Chapter 1: The Bite That Changed Everything

Even on the sunniest days, when the world felt wide open and full of promise, Caleb was like a storm cloud parked in the corner of every room. He’d perch on the edge of the couch, arms crossed, tail stiff as a board, and if I so much as reached for his ear, he’d shoot me a glare cold enough to freeze lava. Sometimes I wondered if this was all on me—maybe there was some secret handshake or inside joke I hadn’t figured out, something that could bridge the gaping distance between us.

I kept thinking I must be missing something.

Here’s the thing: I’d combed through every pet owner subreddit, binged hours of YouTube training videos, even ordered books on cross-species bonding (they’re a real thing, apparently). None of it made a dent. Caleb was an iceberg, and I was the Titanic, doomed to keep ramming into him in slow motion every time I tried to get close.

But then I realized—the only one Caleb ever seemed to warm up to was the nanny I’d hired for him.

I found Aubrey through sheer desperation—her references were flawless, her smile sunny and infectious. She remembered birthdays, brought homemade cookies on Fridays, the whole works. Caleb adored her instantly. I’d walk in to find him sprawled in her lap, tail lazily flicking, ears twitching as she chatted away. It stung, like finding out your own dog preferred the UPS guy over you.

The day I fired the nanny, the fox beastman bit me.

His teeth sank into my finger just as I was scrolling through the Zelle app. I screamed so loud the neighbors probably thought I’d stepped on a Lego. Blood dripped onto the hardwood, soaking into the Pottery Barn rug I’d bought in a fit of adulting.

Right then, floating comments suddenly scrolled in front of my eyes:

Wow, she’s still hanging on? Girl, let it go—the fox is just not that into you.

Can you believe the male lead ignores the rich girl and only cares for the nanny?

Of course, he’s got taste—the real heroine is the lost Carter heiress, raised outside.

Just wait, the real heiress comes back, fires the wannabe, and steals the guy. Love a good face-slap plot!

It was like my humiliation was being live-streamed, every comment more savage than the last. If I wanted live commentary on my failures, I’d just call my mom.

I’d worked my butt off to finally afford a pet—how did I end up as the face-slapped side character? Fine, whatever. They can both get lost—the fox and the human, together.