Aria's POV

On my birthday, I threw a party at home. But when it was time to start, Ethan still hadn't shown up.

Everyone at the party kept asking where he was and whether he was planning a surprise. After all, every year before this, he'd stayed by my side the entire time on my birthday.

I didn't answer their questions. I just grabbed a bottle of champagne and popped it open like a firecracker. "Happy birthday to me!"

Everyone laughed and raised their glasses.

"Happy birthday to our most beautiful and powerful Luna!"

I smiled. "I'm ready to tell Ethan that we should—"

The sound of the door slamming open cut me off.

All the guests in the living room turned around, and then everyone gasped at the same time.

Lily stood in the doorway, supporting a very drunk Ethan. When she noticed everyone staring at her, her face flushed red, and she started stammering. "S-sorry to interrupt. I just brought Ethan home."

Today was my birthday, and he'd gotten drunk with another woman.

I set down my glass and walked calmly to the door. I reached out to help him inside.

But he shoved my hand away.

He clung tightly to Lily, and right in front of every pack member, he kissed her forehead.

The guests stared in shock. A few of the older wolves even started growling low in their throats—their anger at an Alpha publicly humiliating his Luna.

But I just stepped back and cleared the way.

Ethan buried his face in Lily's neck and breathed in deeply, his voice thick with satisfaction. "God, you smell so good. How do you smell this good?"

The entire living room went silent.

Lily's face turned even redder, but her eyes gleamed with triumph. Still, she kept up her act of looking troubled. "Luna, Ethan's drunk and talking nonsense. He's just been so busy with work that he forgot about your birthday..."

I kept my voice calm. "The bedroom's upstairs, last door on the left. You can take him up."

Lily froze. She clearly hadn't expected me to stay this composed.

She gave a stiff nod and helped Ethan up the stairs.

After they disappeared, I picked up the champagne bottle again and smiled at the guests around me. "Anyone else want a drink?"

People stayed for a few more drinks out of politeness, then started making excuses to leave. A few she-wolves I was close with gave me pitying looks on their way out, but they didn't say anything.

In the pack, that was just reality—the Alpha could do whatever he wanted, and the Luna had to endure it silently.

I leaned back on the couch and sipped my wine alone.

The burning in my chest started again. That was the Moonbreak Herb kicking in, reminding me that the mate bond was breaking apart piece by piece.

*****

Lily finally came downstairs at eleven.

With no one else around, she dropped the act completely. She slammed the door on her way out, head held high, strutting like she owned the place.

She was marking her territory.

I watched her leave, my face blank.

The second she was gone, my phone rang.

Cameron's name flashed on the screen, and I smiled—my first genuine smile all night. I picked up. "Didn't we just talk this morning?"

His voice came through the line, a little sulky. "It's your birthday, Aria. You won't even come see me, and I can't call to wish you happy birthday?"

I thought about how hurt he'd looked this morning when I told him I couldn't make it, and my heart softened. "Don't pout," I said gently. "This is the last birthday I'll ever spend in this bond. If it makes you feel better, you can plan all my birthdays from now on. Deal?"

I could hear the smile creep into his voice. "Celebrate however I want? Aria, you better not back out."

I laughed softly. "I'm severing a mate bond for you. When have I ever lied to you?"

We talked for a long time after that. Just before we hung up, I heard fireworks exploding outside my window.

I turned and saw the night sky burst into color—fireworks blooming one after another, so bright they turned the darkness into daylight.

Cameron's voice came through the phone, soft and serious. "Happy birthday, Aria."

"From now on, I'll be right there beside you. Every single year."

I froze.

Cameron did this?

I rushed to the window and realized the fireworks stretched across the entire city skyline. This must have cost a fortune.

Cameron was just a regular wolf. How could he possibly afford something like this?

It had to be just a coincidence.

But my heart warmed anyway, and I couldn't stop it.

Aria's POV

I woke up to the sound of Ethan on the phone downstairs, his voice drifting up through the gap under the door.

"Now. Immediately. Send over the best moonstone necklace you have."

I opened my eyes and stared at the ceiling. My birthday was already over.

When I came downstairs, the omega maid was setting up breakfast. She saw me and immediately dropped her gaze.

"Good morning, Luna."

"Morning."

Then I saw her—Lily standing in the doorway with a velvet box in her hands, but her eyes weren't on me at all. They were glued to Ethan.

She held up the box with a perfect smile. "I'm here to deliver the Alpha's birthday gift for you."

A pause. Her gaze swept across my face like she was searching for cracks.

"Oh, right," she tilted her head, "there have been some rogue wolves near my apartment lately, so it's not really safe. The Alpha said I could stay here for a few days."

She looked at me, and her smile widened.

"You don't mind, do you, Luna?"

My eyes shifted to Ethan.

He was frowning, but he didn't say anything. No denial. No refusal.

In that moment, the coldness in my chest spread completely through me.

So, even this line could be crossed so easily.

"Sure." My voice came out flat and empty. "Stay as long as you want."

Lily froze. She clearly hadn't expected that response.

Ethan froze too—I saw shock flash across his eyes, and something close to panic.

He stood up like he wanted to say something, but Lily moved first. She wrapped herself around his arm, pressing her whole body against him, and when she looked up at him, her eyes were full of helpless dependency.

"Ethan, see? Luna doesn't mind at all."

Ethan's throat worked. Whatever refusal he'd been about to give died on his lips.

I looked away.

"Continue with breakfast," I told the maid, then turned and headed back to my room.

"Aria."

Ethan called after me.

"You really don't mind?"

I didn't turn around.

He knocked three times that morning.

The first time, he said Lily might disturb me.

The second time, he said if I wasn't happy about it, he wouldn't let her move in.

The third time, he walked straight in, closed the door, and used that tone I knew so well—casual, soothing, dismissive.

"Aria, I've told you so many times—those omegas out there don't mean anything. They're just distractions. They could never compare to you."

He moved closer.

"So don't bottle everything up. If you want to get angry, then get angry."

I set down my book and turned to look at him.

His eyes were searching for signs of anger, sparks of jealousy, anything that proved I still cared.

But there was nothing left.

"I told you," I said, "I really don't mind."

Ethan's expression changed.

That mask of perfect control cracked, and underneath I saw something close to fear.

"Why?" His voice went tight. "Why don't you mind? You weren't like this before."

I looked at him and suddenly wanted to laugh.

Right. I wasn't like this before. I used to yell, throw things, and pull rank as his Luna during our fights. Those arguments drained so much energy from me and cost me so many tears.

Then he said he hated that version of me.

So I smiled gently. It was precisely the way he'd always wanted me to be.

"Isn't this better?" I asked him. "Isn't this what you always wanted, Ethan?"

I gestured toward the door.

"I'm a little tired. I'd like to rest."

He stood there like he'd been nailed to the floor.

Then he left.

The door closed softly.

I walked to the wall and looked at the calendar. I reached up and tore off a page.

Aria's POV

By evening, Lily's two massive suitcases were piled in the foyer.

She stood in the living room like she owned the place and waved at the staff. "Get rid of all these lilies—I want roses. And make venison for dinner with my herb recipe."

I sat by the window and stared out at the darkening sky. Ethan was flipping through files on the couch, but his gaze kept drifting toward me with something like worry mixed with guilt.

I stood up and walked over to the wall calendar.

Another day gone.

I tore off today's page, and the ripping sound cut through the silence.

Ethan's head snapped up. "You tear off a page every single day. What are you counting down to?"

"Nothing." I didn't look at him and just stared at the shrinking stack of paper. "Just gives me something to do."

He got up fast, and panic flashed in his eyes. "Aria, this is our den. My promise to you still stands—Lily shouldn't be living here. I'll take her back right now."

He turned toward the stairs and shouted up, "Pack your things. You're leaving today."

Lily froze at the top of the staircase, and tears instantly filled her eyes. "Ethan, you just agreed to this... what happened?"

"I changed my mind." Ethan's voice went cold, and his Alpha authority rolled out like a wave. "This is mine and Aria's den. I never should've let anyone else move in. I made her a promise—and I won't break it."

Lily's face went white, and her voice shook. "But Luna already said yes—"

"Her saying yes doesn't make it right." Ethan cut her off. "Pack. Now."

A few minutes later, Lily came downstairs, dragging her suitcases, eyes red and swollen like the whole world had abandoned her.

The engine started.

They left the house together.

After they left, I walked over to the wall. Six pages remained.

*****

Three days had passed since Ethan left with Lily, and he hadn't set foot in pack territory once. I didn't care. I just kept packing my things in silence, and the moonlight spilled through the window onto everything I was about to take with me.

As his Luna, I used to have full access to the pack vault. Over the years, I'd used his resources to build up properties of my own. Today, I went to the notary's office and ensured that every house and piece of land was legally registered in my name.

I deserved all of it.

I took the jewelry from dozens of display cases—most of them courting gifts Ethan had given me during our mating pursuit—and moved everything to a bank vault. The gems caught the light and threw off a cold glitter, just like my heart felt right now.

Once the mate bond was entirely severed and I officially left the pack, I'd move everything to my new home.

I had wasted five years of my life on Ethan.

These jewels, these properties—they were my compensation for the damage.

As the Alpha's former mate, I had every right to take it all.

The days slipped by one after another, and I tore off the last page of my calendar.

The Moonbreak Herb should have taken full effect in his system by now. That night, I poured his drink myself, and the bitterness of the herb disappeared entirely into the burn of the liquor. He didn't notice a thing—just like he never noticed my pain.

My phone buzzed suddenly.

A message from Lily, accompanied by a photo.

It was my grandmother's pocket watch. [Luna, I saw this pretty little watch in your room the other day and just took it. I'm bored with it now, so you can come pick it up yourself.]

My wolf spirit howled inside me.

But I forced her down. I couldn't lose control now, not when I was this close to the end.

I checked the address in her message—the riverbank by Central Bridge—and drove there immediately.

I rushed to the riverbank, and there was Lily, standing right at the edge with Grandma's pocket watch held high above her head. Her eyes glowed gold under the moonlight—a telltale sign of a wolf on the verge of losing control.

"Aria," she said with a smirk that didn't quite reach her eyes. "I called you here tonight to settle something once and for all."

"Settle what?" I kept my voice steady, but my wolf was already pacing beneath my skin.

"I want to see who Ethan would choose—you or me."

A cold dread crept through my chest, but I couldn't look away from the watch dangling in her grip. It was the only thing I had left of my grandmother, and I wasn't about to let this woman taint it.

I stepped forward and reached for it.

I watched her performance with cold detachment, feeling nothing at all.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Lily's voice was sharp and grating. "Just because you're his Luna? Ethan's wolf soul doesn't even recognize you anymore! His Alpha mark hasn't been refreshed on you in months!"

She was right.

Ethan's scent had faded from my skin weeks ago, so faint now that no one could detect it. The mate mark that was supposed to be renewed every week had turned into a pale gray scar, like a tattoo left out in the sun too long.

But I felt nothing.

Lily was clearly waiting for me to break down, scream, or maybe lunge at her and start a fight. Instead, I just stood there and watched her like I was seeing a play that had nothing to do with me.

That made her even crazier.

Jealousy twisted her features into something ugly, and her carefully maintained face looked almost monstrous now. Her eyes burned with sick obsession, and her fingers had gone white from clenching too hard.

"You wanna know why Ethan suddenly got so cold with you?" She let out a vicious laugh. "I bribed someone at the lab and faked your pheromone data. Made Ethan think you used an artificial gland transplant to trick him, and that I'm his real fated mate. He believed me right away. You're so pathetic."

My heart skipped a beat. So that was it.

That's why Ethan had turned so distant out of nowhere, why he'd looked at me with all that suspicion in his eyes.

He thought I'd lied to him.

I thought I'd be shaking with rage right now, thought I'd want to claw her face off, but there was nothing. My chest felt hollow, like an empty room after all the furniture's been moved out. The heart that used to race for Ethan couldn't even manage a ripple anymore.

"So what?" My voice came out calm, so calm it sounded like a stranger's.

Lily froze. "You're not even mad?" She stared at me like she couldn't believe it.

Mad?

I would've been once. Three months ago, I would've been destroyed. I would've confronted Ethan and demanded to know why he didn't trust me, why he threw away our bond so easily over some suspicion.

But now I just didn't care anymore.

She looked at my indifference and let out a cold laugh before throwing the pocket watch into the river.

The silver case caught the moonlight as it arced through the air, and I heard the soft splash as it disappeared into the dark water.

"You—!"

My wolf shattered through my control. I felt my canines lengthen and my nails sharpen into claws. I grabbed her throat and pinned her against the railing. "Lily, how dare you?"

That's when I heard the roar of an engine approaching fast.

Something shifted in Lily's expression. Her gaze flicked toward the familiar black sports car pulling up, and a slow, satisfied smile spread across her face.

Then she shoved me with everything she had.

I lost my balance and stumbled backward.

In the split second before I hit the water, I watched Lily throw herself in after me.