My father’s voice broke through my thoughts, pulling me back to the present. "I hate to be the one to tell you this," he began, and the tone of his voice sent a chill down my spine. I knew whatever he was about to say would be something I didn’t want to hear, but I listened intently, bracing myself for the blow. "For Alpha Adam to fully absorb our pack, to ensure our surrender is seen as genuine, I have to marry you off to him," he said, his words landing like a punch to my gut. The shock hit me so hard that I pulled away from him and stood up, my heart racing. "What?" I gasped, trying to make sense of what he had just said. Marry me off to Alpha Adam? Was this some kind of nightmare? I was only nineteen. I hadn’t even met my mate yet. I hadn’t lived long enough to experience life, to find love, or to even know who I was. And now, my life was being traded away like some kind of bargaining chip.

“ Nala, next week, you will be marrying Delta Brian,” said uncle Mike , and I was in shock! “ I am supposed to marry Maxwell. I am the oldest daughter of the Gamma family and I am Future Alpha Maxwell’s betrothed. I have been trained to be Luna all my life. Why should I marry Brian now?” I complained and my aunt sighed. "You are getting older, Nala. It is natural that even when Maxwell returns, he will go for your younger cousin. She just turned eighteen and got her wolf. We just don’t want you to waste your time. Besides, we can't afford to feed a grown woman anymore,” Aunt Trisha said. " Old? I just turned twenty-one. You must be kidding me. Please tell me this is a silly joke because I am not finding it funny," I said, and my uncle yelled. "You say you can't feed me? You can't afford me? I work and pay my way. When was the last time I ate from your pantry? I earn living here,“ I said, and she growled at me. “ Well, you still use our stuff..” she said, and I laughed hysterically. "Your stuff or my stuff? Stuff you stole from me? Stuff that my parent left me?” I said, and my uncle slapped me. “ You are an ingrate, Nala. When your father died and your useless mother ran away, we took you in so you won't end up dead. That is what happens to Rogues. We made sure you had a semblance of a home and a balance, and you call it stealing,” he yelled at me. Yes, uncle, it stealing when you refused to hand me my father's property and money when I turned eighteen. It was stealing when you switched my trust fund and assets into your daughter's name. Now your wife is telling me I used her stuff. Stuff my father bought, stuff, you pay for with money that belongs to me!” I yelled. “ You are doing all this so that your daughter will be Luna. Once I am out of the way, Kayla can be offered to Maxwell since she second in line. Wow. You never cease to amaze me,” I said, and he looked at me. " Next week you marrry Brian, period," he finalised coldly. Brian wasn’t a good person, and I can't have suffered with my guardians only to end up in a messed up marriage with a psycho. I planned to take my chances. I longed for a happy ending, and I was going after it.

Diane sat on the single wooden chair in our small cell, her eyes on me. "Welcome back to the land of the living, Luna," she said, and I groaned, trying to sit up. I had asked her to call me by my name, just like everyone else, but she said I was Luna. Eventually, I decided that that was her term of endearment. Because I was anything but Luna. Even an omega slave was better than me right now. "What happened?" I managed when I sat up, and she smiled at me. "Well, I do not know how you would take this, but congratulations—you are two months pregnant!" she said, and I was so shocked that I gasped. "Well, people believe it's Beta Erin's bastard, but we both know it's Alpha's, right?" she said, and I couldn't respond.

"I suppose we have a deal," he said, and I accepted the handshake to prevent myself from changing my mind. "Within this year, you are not allowed to get jealous, fall in love with me or get pregnant by me, should we find ourselves entangled in the sheets," he said, staring at me with his no-nonsense expression. I didn't care about his words. He wasn't the type to fall for. I just nodded. I knew I shouldn't, and I might be walking into a fucked up situation, but I couldn't help my thirst for adventure and need for the financial freedom it would bring.