fell into a deathly silence.
I stood there for a long time, then laughed at myself bitter, hollow.
Thorne, how much of your love for me is even left to drain?
If this had happened before, I’d have been upset, unable to sleep or eat from his misunderstanding. But now, I pulled myself together quickly.
I went back to looking at the wedding details my mom had sent.
Before logging off Moons, I idly scrolled through unread posts. One caught my eye–from Thorne, who rarely shared anything on social media. “You’re so perfect, my heart. Of course, I want to marry you and keep you by my side, always.”
The picture showed Liora alone, along with their wedding invitation.
Less than a minute later, a mutual friend commented:
Less
“Alpha, are you really replacing our pack’s Luna like this?”
Thorne’s post vanished almost instantly, only to reappear on Liora’s Moons page moments later.
Soon after, my phone lit up with Thome’s call.
had happened before, I’d have snapped a screenshot and called him first, ready to fight tooth and claw over it.
But this time, I let the call ring out, unbothered, no urge to answer.
Oddly, the post didn’t sting like I thought it would. Maybe I’d gone numb to it all,
My first thought was that their mating ceremony was on the same day as mine. What a coincidence.
By the time Thome got home, I had already gone to bed
He quietly opened the door and walked to my bedside.
Ophelia, are you asleep? I tried calling you, Why didn’t you answer?”
I turned away from him, casually brushing it off. “I must’ve accidentally fallen asleep, didn’t hear it.”
Thorne sighed in relief, bending down to feel my forehead. “Are you still having a fever?”
When he put close, the sickeningly sweet scent of women’s perfume on him made me feel a wave of nausea, almost causing me to gag.
So I instinctively moved to the side, avoiding his touch.
His hand hovered in the air, a look of shock on his face.
“Ophelia, anything happened?”
I buried myself under the covers, speaking with my voice muffled. “No, it’s just the cold. I want to sleep.”
I slept until the next morning, finally feeling a little lighter.
I got up and began packing my things, slowly erasing every trace of myself from this house.
That’s when it hit me—I’d bought all those matching couple items, things Thome and I used to share. But somewhere along the way, they’d been tossed into commers, left to gather dust.
I parked them all into a bag and threw them away.
There was also a scrapbook which filled with photos from our trips, postcards we’d collected, tickets for traveling between different places and letters he’d written me.
That scrapbook was filled with the memories of our years together.
But ever since Liora came into our life, no new photos had been added.
When Thome came home, I was just about to toss the scrapbook into the fireplace. He stormed over, snatching it from the fire as if he had gone mad, his hands burning from the heat.
Ignoring the pain, he glared at me, furious.
“What are you doing? Do you know how important this scrapbook is to us? Why did you burn it?”
Thorne rarely raised his voice at me, and this was the first time he’d spoken to me lilor this.
His concern seemed genuine, but the truth was, he was hiding the fact that he planned to marry someone else.
to
Not wanting to argue, I casually said, “The scrapbook got moldy, and I backed everything up. I can just make a new one later.”
Hearing this, he calmed down.
As I applied bum ointment to his hands, Thorne stared at me, then suddenly spoke.
“Ophelia, I’ve noticed you’ve seemed a bit down latel a while?”
lately. Work stress getting to you? I’ve arranged a private getaway for you – why don’t you go unwind for
I froze for a moment, then looked up at him. “Just me? You’re not coming along?
Thome sighed, his voice heavy with regret. “The pack’s swamped with work. I can’t get away this time, but I’ll join you next time, I promise!!
But Thorne, there won’t be a next time for us..
I lowered my head, focusing on applying the ointment. “What about the pack? Who’ll look after them if I’m gone?”
“Don’t worry, I’ve got it covered,” he said.
1 pushed back “I don’t want to go.”
His tone turned firm, unyielding “Come on, sweetheart, it’s all set. I can’t back out now.”
1 said nothing, but a cold feeling seeped into my chest.
not
going to tell her. I’ll keep it a secret for as
1 remembered half–dreaming the night before, hearing Thome on the phone with someone saying “I’m n long as possible”
“Just in case, I’ll send her on a trip during the wedding preparations, let her get away.
