---- Sheldon, who was elated just a second ago, froze." Victoria... What are you saying?" I spoke calmly, "Once the mate bond is broken, this child will be yours to raise. But I want full custody of Joy. And there is one condition-the newborn must be raised by you, not Ethan, and especially not any she- wolf around him. If you agree, I'll carry the pregnancy to term. If not, I'll book an abortion. "Regardless of whether I'm keeping the pup or not, Ethan and I will break the mate bond." The room, filled with light moments before, suddenly fell into suffocating silence. After a long pause, Sheldon finally sighed. "Victoria... ALuna who outshines the Alpha too much is never a good thing. Why push it this far..." But only I knew that I had no other choice. Ethan's every move was a thorn in my throat, a ticking time bomb in my heart. If not Sophia, there would always be someone else. ---- Someday, the she-wolf in his car might not come alone-she might be holding a pup. What would happen to Joy when that day came? All I wanted was to protect her. As for the pup inside me, it would never suffer if it were raised by the Silver elders. It was a risky move, but it was one that could work. Just as I predicted, Sheldon and Julianna agreed. To ensure Ethan couldn't interfere, they promised to keep it secret from him. I struck while the iron was hot and had my lawyer draft the agreement on the spot. By the time everything was done, night had already fallen. Joy and I ended up staying the night at the Silver family estate. Sheldon had hot chocolate sent over as a bedtime treat. ---- Ethan suddenly appeared as I sat at the table, slowly sipping my drink. His amber eyes glinted dangerously in the dark.