Timothy's POV

Kael won't shut up.

My wolf has been pacing and snarling in my mind all day, ever since that incident with Penelope in the tunnel. He keeps throwing images at me of her stricken face, the way she stumbled when she ran. Something that makes every instinct I possess stand at attention.

"You're distracted," Dad observes from behind his massive oak desk. The Alpha's office overlooks our territory like a throne room, all dark wood."Madison's father called. He's concerned about your commitment to their arrangement."

I force myself to focus on his words instead of Kael's increasingly agitated whining. "What arrangement?"

"Don't play stupid, Timothy." His eyes narrow dangerously. "The mating contract we've been negotiating. Madison Sawyer is perfect Alpha Luna material strong bloodline, political connections, proper breeding."

The words feel strange to my ears, what was I expecting to just fuck and pass. Madison family had strong political connections in the werewolf pack and my dad saw that as an opportunity to strengthen his status. I never had a say in the Matter so I nod anyway. This is what has always been expected.

"The ceremony is tomorrow night," Dad continues. "I want you to formally announce your intention to court her. Make it clear to the pack that you're settling down."

Tell him no, Kael snarls. Tell him we won't be caged.

But I can't. This is duty, and duty comes before everything else. Even before whatever strange pull I felt toward a certain Omega girl with devastating eyes.

"Of course," I hear myself saying. "Whatever the pack needs."

Dad's smile is sharp with approval. "Good boy. I've arranged for the announcement to coincide with your hockey victory celebration. Killing two birds with one stone."

The meeting continues, but I'm only half-listening. My mind keeps drifting to physics class, to the way Penelope looked when Professor Williams talked about incompatible particles. She'd gone pale as moonlight, clutching her desk like it was the only thing keeping her upright.

Why do I care? She's nobody a bottom-tier Omega from a disgraced family who clearly has some kind of unhealthy fixation on me. The video Madison posted proves it. Penelope was literally stalking me, watching me through cracks in the doors like some kind of obsessed fan.

So why does Kael keep insisting something's wrong. "Timothy!" Dad's sharp bark jerks me back to the present. "I asked you a question."

"Sorry," I straighten in my chair. "What was it?"

"I said, what are you planning to do about the Omega situation?"

My blood goes cold. "What Omega situation?"

Dad's expression darkens. "Don't pretend you haven't seen that video, son. The whole pack is talking about it. Some pathetic Omega girl has been stalking you, and now it's public knowledge. It's quite embarrassing."

"She wasn't stalking me," I said quickly, then cursed myself for defending her. "She just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"What happened?" Dad laughs, but there's no humor in it. "Timothy, she's been watching you for months. Multiple pack members have reported seeing her lurking around your usual haunts. This isn't a coincidence—it's an obsession."

The news hits me. Months? Multiple sightings? Why didn't anyone tell me before now?

Because you wouldn't have cared before, Kael whispers. But now.

"What do you want me to do about it?" I ask carefully.

"Handle it," Dad replies. "Publicly. Make it clear that this behavior is unacceptable, that there are consequences for Omegas who forget their place. The pack needs to see that the Blackthorn family doesn't tolerate disrespect."

My stomach churns. "You want me to humiliate her?"

"I want you to remind everyone where the lines are drawn." Dad leans forward."You're going to be Alpha someday, Timothy. How you handle challenges to your authority even pathetic ones sets the tone for your entire reign."

The weight of expectation settles on my shoulders like a familiar burden. This is what being an Alpha heir means crushing anyone who threatens the hierarchy, even scared Omega girls with hopeless crushes.

"I'll take care of it," I promise, hating how easily the words come.

Dad nods approvingly. "Good. Do it tomorrow night, after the ceremony. Make sure the whole pack witnesses it. Let them see what happens when someone reaches too high."

I leave his office feeling sick to my stomach. The hallways of our mansion feel like a mausoleum—all marble and ancestral portraits and the suffocating weight of legacy. Every Blackthorn Alpha stares down from their frames, reminding me of the blood that runs in my veins and the duties it demands.

My phone buzzes with texts from teammates celebrating last night's championship win, but I can't summon any excitement. The victory feels hollow when I know what's coming tomorrow.

In my room, I try to focus on game film, but the footage blurs as Kael continues his mental assault.

She's not what they think, he insists. There's something special about her. She is important.

"She's an Omega," I mutter aloud. "A nobody from a disgraced family who's been stalking me for months."

Look deeper.

"I've looked enough." I slam my laptop shut harder than necessary. "This conversation is over."

But Kael refuses to back down. Throughout the evening, he keeps flooding my senses with memories I didn't know I'd stored Penelope helping a younger student with homework in the library, Penelope volunteering at the pack's charity drive despite having nothing to give, Penelope standing up to a group of bullies picking on a smaller Omega.

Small moments. Glimpses of character that paint a picture completely different from the desperate stalker in Madison's video.

By midnight, I'm pacing my room like a caged animal. Through my window, Moonlight Lake gleams in the distance the place where tomorrow night I would complete my mission.

Penelope's POV

The Moon Ceremony is torture.

I stand at the very back of the gathered pack, trying to blend into the shadows while Alpha Blackthorn drones on about tradition and strength. The video has made me infamous pack members keep shooting me sideways glances and whispering behind their hands. Some look amused, others disgusted, but all of them see me as entertainment.

"Tonight, we celebrate not just our hockey victory, but the bright future of our pack," Alpha Blackthorn's voice booms across the ceremonial grounds. "My son Timothy has proven himself worthy of leadership through his athletic achievements and his wise choices."

My stomach clenches as Timothy steps forward, looking like a golden god in his ceremonial clothes. The pack erupts in cheers and howls of approval. He's everything an Alpha heir should be strong, beautiful, born to rule.

"Furthermore," Alpha Blackthorn continues, "I'm pleased to announce Timothy's intention to formally court Madison Sawyer, daughter of Beta Robert Sawyer. A union that will strengthen both our families and secure our pack's future."

The words hit me as I watch Timothy take Madison's hand, watch her radiant smile as she accepts the pack's approval, watch my last desperate hope crumble to ash.

They look perfect together the Alpha heir and his chosen Luna, both beautiful, both powerful, both exactly what werewolf royalty should be. Not like me, standing alone in my thrift store dress, counting down the minutes until my public execution.

"The ceremony will take place at the next full moon," Alpha Blackthorn declares. "Until then, let us celebrate their commitment!"

More cheers, more howls, more proof that fairy tales don't come true for girls like me. I turn to slip away before anyone notices, but Isla catches my arm.

"Are you okay?" she asks softly, her green eyes full of sympathy.

I shake my head, not trusting my voice. If I try to speak, I'll start crying, and I've humiliated myself enough for one lifetime.

"Maybe you should skip whatever Timothy wanted to talk about," Isla suggests cautiously, her green eyes full of concern. "This feels like a setup."

"No!" I say too quickly that it almost sounded desperate. "You don't understand. This is our chance, our real chance."

Isla frowns. "What are you talking about?"

"The announcement tonight it's just for show," I explain, my words tumbling over each other. "Pack politics, you know? But privately, when we're alone, he can tell me how he really feels."

"Penelope," Isla's voice grows gentle, like she's talking to someone mentally unstable, "he just got engaged to someone else."

"Arranged engagement," I correct firmly, wrapping my arms around myself. "It's different. The Moon Goddess doesn't make mistakes about mates."

Isla looks alarmed now. "Honey, you don't even know if you're actually mates. You've never spoken to him"

"I don't need to speak to him to know," I interrupt, my voice rising with desperate conviction. "I can feel it. The bond, The connection. When our eyes met in that tunnel, he felt it too, he also saw the recognition."

"What you saw was him realizing you'd been watching him," Isla says carefully, reaching for my hand. "That's not the same thing as."

I jerk away from her touch. "You don't understand. You weren't there. You didn't see the way he looked at me."

But even as I say it, doubt creeps in. Had Timothy looked at me with recognition, or just shock? Had I seen desire in his eyes, or disgust?

No. I can't think like that, hope is all I have left.

"I have to go," I whisper to Isla, my voice shaking. "I need to prepare for tomorrow night."

She looks worried but nods. "Just be careful, okay? Alphas can be cruel when they feel cornered."

The crowd begins to disperse as the official ceremony ends. Families head home, young wolves drift toward unofficial after-parties, and couples slip away for private celebrations. I wait until most of the pack has gone before making my way toward Moonlight Lake.

The path through the woods feels endless. Every step brings me closer to the conversation that will change everything. I've practiced my speech a hundred times, whispered it to my reflection until the words are burned into my memory.

Timothy, I know this is complicated, but I need you to know that I've loved you for three years. Not because you're the Alpha heir or a hockey star, but because of who you are when you think no one's watching. I've seen your kindness, your vulnerability, the way you sometimes look so lonely despite being surrounded by admirers.

My stomach cramps again, and I have to stop walking to breathe through the nausea. The stress is literally making me sick, but I push forward. This is too important to let physical discomfort stop me.

I know about Madison, about the arrangement, but arranged matings aren't real bonds. What we have is real. I can feel it in my soul, Timothy. Please don't tell me you can't feel it too.

I practice the words under my breath, adjusting my tone, imagining his response. In my fantasy, his cold mask melts away. He admits he's been fighting the bond, that duty has been warring with his heart. He tells me he's been waiting for someone brave enough to speak the truth first.

Bare branches scratch at my jacket and my breath fogs in the cold air. Somewhere in the distance, wolves howl their joy at tonight's festivities, but all I can hear is my own desperate rehearsal.

"I don't care what anyone else thinks," I whisper to the trees, tears freezing on my cheeks. "I don't care about rank or status or what your father says. I love you, Timothy Blackthorn, and I think... I think you love me too."

The words echo in the empty forest, and for a moment, they almost sound believable.

Moonlight Lake sits frozen solid, its surface reflecting the star-scattered sky like a mirror. The ceremonial stones around its perimeter cast shadows, and the whole place feels ancient and sacred.

I'm early, so I settle on one of the smaller stones to wait. The cold seeps through my thin dress, but I barely notice. My whole body feels electric with anticipation and terror, like I'm about to jump off a cliff and either fly or crash.

I run through my speech one final time, moving my lips silently. Every word has been chosen carefully, Surely he will see reason and admit what I already know that we belong together.

Lyra paces anxiously in my mind. Something feels wrong.why is he taking so long.

"He's just nervous," I whisper to her, bouncing slightly on the stone. "This is scary for him too. He's taking a huge risk by meeting me."

Penelope, Lyra's voice turns warning, maybe you should listen to what he's actually.

"It doesn't matter what he says at first," I interrupt her, my internal voice growing frantic. "Sometimes people have to say the wrong thing before they can say the right thing. I just need to be patient and understanding. Show him I'm worth the risk."

Footsteps crunch through the snow behind me. My heart hammers against my ribs as I stand, smoothing my dress with shaking hands. This is it. This is my moment to fight for love.

I don't turn around—I want to compose myself first, make sure I look worthy when he sees me.

"Penelope."

I stand slowly, wrapping my arms around myself for warmth and comfort. When I finally turn to face him, my heart nearly stops.

Timothy looks... tortured. His perfect features are tight with some internal struggle, his hands clenched at his sides like he's fighting not to reach for something. For a wild second, I let myself imagine that something might be me.

"Penelope." His voice sends shivers down my spine, but there's something off about his tone.

His voice is different out here. Rougher than the smooth tone he mask at school and that has to mean something. He's dropping his guard for me.

I stand slowly, turning to face him with my practiced smile. When I finally look at him, my heart nearly stops.

Timothy looks... tortured. His perfect features are tight with some internal struggle, his hands clenched at his sides like he's fighting not to reach for me. This is it—this is him wrestling with the bond, trying to choose duty over love.

"We need to discuss what's been happening," he says carefully, still not quite meeting my eyes. "This situation between us."

"It's not a situation," I say softly, stepping closer despite my nerves. "It's destiny."

His jaw ticks, a muscle jumping beneath his skin. "You've been watching me."

"Yes," I admit without shame, lifting my chin. "Because my soul recognizes yours."

"For months," he continued, his voice strained.

"Because I was waiting," I explained desperately. "Waiting for you to be ready to see what's right in front of you."

"Why?" The single word comes out like he's in pain.

The question I've prepared for. The moment I get to bare my soul and show him the truth burning in my heart.

"Because you're my mate," I whisper, taking another step toward him. "Because the Moon Goddess chose us for each other. Because everything in my world makes sense when I look at you."

Something flickers across his expression pain, maybe, or panic and my hope soars. He does feel it, he is just scared.

"Timothy," I continue, my voice growing stronger with desperate conviction, "I know about the engagement announcement. I know your father has plans. But this is bigger than politics. This is our fate."

His eyes finally meet mine, and I see something that makes my breath catch. Not love at least not yet but conflict that means I still have a chance.

"You don't have to say anything tonight," I rush to add, afraid he'll cut me off. "I just needed you to know that I understand. That I'm willing to wait while you figure out how to choose love over duty."

I reach for his hand, and the moment my fingers brush his, electricity shoots up my arm. He jerks away like I've burned him, and I know he felt it too.

"Please," I whisper, my voice breaking with desperate hope. "Please don't tell me you didn't feel that."

Timothy stares at me for a long moment, his expression unreadable in the moonlight. When he finally speaks, his voice is quiet and careful.

"Penelope," he begins.