She Stole My Name but Not My Power

"It's the final round of this year's Pack Pup Tournament. I can't take my eyes off my pup, Patrick Grant, as he wins the title.When the host calls Patrick's parents onstage to celebrate, I leap up, thrilled.But then I see Nicholas Grant, my Alpha mate, walk up with his secretary, Natalia Lawson.They stand side by side under the spotlight, kissing Patrick on both cheeks.It's as if Natalia is the mother, as if she's the Luna of our pack, as if they're the perfect family.I can only stand there in the audience, feeling the weight of countless startled stares, too ashamed to lift my head.Later, Nicholas brushes the incident off. "You were seated farther back. It was easier to bring Natalia up on stage," he explains.Easier? I swallow the humiliation and force myself to believe it was just an unfortunate coincidence—until today, that is. I sense through our blood bond that something's wrong with Patrick, so I drop everything and race to the pack hospital.But when I arrive, Patrick is lying in Natalia's lap, whining to her in a soft voice.I step forward to introduce myself, but the healer only looks surprised. "The emergency contact form lists Natalia as his mom, though."It turns out Patrick himself had stripped me of my role as his mother. And Nicholas didn't stop him.I finally understand. I don't belong in this family anymore.That night, I tell Nicholas I want to dissolve the mate bond between us.He doesn't even look up as he says, "Don't be dramatic. You'd dissolve our bond over a single name on a form?""Yes.""