All Chapters of Another Chance For The Barren Luna : Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

AlaricShe asked me for three months.Three whole months for her to reform this damned Pack. And though every bone in my body screamed to deny her, to keep her where she belonged, I couldn’t bring myself to say no. Not when she looked at me like that, with those pleading eyes that cracked open the steel walls I’d spent years building.I wanted to tell her it was impossible. That I couldn’t wait that long. That I wouldn’t. But when I opened my mouth, the words simply wouldn’t come out. The woman had a power over me that defied reason.At first, all I wanted was to claim her, to mark her because I didn’t have the luxury of time. My thirty-first birthday loomed closer with every passing day, a silent countdown to my death if the bond remained unsealed. That was the cruel reality of my existence. The curse I had carried since the day I turned eighteen.And yet…Though it was still far too early to call what I felt “love,” there was something in me—deep, primal and unrelenting—that burned

Alaric Even if I had to play the part of the perfect mate and hide the dastardly truth from Kelly until it was far too late, I would. Because no matter what it cost me, I couldn’t afford to be rejected. Not now. Not after everything. I had to stay alive. I had to protect my family; my sister, my niece, my people, with everything I had. Kelly was a good woman, kind even after all she had endured. I hoped, gods, I hoped she would understand someday, even if she hated me first.The first rays of morning cut through the curtains, drawing soft gold lines across the bed where I lay. The sheets were tangled around my legs, clinging to my bare skin. I could still smell her there even though it had been over a day since we shared a bed. There were still faint traces of Kelly’s scent on my pillow, that sweet vanilla and sharp liquor. I was starting to get addicted to it because it seemed to be the one thing that kept me grounded when my thoughts began to spiral into chaos.But even that comfo

Alaric The moment I stepped into the Grand Hall, the air shifted. The chatter that had filled the vast stone room evaporated in an instant, replaced by the sound of chairs scraping against the marble floor as every person present stood. Heads bowed low, voices echoing in unison.“Your Highness.”The sound rolled through the hall like a wave; reverent, fearful and hollow.I took my time approaching the dais, each step measured and deliberate. The throne, once Bryan’s, loomed ahead, carved from blackened oak and inlaid with gold. The seat of power for this Pack. Now my seat.As I sat, the leather creaked softly under my weight. My gaze swept across the room, and it didn’t take long to find him.Bryan.He stood among the other members of the hierarchy and elders, his posture stiff, his chin tilted in a poor imitation of pride. He wasn’t stupid enough to keep his head raised—no, he bowed like the rest but I caught the defiance in the corner of his eye, that subtle, seething glare he thou

AlaricOr worse… was he telling the truth?I didn’t answer him right away. Instead, I reached out through the bond that connected me to my Beta.“Roderick.”His response came instantly, alert and cautious. “Your Highness, how—”“Is it true,” I cut him off, “that if chosen mates divorce, they can’t mark or be marked by someone else until the mark fades?”There was a pause. Too long. My pulse thudded once, hard. My irritation only grew.Roderick hesitated. I could feel his uncertainty through the link. When he finally spoke, his voice carried a note of discomfort.“Well… it’s not really common knowledge, but yes, that’s true. Though the bond between chosen mates isn’t nearly as strong as that of fated mates, it’s still a union blessed by the Moon Goddess. Even if they divorce, they can’t be marked by anyone else until the mark from their previous partner fades.”A sharp, dangerous stillness spread through me.I wanted to growl, to rip the air apart with the sound. But instead, I forced

Alaric “You can scream all you want, Theodore,” I spoke coldly, “but it doesn’t change the facts.”My words cut through the air like a blade. Theodore stood there trembling, his old eyes wide and glistening. His chest rose and fell sharply as though he were fighting to breathe. He looked like a man whose entire world had just been ripped apart—and perhaps it had.“You don’t understand, your highness,” he began, voice hoarse and breaking, “the money in the treasury is the result of the hard work of many generations of people. It had always been the dream of my father—and the Alphas before him—for Red Moon to be a sustainable and self-sufficient Pack. How can it all be gone in such a short time? Especially in the absence of any natural disaster whatsoever?”I tilted my head, amused at his naivety. “Are you actually asking me that?”Theodore flinched as if the question itself was a slap. His mouth opened and closed helplessly. “No, your highness. I just—”“Ask the clown you crowned Alph