Chapter 2 I'm Not Expecting Anything Romantic

Vera

For a long moment, we just stared at each other - Alpha and Luna, husband and wife, enemies bound by law.

Darius was the first to look away. He dragged a hand through his dark hair, exhaling like the weight of my presence exhausted him.

"Yes. I wanted Selene," he said finally, his voice low but steady. "I still do. She's my, " He stopped himself.

I tilted my head, bitterness curling my lips. "Your what? Your mate?"

When he didn't answer, I laughed, a hollow, ugly sound. "But you married me. You marked me, Darius. You claimed me, even if you couldn't stand to touch me."

His jaw flexed. "That mark means nothing without consummation. You know that." His tone hardened, that commanding Alpha authority sliding into place. "Sign the papers, Vera. Go home. Find someone who can actually love you, because I can't."

There it was, the truth I'd tried to ignore for six long months.

The air left my lungs in a rush. The ache in my chest burst open, spilling into something wild.

Before I realized it, my hands moved, the papers flying across the desk, scattering like torn feathers.

"No."

Darius blinked. "What did you just say?"

"I said no." My voice trembled but didn't break. "You want this over? You want to erase me and marry my sister? Then you're going to have to work for it."

He straightened, power rolling off him in waves. "Don't be ridiculous."

"I am your wife," I shot back. "Your Luna. Whether you like it or not, that means something. And I'm not going to let you throw me away like I was nothing."

His silver eyes darkened. "The Elders already approved the annulment. The loophole is legal. All you're doing is delaying what's inevitable."

"Then let me delay it," I said. "You owe me that much. Six months of my life, Darius. Six months of humiliation. Six months of watching you look at *her* while pretending I didn't exist. If you want your freedom, you can damn well earn it."

Something flickered in his gaze, not pity, not anger. Something... curious.

"What do you want?" he asked quietly.

The question caught me off guard. My mouth moved before I could think.

"Three months. Give me three months before the annulment goes through."

His brows drew together. "Three months? For what?"

"To be your wife," I said simply. "Your real wife."

He laughed, a short, humorless sound that made my pulse spike. "You've lost your mind."

"Maybe I have." I took a step closer, meeting his glare head-on. "You've kept me locked out since the wedding, no training, no meetings, no say in the pack. For three months, that changes. I'll act as your Luna. I'll do everything I was meant to do. And then, if you still want to end it, I'll sign the papers myself."

He leaned back, studying me like I was a puzzle he hadn't expected to find in his own office. "And what does that entail, exactly?"

"I'm not asking for romance," I said, even though the words nearly strangled me. "But I want my role. I want to train with the females. I want to sit in on your council meetings. I want to stand beside you at the Alpha Summit next month, as your Luna, not your shadow."

Silence stretched between us, thick and electric.

Finally, Darius gave one sharp nod. "Three months. No more." He stepped closer, his scent brushing against me, dark cedar and something dangerous. "But this changes nothing, Vera. At the end of those three months, I'm still marrying your sister."

The words sliced through me, clean and merciless. But I didn't flinch. "Understood," I said.

"Good." His voice was cold again. "Now get out. I have work to do."

I turned toward the door, my pulse thrumming, my body trembling from holding in too much, rage, pain, something else I didn't dare name.

I was halfway out when his voice stopped me.

"Vera."

I looked back.

He was watching me with an expression I couldn't read. "For what it's worth... I am sorry. You deserve better than this."

My throat tightened, but I forced a smile that didn't reach my eyes. "Yes," I said softly. "I do."

I left before he could see the tears spill.

Three months. That's what I'd bought myself.

Three months to figure out who I was without him, or maybe who I'd been all along.

Three months to stand my ground before he took everything else from me.

But as I walked through the empty halls of the pack house, something strange stirred inside me. A faint hum beneath my skin, a pulse that didn't belong to heartbreak.

By the time I reached the end of the corridor, the air had shifted. The lights flickered, just once.

And deep in my chest, my wolf, silent since the day of the wedding, whispered one word.

Mine.