As a wolfless omega trapped in a family that has made her life unbearable, Nivilia Carson has tried to run away more times than she can count.
On her eleventh attempt to escape, luck seems to shine on her when she finds herself in the locker room of Moongladea’s most prestigious hockey team.
However, that luck seems to run out when, with a scowl, she’s found by Alpha Zay—captain of the team and the unapproachable heir to the Lycan King.
In that moment, Nivilia decides she’s done running.
She summons all her courage and begs him to mark her.
The bewildered Alpha offers her a deal instead.
If his team wins their next game, he'll give her the mark she's desperate for.
But that mark comes with a price.
In exchange, Nivilia has to become his pretend girlfriend for as long as he wants.
To Nivilia, that sounds like a small price to pay for freedom.
But it doesn’t sound so small anymore when Alpha Zay uses his influence to secure her a place at the elite Moongladea University.
This could be an opportunity of a lifetime for Nivilia, but at this university where status is everything, she quickly becomes a target.
Jealous students want her gone, enemies begin circling, Zay's real mate has no intention of letting their “fake” relationship continue, and buried secrets relentlessly resurface.
Worse, the longer Nivilia and Zay pretend to be together, the more it seems there’s something more.
Because somewhere between the hatred, arguments, jealousy and moments that feel far too real, pretending begins to feel dangerously close to wanting.
((CONTENT WARNING: This story contains sexual assault, abuse, deep trauma, and violence. Reader's discretion is advised))
