On the third day after a birth that nearly bled me dry, I was working a shift at a human bar with my dying pup in my arms. And there he was. My mate, Alpha Ryker, was drinking with the elders in a private room. Ryker rubbed his temples, his voice worn thin. "Is one cup of Sacred Elixir a day not enough for her and the pup?" One of the elders gasped. "That is Sacred Elixir! You give her that every day?" "Alpha... I heard she slips out to fool around with humans." The room went dead silent. A terrifying pressure erupted from Ryker. "Last night, she said the pup needed nourishment, so I cut my wrist and gave her half a cup of Alpha Lifeblood. But this morning she called me cold and heartless and said she wanted to dissolve our mate bond." I looked down at the pup in my arms, barely breathing because he had no wolf power to feed on, and my own breath came fast and hot with rage. I shoved the door open and slapped Ryker hard across the face. "You liar. Can you stop lying to everyone?" Ryker's pupils shrank. "I have never lied." I let out a cold laugh. "Then why have I never seen Sacred Elixir or Alpha Lifeblood? Why is what I drink every day nothing but rancid animal blood?"