I stood in the doorway of the Alpha Suite, my hands trembling as I gathered my belongings. Seven years of memories scattered around this room—my books on the nightstand, my favorite scarf draped over the chaise lounge, the small jasmine plant I'd nurtured on the windowsill. All of it would soon be gone, just like my dreams of becoming Luna.

My fingers brushed against my stomach as nausea rolled through me again. I'd been sick for days, but had attributed it to stress. Now, as I packed my clothes into a suitcase, a different possibility dawned on me. Morning sickness. The realization hit me like a physical blow.

"Solana!" Corey's voice boomed from the hallway, followed by heavy footsteps. "Open this door right now!"

I slipped into the guest room across the hall just as he reached the suite. The lock clicked into place as his footsteps stopped outside.

"We need to talk," he demanded, his Alpha tone vibrating through the wood. "You can't just walk away from seven years!"

I pressed my forehead against the cool door, closing my eyes. "There's nothing to talk about, Corey."

"Like hell there isn't!" His fist pounded the door, making me flinch. "You humiliated me in front of every Alpha in the territory!"

A bitter laugh escaped my lips. "I humiliated you? After you abandoned me on that stage?"

His Alpha aura leaked through the door, pressing against me like a physical weight. My wolf cowered, but I stood firm.

"Solana!" Another pound. "You're being childish!"

Childish. The word stung more than it should have. I slid down the door until I was sitting on the floor, my knees drawn to my chest.

"I'm not opening this door," I said quietly. "We have nothing to say to each other."

Silence stretched between us, broken only by his frustrated growl. Eventually, his footsteps retreated, leaving me alone with my thoughts and the persistent nausea.

---

The next morning, I ventured to the kitchen, hoping to find it empty. No such luck. Emily sat at the center island, surrounded by a group of lower-ranking wolves. Her voice carried across the room, delicate and trembling.

"I just don't know what to do," she said, her eyes red-rimmed. "She hates me so much."

I froze in the doorway, my presence unnoticed until someone whispered, "She's here."

Emily's head snapped up, her eyes widening in theatrical terror. The glass in her hand trembled violently before crashing to the floor.

"Oh!" she gasped, shrinking back against the counter. "Solana, please—I didn't mean to upset you at the Moonveil. It was an accident!"

The shattered glass scattered across the tiles as wolves scrambled away, leaving Emily alone and vulnerable in the center of the kitchen.

"I know you're angry," she continued, tears streaming down her face. "But please don't punish me. I can't handle another incident like that slideshow!"

Before I could respond, Corey strode into the kitchen, his eyes immediately finding Emily's tear-streaked face and the broken glass at her feet.

"What happened?" he demanded, rushing to her side.

"I—I just can't take it anymore," Emily sobbed into his chest. "She's going to make me leave the pack!"

Corey's gaze hardened as he looked at me over Emily's head. "What did you do?"

"Nothing," I said, my voice steady despite the anger building inside me. "I just walked in."

"You're intimidating a traumatized Omega," he growled, his Alpha tone making several wolves lower their heads. "Haven't you done enough?"

"Corey, I didn't—"

"Enough!" he roared. "Go to your room. Now."

---

Three days later, the Beta appeared at my door. "Alpha Corey requests your presence at the sunlit ridge," he said formally, his eyes sympathetic.

The sunlit ridge. Where we'd first run together as wolves. Where I'd been abandoned during a rogue run, forced to find my own way back to pack territory.

"Why there?" I asked.

"He believes it's important," was all the Beta would say.

The ridge was bathed in golden afternoon light when I arrived. Corey stood at the edge, his broad shoulders silhouetted against the sky. He turned as he sensed my approach.

"Thank you for coming," he said, his tone softer than it had been in days.

I remained several feet away, arms crossed over my chest. "Why am I here?"

"This is where we first ran together," he said, gesturing to the open space. "Before everything got complicated."

"Uncomplicated would be not having your childhood sweetheart constantly inserting herself between us," I replied coldly.

He flinched but nodded. "The slideshow was... unfortunate. But Emily didn't mean—"

"Stop." I held up my hand. "Just stop making excuses for her."

Corey stepped closer, reaching for my hand. The moment his skin touched mine, sparks of the mate bond flared between us. I jerked away as if burned.

"I can't abandon Emily," he said quietly. "I made a vow to her parents."

"And what about your vow to me?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

His eyes met mine, golden flecks dancing in their depths. "I want to honor both."

"Do you love her?" The question hung in the air between us. "Or do you love your guilt?"

The wind whipped across the ridge, carrying the scent of wild jasmine and distant rain. I stood a few feet from Corey, watching his face as he struggled with my question. Do you love her? Or do you love your guilt?

His eyes—those golden-flecked eyes I'd gazed into for seven years—darted away from mine, focusing on something distant beyond my shoulder.

"Solana," he began, his voice softer than I'd heard it in weeks. "There are things you don't understand about my obligation to Emily."

I took a step closer, one hand unconsciously moving to my stomach. The nausea had become more persistent, and I'd made my decision. This baby deserved better than a father who couldn't even protect its mother from humiliation.

"Corey," I said, my voice steadier than I expected, "there's something growing—"

His eyes suddenly glazed over, that familiar blank look that signaled an incoming mind-link. My words died on my lips as I watched his expression transform from thoughtful to alarmed.

"Emily!" he exclaimed, his voice rising sharply. "Slow down—what's happening?"

I stood frozen, my hand still pressed against my abdomen, as Corey's attention completely shifted away from me.

"Rogues at the perimeter," he muttered, already backing away. "She says there's at least five of them."

"Corey," I reached for his arm, "we need to finish this conversation."

His eyes flashed gold as they refocused on me, but not with the warmth I craved. "We'll talk later. Emily needs me."

Before I could protest, his body began to shift. Bones cracked and reformed as his massive silver wolf emerged, shaking out its fur before taking off in a blur of motion toward the pack house.

"Corey!" I called after him, but he was already gone, leaving nothing but disturbed earth and the lingering scent of his wolf.

Just like that—abandoned again. On this very ridge where I'd once been left behind during a rogue run, forced to find my own way back to safety.

---

The first drops of rain hit my face as I began the long walk back to the pack house. Five miles. Five miles of mud and rain and humiliation.

"Great," I muttered, pulling my thin sweater tighter around my shoulders. "Just great."

As I walked, my wolf stirred within me, more alert and protective than usual. A strange warmth spread through my abdomen, and I realized my wolf was curling around something—protecting the tiny life growing inside me.

*Our pup*, she whispered in my mind. *Ours*.

The rain intensified, soaking through my clothes and plastering my hair to my face. Each step became heavier than the last, but with each mile, my resolve hardened.

"I won't raise you in this place," I whispered to my unborn child. "I won't let you grow up watching your mother be disrespected and abandoned."

By the time I reached the pack house, I was drenched and muddy, but my decision was made. No matter what happened with Corey, this baby would not suffer as I had.

---

"Solana!" The Gamma's voice stopped me as I entered the main hall. His expression was a mixture of pity and discomfort. "You're soaked."

"What happened with the rogues?" I asked, though I already suspected the answer.

He shifted uncomfortably. "There were no rogues. Just a bush that moved in the wind. Emily thought..."

"Of course she did," I said flatly.

The Gamma's eyes dropped to my stomach, then quickly away. Had he somehow sensed my condition? "Alpha Corey is in his office with Emily."

I nodded and turned toward the stairs, but paused when I heard voices from the common room.

"...seen talking to the Eastern Ridge wolves at Moonveil," a female voice was saying—Diana Chase, one of Emily's newest allies. "Very secretive."

"Solana?" another voice questioned. "But she's been with us for years."

"Yes, but after the humiliation... who knows what she might do to get revenge," Diana replied. "My mate says she was seen exchanging something with a wolf from the rival pack."

I froze, my hand gripping the banister tightly. Emily's voice joined the conversation, trembling and fragile.

"I just worry about Corey," she said. "He's so stressed lately. And if she's really working with rival wolves..."

---

"Are you trying to punish me by ruining my reputation?"

Corey's voice cut through me like a knife as I stood in his office doorway. He sat behind his desk, dark circles under his eyes, his hair disheveled from running his hands through it repeatedly.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"These rumors," he gestured to his phone. "Eastern Ridge wolves? Secret meetings? Is this your way of getting back at me for Emily?"

I stared at him, unable to believe what I was hearing. After everything—after seven years of loyalty, after the humiliation at Moonveil, after carrying his child—he didn't ask for my side of the story.

He simply assumed the worst.

"Answer me," he demanded, his Alpha tone vibrating through the room. "Are you trying to punish me?"