Arealis City's elite wolf packs have a secret—the head of the Ferguson family, Evan Ferguson, worships his wife but also has affairs with other women.
He treats them like princesses and satisfies all their desires. He only has one rule—they must never allow his wife to learn about the affairs.
After all, she was the one who'd nursed him for three years after his family had betrayed him. She'd even gone on the run with him for 48 days, almost giving her life to restore him to his rightful place in his family.
Evan's newest lover is bolder than everyone else, though. She brazenly taunts me, emboldened by his feelings for her.
"You're just a weak human, Ms. Castillo. I bet you can't endure such intense intimacy, right? Last night, Evan told me I gave him a thrill he's never felt before. Look at all the love bites he's left on me!"
It's then that I realize I have no choice but to believe the man who once loved me with all his heart has changed. His love for me is no longer untainted.
I pack my things and prepare to leave. When I turn around, I see a 17-year-old Evan looking at me pleadingly. "That's not me, Bella. Don't leave me."
Arealis City's elite wolf packs had a secret—the head of the Ferguson family, Evan Ferguson, worshipped his wife but also had affairs with other women.
He treated them like princesses and satisfied all their desires. He only had one rule—they must never allow his wife to learn about the affairs.
After all, she was the one who'd nursed him for three years after his family had betrayed him. She'd even gone on the run with him for 48 days, almost giving her life to restore him to his rightful place in his family.
Evan's newest lover was bolder than everyone else, though. She brazenly taunted me, emboldened by his feelings for her.
"You're just a weak human, Ms. Castillo. I bet you can't endure such intense intimacy, right? Last night, Evan told me I gave him a thrill he's never felt before. Look at all the love bites he's left on me!"
It was at that moment I decided to leave Evan.
When I was packing my stuff, an ancient emblem with a simple design fell to the side of my feet.
That was the emblem of the Ferguson family—an item that the pack leader offered to his wife.
Evan had offered me this emblem when we were dating. I believed it was time to return the emblem to its rightful owner.
However, the emblem went missing after I found an exquisite box for it. Instead, a young boy sat in the place of that emblem.
With one look, I could tell that it was 17-year-old Evan. He gazed at me tenderly with his clear blue eyes. "Why are you leaving me, even when I love you so much?"
My belongings and outfits were laid out on the bed. He could immediately tell that I planned to leave the castle.
Evan's thick lashes accentuated his beautiful, gemstone-like eyes.
I couldn't bring myself to tell him the details of his betrayal at 27 years old. So, I brought Evan out of the castle to a pub to show him the pain his 27-year-old self had inflicted on me.
Behind a door, 27-year-old Evan was chatting with his friends in werewolf language.
"I've marked Hannah. Keep that a secret. Bella cannot hear about it."
After a moment of silence, his friends erupted in gleeful cheers.
"God, Evan Ferguson, are you the Wolf King Reincarnate? Why are all those hot werewolf babes into you? I'm so jealous."
"Don't worry, Evan. Everyone here knows that Bella, as smart and kind as she is, is as fragile as a snowflake. We will never utter a word to her."
"We can't quite understand your reason for marrying Bella. She's a human, after all. But as your friends, we will not ruin your plans."
…
Evan was more comfortable speaking werewolf language when I wasn't around. Sometimes, when I was around, he'd speak werewolf language if he wished to freely talk about the women around him.
Evan had no care because he assumed I did not speak his language. Little did he know that I had spent three years learning werewolf language in an attempt to better support him.
Although I was far from being fluent, I had no issue comprehending daily conversations.
I let go of the door handle and looked at the 17-year-old Evan beside me. "Did you hear them?"
He clenched his jaw, his lips trembling. He shot me an apologetic look. It took him a while to muster, "He said he'd marked a werewolf named Hannah, and he wanted to keep it a secret from you."
A werewolf could only have one partner throughout their lives. Two werewolves would mark each other if they were in love. The marking was both a ceremony and a promise, just like wedding ceremonies in human society.
Unfortunately, as a human, I could not complete the marking ritual with Evan. Still, he'd thrown me a grand wedding five years ago, based on the rules of human civilization.
On our wedding day, the whole of Arealis City heard that the leader of the Ferguson family had married a human female and loved her so much.
Alas, it only took him five years to forget about his promise to me. While loving me, he continued seeking pleasure from other women.
Although I had known the truth, it still hurt.
Staring at my feet, I flashed a bitter smile.
"Do I still need to explain the reason I'm leaving?"
Eyes red with tears, Evan wailed in disbelief, "Why did I do that? We've made a vow before the Moon Goddess, swearing to only love each other!"
I tried to sound as calm as possible, but the slight tremor in my voice betrayed my emotional turmoil. "I would like an answer, too. Alas, the goddess did not hear my prayers."
After all, as a fragile human, I was not considered one of the Moon Goddess' followers.
His 17-year-old self looked at me with heartache. Then, he tried to rub his furry head against my cheek.
Evan was blessed with a head of golden curls. They shone like the afternoon sunlight.
I turned my face to the side, looking frigid. "You don't have to make it up to me. You are not the one who betrayed me."
17-year-old Evan had nothing to do with his 27-year-old self who broke our promise.
His younger self moaned and sobbed. Tears fell from his sapphire blue eyes.
"Bella, how did it come to this?"
Evan sounded tearful, lost, and helpless. He couldn't understand why he had stopped loving me at 27 years old, the same way I was confused at the betrayal of my werewolf partner—known for their loyalty.
"Stop crying. I will make good on the promise I made before we left the castle.
"From now on, Evan will have three chances. If he picks another woman three more times, I will have to leave."
I would leave Evan for good, and he'd never find me again.
Inhaling deeply, I pushed open the door to the pub and was immediately met with awkward looks.
Evan released Hannah's hand. He shot up from his seat and took my hand instead.
"What brings you here?"
With the same hand he had touched Hannah with, he now tried to brush the hair from my forehead.
I flinched, and his hand froze mid-air. It was a little embarrassing.
Evan's friends immediately jumped in to speak up for him.
"Bella, you're finally here! Just now, Evan was telling us that you'd surely come looking for him."
"Right. Look! He's cut your favorite cheese for you. He's so in love with you."
"Yeah. He loves no one but you."
People always emphasized what they lacked.
Evan, at 17, knew that actions spoke louder than words. But he seemed to have forgotten this at 27.
Wearing a self-deprecating smile, I glanced at Hannah beside him.
She sported a head of glorious red hair, perfectly matching her passionate, open, and fiery nature—the very qualities that had taken Evan by storm.
Female werewolves seemed to have great bodies, but Hannah had the best body among all of Evan's werewolf girlfriends. My human body certainly wasn't attractive enough for Evan.
When Hannah met my gaze, she deliberately showed me where Evan had marked her. It looked like a fresh rose blooming after the rain.
Hannah stood up and approached me, holding a grass-infused rum special to the pack.
"I assume you're Evan's precious wife, aren't you? Hi, I'm Hannah Dixon. Want a drink to celebrate our first meeting?" She raised the glass of rum with a provocative look.
This was indeed our first encounter, but previously, I had spotted lipstick stains that weren't mine on Evan's clothes, as well as strands of red hair that had been purposely hidden in his pockets.
I did not accept the drink. Smiling softly, I complimented her, "Ms. Dixon, you have a great body. I'm sure many male werewolves are pursuing you."
She laughed loudly before pulling the strap of her top off her shoulder to reveal half of her bosom.
"Thanks for the compliment, Ms. Castillo. Yours is pretty alright too."
She shrugged at me before pressing her ample bosom against Evan's arm.
"Since you and I admire each other, why don't you drink with me?"
I looked at Evan. "What do you think?"
He cast me a troubled look.
"Evan, I just want to befriend Ms. Castillo. That's all. I've diluted the drink with some mineral water. It won't affect her in any way," Hannah persuaded him.
Evan hesitated. A conflicted look flashed across his eyes.
Then, he looked at me and began tentatively, "Dear, why don't you—"
I took the glass of rum from Hannah as I stared at him silently.
The 17-year-old Evan next to me hurriedly stopped me.
"Bella, you're a human! You can't consume werewolf drinks, or you'll die!"
The grass-infused rum was concocted with a plant only found in their pack. Werewolves who consumed that drink would enjoy a boost in stamina. However, humans might develop an allergic reaction after consuming the drink. Worse, it might lead to death by suffocation.
Ever since Evan and I stayed on the werewolves' territory, he kept such alcohol out of our castle. Not only that, he ordered the alcohol to be banned from his entire family, so that I wouldn't mistakenly consume it.
But his older self had forgotten about that risk.
I smiled and raised my glass to Hannah.
"Evan, this shall be my first."
When the bitter alcohol glided down my throat, tears nearly rolled down my cheek from the irritating effect.
Evan's younger self had gone from worried to feeling sorry for me. Then, he looked guilty.
"I'm sorry, Bella."
I thought, "Evan, it's fine. I could give love, and I could take it back too."
After I downed the alcohol, everyone in the room started to get loud and merry.
Evan held my waist. I did not struggle to break free; I sat by his side.
Everyone in the room started partying, while I stared at the ground in silence, thinking, "Evan, you have two more chances."
Rashes appeared across my face as the rum I consumed started to take effect. My breathing became short and hurried.
Younger Evan worriedly yelled for help, but no one could hear him or see him except me.
He rushed to his older self, trying to warn 27-year-old Evan about my condition.
Alas, his hand passed through older Evan's body; he couldn't touch anyone.
Meanwhile, older Evan was busy chatting and drinking with Hannah to notice my changes.
Another woman who sat beside me noticed me struggling to breathe. She came up and inquired, "Ms. Castillo, what's going on?"
The rashes on my face hurt. Holding my neck, I opened my mouth to gasp for breath. I couldn't speak.
Evan finally remembered that I was a human who could not consume werewolf rum.
Panicking and guilty, he tried to carry me in his arms.
"Bella, hang in there! I'll bring you to Dr. Brandt. He has diluents that might help."
I shook his hand off and walked out of the room with great difficulty.
Evan shot up and forcefully pulled me into his arms.
"Listen to me, Bella! You need to get an injection of diluents, or you might die!"
Hannah reached out to pull him back.
"Evan, our party hasn't ended. It's not nice of you to walk out."
Despite looking guilty, he still decided to carry me out of the room. He explained, "Hannah, Bella is in danger. I'll throw a bigger party later to make it up to you, okay?"
…
When we arrived at Charles Brandt's clinic, Evan shuffled into the place and mumbled, "Bella, hang in there. You'll be fine soon."
He finally sighed in relief when he watched Charles inject the diluent into my veins.
I lay in bed. He held my hand and said apologetically, "It was my fault. I would never forgive myself if anything happened to you after you took that rum."
I looked away, refusing to talk to him.
I knew Evan loved me, but his love was worth nothing because I had to share it with many other women.
Younger Evan teared up and pressed his cheek against mine. Feeling exhausted, I wasn't in the mood to comfort either one of them.
"I'd like to rest."
Evan thoughtfully tucked me in and looked at me tenderly. "Go to sleep. I'll stay by your side."
I closed my eyes, ignoring him.
Just as I was about to drift to sleep, someone pushed the door open.
I opened my eyes a little but quickly closed them and went back to rest when I saw it was a nurse from the clinic.
To my surprise, Evan suddenly stood up, grabbed the nurse, and went into another room.
Since Evan was loaded, he had paid for a premium hospital suite for me—one that included everything, including a few break rooms.
Younger Evan followed them around. Soon, he returned but stood far from me. He dared not come closer.
In truth, I could tell the nurse was Hannah by the gasp she let out when Evan pulled her away.
I asked, "What are they doing in that room?"
Younger Evan said nothing.
I pulled out the needles from the back of my hand and proceeded to get out of bed.
He stood at the door, blocking my way and sounding worried. "Bella, don't go! Please don't go."
His tone took a pleading turn.
I stared at him stubbornly through my red eyes. He looked back at me before finally stepping aside.
The two rooms were not far from each other. Still, I could only hear some heavy grunts and muffled talking from their door due to the impeccable soundproofing in the premium suite.
"Evan, can Bella do it in this position?"
"No. She's too fragile. She won't be able to take this."
"Heh. So, do you love me or her more?"
"I love you more than her in bed; you're such a charming temptress."
"Haha! Mr. Ferguson, get on your back. Nurse Hannah will perform a checkup on you."
Their intimate and daring exchange sent a shooting pain through my heart and 17-year-old Evan's.
Younger Evan, hiding his pain, tried to cover my ears, but his hands passed through my body.
"Bella, don't cry."
I stared at the shut door and shook my head. "No, I'm not crying."
I looked away, my face devoid of expressions.
"Evan, this is your second chance."
I stood there for a long time until older Evan finally opened the door, looking satisfied.
His suit was crinkled, and I saw bright lipstick stains on the collar of the shirt I picked out for him.
With a satiated smile, he looked up and met my eyes. His face immediately paled.
"Bella, why are you here?"
