The gem no longer sparkled the way it once had.
When I finished, the sky outside had already darkened into evening. I carried my boxes toward the guest room, feeling like an outsider in my own home. As I walked down the corridor, Liam’s laughter echoed faintly from somewhere ahead, followed by Victoria’s soft, affectionate voice.
And Xavier’s voice answered them.
Brielle’s POV
My birthday was only a few days away, and despite everything that had fallen apart between Xavier and me, the mansion was already alive with activity before the sun had fully risen. Omegas hurried through the corridors carrying boxes, ribbons, and folded banners.
For one brief, foolish second, hope flickered inside me.
Maybe… just maybe… it was for me.
Xavier had always gone all out for my birthdays. He used to say the Moon Goddess must have chosen that day herself, blessing his life by bringing me into it. Two years ago, he had transformed the garden into a sea of glowing lanterns, tiny lights floating in the dark like fireflies. That night, he gave me a moonstone necklace, telling me the stone reflected the quiet strength he saw in me. Last year, he organized a grand celebration that stretched until dawn, filled with music, laughter, and his arm wrapped around my shoulders the entire time.
So when I saw colorful banners being unpacked, boxes labeled “decorations,” and caught the warm, sweet scent of honey cake drifting from the kitchen, a small spark ignited in my chest.
Maybe he was trying to fix things.
Maybe he hadn’t completely forgotten the woman he left standing alone at the altar.
But when the final decoration plans arrived that afternoon, that fragile hope shattered before it even had a chance to grow.
I unrolled the blueprint across the long oak table in the hall, my fingers pausing mid-motion as I stared down at it. This wasn’t anything like the elegant, romantic celebrations Xavier used to plan. There were no silver accents, no moonlight themes, no subtle elegance.
Instead, bright balloons filled the design. Cartoon wolves decorated the corners. Little paw prints scattered across the layout.
I blinked slowly, convinced there had been some mistake.
“This… doesn’t look right,” I murmured quietly to the omega who handed me the design.
She shifted uncomfortably. “Alpha Xavier confirmed these are the final arrangements, Lady Brielle.”