I stood barefoot on the chilled marble floor, my breath fogging the air as the boutique lights flickered above me—almost like they sensed the storm brewing in my chest. The gown wasn't even on me yet; it lay draped across a velvet chair, shimmering under the crystal chandelier like it had its own heartbeat. Today was supposed to be perfect. Today was supposed to feel right.
But for some reason, my fingers wouldn't stop shaking.
"Miss… are you alright?" the seamstress asked carefully, holding a pin between her lips as she adjusted the bodice on the mannequin.
"I'm fine," I lied, swallowing the bitter taste rising in my throat. "Let's just get it done."
She nodded and helped me step into the gown. The fabric whispered against my skin—soft, cold, expensive. As the zipper climbed my spine, I stared at my reflection. A bride. A Luna. A woman who should've been glowing.
But I felt… wrong.
Like the universe was trying to warn me, and I just didn't speak its language yet.
"You look breathtaking," the seamstress murmured. "Alpha Liam will be speechless."
I forced a smile, lifting my chin. I had to believe that. I had to believe in us.
I reached out for my phone to call him—he was late, too late for someone who'd been excited for every other fitting. Before I could dial, his name flashed across the screen.
"Where are you?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. "This is the final—"
"Avery, emergency at the office," he cut in, voice sharp, hurried, unlike him. "Can't talk—"
The line died.
I stared at the phone like it had betrayed me.
Five years together. Fated mates. He had never once hung up on me.
My chest tightened.
I dialed my mother next—the one who vowed she would never miss another moment of my life again.
"Mom?" My heart begged for warmth, for reassurance. "You're late. Are you still coming?"
"I'm not coming," she said, her tone cold enough to crack bone. "I'm busy. Don't call again."
The call ended.
I didn't move. I couldn't.
It was happening again—the same abandonment, the same cold shoulder she always gave me when Riley was around. My replacement. My mother's new daughter. The girl who grew up where I should have, beside the people who should've loved me first.
And the girl who once tried to kill me.
Lydia, my wolf, bristled inside me. Something's wrong.
I didn't bother unzipping the gown. I didn't bother with dignity. I gathered the skirt in my fists and stormed out of the boutique, ignoring the seamstress's alarmed shout.
The moment the elevator doors closed, my reflection stared back at me—breathless, furious, terrified. My wolf paced behind my eyes, restless, uneasy.
Liam's office. Now.
The elevator dinged, and I stepped out before the doors fully opened. His secretary jumped to her feet.
"Miss Avery—Alpha Liam said not to be disturbed—"
"Move," I snapped, the Alpha in me slicing through the air.
She obeyed.
I didn't knock. I didn't think.
I slammed the office door open—and the world split in two.
Liam's back. Riley's hands. Their lips.
Her sickening vanilla scent wrapped around the room like poison.
"Riley." The name ripped out of me, raw and sharp.
Liam jerked away, stunned. Riley licked her lips, slow and deliberate, eyes locking on mine with a sickening glint of triumph.
Lydia roared inside me, claws digging into my palms as I stepped forward.
"You dare touch my mate?"
Liam moved between us, hands raised. "Avery, stop—"
"Stop?" My laugh cracked like shattered glass. "You missed our fitting for this? After everything she's done? After she almost killed me?"
Riley whimpered pathetically. "Liam… she's scaring me."
But her eyes—those cold, calculating eyes—never looked away from mine.
Challenge.
War.
"You have three seconds to get away from him," I growled, every word dipped in lethal promise.
Liam's Alpha power surged in the room. "Enough!"
But I wasn't a subordinate. I wasn't someone he could command into silence.
"Then choose," I whispered. "Her or me."
He hesitated.
Just a moment.
Just long enough.
The bond snapped inside me like a rope burning through my hands. Lydia let out a broken howl, and pain bloomed across my chest like a bruise turned inside out.
I slipped the engagement ring off. My fingers didn't even tremble.
I dropped it onto his desk. It clattered through the silence like a verdict.
"The wedding's off."
Riley's inhale was smug victory.
Liam's face twisted in panic. "Avery, you don't get to decide that alone—"
"I already did."
Then I turned around and walked out, gown trailing behind me like the ghost of the future we were supposed to have.
And with each step, a piece of me died.