Owen’s eyes darted to me, wild and desperate. “Ariana. It’s not—it’s not what it looks like.”
A pause. A shaky inhale. And then, “She came onto me. I told her no. She wouldn’t stop. There was a struggle, and—I didn’t mean to.”
I swallowed, my throat dry. “Owen…”
“If they find out,” he cut me off, stepping closer, “they’ll exile me. I’ll lose everything.” His voice was strained, urgent. “Ariana, you know how the pack is. You know how much this means to me.”
I just stared at him.
Then, his next words nearly made my knees buckle.
“You have to take the blame.”
My breath hitched. “What?”
“If you say it was you, they won’t question it,” he pressed on. “You’re already an outcast. They expect the worst from you.” His fingers curled around my wrist, his grip tight. “But if you do this for me, I swear, I’ll make it right. When I become Alpha in five days, I’ll fix everything. I’ll come for you.”
A lump formed in my throat. “You’re asking me to confess to murder.”
“I’m asking you to trust me.”
I wanted to believe him. I wanted to believe that, after everything, fate hadn’t been so cruel as to lead me to this moment just to shatter me.
I took a shaky breath. “If I do this… you promise you’ll come for me?”