Chapter 1

The omega Finn Blackwood kept at the edge of the territory was eight months pregnant. Due any day.

He came to me again. Asked for the rejection ceremony.

Four years bonded. This was the fourth time he'd tried to force me to sever our mate mark―for her.

The first three times, he'd thrown everything at me. Alpha commands. Emotional blackmail. Threats to isolate the entire estate. I never bent.

This time, I said nothing. Just nodded.

"Fine."

Finn exhaled in relief and gave me that considerate, practiced reassurance.

"Once the elders confirm the pup's birthright as heir, we'll go to the Moon Temple and renew the bond."

"Don't worry. In front of the entire pack, the child will still call you Luna."

He believed I'd respond the same way I always had. A little coaxing. A little pressure. I'd fall in line. Once he got what he wanted, everything would snap back to normal.

A month later, Finn called me.

"The inheritance is settled. Tomorrow, we restore the mate mark."

A lazy male voice answered his call.

"Mm. Not really interested in making my pup call another man 'Daddy.' Ex-husband."

***

Finn had been gone a month. The first thing he did when he came back was lay the rejection petition in front of me.

"Chloe's about to give birth. We need to complete the rejection ceremony first. I have to secure the child's legal inheritance rights."

No greeting. No preamble. Not even a perfunctory pheromone soothe.

That alone told me how desperately he wanted the mark severed this time.

I lifted my teacup, took a slow sip, then spoke at my own pace.

"Finn. Do you remember what today is?"

A rare blank look crossed his face.

He didn't remember.

I let out a soft laugh. My gaze dropped to the petition.

"It's our bonding anniversary."

Bitter, really.

The past three years, no matter how many women he chased outside the territory, he'd always come back to the estate on this day. Dinner with me. A gift, prepared.

This year, his gift was a petition asking me to stand before the Moon Goddess and formally reject him.

I had to admit it. Chloe was different to him.

Before her, the she-wolves and human women cycled through his life constantly. A month, at most. But Chloe had stayed a full year.

And for her, he'd asked me for the rejection ceremony four times.

I couldn't understand it at first. What kind of magic did a low-ranked omega possess to make a top-tier alpha so utterly ensnared?

Later, the pack's shaman gave me the answer in private.

Chloe's pheromones belonged to an extremely rare type known as Moonlight. In the days leading up to her heat, that scent exerted a near-instinctual dominance over any unmarked alpha. Impossible to resist.

And the first night Finn met her had fallen exactly on that window.

I used to hate that explanation. It felt like nothing more than an excuse for a faithless man.

But eventually, I made my peace with it. Whether it was instinct or genuine feeling―it didn't matter anymore.

What mattered was this: he chose to follow that instinct.

The first time he asked for the rejection, he'd just started pursuing Chloe. He threw millions at her―jewelry, gifts. She refused him with a line about never becoming the other woman who broke a sacred bond.

So Finn brought the petition to me.

I didn't agree. I threw it into the fireplace, walked out, and stayed at my best friend Emma's place for two straight weeks.

Finn retaliated with an Alpha command, trying to force my she-wolf to submit. I gritted my teeth and endured. Never knelt.

He backed off. For a while.

The second time, it was Chloe's birthday. Finn promised to grant her any wish. She wished for him to be single.

The petition appeared in front of me again.

This time, I hurled it into the flames.

Finn spent three full days working on me. Alternating between coaxing and threatening. He used our twenty-six years of history as leverage. I moved into the guest room. I never gave in.

The third time, Chloe demanded a formal status. She threatened to throw herself off the territory's high platform if Finn didn't give her an answer.

That night, Finn knelt before me. Eyes red. Voice breaking.

"Jen. Last time. I'm begging you."

I stared down at the man on his knees. That boy who once held me tight in the pouring rain, swearing he'd never become the man his father was. I only felt revulsion. And a stranger.

I didn't agree. I slid the petition into a drawer, walked into the bedroom, and locked the door.

"Finn. One day, you'll regret this."

Today was the fourth time.

Chloe could go into labor any moment. The pup's inheritance couldn't wait.

This time, Finn didn't kneel. Didn't plead.

He used every tool an Alpha possessed. Command. Public pressure. Freezing all my Luna permissions within the pack. He even used the baby as leverage, threatening to send the child out of the territory if the inheritance wasn't settled.

I finally let go of the rope in this tug-of-war.

Not because he'd won.

Because I no longer cared.

A flicker of guilt surfaced in Finn's eyes, belated.

"Jen. I'm sorry. Chloe's been in late pregnancy. I completely forgot about the anniversary."

"I'll have the Beta pick out a gift right now. Have it sent over."

"Don't bother." I pushed the petition back toward him. "The ceremony is in three days. You can go now."

Finn stared at the paper. Frozen for a long moment.

"Jen, you..."

Male alphas are cheap creatures. When you stop fighting and give them what they want, they can't handle it.

A mocking smile tugged at my lips.

"Isn't this what you wanted?"