Chapter 1

At the annual party of Brian's pack, his "best friend" Vanessa leaned against him, smirking.

"Emma, you're not actually an orphan, are you?"

My heart skipped a beat. How did she know?

I had never told anyone about my past.

Before I could even process this, she kept going.

"What, cat got your tongue? I heard your mother was a homewrecker who forced her way into a rich family, and you've been living as a sugar baby ever since you turned eighteen. You only hooked up with Brian recently, right?"

"I know this is our first time meeting, but I know all about your dirty little secrets."

I stared at her. She didn't actually know me.

Vanessa gasped, quickly covering her mouth as if she had accidentally let something slip.

She looked at Brian and stuck her tongue out playfully.

"Oh my gosh, Brian. I totally forgot that daughters of mistresses hate talking about their past. Please don't be mad at me."

The smile froze on Brian’s face. Just a second ago, he was bragging to his pack members about how hopelessly in love with him I was.

I swallowed my shock and forced myself to calm down.

I had run away from home to escape an arranged political marriage with Sam Collins, the heir of the Shadowfang Pack.

I lied about being an orphan because I didn't want anyone to find out I was actually the daughter of Alpha Edward Sterling, the leader of the powerful Silvermoon Pack.

Vanessa claimed my mother was a homewrecker. But my father, Alpha Edward, was famous across the entire werewolf realm for worshipping his wife. If Vanessa had actually investigated me, she would never have made up such a stupid lie.

She didn't know anything. She had only somehow found out I wasn't an orphan, and she had pulled the rest of the story out of her ass.

Realizing this, I relaxed.

I looked at her face. The more I stared, the more familiar she looked.

I felt like I had seen her somewhere before, but I couldn't quite place it.

Whatever. She was just bluffing.

But the moment Vanessa finished speaking, the envious looks the pack members had been giving Brian turned into judging stares.

One of the guys tried to laugh it off and save face.

"Come on, Vanessa. You must have the wrong girl. Emma looks like she comes from a decent family. She's not like that."

Vanessa didn't back down. She just sighed dramatically.

"Well, her mother was smart, wasn't she? Selling her body to a rich Alpha just for the money."

"But honestly, I could never respect a girl like that."

I sneered inwardly.

She really had no idea who she was messing with.

If she knew I was the daughter of the Silvermoon Alpha, she wouldn’t dare utter a single syllable of this trash.

If my father, Alpha Edward, heard this, the entire werewolf world would tremble.

Brian's face darkened. He looked at me, then at Vanessa, his brows furrowing.

Seeing his hesitation, Vanessa shrunk further into Brian's chest.

"Brian, did I say something wrong? I'm sorry. I'm just too honest. I don't know how to play mind games like other girls."

I clenched my fists, holding back the urge to slap her across the room.

If I hit her here, she would play the victim card and make my life hell in his pack.

Distracted by my anger, my hand tilted. A splash of red wine spilled from my glass, staining Vanessa’s white dress.

She shrieked, looking incredibly offended.

"Emma! Are you seriously getting physical just because I told the truth?"

"I mean, keeping up such a perfect lie must be exhausting. I almost admire you for it."

Brian’s face turned icy cold. He grabbed some napkins from the table and began wiping Vanessa’s dress with extreme care.

Then, he glared at me.

"Vanessa is just brutally honest. She doesn't know how to sugarcoat things. What is wrong with you?"

"Apologize to Vanessa. Right now!"

I almost laughed out loud.

Vanessa had just dragged my mother's name through the mud, and Brian had stood there doing nothing.

Now, because of an accidental wine spill, he was losing his mind.

Vanessa clung to Brian, her eyes pooling with tears.

"It's fine, Brian. Let's just pretend I made a mistake. It was just a joke."

I stared at her, my voice dropping to a freezing register.

"You said I'm not an orphan. Why don't you tell everyone who my parents are then? What is my mother's name?"

Panic flashed in Vanessa’s eyes, but she quickly masked it with attitude.

"I... how am I supposed to remember their names? Everyone in the high society packs knows your mother was a side chick!"

My inner sneer grew deeper.

Just as I thought. She couldn't even name my mother. She was completely fabricating this.

"Next time you make an accusation, bring receipts. I don't find your jokes funny."

I said this to warn Brian. He shouldn't believe her without proof.

Brian hesitated. He slowly stopped wiping Vanessa's dress and pulled his hand back.

Vanessa’s body stiffened. She looked up at him, looking like a kicked puppy.

"I'm sorry, Emma. I just heard it from someone else. I didn't verify it."

I stared at her coldly.

"Who did you hear it from? Call them. Let's get them on FaceTime right now."

I expected her to choke on her words, but her expression suddenly turned into one of pity.

"Emma, even if you did those things, you don't have to deny it so aggressively. I wasn't going to tell the whole pack anyway."

The surrounding pack members began whispering, throwing disgusted looks my way.

A girl sitting next to Vanessa laughed mockingly.

"I guess girls with loose morals always have it easy. Just spread your legs and you get a ticket to the top."

"Unlike Vanessa and me. We're just simple girls looking for real love."

Brian was a man who cared about his pride more than anything.

He had brought me to this annual party to show me off.

Now that his pride was being dragged through the dirt, he slammed back a whole glass of whiskey.

Across the table, a guy named Mike mocked him openly.

"Well, Brian is a lucky guy. Other guys spend money on their girls. Brian gets a girl that the whole town has already paid for... haha..."

"Shut up!"

Brian snapped. He threw a hard punch, smashing Mike's glasses right off his face.

I felt absolutely no satisfaction. I knew he wasn't defending my honor. He was just mad that his own ego was bruised.

Before Mike could swing back, others jumped in to break it up.

"Alright, alright! Don't ruin the party. Let's change the subject."