(Amber’s POV)
I sneered at Victoria, watching her perfect façade crack as red wine dripped down her emerald dress. The shocked silence that followed was almost worth the drama that was about to unfold.
With deliberate slowness, I slammed my empty glass to the marble floor. It shattered spectacularly, sending crystal shards skittering across the polished surface.
“Those earrings,” I said, my voice carrying across the now-silent ballroom, “were left to me by my grandmother Eleanor. Not to you.”
Victoria’s mouth opened in outrage. “How dare you—”
“No, how dare you?” I cut her off, turning to face my mother. “And you, Mother. What right did you have to give away my inheritance to someone who isn’t even of our bloodline?”
Melanie’s face paled with fury. “Amber Chase! You will apologize this instant!”
“For what? Speaking the truth?” I turned to Ethan, who stood protectively in front of Melissa. “Tell me, Ethan, who do you believe? Me, your fiancée, or her, your secretary who conveniently ‘bumped’ into me?”
Ethan’s jaw tightened. “Amber, you’re being ridiculous. Melissa would never steal anything.”
“Of course not,” I laughed bitterly. “Sweet, innocent Melissa would never do anything wrong.”
The realization hit me like a physical blow. Where once the eighteen-year-old Ethan had held me in his heart and eyes, that wasn’t the case anymore. Melissa was foremost in his mind now.
I grabbed another glass of wine from a nearby tray. “You know what? I’m sorry.”
Then I threw it directly at his feet. The dark liquid splashed over his expensive leather shoes, drawing gasps from the onlookers.
“I’m so very sorry that I wasted eight years of my life on someone who doesn’t believe a word I say.”
Just then, an omega servant hurried into the room, holding something in her hand. “Excuse me, Miss Victoria? I found these in your bedroom while turning down the bed.”
In her palm sat the missing Emerald Moon Earrings, gleaming under the chandelier light.
Victoria’s face flushed. “I must have forgotten where I put them. It’s been such a busy night with pack business.”
I snatched the earrings from the servant’s hand and held them up for everyone to see. “Isn’t that convenient?”
I looked pointedly at Ethan, silently asking him who had lied now. Then, with deliberate slowness, I put the earrings on.
“Amber, those aren’t yours to wear,” Melanie hissed, reaching for my arm.
I jerked away from her touch. “They were given to me by my grandmother. Victoria has no right to them.”
My voice rose as I continued, “This was a setup. Victoria and Melissa conspired to humiliate me publicly. And you,” I pointed at Ethan, “you’re so disrespectful to your future partner that you’d believe anyone over me.”
Victoria’s friends began to close in, their expressions ranging from disgust to pity. I felt Cora surge beneath my skin, responding to the threat.
Before I could stop myself, my claws partially emerged. I slashed at the air in warning, keeping Victoria’s friends at bay.
“Don’t come any closer,” I growled, feeling my canines lengthen slightly.
Melanie moved faster than I expected. The slap landed hard across my cheek, the sound cracking through the tense atmosphere.
“Enough!” she shouted, her amber eyes flashing with rage. “You’ve ruined Victoria’s birthday with your jealousy and accusations!”
My cheek burned from the blow, but I straightened my spine and leaned in close to my mother. “Would you like me to tell everyone why Victoria can’t find a mate? About her and Henry?”
Melanie’s face went white.
The commotion had drawn Harrison and Henry down from upstairs, where they’d been discussing pack matters. My father’s expression was thunderous as he surveyed the scene.
“What is going on here?” Harrison demanded.
Ethan stepped forward, attempting to defuse the situation. “Sir, I think we all need to calm down and—”
“Amber let’s go outside and talk,” he then turned his head and gestured me out again.
I pushed him aside and gave him a hard shove, he stumbled.” Stay out of this, Ethan, I’m giving you one last chance today.” With that said, I walked over to the two women as the guests stared in shock.
Without warning, I grabbed both Victoria and Melissa by their arms and dragged them toward the courtyard doors. Both women struggled against my grip, but Cora’s strength gave me the advantage.
“Amber, stop this!” Victoria shrieked.
I kicked open the glass doors leading to the moonlit courtyard and marched them straight to the swimming pool.
“You want to play dirty? Let’s get dirty,” I snarled, and with one powerful shove, sent both of them tumbling into the water.
The water splashed and their screams came to a screeching halt. Then I jumped after them. I wanted to take a chance, I wanted to know if there was a place for me in their hearts.
I still felt immediate panic as the water rose above my head. I couldn’t swim – a rare flaw for a werewolf. My limbs swung uselessly as I continued to sink.
Before being completely submerged by the water, I saw two people dive into the water. Henry reaches Victoria first and pulls her to the surface. Ethan goes to Melissa, and no one cares about me. Two voices on the shore were calling out for Victoria – it was my mom and dad.
My lungs were burning as I fought to stay afloat. Darkness began to creep into the edges of my vision when a strong arm wrapped around my waist and dragged me upward.
I gasped and coughed my way out of the water as my rescuer clung to me. As he pulled me to the edge of the pool, I got a good look at his face – it was a young man.
The stranger set me on the pool’s edge before disappearing into the crowd. I sat alone, soaked to the bone, watching as Ethan cradled Melissa in his arms, murmuring soothing words as he wrapped her in a towel.
When he finally looked back at me, his eyes suddenly widened. In that moment, I knew he’d finally realized the gravity of the situation.
After the last of the shocked guests had departed, I trudged up to my old room to change. Victoria took Melissa to her room for dry clothes, while Ethan went to borrow something from Henry.
Harrison followed me, his anger barely contained. “What were you thinking? You’ve disrupted Victoria’s birthday and damaged our pack’s reputation!”
I ignored him, pulling out my phone instead. I typed a simple message to Ethan: “100.”
“Are you even listening to me?” Harrison demanded.
I looked up from my phone. “I’m canceling the wedding.”
The silence that followed was deafening.
“What did you say?” Harrison finally managed.
“You heard me. The wedding is off.”
Ethan appeared in the doorway, wearing Henry’s clothes that were slightly too small for his frame. “Amber, you can’t be serious.”
“I gave you one hundred chances,” I said, my voice eerily calm. “Every time you hurt me, I deducted one. Now I have zero left.”
Harrison’s face reddened. “This is ridiculous! You can’t call off a pack alliance over some petty jealousy!”
I looked at him with contempt. “I know you’re afraid of losing the Blackwood partnership.”
Harrison’s hand connected with my already-reddened cheek, the second slap of the night.
“You ungrateful, capricious child!” he shouted.
I didn’t flinch. “I’m still canceling the wedding.”
Ethan stepped forward, his expression a mix of frustration and relief. “You realize I was the one who wanted to end our engagement in the first place? You refused and got my cousin Dominic involved to force me into this arrangement.”
“Things change,” I replied coldly, grabbing my purse and pushing past him.
I left the Chase Mansion without another word, pulling out my phone as I walked to my car. I dialed Paige Sullivan’s number, but it went straight to voicemail.
Next, I called Ryan Quinn.
“Amber? What’s up?” Ryan’s voice was tinged with surprise.
“I need Dominic Blackwood’s phone number,” I said without preamble.
“Dom’s number? Why?”
“I need his help canceling the wedding.”
There was a pause. “Hold on.”
I heard muffled voices as Ryan presumably spoke to Dominic. After a moment, he returned.
“We’re at a business dinner meeting. He’ll be finished in about thirty minutes. Is everything okay?”
“No,” I replied honestly. “But it will be once this wedding is officially over.”
“Okay,come on over then, we’ll talk at the Moonlight Club,” Ryan said.
“Thank you, Ryan.” I hung up after thanking him sincerely, and as I drove away from the pack house, a feeling of relief finally came over me.
