Too Late, Alpha: I Am Now Untouchable

Maeve’s POV The Christmas roast was cooling on the counter, the skin of the turkey beginning to lose its crispness. I had spent six hours in the kitchen, measuring ingredients to ensure nothing would trigger Leo’s allergies. The table was set for three: Kael, Leo, and me. Gold-trimmed crackers sat atop silk napkins, and the presents I had spent weeks picking out were stacked neatly under the tree. It was 8:00 PM. They were two hours late. I reached for my phone to call Kael again, but a notification on the lock screen caught my eye. It was an i********: alert. Elizabeth had posted a new photo. I tapped the icon, and the image filled the screen. It was a high-resolution shot taken at the city’s downtown plaza. Kael was standing with his arm draped around Elizabeth’s shoulders. Leo was perched on Kael’s other side, clutching a brightly wrapped gift. Behind them, the night sky was exploding with a massive display of fireworks. The caption read, "The best Christmas surprise. Thank you, Kael, for the private fireworks show, and thank you, little Leo, for my beautiful gift. I feel like the luckiest woman alive.” I scrolled down to the comments. “What a gorgeous family!” One stranger wrote. “You three look so happy together.” Said another. “Goal goals! A perfect family of three!” A third chimed in. A bitter laugh escaped my throat. I looked at the table I had set—the extra chair and the food that was now cold and useless. I stood up, grabbed the platter of turkey, and dumped the entire thing into the trash. The sides followed. The mashed potatoes, the green beans, the cranberry sauce. Everything hit the bottom of the bin with a heavy thud. I didn't cry. The time for tears had passed three months ago. That was when my husband’s ex, Elizabeth, had reappeared in our lives. She had shown up at our door, looking pale and fragile, clutching a medical folder. She told Kael she had stage four cancer and only a year left to live. She said she didn't want money; she just wanted "companionship" and to be around the man she once loved before the end. Kael, eaten alive by the guilt of how their relationship ended because of his mother's oppressive influence, had agreed. He told me it was a "mercy mission," but I immediately saw inconsistencies in her medical terminology. I saw a gold digger manipulating an Alpha's guilt. Kael only saw a dying woman. He told me I was being cold-hearted when I questioned why she needed him to go to her doctor's appointments or why she was calling him at 2:00 AM. The front door opened. The sound of Leo’s high-pitched laughter drifted down the hallway. "Mom! You should have seen the fireworks!" Leo shouted as he ran into the kitchen. He was holding a goody bag filled with candies Elizabeth had undoubtedly given him candies. I would have to check for nut traces later. Kael walked in behind him, shedding his heavy wool coat. He didn't look at the empty table or the trash can full of food. He looked at his watch. "We ate downtown," Kael said, his voice flat. "Elizabeth felt faint, and she needed to sit down for a meal. Leo was hungry, so I didn't think you'd mind." "I mind," I said. My voice was steady. "I spent all day on this dinner. You knew that." Kael sighed, a sound of irritation. "Maeve, don't start. She’s a cancer patient. She had a rough day, and the fireworks were a way to give her some joy in her final months. It’s Christmas. Try to show some compassion." "And what about your wife?" I asked. "Or your son? He spent his Christmas Eve with your ex-girlfriend while I sat here alone." "Elizabeth is nice," Leo interrupted, his lip curling in a way that mirrored his father’s expressions. "She let me stay up late. She doesn't make me eat gross vegetables as you do." I looked at my son, the boy I had nearly died giving birth to, the boy whose heart condition meant I hadn't slept through the night for the first four years of his life. He looked at me with genuine aversion. Elizabeth had done her work well over the last ninety days. Seven years ago, Kael wasn’t happy about Leo’s birth because he was the result of a one night stand. My life changed because of a digit on a hotel door. I was twenty years old, a recent arrival in Houston with a music degree from Juilliard and a seat in the Houston Symphony's second violin section. But I wasn't just a musician. I was the daughter of a renowned violinist, Elena Ashford. After the show, we celebrated our win at a club. When I returned to the hotel feeling drunk, the room mix-up led to a one-night stand with a stranger. I was supposed to be in room 420, but I ended up in 402. The man was Kael, the son of the Alpha of the Frost Rainbow pack. At that time, Kael was forced by his mother to break up with his first love, Elizabeth, and after that he became addicted to alcohol. When I found out I was pregnant six weeks later, I was terrified. Kael's mother, the formidable former Luna, saw the pregnancy as an opportunity to secure the bloodline with a "suitable" match rather than the Omega Kael loved. She forced him to marry me, and as the heir to the Alpha still under her thumb, Kael was unable to disobey his mother's orders. He was forced to marry me in order to fulfill his duty to the pack and me. And I couldn't bear to give up an innocent baby. I fell in love with him, but for Kael, our marriage was a cage, a constant reminder of the moment he lacked the strength to stand up to his mother. In a way, I was probably a mistake. Then Leo was born. He arrived two months early with weak lungs and a flawed heart. Between his congenital heart condition, a mitral valve defect, and a life-threatening nut allergy, my life as a violinist ended. I became his full-time nurse, monitoring his heart rate and preparing every meal as I'd once applied to my bowing technique. Over the past seven years, Kael has come to accept Leo, and he has become a father whom everyone praises. And I thought he would eventually forget Elizabeth and fall in love with me, just as he loved Leo. However, the Moon Goddess has never heard my prayers. My husband has never forgotten his first love, and I am about to lose my son. "Leo, go to your room," Kael commanded, sensing the tension. Leo didn't argue. He turned and ran up the stairs without a second glance at me. Once he was gone, I turned back to Kael. He was already heading toward the liquor cabinet to pour himself a drink. "I want a divorce," I said. Kael stopped, his hand hovering over the decanter. He turned around, a smirk playing on his lips. "You’re being dramatic, Maeve. This is because of the i********: post, isn't it? It was just a photo. The comments don't mean anything." "It’s not just the post, Kael. It’s the last three months. It’s the fact that you’ve checked out of this marriage to play house with a woman who is systematically destroying my relationship with my son." "She is dying!" Kael shouted, slamming his glass onto the counter. "How can you be so selfish? She has nobody. You have everything. You have this house, you have me, you have Leo. And yet you’re jealous of a woman who won't even see next Christmas." "I don't have you," I countered. "And after tonight, I don't think I have Leo either. You’ve both made your choice. You prefer her 'gentle' nature to my 'restrictions.' You prefer her lies to my reality." "You're talking nonsense because you're angry," he said, his tone shifting to one of condescending pity. "Go to bed. We'll talk when you've calmed down and realized how ridiculous you're being." "I'm not being ridiculous. I'm being clear. I’m done being the ghost in this house while you play hero for Elizabeth. I want the papers drawn up by the end of the week."