Chapter 1

In the Norfield pack, Charlotte Mateo, age 22, waited for her husband and mate, the Alpha of the pack, to return home, but she hadn't seen him.

She knew he had been avoiding her lately, but as the Luna of the pack, she didn't want to leave him or end their loveless marriage. She had been his wife for four years, and their fathers were friends, as her father was the Beta of the pack. To seal their friendship, they had arranged for Teddy to marry her.

Charlotte had just turned 18 when she was betrothed to Teddy Hudson. Teddy was the second son of the Hudson family, and since his elder brother had been abroad for years, showing no interest in the ruling power of the Norfield pack, Alpha Lucas Hudson decided to hand over the affairs of the pack to Teddy, hoping he would look after the pack and help protect them from ongoing rogue attacks.

Alpha Lucas Hudson was still alive, though aged, and he had two sons and a daughter. His sons were Jack and Teddy.

Jack was the rightful heir to rule the Norfield pack, but ever since he left the pack house when he turned 18 a decade ago, Alpha Lucas felt it was better to hand over the pack affairs to his second son, Teddy, who had been around.

To take over the pack affairs, Alpha Lucas gave Charlotte Mateo to Teddy as his wife and Luna, to assist him in ruling the pack house, but Teddy didn't like Charlotte.

Since four years ago, when Teddy and Charlotte tied the knot, Teddy hadn't touched her or mated with her to seal their marriage.

"Oh! For a week now, Teddy is not yet home. Should I call his father and report him? What kind of husband is he?" Charlotte pondered. She had been enduring Teddy's ruthless nature. He beat her at home, refused to eat her food, and avoided their master bedroom. Charlotte had been enduring it all because her father told her not to leave Teddy.

She had suffered facial scars that would later heal, but Teddy didn't like her. He mostly pretended in front of others that he was a sweet, doting husband, especially during any of their pack functions. But once he came home, his beastly and animalistic nature took control of him.

Charlotte was wearing a pink nightdress. It was their marriage anniversary, and she thought to look sweet for Teddy. Maybe, just maybe, he would finally touch her and consummate their marriage.

Charlotte knew she was not Teddy's true mate. Most female werewolves in the Norfield pack find their mates when they turn 18, but Charlotte was now 22 and still hadn't found her mate. She wasn't wolfless, and on the night she turned 18, it was the same night her father gave her to Teddy as his wife.

"Alpha Lucas, here is my daughter, Charlotte Matteo. I give her to your son, Teddy Hudson, as his wife, mate, and chosen Luna of the Norfield pack," her father said in front of the Alpha and his family.

Charlotte loved Teddy. He was handsome, masculine, strong, and a skilled warrior of the Norfield pack. He single-handedly defeated battalions of rogues that had attacked their pack four years ago, and to this day, Teddy was a tough man. Teddy was only 22 years old then, four years ago, when his father gave Charlotte to him.

"Charlotte, do you accept Teddy Hudson as your husband and chosen mate? To love and cherish until death separates you both?" Charlotte remembered the night she was given to Teddy Hudson.

Teddy had an aloof face; he wasn't pleased with her. Charlotte was dark in complexion, and that was something Teddy didn't like but kept silent about as he wanted to take over the pack.

Teddy did everything his father wanted him to do so that he could take over the Norfield pack, and he had to suppress his irritation and accept Charlotte as his wife. Though she was young and stared at him with admiration, Teddy could see that Charlotte wanted to marry him, but he already had a mate, and he had to let his mate go for Charlotte's sake and to secure the Alpha's position in the Norfield pack.

"Yes, Alpha. I accept Teddy Hudson as my husband and mate. To love and to cherish, until death do us part," Charlotte said to Alpha Lucas, who sat on the throne, and the whole family clapped happily for her, while Alpha Lucas turned to face Teddy.

"Teddy, do you accept Charlotte Mateo as your mate, chosen Luna, and to enable you to rule over the Norfield pack in your elder brother's absence, until he returns?" Alpha Lucas asked, but Teddy replied, "Dad, I will only accept Charlotte as my Luna on the condition that even when Jack returns, I will still be the Alpha of this pack."

Alpha Lucas nodded and replied bitterly, "Yes, Teddy. You have my word, so long as you accept Charlotte and treat her right. You shall remain the ruling Alpha of the Norfield pack from today henceforth. So do you accept to marry Charlotte?"

With green glowing eyes, Teddy replied, "Yes, I do."

Charlotte wiped the tears from her eyes after she remembered the night she was given to Teddy Hudson. Teddy was 26 years old now, and Charlotte didn't know much about him. He kept her in the dark about his business, hangouts, and friends. She was only his wife and the current Luna of the Norfield pack by name. It worried her so much if she would continue to live in a loveless marriage. She braced herself as she remembered that Teddy had warned her not to contact him on the phone but to await his arrival. Charlotte decided to contact Teddy's Beta, Caleb Brown, to find out about Teddy's whereabouts.

It was Friday night, and Charlotte was worried as the time in her room was past 11 p.m. "Hello, Caleb," Charlotte spoke in a nervous tone to Caleb.

"Good evening, Luna Charlotte. Why are you calling me at this late ungodly hour? Do you want to implicate me and have me banished from our pack? You know how possessive Teddy is regarding you. Please refrain from calling me on the phone at this hour, unless you want me to reject your calls and place them on voicemail," Caleb said, and Charlotte apologized to him, "Please, I'm sorry. It's just that Teddy hasn't returned home since last Monday when he left the house. Do you know of his whereabouts?"

The phone call went silent for a while, and Caleb said, "Alpha Teddy will be home tonight. He went for a business meeting with the next pack, but he will be home tonight. Take care, Luna."

Charlotte sighed as the phone call ended. Just then, she heard the doorbell ring, and it slipped her mind that she had heard the sound of a car arriving before.

When Charlotte rushed to unlock the door, Teddy was back with a woman in his arms.