The Luna You Betrayed Is No Longer Yours

ena'

open so hard it near

, breathless and gasping. "He's back! Alpha Kaelen has returned! H

ed into my finger, but I barely notice

n was

otting the bead of blood, but I couldn't s

I'd last seen my husband-the

d been our w

alone before he was summon

olding the pack together with unwavering de

. Kaelen hadn't got enough time to mark me. And Kyra-the wolf inside me-had

e for her ailing mother-in-law, to weather the elders' scrutiny, to balance the pack's cou

me. We would shoulder the pack's burdens togethe

s about to fa

astened my mother's pearl earrings-the ones she had worn as a token of her bond with my

eved i

ike forever. She paced restlessly in the depths of my mind, her agitatio

, I und

nsed what

had com

composure faltered-my stride, once measured and graceful, now carried an unmistakable ur

Kaelen Varkos had b

my mother's health had crumbled. Her only remaining wish was to

n was the m

importantly, its young Alpha was accomplished and commanding. My

not fate

g night had been enough

haps even more so, with a new edge of hardness about him. When those dark, fathomless

murmured, tucking a stray lock of hai

carried me thr

w he w

side them, I caught a glimpse of my own red-rimmed eyes. I took that final moment t

A voice from within the half-o

as no say

han a heartbeat

band's

Virella," he said. "It is done.

f ice water, dousing every flick

Who was

ed me to wait for him-was now

ught, the force of it surprising even mysel

rity. My mother-in-law, Elira, sat just below her, and when her eyes met mine, she exhaled a quiet sigh. The others in the room

e this was the woman Ka

a self-possession that seemed almost practiced. Her features were finely cut, her dark hair swept back to reveal the el

one day my husband would b

ut the question was meant for Kaelen. My voice carried a weight that m

ard, stepped forward with a strained smile, clearly hoping

er off sharply, and then, final

rs had ch

that felt less like composure and more like a predator at rest. Every movement, every shift of his posture carri

his dark eyes unreadab

My voice did not waver. "Who did

er than troubled him. He reached for the woman at his side a

," he announced. "She

belly with a tenderness

it-the subtle swel

was the

n. It was as if a hand had reached into my c

hand caught my elbow, stead

s voice cut through the room like a blade. "Your husband retu

han before. "I have held this pack together for three years. I have spent every sleepless night worrying about

the air, sharp with displeasure. "Pro

our marriage was arranged," he ad

forced them out. "Then you should also remember

ery word. "Three years, Rowena. You carry no mark of mine-yet Moonreign has c

g through his tone

een foolish enough to fe

ack, managing your territory, holding your alliances together-and now I'm sup

ickly as it came. "House Varkos honors its word. I m

with none of the warmth that had graced our

ot given Varkos an heir. Virella carries my child-and she has save

You may retain your title as Luna. Virella will share equal

scension nearly

for the front, and by the time he returned, he'd already foun

supply lines, negotiated alliances, held the pack together so he'd ha

d to let the tears fall. Thi

t rough, but steady. "And what mak

, looking him st

f your promise," I said,

is properly,

landed li

t a di