Chapter 1 I Was Going to Tell Him
The day I learned I was 8 weeks pregnant, I overheard my Alpha announce that his mistress was pregnant too—and that he expected me to raise her child.
The pack doctor handed me the ultrasound report, her expression grave.
"Luna, the silver wound from 3 years ago didn't completely destroy your womb. But conceiving this baby was already a miracle. Any severe backlash from the mate bond could cause you to miscarry."
I clutched the report. All I wanted was to tell Barret Blackwood that we were finally going to have another child.
But just as I reached the door to his study, I heard him say, "Leah is pregnant. At tomorrow night's pack banquet, I'll formally acknowledge her. The child she's carrying will become the heir to the Blackpine Pack."
His mother, Betsy Blackwood, asked, "What about Louise?"
Barret was silent for a moment. When he finally answered, his calmness was almost cruel.
"She can't have children, and she's always been sensible. She'll remain Luna. We'll let her raise Leah's baby. She'll accept it."
The mate mark on my neck flared with pain, and a vicious cramp tore through my belly.
I pressed a protective hand over the tiny life not yet showing inside me and slowly slipped the surprise I'd meant to give him back into its envelope.
A man who would always put me last, and a marriage that expected me to raise another woman's child—I wanted neither.
******
Inside the study, my brother, Oliver Cronin, laughed.
"Louise saved Leah on the battlefield. She won't have the heart to blame her. Besides, where would she even go if she left Blackpine?
"Barret and the Cronin family's reputation matter more to Louise than anything else. She'll make a scene for a few days, then come back and clean up after all of you."
They had even decided how long I was allowed to be upset.
I stood outside the door, clutching the ultrasound report and waiting for Barret Blackwood to prove him wrong.
However, all he said was, "The banquet will go ahead as planned. Don't let her find out too soon."
Another dull cramp twisted through my abdomen. I bit my lip and left the door closed.
When I returned to the bedroom, Leah Hart was standing at my vanity mirror with my moonstone pendant in her hand.
Barret had fastened it around my neck on our wedding day. The words Only You were engraved on the back.
"Miss Cronin."
She quickly put the pendant down, while her other hand moved protectively over the slight swell of her belly.
I looked at her. "When did you get pregnant?"
The door flew open.
Barret strode in and immediately stepped between us. I hadn't so much as lifted a hand, yet he was already shielding her with his body.
"Let me explain."
Leah burst into tears before he could say another word. "It happened the night of the victory celebration in the north. He was drunk. I was wearing the cloak you lent me, and he thought I was you at first."
She clutched the hem of my dress and said that if I wanted her to, she would get rid of the baby right away.
Barret immediately caught her by the shoulders, saying to me, "She's already 12 weeks along. The doctor said her body can't handle an abortion."
The mate mark carried his panic to me, just as it carried my pain to him. He frowned for a moment, but never once asked why I'd gone pale.
I could smell the faint trace of his cedarwood scent on Leah's neck. A werewolf could never mistake the scent of his mate, least of all Barret.
"When did you realize she wasn't me?"
He hesitated. "I drank a lot that night."
"That wasn't what I asked."
The room went deathly still.
Suddenly, Leah braced herself against the wall and said her stomach hurt. Barret scooped her into his arms. As he passed me, I called after him.
"Barret, I have something to tell you too."
This was the first chance I gave him.
He looked down at the sobbing woman in his arms. "Once she's stable, I'll come back later."
"What if it's important?"
"Louise, you've always been stronger than she is."
The door closed behind him.
Gripping the edge of the table, I slowly lowered myself into a chair. When the cramps finally eased, I pulled out the envelope, now damp and limp with sweat from my palm.
I didn't tear up the ultrasound report.
Barret had betrayed me, but this was still my child.
I locked it inside the old wooden chest my mother had left me, then sent a message to the Council of Moon Elders.
Louise: If a mate breaks his vows, can his pregnant partner petition to dissolve the bond?
The council replied that forcibly severing a mate bond during pregnancy was extremely dangerous.
If the Alpha refused to release me, I would first need to undergo a 30-day separation from the pack. Once the baby was stable, the bond could be dissolved.
I held the ultrasound report in my hands and sent no further reply.
