The Silver Moon Pack’s banquet hall was alive with chatter and laughter, the air thick with the mingling scents of pine and fresh earth—typical of our gatherings. My birthday party was in full swing, and yet, my attention was drawn to Ellie Perkins, my childhood friend from the Crimson Fang Pack. She stood across the room, her presence as magnetic as ever, her soft floral scent drifting toward me even through the crowd. Beside me, Loretta Richardson, my mate—though the bond felt more like a chain than a connection—sat quietly, her hands folded in her lap.

Ellie had always disliked strawberries, and I’d made sure the caterers avoided them in the desserts. But when the strawberry cheesecake was brought out, I turned to Loretta, ignoring the warning in Makenzie Grant’s eyes. “Come on, stop being so dramatic,” I said impatiently, pushing the plate toward Loretta. “It’s just a slice of cake.”

Loretta hesitated, but under my expectant gaze, she took a bite. Within minutes, her breathing grew labored, her face pale. Makenzie was instantly on her feet, her voice sharp. “Asa, she’s allergic! We need to get her to the healer!”

I waved her off, my focus still on Ellie, who was now sulking in the corner. “She’ll be fine,” I muttered, though the tightness in my chest betrayed my unease. When Loretta’s gasps grew louder, Makennie and a few others rushed her out, leaving me standing there, annoyed by the disruption.

Ellie approached me then, her eyes wide with concern. “Asa, is she going to be okay?”

I forced a smile, brushing off her worry. “She’s just being dramatic. Let’s not let it ruin the night.”

But as the evening wore on, I couldn’t shake the guilt gnawing at me. When I finally arrived at the pack’s healing center, Loretta was already in a bed, an IV in her arm and her throat swollen. Makenzie glared at me as I entered, but I ignored her, focusing on Loretta’s fragile form.

“Putting on a show for whom?” I said, my voice laced with sarcasm. “Once we finalize the mate bond next Monday, it’ll be just what you wanted, right?”

Loretta didn’t respond, her eyes dull and distant. My wolf stirred within me, a low growl of unease echoing in my mind, but I shoved it aside. She was fine. She had to be.

Later that night, Ellie sent Loretta a message, her words dripping with provocation. “He’s not going to show up next Monday. You’ll never win against me.” I didn’t see it, but I felt the tension in the air when Makenzie showed me the text, her eyes blazing with fury.

“What the hell, Asa?” she snapped. “How can you let this happen?”

I shrugged, though my chest tightened. “Ellie’s just being Ellie. Loretta needs to toughen up.”

Makenzie’s glare deepened, but she said nothing, turning her attention back to Loretta, who lay silently in the bed, her face pale and drawn.

The next morning, I returned to the healing center, only to find Ellie already there, perched on the edge of a bed and chatting with the healer. She looked up at me with a smile, her scent—vanilla and something sweet—filling the room. “Asa, my stomach’s only hurting a little. It doesn’t stop us from going for a midnight snack.”

I chuckled, indulging her as always. “You little foodie, always thinking of food.”

Behind the privacy curtain, I heard Loretta stir, but I ignored it, focusing on Ellie. Makenzie burst in moments later, her face flushed with anger. “What do you think you’re doing, Asa?”

Ellie turned to her, unfazed. “Makenzie, you brought oranges? You’re so sweet!”

Makenzie ignored her, her glare fixed on me. “Ellie, Asa is Loretta’s mate. Have you no shame?”

Ellie’s eyes welled with tears, and I instinctively pulled her closer, my voice sharp as I snapped at Makenzie. “Watch your mouth, Makenzie!”

Makenzie yanked back the curtain, revealing Loretta’s frail form. “Asa, I thought you’d seen my message and came to take care of Loretta. But instead, you’re here flirting in Loretta’s hospital room? Disgusting!”

I frowned, my grip on Ellie tightening. “Ellie has cramps. I brought her here. As a woman, you should understand.”

Loretta didn’t say a word, her silence more cutting than any accusation. My wolf growled again, a low, restless sound, but I ignored it, focusing on Ellie, who leaned into me with a soft whine.

“Loretta, you don’t know how slow Asa can be,” she said, her voice teasing. “I was nearly passing out from cramps before he noticed.”

I forced a laugh, though the unease in my chest grew. The bond between Loretta and me felt strained, fragile, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was losing control of something I’d taken for granted. But I pushed the thought aside, focusing on Ellie, her scent comforting and familiar.

After all, I was the Beta of the Silver Moon Pack. I had a reputation to uphold, and I couldn’t let something as trivial as a mate bond—or Loretta’s feelings—get in the way of that.

Despite my pale complexion, I managed to keep a composed smile.

"Beta Asa, you're massaging the wrong spot. It's my stomach that hurts, not my hand," Ellie teased with a playful pout. I smiled warmly at her, "Alright, little princess. You're hard to please."

Watching her bright smile and the boundless affection I showered on her, Loretta's heart must have shattered into pieces.

I never knew Loretta could look so broken.

Thinking back to those days when her cramps left her bedridden, all she wanted was for me to get her a cup of hot coffee.

Just a simple request.

I not only refused to help but mocked her, "Can't you use your own hands?"

And now, I was doing what she wouldn’t even dare to dream of, for another woman, right in front of her.

People truly can't be compared.

When it came to Ellie, Loretta never stood a chance.

She lost, and she accepted it.

Makenzie wanted to stand up for her.

But Loretta gently tugged at her sleeve and, with all the strength she had, whispered, "Makenzie, let it go."

Although her allergic reaction was subsiding, her voice was still terribly hoarse when she first spoke.

Hearing her voice, I finally glanced at her.

"Loretta, what's with your scratchy voice? Have you been up to something behind my back?"

My insinuating tone cut like a sharp blade.

She had promised herself not to care about me anymore, but when it came to facing reality, it was much harder than she had imagined.

Tension filled the air for a moment, then Rosemary, the pack healer, walked in.

She removed Loretta's IV needle and reminded her to take her allergy medication regularly.

"It's nothing serious. You'll be able to leave tomorrow morning."

Loretta clutched the healer's arm and asked with effort, "Can I be discharged tonight?"

With Ellie and me around, she couldn't stay in that space another moment.

Rosemary didn't understand her urgency but nodded in agreement.

As Loretta followed her to leave, I suddenly caught up and grabbed her arm.

She turned and met my intense gaze.

"Loretta, what are you doing? You know I won't let you leave in the middle of the night alone. Ellie's still getting her IV. Are you trying to cause trouble?"

"I'm not..."

She hurried to explain but didn’t know where to begin, so she fell silent halfway through.

Taking the opportunity, Ellie spoke up, "Beta Asa, you should go. Loretta's more important."

Despite her words, when I looked back at her, a tear the size of a pearl slid down her cheek.

Then, as if not wanting to be noticed, she stubbornly turned her head away.

Predictably, my heart ached.

I forcefully dragged Loretta back to the hospital room and flung her onto the bed.

Then, I went over to hold Ellie in my arms, kissing away her tears with tender kisses.

"Nonsense. In my heart, you're the most important."

The girl, who was avoiding my kisses earlier, clung tightly to my waist upon hearing those words.

We couldn't resist kissing.

Only when Makenzie dropped a glass did we snap back to reality.

After reluctantly pulling apart, Ellie finally seemed to remember Loretta's presence.

She looked at Loretta apologetically, "Sorry, Loretta. Beta Asa was just trying to comfort me. Please don't misunderstand."

I wiped away the corner of her mouth, "Are you done fussing?"

My voice was cool and pleasant, but it made Loretta's ears ring.

She wanted to pull the blackout curtain, but Makenzie held it firmly to keep her from doing so.

"Loretta, you..." Her voice rose in frustration, knowing Loretta's inability to take a stand.

But Loretta was truly out of strength.

This allergic reaction nearly cost her life.

Fortunately, fate was still on her side.

This disaster opened her eyes to my true nature, and it strengthened her resolve to leave me.

For a girl who values her worth, there's no place in a loveless home.

She lay on the bed, staring out at the black night sky.

It wasn't until the first rays of dawn broke through the clouds that she closed her tired eyes.

Last night, Makenzie said she'd risk a heart attack from anger and left the hospital against Loretta's wishes.

Now, Ellie and I were sleeping in each other's arms on the adjacent bed.

Loretta quietly got out of bed and went to complete the discharge paperwork.

Stepping out of the hospital building, the fresh air cleared the knots in her heart.

She pulled out the email from a week ago—the invitation from the Emerald Howl Pack in Dublin—to join as their lead warrior.

She dialed the number provided.

"Gamma Marcus, I've decided to join the Emerald Howl Pack."

Asa Clark and I have known each other since childhood. Our mothers were best friends, so naturally, we often ran together during pack gatherings. I remember Alpha Foster Clark and his Luna would jokingly refer to me as their "future daughter-in-law." My own parents would laugh and say, "Maybe Asa will claim little Loretta as his mate when they grow up."

I’m not sure if Asa ever took those words seriously, but I did—I kept them close to my heart. However, when I was in first grade, my parents had to relocate to Manchester for their work within the Crimson Fang Pack, and we lost touch with the Silver Moon Pack.

Tragically, not long after, my parents passed away in an accident during a pack skirmish. I became a pup without a home until Alpha Foster and his Luna took me in. That’s when Asa and I reconnected. Whether it was out of pity or a sense of responsibility, after we graduated from the pack’s training academy, he proposed the mate bond. So just like that, we ended up together, as if by default.

At first, I was always insecure, thinking that someone as strong and commanding as him—a Beta, no less—deserved a better mate. But Asa would reassure me, telling me not to worry and that I was the only one he wanted by his side.

I had been training in combat and healing since I was young, dreaming of becoming a pack healer. But Asa didn’t want me in such a prominent role. So, out of love for him, I gave up my aspirations and settled for a Delta’s position, focusing on supporting the pack from the sidelines. Back then, I naively believed his possessiveness meant he couldn’t stand the thought of me being too far from his side.

Just when I thought we were heading toward the marking ceremony, Ellie Perkins returned from studying abroad. It was then I discovered that after my parents moved to Manchester, Asa had grown close to Ellie, an Omega from the neighboring Crimson Fang Pack, and they’d stayed connected for over a decade, not becoming mates only because of our parents’ joking promise.

Initially, Asa was often impatient with me. I understood he held me responsible; he believed that if I hadn’t been in the picture, he could have been with Ellie freely. But over time, he seemed to grow accustomed to my presence, maybe out of pity or because I was always attentive and put him first. He was touched by this and softened toward me, which I mistakenly took for love.

I now realize that what I perceived as love was merely one-sided. Asa’s reluctance for me to pursue healing wasn’t about protection; he was afraid I’d embarrass him as a Beta’s mate. In his mind, I could never measure up to Ellie. Now that I see things clearly, I refuse to lose myself for anyone. I’ve come to believe that letting go might be the real path to freedom.