My Alpha Demanded My Submission

The moonlight felt wrong on my skin.

I stood on the marble terrace of the Black Claw Pack House, my hands trembling beneath the azure silk cloak that Ethan had chosen for me. The fabric was supposed to represent the clear skies of our future together, but now it felt heavy, suffocating. Pack members lined the grand staircase below, their necks bowed in deference to their Alpha—my mate.

Or so I'd believed.

"Natalie, my love." Ethan's voice carried across the terrace, smooth as aged whiskey. He stood at the ceremonial altar, his black suit cutting a commanding figure against the silver moonlight. Those storm-gray eyes that had once made my heart race now seemed to pierce right through me. "Come. It's time."

My wolf, Luna, stirred uneasily within me. She'd been restless all evening, pacing in the corners of my mind. I'd attributed it to nerves—after all, tonight I would officially become Luna of the Black Claw Pack. The Late Bloomer from Silver Moon would finally have her place.

I took a step forward, then paused. "I just need a moment," I called back, forcing a smile. "The moon is so beautiful tonight."

Ethan's jaw tightened almost imperceptibly, but he nodded. "Don't be long. Our guests are waiting."

I moved toward the edge of the terrace, needing air, needing space to quiet the growing dread in my chest. The pendant at my throat—the Moon Goddess Pendant Ethan had given me—felt unusually warm against my skin. He'd said it would protect our future cubs, a symbol of the family we'd never have.

Because of what I'd sacrificed for him.

The memory of that sterile medical room flashed through my mind. The pain. The healer's sympathetic eyes as she explained I'd never bear cubs. But it had been worth it, hadn't it? To pay off Ethan's pack debt? To secure our future?

"—can't believe she actually went through with it."

The voice drifted from behind an onyx pillar near the terrace doors. Female. Familiar. My feet moved silently across the marble as I drew closer.

"The fool." Another voice—this one made my blood freeze. Ethan. But not the Ethan who whispered sweet promises in my ear. This voice dripped with contempt. "Did you see her face when the healer told her she'd never have cubs? Like a kicked puppy."

Laughter. Light, tinkling, cruel. "Oh, Ethan, you're terrible. Though I suppose she deserves it after what she did to me."

Vanessa Taylor. Beta from the Crimson Ridge Pack. I pressed myself against the cold stone, my heart hammering so hard I was certain they'd hear it.

"Giving you healing herbs during your moon cycle was hardly a crime, Vanessa." Ethan's tone was amused. "But it made you look weak in front of the pack leaders. And nobody makes my allies look weak."

"Five years of planning," Vanessa purred. "That first meeting in the rain—you played the hero perfectly."

"She was so desperate to be loved." The casual cruelty in Ethan's voice shattered something