(It's completed! Thank you to every reader who follows this book and everyone who was moved by Zoe's story. I hope we can all achieve the future we desire!) A lone alpha lost his destined queen in a savage border raid. Her passing became the pack’s eternal wound—each year the wolves gather in silence beneath a moon painted black. Five years on, the mark on his soul flares again—this time for the last person he expected: the younger sister of the woman whose ghost still rules every heartbeat. Whispers rise like winter fog: she was the reason the beloved heir leapt into death’s jaws; she should have been the one never to return. She has grown up invisible, a pale echo of a brighter star, bearing the weight of every unspoken wish that the grave had chosen differently. She dreamed that a mate’s eyes might finally see her, not the silhouette behind her. Instead she finds the same mirror of grief—and when he flinches, her last hope cracks. One word, sharp as broken ice, severs the bond before it can tighten. He lets her walk away, telling himself it is mercy. Then the ground shifts: buried lies surface, guilt turns inside-out, and the alpha understands how completely he was wrong. He races against rumor and remorse, chasing the flicker of a second chance. But the wolf he rejected has learned to sing her own song beneath stranger moons—and she is no longer sure the path home ends with him.
Ten million dollars. Her price tag. An open marriage contract deal. "The credit limit increase is generous," the lawyer said. "From one million to ten million annually." "What if I change my mind?" "Then you lose the children," the lawyer said, matter-of-factly. "Without family money or independent income, custody battles become very difficult." After eighteen years as the devoted wife of billionaire Daniel Harrison, Emma faces a heart-wrenching ultimatum: sign a $10 million open marriage contract or lose custody of her three children. Shattered by Daniel’s cold betrayal and his affair with his calculating personal assistant, Natalie, Emma’s perfect world unravels. Seeking solace, she finds an unexpected ally in Robert Langley—Natalie’s betrayed husband in her open marriage, a powerful businessman and devoted father whose quiet strength ignites a forbidden passion neither of them can resist. As their connection deepens, Emma must choose—cling to the wealth and stability her children depend on or risk everything for a love that could redeem her heart. When betrayal collides with desire, will Emma choose safety or a second chance at a life she never dared to dream of?
Sloane Hartwell is the niece of Roman and Samara Hartwell. She is descended from a long line of pure Alphas who shift into the rare white wolf. At the tender age of eight, Sloane found out that her mother and the man she thought was her father were responsible for the death of her mother’s parents and brother, the Alpha heir. She also discovered that her mother murdered her birth father, thinking that he was not an Alpha. When her Aunt Samara returned, her mother and mate were both killed for their betrayal. Sloane worked hard to be worthy of becoming a white wolf and on her tenth birthday, when she got her wolf, she anxiously raced to see if she’d done enough, only to be disappointed that her wolf was a normal wolf. Benedict Winslow, V is an Alpha heir in a very long line of Alphas. His family is well known in the werewolf community, his bloodline going back so far that he’s practically werewolf royalty. Benedict has been watching Sloane for years, seeing how hard she works, how strong she is, and how she doesn’t take crap from anyone. He appreciates her toughness and her love of family. When he invites Sloane to his eighteenth birthday party, his family is less than pleased. Unwilling to offend her powerful family, they allow her to stay, only to find out that Benedict feels the pull to her as a mate. However, Sloane doesn’t feel worthy of having any mate, much less someone like Benedict. When she pushes him away, he refuses to let her go. Can Benedict convince Sloane that he truly wants her as his mate? Can Sloane let go of the pain of her past and allow herself to find happiness?
“I’m sorry Quinn, but I; Jeovanni Lum rejects you; Quinn Felon as my mate. You’re no longer Luna of this pack, nor are you my fated mate. Accept my rejection.” His words awakened the pain within Quinn, and she fell to her knees, crying out when it became too much to bear…she didn’t want to, but if she didn’t accept his rejection, she’d die. “I…I Quinn Felon a-accepts your rejection…I am no longer Luna, nor am I your fated mate.” It was hard to say the words because these words were never ones she thought she’d ever have to say… ~ Quinn Felon was at the very pique of happiness when her life started to crumble apart. Her mate whom she had spent three long and blissful years with suddenly didn’t seem to love her anymore. He became distant and cold, and soon Quinn found the reason behind his change…it was because he was courting her sister…her sweet and innocent omega sister; Delilah. She had predicted that he’d choose Delilah, but what she hadn’t foretold was being rejected and banished in front of the whole pack in the middle of her mate’s and her sister’s mating ceremony.
Everyone thought she would finally marry her fiancé at the marriage bureau. She waited until sunset, only to be stood up for the third time. Crushed and heartbroken, she called the powerful rival of his family on impulse, asking casually: “Want to steal from them and get married with me?” The wealthy tycoon across the ocean replied in a low, meaningful tone: “Deal. But I don’t play games—I mean forever.” She called off the engagement quietly and cut all contact with her ex. A month later, she was stunned to meet her mysterious husband: a handsome, billionaire heir. When her regretful ex abandoned his mistress and begged for reconciliation, she smiled and waved their marriage certificate coldly: “Bigamy is illegal. Besides, I never take back trash.”
On the night that was meant to celebrate three years of vows, I walked into our chamber and found my husband tangled in the sheets—with his brother’s widow. Shock scalded my lungs; their laughter scalded worse. “Wolfless trash,” they sneered, turning my own marriage bed into a courtroom. Their plan was simple: brand me unfit, lock me away, and divide the Aurorawisp Pack—my birthright—between them. I ran barefoot through corridors I once called home, heart drumming two words: escape, revenge. At the edge of the territory, under a moon sharp enough to cut glass, I met the one man no wolf dares challenge—Alpha Ethan, sovereign of the northern wilds, power rolling off him like winter smoke. “Alpha,” I breathed, cheeks flaming, “will you help me end this marriage?” A slow, sovereign smile. “I can dissolve bonds, Madam…but I collect a price.” I lifted my chin, voice trembling. “I won’t pay with my body. I can offer coin—” “Keep your gold,” he said, gaze pinning me like a specimen of starlight. “I want one year. You at my side, my name on your lips, my mark on your wrist—contract Luna, nothing more, nothing less.” The night air crackled. One signature, and I’d trade a traitor’s ring for a tyrant’s collar. Yet if power is currency, perhaps the most dangerous ally is exactly the weapon I need. I extended my hand. “One year, Alpha. When the contract burns out, I walk free.” His fingers closed over mine—warm steel. “One year, Luna. Then we both decide what freedom means.”
