The Substitute Luna Chapter 01

The Substitute Luna Chapter 01

Everyone in the Blackwood Pack knew Alpha Ronan Hale only married me to spite Taryn Vire.

Before the mating ceremony, he and Taryn had a massive fight. She stormed out of the pack territory.

Ronan didn’t try to stop her. Instead, he turned and claimed me.

I stood before the altar in a dress that wasn’t mine, letting him mark me while the elders whispered that the moment Taryn returned, I’d be discarded.

I thought so too.

But by our third year, things had shifted.

He brought back fresh meat from hunts and cooked it himself. He nuzzled my neck to wake me, his teeth grazing my skin when I whimpered.

In our warm bedroom, his rough voice murmured in my ear, “Little one, let’s make a pup. One as quiet and sweet as you.”

We looked like the perfect pair.

Then that night, I caught the change in my scent. I was pregnant.

I was about to rush to tell him the news when word arrived: Taryn Vire was back.

Her family had been ruined. The Council had stripped her of her pack house and lands. She was surviving by serving drinks.

When Ronan and I walked into the banquet hall together, a young gamma was pouring her whiskey.

“Drink it,” he said, “and maybe I’ll spare you a coin for a meal.”

Taryn forced down every drop, her eyes welling with tears. Then she saw Ronan.

Someone joked, “Can’t hack it out there, Taryn? Come crawling back to our Alpha?”

Ronan’s expression stayed cold. He put his hand on my shoulder, his voice flat as he said, “Shut it. Anyone who upsets my mate can get the hell out.”

Everyone straightened up, calling me Luna with new respect. It was Ronan’s favor that bought me their respect

None of them realized he’d only agreed to come to this party because he’d heard she’d be here.

Taryn stared at me, biting her lip until it bled.

The gamma sidled closer, hand on her shoulder. “Looks like the Alpha’s done with you. But I’m not. Treat me well tonight, and I’ll make sure you never want for anything.”

Ronan crushed his cigarette against the table, jaw tight.

Taryn lifted her chin, her voice trembling but defiant. “No. I’ll only ever have one mate. Even if he cast me out, no one else will touch me.”

Ronan’s grip on my arm tightened so hard I flinched.

“You think the Alpha’s coming back for you?” The gamma laughed, dragging her toward the door. Taryn struggled weakly, drunk, stumbling.

Ronan’s eyes never left her.

I could smell the violence rolling off his wolf.

Just as she was about to disappear down the corridor, he snapped.

He crossed the room in three strides and slammed the other man to the floor.

His fists flew without mercy, his eyes burning amber with fury. “Touch her again, and I’ll cut off your hands.”

Chaos erupted. The pack elders turned to stare. I grabbed Ronan’s sleeve, trying to pull him back.

He turned, his gaze like ice. “Since when do you have the right to tell me what to do?”

I froze, then let go.

Taryn threw herself into his arms, sobbing. “Don’t fight for me. If you got hurt, I’d die. I thought… I thought you really didn’t want me anymore.”

“That will never happen.” He held her close. Then, in front of everyone, he walked out with her, leaving me alone.