Fated to the Alpha's Deception

The white silk of my ceremonial dress rustled against the marble floor as I adjusted my position at the altar for what felt like the hundredth time. The moonstone necklace I'd spent three months crafting lay heavy in my palms, its intricate silver filigree catching the candlelight that flickered throughout the pack house's grand hall. Each delicate stone had been hand-selected, each wire carefully twisted into Celtic knots that symbolized eternal bonds. Now it felt like a weight threatening to drag me under. The altar stood decorated exactly as I'd envisioned—white roses intertwined with silver ribbons, candles arranged in perfect crescents to honor the Moon Goddess, and the ceremonial chalice filled with blessed water from our territory's sacred spring. Everything was ready. Everything except my Alpha. My wolf, Sage, paced restlessly within me. *Where is he?* she whined, her anxiety bleeding into my consciousness like acid. *The moon is already high.

The Moonstone Pack House blazed with lights that seemed too bright, too grand for what should have been our intimate tenth anniversary celebration. I clutched the small wrapped gift in my hands—a hand-carved wooden wolf figurine I'd spent weeks perfecting—and stared at the elaborate decorations that transformed our usual gathering space into something I didn't recognize. This wasn't the quiet dinner Maverick had promised. Crystal chandeliers cast dancing shadows across walls draped in rich burgundy fabric, and the air hummed with conversations in voices I'd never heard before. Dozens of wolves moved through the space with an elegance that made my simple blue dress feel woefully inadequate. "Who are all these people?" I whispered to myself, scanning the crowd for Maverick's familiar dark hair and broad shoulders. A group of men near the bar caught my attention—their postures screamed authority, their expensive suits tailored to perfection. One of them, a silver-haired Alpha with commanding presence, gestured toward the main hall. "The Alpha King has outdone himself this year," he said, his voice carrying easily over the music. "Though I'm surprised he's chosen to host here instead of the royal pack house." Alpha King?

another. Now, alongside Alpha Ezra, the mate she fought so hard to claim, Katya must navigate the lies, the magic, and the trickery of the Moon Goddess herself. But as she digs deeper into the truth of her bloodline, she realizes her fate may not be as simple as it seems. Because Beta Mateo—the man who sacrificed everything for her—is now bound to her in ways none of them expected. He killed his mate to save Katya. Now, he is left in a dangerous limbo, caught between his love for his Alpha, his growing feelings for his Luna, and the curse that threatens to destroy them all. The key to breaking the curse is choice. But what happens when choosing means risking it all? Will Katya accept Mateo as her second mate, or will she stay true to the mate bond she fought for with Ezra? And if the only way to break the Moon Goddess’ curse is to defy fate itself, will any of them survive the consequences?

For five years, Serena Blackwell endured miscarriages, manipulation, and a mother-in-law who called her "defective." She built Silvercrest Pack's business empire from nothing—all while her Alpha husband, Ryker Stone, hid a mistress and secret son behind her back. When Serena finally gets pregnant again, she expects joy. Instead, she discovers the truth: Ryker's "dead" secretary Victoria is very much alive—and has been raising his four-year-old son in a penthouse across town. Worse? Ryker wants Serena to terminate her pregnancy so his "real" heir can inherit. But the Luna everyone underestimated has a secret of her own. She isn't the orphan Ryker's family pitied. She's the hidden daughter of the Crescent Moon Alpha—a bloodline so powerful, even the Elders bow to it. Now, with a pup growing inside her and revenge burning in her heart, Serena is done playing the grateful wife. She'll take back her company. She'll expose Victoria's darkest secret. And she'll make Ryker watch as everything he built crumbles around him. Some wolves bite back.

"Are you mad!!!!!" The words cut through the night like a blade. Naira did not turn. She stood at the edge of the river with her cloak pulled tight around her shoulders, staring at the black water as if it might swallow her thoughts. Behind her, her sister stepped closer. "Do you know what you have done?" Naira swallowed. "I know what I survived." "That is not an answer." The wind dragged dead leaves across the ground. Somewhere beyond the trees, wolves howled, their voices distant but watchful. "You lay with the Alpha," her sister said again, slower this time. "After his brother rejected you." Naira's fingers curled into fists. "He did more than reject me," she said quietly. "He promised me a bond. He promised me a name. Then he gave it to another woman and told me to forget him." Her sister scoffed. "And so you chose the throne instead?" "I chose not to die poor and forgotten," Naira snapped. Silence fell between them. The Alpha's house rose on the hill like a scar in the dark. Stone walls. Iron gates. The center of all decisions. "You will be called a mistress," her sister said. "They will spit your name like poison." "They already do," Naira replied. "Even before this." Her sister stepped closer. "What about the Luna?" Naira looked away. "She watches everything." "And she will destroy you." Naira pressed a hand to her stomach. "She cannot touch what she does not know," she said. Her sister froze. "What do you mean?" The words came out like a confession and a curse. "I am with child." The night seemed to hold its breath. "...Whose?" her sister asked slowly. Naira lifted her chin. "The Alpha's." A sharp breath escaped her sister's lips. "You have sentenced yourself." "I have saved myself," Naira whispered. "You think this will protect you?" "It already has." Her sister shook her head. "You should have left the pack. You should have run." "And go where?" Naira demanded. "To starve among rogues? To be hunted like meat?" "You would have lived." "Living is not the same as surviving." Her sister looked at her with something close to fear. "What will you tell them?" Naira hesitated. "I will say the child belongs to his brother." Her sister stared. "You will lie?" "I will breathe," Naira said. "I will walk in daylight. I will not beg again." The river whispered beside them. "You will destroy him," her sister said. "The brother." "He destroyed me first." "Two wrongs do not make safety." "They make silence." Footsteps broke the night. Both women turned. The Alpha stepped from the trees, his presence bending the space around him. His cloak moved like shadow. His eyes were cold, unreadable. "You should not meet here," he said. "I belong nowhere else," Naira answered. His gaze dropped to her stomach. "You told her." "Yes." He studied her sister. "She will keep quiet." Her sister swallowed but said nothing. "No one must know," the Alpha continued. "Not the Luna. Not the council." "And when the child is born?" Naira asked. His jaw tightened. "The child will not carry my name." "She will carry your blood." "That is worse." Naira stepped closer. "Then why did you touch me?" "Because you were already broken." The words struck deep. "And because power does not refuse what comes to it." The Alpha turned away. "You will live in the lower quarters." "I will." "You will be invisible." "I already am." "And the child-" "She will be safe," Naira said. "Or I will burn this pack myself." The Alpha's eyes darkened. "Do not threaten what you cannot control." "I already control the truth," Naira replied. He said nothing. The wind rose. "Go," he said finally. "Before someone sees you." Naira bowed her head. As she walked away, her sister followed. "You are walking into fire," her sister whispered. "I have lived in ashes," Naira replied. And somewhere inside her, something small and unaware shifted - a life born from rejection, power, and lies. A life that would pay for a secret made beside a river. UNLISHSING THE CURSE ON AN UNBORN CHILD. Do you love high school romance? You can check my story CLAIMED BY THE QUARTERBACK ALPHA

The third night without sleep left my eyes burning, but I couldn't stop. Not when I was so close to finishing. My art studio—now barely recognizable as a storage room filled with pack documents—was littered with papers, color swatches, and traditional ceremony diagrams I'd spent weeks researching from ancient pack archives. "Just a few more details," I whispered to my wolf, Aria, who had grown so quiet over the years I sometimes wondered if she was still there. The summer solstice celebration itinerary needed to be perfect. Not just for the pack, but for Harry and Emma. For us. I traced my finger over the hand-drawn map of the sacred clearing, where generations of Silver Moon wolves had celebrated the longest day of the year. "Family bonfire here," I murmured, adding a small notation. "And the traditional howling ceremony at midnight." My other hand cradled a cup of cold tea, my fifth today.