We shuffled to the side, out of the flow of foot traffic. The three of them were the only ones I'd truly managed to connect with.

Jelena and her twin brother, Cyrus, were strikingly similar: ash-blond hair, vivid green eyes, and sharp features. They were both tall, but Cyrus towered over his sister, hovering around six-foot-five. Beside them stood Pavel, Jelena's mate. He was a little shorter than Cyrus but still taller than Jelena, with hazel eyes and black hair. All three were werewolves, members of the pack, but their rank was low enough that they didn't make a big deal of it. They preferred to form their own opinions of others, which was exactly how they'd sized me up.

I still remembered the day I'd met them. I was terrified of how they'd react, yet at the same time, I wanted their acceptance more than anything. When they finally let me into their circle, it was one of the few times I'd felt a genuine sense of victory. I'd only known them for a month, yet they welcomed me as if I'd always been one of them. A bit like my cousins, sometimes. And that was enough to make me feel like I belonged.

"Pavel, are you ever going to stop calling me Astro?" "It's not even close to my real name."

"Oh yeah?" he grinned. "I think it fits you perfectly. An astronaut who spends every class drifting off into space—makes sense, right?"

He cracked up at his own joke.

"Honestly..." Jelena sighed, swatting him again. "Why do I even put up with you?"

"Because the Moon Goddess herself decided we were made for each other, and you're madly in love with me," he recited with mock seriousness, like he was repeating a line he knew by heart. "Admit it. You can't resist me."

"Right, that must be it." She rolled her eyes before rising on her tiptoes to steal a kiss.

"Ugh, seriously? Can you two not do that in front of me?" Cyrus grumbled.

The rest of us burst out laughing.

It was always like this with them.

"Trin, you need a ride or is your cousin waiting for you?" Jelena asked.

"Thanks but Caden should already be here. I'd better go. See you next week!" With that, I took off toward the exit.

"Wait, what? It should be 'see you tomorrow'!"

Pavel's and Cyrus's voices stopped me in my tracks.

I turned back, confused. "What are you talking about?"

"The Harvest Moon Gathering," Jelena answered flatly, as if stating the obvious.

My hand flew to my forehead.

"Oh no... I completely forgot!"

"Good thing you have us to remind you of the important stuff," Pavel said with a snicker.

"Hilarious, really."

"Easy, Astro."

I shot him a half-serious growl before running off again.

I slipped through the crowd to the parking lot. Caden was waiting for me, leaning against his Jeep. He was the closest thing I had to an older brother. And even if I'd never tell him that, it meant the world to me.

"You're late," he said as soon as I was close enough.

"Sorry, I was chatting with friends after class. Lucky that they reminded me of something."

"Oh yeah? What's that?" he was already smiling, sure it was nothing important.

"Tomorrow night's gathering. I'd completely spaced it."

His expression shifted.

"Seriously, Thalia?"

"It's not that surprising," I said, getting defensive. "We usually only gather for the Hunter's Moon. This time is different. Besides, they never really invite me anyway. Ever since I turned eighteen, it's like I'm invisible to most of the pack. If it weren't for the monthly allowance and my paid tuition, I'd think my grandfather had forgotten I even exist."

"Come on, get in," Caden said, opening the passenger door.

There was that familiar warmth in his voice that always managed to calm me down.

Once we were on the road, I asked the question that had been nagging at me.

"Why are they even holding this gathering?"

We were leaving the city and heading toward the complex. We called it that, but it was really just a massive gated community where most of the pack members lived.

To the north and west, the forest formed a natural barrier stretching toward the mountains. A river ran along the south, winding at the foot of the ridges. These natural features turned the whole place into a fortress. Almost everyone lived there, aside from those who had chosen to leave or had been exiled. It was safer—for us and for humans.

"The Alpha needs to find his mate," Caden explained. "He wants to hold more gatherings before the end of the year. If he doesn't find her here, he'll have to look elsewhere. These events also let others form bonds, so all the singles have to be there. Even mated couples can come; it's tradition."

"Okay..." I said slowly. "So that's why Jelena and Pavel are going."

I fell silent for a moment before adding, annoyed, "But why do I have to go? We all know it doesn't apply to me. I have no wolf. I can't form a bond."

"We don't know that for sure," he answered instantly.

It was always the same answer. He'd repeated it to me dozens of times.

"I'm not human, nor a she-wolf," I retorted. "I don't belong in either world. If you don't believe me, ask Grandfather."

My voice had risen without my meaning it to.

"Actually, sometimes I just want to give him a piece of my mind," Caden grumbled.

I couldn't help but laugh. He'd always defended me more than anyone else.

He was closer to me in age than his brother, Nolan—only two years apart. Nolan, on the other hand, had already built his life. He had found his mate, married, and now lived in his own home within the complex.

"Let's be realistic, Caden. The Moon Goddess will never assign me to anybody in this pack. And even if it happened... they'd just reject me."

"You can't reject a mate bond. You know that," he said, genuinely taken aback.

"Maybe," I conceded. "But that wouldn't stop them from trying. Honestly, they'd probably rather be alone for the rest of their lives. They might even start an order of single wolves."

I let out a bitter laugh at my own joke.

"It's not funny," he grumbled.

"It is a little," I insisted. "And deep down, you know I'm right. No werewolf in this pack will ever want me."

~~

Rayan's POV:

I sat behind my desk, listening as Nolan, my personal assistant, ran through his report. He did his job with impeccable rigor—too much, at times. He could have summarized everything in minutes, but he lingered on every detail, treating each one as if it might one day prove essential. The result was that his reports dragged on far longer than necessary.

Nolan was talking about the lone wolves roaming the neighboring town—unstable, unpredictable, and hard to pin down. According to him, the pack bordering our lands, while far smaller, was starting to draw unwelcome attention. Rumors even suggested they were plotting to dethrone me, seize my territory, and turn my own pack against me.

On top of that came another piece of information, even more troubling: a rogue group of magic users—witches and warlocks—had reportedly settled in our area. According to pack records and the Elders, we hadn't had a situation like that in nearly twenty years.

Nolan was so diligent I had already considered making him my Beta. After all, his grandfather had served in that very role beside my father.

But there was that past... we couldn't ignore that family's history. And then there was her. The girl. Always there, a living scar from what had happened.

Despite everything, I couldn't help but feel a certain compassion for him. He was brilliant, without a doubt the best for the job. If only he could learn to be more concise.

"I don't need to spend the whole night there," I growled, my patience wearing thin. "Five seconds is all it will take for me to know if one of them is my mate."

"The Elders believe you should at least spend time alone with each of them," Nolan replied. "Or, failing that, with the group as a whole."

"If none of them are my destiny mate, it won't change a thing. This ridiculous charade of theirs will accomplish nothing."

"Hey, don't take it out on me. I'm not the one who set this up," he replied, a rare, amused smile briefly cutting through his usual seriousness.

I exhaled, trying to force down the irritation rising in my chest. I'd been holding everything in for weeks, and I knew this was only the beginning. Things were going to get worse.

A fight against another pack? Fine. I'd fight without hesitation, even if it meant I didn't come back.

A rogue challenging my authority? I'd put him in his place.

A warlock preying on a human? I'd be the first to step in, and I'd eliminate it nice and clean.

But this... this was what I were not good at.

Being forced to play the socialite for a pack of she-wolves who laughed too loudly, each one convinced she had a shot at becoming Luna... or worse, at a one-night stand. Some coveted power, others money, or simply the prestige I could offer. Whatever their motives, the result was the same.

The she-wolf who came after me were opportunists. They took what they needed and left without a backward glance.

That was precisely why I didn't want a mate. In my eyes, they only ever thought of themselves. Maybe there had been exceptions... like my mother. Before everything, she had been extraordinary—probably the most admirable female I had ever known.

But now... now she was just a shadow of whom she used to be.

Every day she sat there, motionless, lost in an endless, unbreakable silence. Perched by the window, her eyes vacant, unable to speak or respond. She showed no sign of life, as if the very spark inside her had been extinguished.

For seven years. Since the betrayal. Since the day my father died. A betrayal orchestrated by a female who thought only of herself.

I refused to let that happen again. I would never let anyone destroy my pack that way. Not while I'm alive.

Thalia's POV:

The moment I walked through the front door, a familiar aroma washed over me: my Aunt Eve had made my favorite, honey-garlic pork chops.

Only then did I notice the second thing—my grandfather's presence.

If his car had been out front, or if the smell of food hadn't been so overpowering, I would have scented him long before I saw him. And as always, he would have found a way to use it against me, claiming my inability to recognize his smell only proved, once again, that I wasn't like them.

As if I needed the reminder. I already knew I wasn't a wolf.

"I see you haven't changed, Thalia."

"Nice to see you too, Grandfather," I said, the lie edged with an irony I didn't bother to hide. "What brings you here today?"

He pressed his lips into a thin line, perfectly aware I was forcing every ounce of politeness.

"I'm here to warn you about the upcoming full moon gatherings. And I've had your outfit for tomorrow night prepared."

"That's thoughtful, but I'd already planned on what I was going to wear."

I certainly hadn't expected him to show up with a dress he'd chosen for me.

"Did you buy it specially for the occasion?" he asked, his tone already primed for judgment.

"No, but it's something I've barely worn."

He shook his head as if I'd just said something utterly absurd.

"That is not acceptable. This event is important. You must wear something new tomorrow, and for every gathering to come. You might meet your fated mate there, and that moment could decide your entire future. You need to be flawless from the very first glance. Otherwise, what was all the time and money I spent on your training for?"

"Good question," I muttered, not bothering to hide my irritation.

Nothing new. It was the same speech he'd been giving me for years. I had naively hoped that once I became an adult, he'd finally give up on his dream of marrying me off to some wolf—as if anyone would accept being bound to a girl who couldn't even shift.

He motioned for his assistant to show me the dress he had chosen.

To my great surprise, it wasn't horrible.

Lucky me.

It was a deep midnight blue that would set off my skin. The fabric, a soft silk, glided under my fingers, catching the light with a subtle shimmer.

The neckline was a little more daring than I liked, but the rest of it made up for it. Three thin straps rose from each side of the bodice, meeting at the shoulders before fanning out across my back in a complex, crisscrossing pattern. Other decorative straps traced my lower back, forming an intricate, eye-catching design.

From behind, the whole thing created an almost artistic structure. And because the top came up high enough, the plunging neckline seemed less shocking.

I would have to try it on to be sure. The dress looked like it was custom-made, or at least perfectly fitted to my size.

It had to be. I was far from the pack standard. Most of the females stood around five-foot-ten, some a little taller, others slightly shorter. I topped out at five-foot-one. A difference that was hard to ignore. The males were all taller still, which always made me feel tiny in their presence.