Chapter 1
Chapter 1
As my words hung in the air, the room fell into a deadly silence–so complete I could hear the crackle of the hearth fire eating away at the logs.
The playful smile Tiberius had worn while nuzzling his pups vanished instantly. He raised his head slowly, his eyes widening with shock as they locked onto mine.
“What the hell did you just say?” Ilis voice was dangerously low.
His expression hardened, amber eyes flashing with accusation.
“We’ve been mated for over a decade, Giselle. Every wolf in Silver Crescent territory respects our bond. And you casually throw away everything we’ve built with a rejection ritual? Have you lost your mind?”
My heart felt hollowed out, frozen and brittle. A strangled laugh escaped my throat.
Twelve years as mates–while for ten of those years, he had hidden Lilith in that secluded cabin at the edge of our territory.
During our mating ceremony, he had gripped my hands beneath the full moon and sworn a blood oath that he would never take another. Yet the very next night, he had slipped away to comfort Lilith in her solitude, promising her a litter of pups to raise.
Looking at the stranger before me now, I felt the last remnants of our bond withering inside my chest.
Tiberius’s voice rose as his anger built. “You’ve been Luna of this pack for years. When the hell are you going to grow up and stop being so goddamn selfish? Lilith has given me healthy heirs without demanding anything in return. She’s kept to the shadows, loving me in silence, waiting patiently–she would accept omega status just to remain near me. Are you really so threatened by her that you can’t tolerate even this one fucking compromise?”
Hee
He stepped closer, teeth barely concealed behind his snarl. “We both know you can’t bear pups. The pack healer made that perfectly clear–your womb will never quicken again. The Silver Crescent bloodline can’t end with me. What kind of Alpha would I be?”
“Now you’re threatening to break our bond? If word of this tantrum reaches the neighboring packs, our standing will be destroyed!”
Each word pierced me like silver shards. My voice came out broken when I finally spoke.
“A… compromise?” The word felt like ashes in my mouth.
“Tiberius,” I whispered, my voice cracking, “who stood beneath the moon and swore they would never
22:01
ALPHA’S ENDLESS REGRET: After The Barren Luna’s Leave
Chapter 1
take another mate? Who carved that promise into their own flesh before the entire pack?”
I forced myself to meet his gaze, though it felt like staring into the sun. “And my barren womb–have forgotten whose claws tore into me?”
Shame darkened his features for just a moment before he masked it. He remembered.
The three pups I had carried–each one destroyed by his own hand.
you
The first had been a strong male, my belly just beginning to swell at three months, when Tiberius–determined to secure his position as Alpha–apparent–had orchestrated a “rogue wolf attack,” deliberately ensuring I would lose our child.
After the miscarriage, I had curled on our bed, my grief so overwhelming I could barely breathe between
sobs.
Tiberius had lain beside me, his own eyes wet. “Giselle, please don’t cry. This sacrifice was necessary. I swear on my blood, we’ll have a strong litter soon.”
We did conceive again. Twice more.
But neither of those innocent lives survived the political machinations of the man I had once believed would protect me with his life.
