LOGINLyseraAfter Henry left, I lay sprawled dramatically across my bed for several long minutes staring at the ceiling while my heart continued beating far too fast inside my chest.I kissed Henry. Actually kissed him.A muffled groan escaped me before I buried my burning face deeper into the pillows. How did I suddenly become bold enough to do that? One minute we were emotionally unraveling over the realization that he was the father of my child and the next minute I was standing on my tiptoes kissing him like some shameless woman inside a romance novel.My wolf sounded deeply pleased with herself. She actually pushed me to do that. “You’re welcome.”“Traitor,” I muttered weakly into the pillow.Still, beneath the embarrassment and nerves twisting wildly inside me, something softer lingered too. Warmth. Because Henry kissed my forehead first.Not possessively. Not hungrily. Tenderly. Like I was something precious.The memory alone made my stomach flutter all over again.I rolled onto my
Author’s POVSilence swallowed the room afterward. Neither of them moved. Neither of them seemed capable of breathing properly.Henry could still feel the slight trembling in Lysera’s body beneath his hands while her wide eyes remained locked on his face like she no longer recognized the man standing in front of her.Moon Goddess. He had done this. All those months, all the hatred and all the accusations. And through it all, she had been carrying his child.Guilt ripped viciously through his chest.“I’m sorry,” he said suddenly, the words rough and uneven. “Lysera, Moon Goddess… I’m so sorry.”Pain flashed visibly across her face at the sound of his apology. Henry dragged a hand harshly through his dark hair before continuing.“If I had just looked at your face properly that morning—”“It’s not only your fault.” The interruption startled him enough that he stopped speaking entirely. Lysera finally looked down shakily before laughing softly at herself. The sound carried no amusement.
Author’s POVThe silence inside the living room stretched unbearably after Lysera reached the bottom of the staircase.Neither of them knew where to look.Lysera’s face remained bright red while she clutched the robe tightly around herself like she wanted the floor to swallow her whole. Damp strands of hair still clung lightly against her neck from her bath and the sight alone nearly made Henry lose his mind all over again.Not because she was beautiful. Though Moon Goddess, she was. But because everything has changed now.Everything.Henry stood slowly from the couch the second she stepped fully into the room.“I’m sorry,” he said immediately. The apology came out rougher than intended.Lysera finally glanced toward him briefly before quickly looking away again. “It’s fine.”It very clearly was not fine. Henry dragged a hand through his dark hair in frustration while guilt clawed viciously through him again.“I should’ve knocked properly.”“You did knock.”“I should’ve waited for an
Author’s POVBy the time the Council Induction Ceremony finally ended, Lysera felt emotionally exhausted. The ceremonial hall had emptied slowly over the last hour, wolves lingering behind to congratulate the new elders while servants carried away silver banners and ceremonial torches from the front platform. The massive hall still smelled faintly of candle smoke and rain drifting through the open upper windows.It felt surreal.Lysera had stood in this exact same hall weeks ago while her entire life collapsed publicly around her. This was where Isyra’s lies unraveled. Where Elder Monroe was dragged away roaring in fury while the pack watched in horror. Where Mrs. Monroe sobbed on the floor while guards restrained her.The same hall where Lysera herself once stood trembling beneath accusations and hatred. Now she had walked out of it as an elder of the pack.Not hidden, not unwanted and not forgotten. But now an elder.The realization still did not feel real inside her chest.The cere
Lysera’s POVI nearly changed my mind three different times before leaving the estate for the Council Induction Ceremony.The first time happened while one of the maids, Mira, brushed my hair that morning. The second came when Timothy casually mentioned that almost the entire pack would gather afterward to witness the formal induction of the new elders. The third happened while I stood frozen at the bottom of the staircase staring at the front doors like walking through them might somehow destroy the fragile peace I had managed to build around myself these past few weeks.“Lady Lysera,” Mira said carefully from behind me, “the Alpha is here.”My stomach twisted instantly, not from nausea this time but from nerves.Moon Goddess. I hated this.The entire estate felt strangely alive this morning. Servants moved quickly through the halls carrying ceremonial cloaks, council documents and silver trays while distant carriage wheels echoed faintly outside. Everything felt too loud. Too overw
Lysera’s POVThe next few days settled into something soft.It was not perfect or easy as we were still getting to know each other but it was soft enough that sometimes I caught myself forgetting how bad things between Henry and me used to be.That frightened me more than I wanted to admit because forgiveness was one thing and trust was something entirely different. Yet somehow, Henry kept showing up every single day with the kind of steady patience I did not know what to do with anymore.He comes in the mornings now too sometimes. Other times, late evenings after meetings or inspections around the territory. Occasionally, he brought work with him and sat inside the estate library while I attempted to organize my father’s endless financial records beside him.The silence between us no longer felt strained.It felt lived in.“You’re lost in thought again.”I looked up immediately from the ledger spread across my lap to find Henry watching me from the opposite couch with faint amusement
LyseraI snapped awake to screaming.Not the kind that belonged to nightmares or memory, but real—raw, panicked, echoing through stone and corridors like a warning bell rung too hard, too fast.“Maids! Healers! Someone come—now! The alpha is drying!”Harlow’s voice.My heart slammed against my ribs
Author’s POVThe room was thick with perfume, heat, and restrained fury.Isyra stood at the center of her chambers while two maids fluttered around her, fastening the last hooks of her gown and smoothing invisible creases that did not exist. Silk slid over her skin like a second layer of armor—deep
LyseraI woke to the sound of wheels.At first, I thought I was imagining it because my mind was still fogged from hunger and pain, but the sound came again. A soft, uneven roll against the floor. Rubber against stone.My stomach clenched painfully.I hadn’t eaten. I hadn’t drunk anything since my
LyseraThe second healer’s words had barely settled when movement stirred at the edge of the pack square.My mother arrived.She walked in without hesitation, her steps steady and purposeful. The pack shifted instinctively to make way for her, bodies parting without a word. A few wolves bowed their







