Be My Mate? Too Late

Claire's POV

"You are going to lose your baby within seven days, Luna Claire."

Dr. Hale said to me, his expression grave.

I stared at him, struggling to make sense of his words. "What? How is that possible? I've felt perfectly fine."

My breath caught. Seven days. My baby had only seven days left to live. I pressed a hand against my stomach, fighting to keep my composure.

"Seven days? There has to be another way, Doctor. Please."

"I'm afraid not. Only your Alpha's complete mate mark can save the baby."

My chest tightened. It felt as though fate itself had closed a hand around my throat, leaving me with no way out. Of all the possible ways to save my baby, it had to be this one. The one thing I couldn't force, couldn't beg for, couldn't even be sure Ryan would ever give me.

Ryan and I had been married for four long years. In the eyes of the pack, we were the high-profile Alpha and Luna. Behind closed doors, we were political partners who had never completed our bond. His heart had always belonged to his childhood sweetheart, Sabrina, who had disappeared years ago. For four years, I had quietly swallowed my pride, hoping my patience would thaw his frozen heart.

Now, I didn't care about winning his heart anymore. I just needed to save my child.

I took the report and drove straight to the Alpha Estate, racing up the stairs to his private study. Driven by desperation, I shoved the heavy double doors open without knocking.

"Ryan, I need—"

The words died in my throat.

Ryan was leaning over his grand mahogany desk, his hand resting gently on a woman's shoulder as she wiped her eyes. He was speaking to her in a quiet, attentive murmur I had never heard him use with me.

Hearing the doors slam open, Ryan immediately withdrew his hand and stepped back.

The woman turned around, and my breath hitched.

Sabrina.

"Claire?" Ryan straightened his dark suit, his expression already returning to its usual cool composure. "What are you doing here? You should have made an appointment."

I almost laughed. His wife needed an appointment to see him, yet Sabrina could sit in his private study, basking in a tenderness I had never been shown. How ridiculous. How humiliating.

"Luna Claire… please don't be upset," Sabrina murmured, her eyes glistening as she lowered her head. "I've been back in the pack for a month, but I was feeling faint today… Ryan was only checking on me."

A month. He had kept her return a secret for an entire month.

I forced down the nausea and held my chin high, hiding the crumpled medical report behind my back.

"I need to speak with my husband alone. Please leave, Sabrina."

She bit her lip and glanced at Ryan.

His brows drew together. "Claire, she's been through a lot. There's no need to be so dismissive."

"This is a private matter between husband and wife. She has no place in this conversation."

Ryan studied me before turning to Sabrina. "Wait outside for a few minutes."

Sabrina nodded submissively this time and turned toward the exit. But before she reached the threshold, the heavy door swung open from the outside. A young boy ran past the guard standing outside and tumbled into the study.

"Mommy, look!" the boy called out, turning back to point at a toy before his eyes landed on Ryan. His face lit up, and he immediately sprinted toward the desk. "Daddy!"

He raced toward the desk.

I froze.

The coldness on Ryan's face vanished. He crouched down and scooped the boy into his arms. Something about the way he looked at the boy made my heart sink.

"Ryan…" My voice sounded distant, as if swallowed by a vacuum. "What is going on here?"

Ryan's jaw tightened. For a brief moment, he looked caught off guard. Then his expression settled, and he adjusted the boy in his arms.

"I'm so sorry, Claire…" Sabrina whispered, stepping beside Ryan with tears streaming down her face. "He was born five years ago… before you two married. He is very sick, and Ryan is the only one who can save him."

"He's my son, Claire." Ryan met my eyes. "The elders can treat his condition, but only my Alpha power can keep him stable. I intended to announce his existence and grant Sabrina the title of Co-Luna at tonight's Elders' meeting."

"You were going to make her a Co-Luna at a public meeting without even telling me?" I stared at him, a cold tremor running through my voice.

"You're still the Primary Luna, Claire," Ryan replied, his tone as cool and businesslike as if they were negotiating a corporate deal. "Nothing changes for you in this pack."

"Nothing changes?" A bitter, broken laugh escaped me. "You bring your ex-lover and her son into our home, force me to share you, and tell me nothing changes?"

Ryan frowned. I knew that look. In his mind, he had already made a concession, and now it was my turn to compromise. But I didn't.

His jaw tightened, and the air in the room grew heavy as he let his Alpha voice seep into his next words.

"As Alpha and as his father, I will do whatever it takes to protect my son," he said, his voice carrying a command that left little room for argument. "As my Luna, I expect you to accept this decision and fulfill your duty to this pack."

Duty? In his eyes, I was little more than a machine programmed to obey his every command, with no feelings or desires of my own.

But he was wrong. I was flesh and blood. I had a heart that could break, a limit to how much I could endure, and a child I would do anything to protect. Ryan might have taken my silence for submission, but I would not stand by and let him sacrifice my baby for his other family.

"You care so much about your duty to a child, Ryan?" My voice trembled despite my effort to keep it steady. "Then what about your duty to mine?"

Ryan glanced at me, frowning slightly. "What are you talking about?"

I looked him straight in the eyes and tossed the report I was holding down in front of him.

"I am pregnant," I took a deep breath, forcing myself to stay calm. "And if you don't mark me, our baby will be dead in seven days."