Chapter 4

Glen's face instantly darkened like a sky before a storm. His clenched fists showed bulging veins, but quickly, the ever-composed warrior reasserted himself. He took a deep breath, softening his voice. "I understand you want to reassure your father," he said, his tone coaxing a petulant child, "but I really can't right now..." "Just not now?" I cut him off, my voice incredibly calm. Glen seemed choked, silent. "Sophia, be reasonable," he finally said, his gaze falling to my wrist. "This bracelet does resemble our family's style, but a counterfeit is still a counterfeit." He reached out to touch my hand. "You're too young to wear something so heavy." I stepped back, avoiding his touch, a cold smile curling my lips. "Of course I know it's not yours. After all, your heirloom is now on Eva's wrist." Glen's pupils contracted violently, but his face showed only panic, not surprise. "You... you know?" I thought I had steeled myself against this over the past year. But hearing his admission firsthand still felt like a silver dagger twisting in my heart. So Eva had told the truth. Glen's expression shifted from panic to reproach: "Is this why you're putting on this farce? Did you go confront Eva?" I couldn't believe my ears. We had maintained a secret affair for a year, he was turning around to marry someone else, and now he was accusing me? "When did I ever confront Eva?" Glen shook his head, disappointed. "Eva told me this morning when she came to see the Alpha. You stopped her and almost smashed her bracelet." Anger flared in my chest, but instantly extinguished into cold ashes. This person suddenly seemed terrifyingly alien. "Then let’s just say I don’t like her," I heard my own voice say flatly. Glen frowned deeper. "Eva and I grew up together. My grandma likes her; giving her the family token is nothing but natural. You shouldn't have treated her that way. Go apologize to her." "Enough. We're done." I turned to leave, unwilling to waste another word on him. Glen grabbed my wrist: "At least go tell your father there is no engagement." His voice suddenly softened. "Whether we marry or not, I'll always take care of you." I violently shook off his hand, nausea churning in my stomach. He planned to form a mate bond with Eva and still continue this relationship with me? How utterly disgusting. Suddenly, I didn't understand how I could have been so infatuated with this man in the past. His scent once made my heart race; now it only made my stomach churn. Without answering him, I walked straight back to my father's room. "Sophia," Glen's voice chased after me, trembling in a way I'd never heard before, "does it have to be marriage? Can't you just—" I stopped walking but didn't turn around. He had probably long forgotten that in the early days of our relationship, it was he who seriously promised to marry me. Memories flooded in. I first met Glen the summer I was fifteen. After my father appointed him as his Beta, Dad often invited him to the family manor for meals. I initially saw him only as an elder. Spring when I was sixteen, I received my first confession from a boy. At the tribal Moon Market, a young warrior publicly handed me a bouquet of wild roses. That's when Glen appeared. His hand clamped around my wrist like an iron vise, yanking me behind him. "What are you doing, standing there stupidly?" he hissed, keeping his voice low. "The Alpha's daughter shouldn't lose composure in public like this." I didn't understand why I had to refuse. But when I looked up to argue, I saw Glen's Adam's apple bob, as if swallowing some unspeakable emotion. That autumn, news came of rogue wolf packs invading the border. Father and my brother led the pack warriors south to clear them out, entrusting my safety to Glen before leaving. After they left, Glen started appearing frequently in our backyard. With seeds gotten from who knows where, he planted rose bushes in land that had lain fallow for years. On the night the first flower bloomed, Glen stood amidst the blossoms and called to me. "Sophia," his voice deeper than usual, "what you want... many people can give it to you. Your father, your brother... and me." "The Alpha's daughter shouldn't be swayed by cheap gifts. Remember that. Remember your status." I suddenly realized he was still angry about the boy at the market. That realization made my heart race wildly. An unprecedented impulse seized me. "You said I could have anything I want?" My voice was hoarser than I intended. "What if I want to fall in love? To get married? My family can't give me that." I looked at him, seeing his pupils dilate sharply, and pressed on: "Could... you give me that?" The words escaped before I could stop them. I turned to flee, but Glen caught my wrist. "Do you wish it?" His thumb rubbed my pulse point. "If you wish it... I can." We began secretly dating. After getting involved with Glen, I didn't dare tell my father or brother. I demanded Glen maintain his stern, elder demeanor in front of them. "Keeping it private is fine," he said gently. "I have the patience to wait until you're ready." I mistook this for consideration. Until the news of my brother's death arrived from the border. They brought back more than an urn; they brought his final words. Hearing him say on his deathbed that he wished to witness my coming-of-age ceremony and wedding soaked my mourning robes with tears. After the funeral, I finally gathered my courage to approach Glen. "Let's go public," I said bluntly. "And get married. I want to take my mate to my brother's grave... to let him know someone will keep protecting me." But he avoided my gaze, his Adam's apple bobbing several times. "Sophia, the pack situation is complicated right now... Extremely complicated." His excuse cut through my hopes like a blunt knife. "Forming a mate bond isn't child's play. We need more time." So I waited. I waited until Eva, the new teacher, arrived at the tribal school—Glen's childhood 'friend'. He started appearing frequently at her place, helping her move luggage, fixing her leaking roof. "I heard Eva's mother is a pack leader," a friend mentioned casually over dinner one night. "Saw her and Glen hugging by the North Gate earlier. The way he held her—so sweet." I threw down my utensils and ran towards the school's north side. I saw Eva weeping with her face buried in Glen's chest, his hand gently patting her back. And the moment he saw me, he shoved her away in panic, flustered. After that, it was endless arguments or cold silences between us.