---- Chapter 35 Damien POV: The island was a paradise, a jewel of emerald green set in a sapphire sea. | arrived on a small supply boat, my Alpha scent masked by the bitter, earthy smell of the herbs the old steward had given me. | was just another nameless Omega, hired to work in the kitchens. My heart hammered against my ribs as | stepped onto the white sand. | could feel her. Even with our bond shattered by the Rejection, a faint, phantom thread remained. It was a cruel trick of the Moon Goddess, a constant, dull ache where a vibrant connection used to be. She was here. Close. The head of the household staff, a stern-faced female, barely gave me a glance. | was shown to the kitchens, a large, airy space with a view of the ocean, and put to work immediately. It was humbling. |, who had commanded a pack, was now scrubbing pots and chopping vegetables. But | didn't care. Every task, every moment of menial labor, was a prayer. A step closer to her. The steward had told me Elara was on a special diet to nourish her White Wolf bloodline. The White Wolves were legends, direct descendants of the Moon Goddess herself, possessing purity and power beyond any normal wolf. | poured ---- over the ancient texts | found in the kitchen's small library, learning the properties of every herb, every root. | took over her meal preparations, my hands, which had once wielded power, now carefully crafting broths and teas. | poured all my regret, all my desperate love, into the food | made for her. | never saw her up close. | didn't dare. But sometimes, | would catch a glimpse of her from the kitchen window. | saw her walking along the beach, her hand resting on her swollen belly, her silver-blonde hair catching the sunlight like a halo. She looked... peaceful. The haunted look was gone from her eyes. She was radiant, beautiful, and completely out of my reach. The sight was both heaven and hell. She was alive. Our pup was alive. But | was a ghost in her world, a stranger preparing her food. One afternoon, | watched her sitting by a sacred spring, her feet dipped in the crystal-clear water. She was humming a soft tune, a lullaby I'd never heard before. My throat tightened. A profound sadness and a fierce, protective joy warred within me. She didn't know | was there. She didn't know that | watched over her every day, that my wolf paced restlessly at the sight of her, that my soul ached to simply be in her presence. She just knew that her appetite had improved, and that she felt stronger than she had in months. ---- For now, that had to be enough. | was her secret guardian, her phantom chef. And | would stay that way for as long as | could, just to be near her.