They’re just talking nonsense, Your Highness! You and Prince Ryan grew up together, and after all these years…”
I gently shook my head, cutting off Annie’s attempt to comfort me. I knew exactly what she was going to say.
Three days ago, I woke up in the Snowfang Pack’s palace. Three days was all it took for me to untangle the truth of both my past and present lives.
“Your Highness,” Annie suddenly whispered excitedly, “Prince Ryan is here.”
I turned around and saw Ryan striding into the banquet hall. He wore a black battle robe, his shoulders draped in the silver-embroidered cloak symbolizing the wolf kingdom’s honor. Surrounded by his retinue of warriors, he moved with the authority and presence of a leader.
The murmurs around the room instantly fell silent.
Ryan and I had grown up together, and our bond had been forged from the time we were children. Our engagement had been arranged early on by the elders of our two packs, a pact meant to solidify the alliance between them.
When we were young, if anyone dared to say a single bad word about me, Ryan would be the first to step in and defend me. And when he got himself into trouble and faced punishment from the elders, I was always the one to plead on his behalf.
Until now, no one in either pack had ever doubted that I was Ryan’s one true love and the future Luna.
But on my coming-of-age ceremony today, he brought another woman.
Saya.
The young she-wolf who had saved his life was dressed in an expensive gown. Despite her elegant attire and carefully styled appearance, she looked like a small, skittish animal that had wandered into a palace of predators.
She clung tightly to Ryan’s arm, seemingly unable to stand without his support.
Ryan leaned down, whispering something in her ear, his eyes filled with tenderness. Saya’s gaze shifted to me, and panic flashed across her face. Then, she stepped forward.
Thunk!
Suddenly, she dropped to her knees in front of me.
