Marcus had just left when I heard the doorbell ring.

I opened the door and saw a woman with long black hair. She wore a blue dress with white flower pins and held a fancy box of sweets.

"Hi, I'm Rose. The one who's been texting you."

Four big men in guard uniforms stood behind Rose. These were Marcus's special guards. I only had two guards, but Rose had four. That told me everything about who mattered more to Marcus.

Rose smiled in a fake sweet way. "Marcus has been staying with me all week. He forgot something at my place, so I'm bringing it back. You won't be rude to a guest, right?"

She pushed past me and walked into my house without being invited. When she saw the white flower garden, she got excited. "My favorite white flowers! Marcus grew so many just for me!"

I looked at the red bumps on my arms from being allergic to these flowers. Then I went back inside.

I thought Marcus just liked these flowers. But really, he liked the girl who loved them.

By the front door, some small birds sat in the sun.

"Oh, they're still here!" Rose sounded happy. "I got these birds when I was young. I moved away and thought they died. Bella will be so excited to see them when I bring her next time." She looked at me. "Bella is my cat."

I remembered how Marcus fed these birds every single day. My chest hurt.

In the living room, Rose looked at the books on the shelf. "These are all books I love to read. I can't believe Marcus saved them for me for so long."

She looked around the room. "White couch, brown tables, gray chair - everything matches perfectly. Just like I told Marcus I wanted. Light colors that go together nicely. This looks exactly right."

No wonder Marcus picked all this furniture when we went shopping. I kept saying I didn't like it. He always said, "Try something new. You'll learn to like it." But I still hated all this light-colored furniture.

Walking behind her felt like stepping on broken glass.

This house I'd lived in for two years suddenly felt like it belonged to someone else.

In the bedroom, Rose touched the shirts and ties in the closet. "All of these are presents I gave him. He's taken such good care of them."

I remembered Marcus washing and hanging these clothes carefully every day. My throat felt tight.

So he never let me wash them - not because he was worried about me working too hard, but because these clothes were from Rose.

Marcus's voice came from downstairs. He walked in fast, looking upset.

Rose put on a sweet smile right away. "I made some cookies and came to share them. Serena was so nice to invite me in. She even asked me to stay for dinner."

Marcus looked less worried and said, "This is Rose. She's like my little sister. We grew up in the same neighborhood. She was living in another country and just came back, so you haven't met her yet. Rose, want some tea?"

"That sounds nice," Rose said.

I watched him go to the kitchen and make tea. He knew exactly how to make it, even making the tea look pretty with foam on top.

Rose smiled when she took the cup. "Your tea still tastes exactly how I like it. You remember after all this time."

All these years, Marcus never forgot Rose. Standing there, I felt like I didn't belong. I looked stupid and out of place.

Rose kept playing along with his lie. "Yes, Marcus always looked after me when we were kids. I was sick a lot and got hurt often. I spent lots of time in the hospital. Marcus was afraid my muscles would get weak, so he learned how to do special exercises from the pack doctor. He came to help me every day."

My nails dug into my hands. It hurt, but not as much as my heart.

After I got pregnant, Marcus did exercises with me every day. He was really good at it. I thought he learned it just for me and the baby. But it was all for Rose.

I tried to smile but couldn't. So I said I felt sick and went upstairs.

A little later, Rose knocked on my door and came in with a bowl of soup.

"Marcus said you haven't been eating much. He had the cook make chicken soup and asked me to bring it up." She smiled like she was being helpful. "Drink it while it's warm."

I took the bowl. The smell was strange and bitter.

"Oh, one more thing," Rose said suddenly. "You didn't pick the names David for a boy and Emma for a girl, did you? Those are names Marcus and I chose a long time ago."

My hand shook and I almost dropped the soup.

Those were exactly the names Marcus picked when I first got pregnant.

So even my baby would have been used to remember Rose?

I lifted the soup and drank it, but right away I knew something was wrong. There was silver dust in it - it burned my throat and made my wolf go crazy inside me. When I saw Rose's big smile, I knew she put something bad in the soup.

My stomach started hurting really bad. I fell on the floor and couldn't move or call for help. She wanted to kill my baby, but she didn't know my baby was already dead.

Then Rose picked up the rest of my soup and drank it all at once. She fell down next to me and started screaming.

The hair on my neck stood up. I felt danger coming, but before I could turn around -

Downstairs, Marcus heard the screaming and ran up fast.

When he saw us both on the floor, his eyes got really big. "Rose!" He ran to catch Rose when she almost fell, checking her all over. "Are you okay?"

"I'm... I'm fine," Rose said in a weak voice. "Quick, help Serena..."

Then Marcus looked at me lying in blood on the floor. But Rose suddenly "passed out" in his arms, crying, "There was silver dust in the soup. Someone tried to hurt both Serena and me. Marcus, please save us. What do we do?"

His voice was scared and worried as he picked up Rose and carried her outside. He didn't even look at me again.

I watched them leave as everything went dark.

When I woke up, bright white lights hurt my eyes.

The doctor was checking her while Marcus stood close by, looking serious.

"How is the baby?" he asked the doctor.

The doctor looked confused. "The baby? What baby, Luna…"

I quickly pushed the medicine tray off the bedside table.

The crash of pills and bottles hitting the floor made Marcus turn around fast. He forgot all about the doctor and rushed to my bed, looking scared and worried.

"Serena, you're awake? Are you in pain?"

I shook my head a little and looked past him at the doctor's nervous face.

Marcus relaxed then and turned back to the doctor. "Doctor, what were you saying before? I didn't hear you."

He felt like he missed something important.

The doctor was about to talk when I looked at him and shook my head just a tiny bit.

The doctor understood. He just sighed and said, "The patient needs to rest more," then left the room.

Now it was just Marcus and me in the hospital room.

Marcus looked worried and tried to touch my face. I turned my head away.

He seemed to get it and started saying sorry right away. "I'm sorry, Serena. This is my fault. It must have been people who hate me who put poison in the soup. They hurt you and Rose."

"Thank God you and the baby are safe. If something happened to you, I could never forgive myself. I promise this won't happen again. Please don't be mad at me, okay?"

I looked into his eyes. They looked really scared and sorry.

Right then, I felt like laughing at how fake everything was.

Everything he said sounded so nice, but what was real and what was lies?

"I'm tired."

I pulled my hand away and closed my eyes. I didn't want to play this stupid game anymore.

While I was in the hospital, Marcus stayed with me all the time.

He made food for me himself and fed me with a spoon. He came to every doctor visit and wrote down everything they said. If I moved even a little at night, he'd wake up and ask what I needed. He rubbed my back and arms to make me feel better.

But all of this just made me remember what Rose said before: "Yes, Marcus always looked after me when we were kids..."

Even the nurses said they never saw a husband take care of his wife so well.

But I stayed quiet and sad, looking out the window a lot.

Marcus thought it was because of being pregnant and tried even harder to take care of me.

On the day I left the hospital, Marcus had made big plans.

He had closed off his private hunting area so no one else would be there. His guards stayed far away so I could breathe the clean mountain air freely. In the afternoon, he walked with me through the whole forest. When I looked at pretty flowers for more than a few seconds, he secretly marked the spot. He said he'd move those flowers to my garden the next day. When it got dark, lights suddenly lit up the open area by the rocks. They spelled out "My Only Love" in the dark sky.

"Do you like it?" Marcus held my arm from behind.

I looked at all the lights in the sky and for a moment felt like I was back in the old days.

Back then, Marcus did things like this to make me happy. I felt like the luckiest person alive.

But when my hand moved to my empty stomach, all the good feelings went away.

"What's wrong?" Marcus felt me get tense and turned me around to look at him. "You've been sad lately. I'm really worried."

He held my face and rubbed it gently with his thumb. "Should we talk to a doctor about your feelings? Being sad when you're pregnant is normal. You don't have to handle it alone. You can tell me what's bothering you."

Looking into his honest-looking eyes, I suddenly asked, "If I tell you the truth about something, will you tell me the truth too?"

Marcus looked surprised for a second, then smiled. "Of course, baby. We're married. We should always be honest with each other."

I took a deep breath. "Then let me ask you something. I heard you have someone who really matters to you. A woman you've been close to for a long time."

I looked right into his eyes. "So why did you end up marrying me instead of her?"

Marcus's expression instantly froze.

His fingers tightened, knuckles turning white, but in an instant he recovered and gave me a gentle smile.

"What are you talking about? You're my destined mate. I love you. I've long since moved on from past relationships."

A bitter taste filled my mouth.

He lied so skillfully, without even a furrowed brow.

He reached out to touch my face, and I turned my head away.

This action made his brow furrow slightly.

This was who knows how many times I'd instinctively rejected his touch.

"Who told you all this?" His tone suddenly turned serious. "Is this why you've been unhappy lately?"

Just as I was about to speak, his phone's harsh ringtone suddenly rang out.

Marcus glanced at the caller ID, fell silent for a few seconds, then finally chose to answer.

As soon as he picked up, Rose's tearful voice came through the speaker: "Marcus! I'm surrounded by rogue wolves. I'm so scared..."

Marcus's expression changed drastically: "Send me your location."

He grabbed his jacket and headed for the door, not even glancing at me: "Baby, there's urgent pack business to handle. Take a cab home yourself."

Driven by some inexplicable force, I followed him.

At the edge of pack territory, I watched Marcus shield Rose behind him as he faced four or five rogue wolves alone.

He released his Alpha wolf and attacked the rogues, his claws slicing through the air with deadly precision. Each strike carried lethal force, nothing like his usual gentle human appearance.

One rogue wolf, driven back by his assault and covered in wounds, suddenly lunged viciously toward Rose, jaws wide open—

"Rose!" Without any hesitation, Marcus threw himself forward, using his own body to shield Rose.

The rogue wolf's fangs sank deep into his chest, blood immediately spurting out.

"Marcus!" Rose rushed over and embraced him, crying hysterically.

"Don't be afraid..." Marcus endured the excruciating pain, his eyes full of tenderness and determination. "I promised... I'd always protect you... I'll never break that promise..."

Standing at the end of the alley, watching this scene, I felt my heart hurt so much I couldn't breathe.

As Alpha of Bloodclaw Pack, he'd always been careful with his body because he bore the weight of the entire pack's responsibility. Even I had shielded him from assassination attempts before. But when Rose was in danger, he completely disregarded his own safety, not even calling for his Gamma guards.

Outside the operating room, Rose was in tears: "He's always been like this... Whenever I'm in danger, he appears immediately to shield me. Even when he's covered in wounds, he protects me... When I was sick, he stayed by my bedside for three days and nights without eating or drinking. He's so good to me..."

I leaned against the wall, listening quietly.

So Marcus, an Alpha who always prioritized the greater good, seemed to care nothing about his mate, child, or even his pack responsibilities when it came to Rose.

"One millimeter closer and it would have pierced the Alpha's heart." The healer emerged from the operating room. "Is Ms. Rose here? We need a family member to sign for the surgery."

Rose shook her head through her tears: "I'm not family... His mate is over there."

The healer looked at me in confusion: "But the patient kept calling out 'Rose,' and when he made his will just now, he said he was leaving pack management rights to Ms. Rose..."

She realized her slip and stopped awkwardly.

I smiled.

Under the nurses' pitying gazes, I signed my name and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Rose called out to me. "Aren't you his mate? He's not out of danger yet. Won't you stay to take care of him?"

I stopped walking but didn't turn around.

"You're the one who should stay and take care of him." My voice was terrifyingly calm. "We're no longer mates. I've already applied to dissolve our mate bond."