Pursuing My Rejected Luna のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 31 - チャプター 40

SkyeI wake to an empty bed.Again.The morning light filters through the curtains, soft and golden, mocking me with its beauty. I reach across the mattress to Jaxon's side—a habit I can't seem to break even after three years—and find the sheets cold.He never came to bed. Though I guess I really shouldn’t be surprised. Then I remember what day it is, and my chest tightens.Our anniversary. Three years married today.I lie there for a moment, staring at the ceiling, waiting to feel something. Sadness, maybe. Disappointment. But there's only a dull ache, familiar and worn smooth by repetition.He forgot. Of course he forgot.I force myself out of bed and cross to my closet. On the top shelf, hidden behind winter scarves, is a small wrapped box. I bought it six weeks ago—a vintage compass I found at an antique shop in town. Jaxon mentioned once, years ago before we were married, that he'd always wanted one. Back when I was nothing more than a schoolgirl with a crush, hanging on his ever

Jaxon "She went to breakfast at the café on Main Street. Walked through town for about an hour. Came straight back."I look up from the reports on my desk to where my guard, Collin, stands at attention, delivering his surveillance update like it's routine pack business instead of reporting to a crazy man who is having his own wife followed. "That's it?" I ask. "She didn't meet with anyone? Make any calls? Are you absolutely sure?""None that I observed, Alpha. And she was never out of my sight." He shifts his weight. "She seemed... normal. Just having breakfast alone."Normal. The word grates against something in my chest."Fine. Dismissed." I grumble as I wave him off. Collin leaves, and I'm left alone with the uncomfortable knowledge that I just had someone tail Skye through town like a stalker with absolutely nothing to show for it.No secret meetings. No suspicious contacts. Just my wife having breakfast by herself because apparently she'd rather eat alone than share a table wit

SkyeI wake to my phone glowing in the darkness.It’s open to the text from Nicolai, timestamped from last night, like a beacon guiding me toward the path I’ve chosen. Tomorrow. Noon. The clearing where the east road meets the forest trail. Come alone.Tomorrow is now today. He wants to meet today.I check the time: 6:47 AM. That gives me just over five hours to figure out how to slip away unnoticed from an Alpha house where I'm apparently under surveillance.I'm still formulating excuses when my bedroom door opens without knocking.Jaxon."Get dressed," he says without preamble. "We have a pack function at ten. The dedication ceremony for the new housing development."My stomach sinks. "I wasn't aware I was expected to attend.""You're the Luna. Of course you're expected." His tone is clipped, impatient. "And we're going together. The pack needs to see us united."United. As if standing next to each other at a ceremony erases three years of distance."I have other commitments this mor

NicolaiThe text comes through while I'm in a meeting with the eastern territory representatives.I ignore it at first—checking my phone during negotiations would shatter my stone cold façade, an illusion a man in my position cannot afford to break. But something makes me glance down when the representative is reviewing documents. The message preview shows just enough to make my chest tighten.I can't meet. Too many eyes on me.I conclude the meeting fifteen minutes later with terms favorable enough that the representatives leave satisfied. They damn well better be considering the whole meeting was a ruse only meant to lend credibility to my reason for being here. They have nothing I need and yet I gave them what they asked for. They’re lucky Skye is more important to me than the crumbs I’m throwing them. The moment the door closes behind them, I'm reading the full message.I can't meet. Too many eyes on me. But I need your help—my stepbrother Dalton is being held in the capital witho

SkyeAunt Diana calls two days before Nicolai is scheduled to arrive.I'm in my office reviewing next week's schedule when my phone rings. Her name flashes across the screen, and something in my chest tightens with anticipation."Skye." Her voice is thick with tears—the good kind. "Dalton's been released. He’s been totally cleared. They're saying it was some kind of bureaucratic error, that they had the wrong person. He's coming home today."I sink into my chair, relief flooding through me so intensely I have to close my eyes. "That's wonderful, Diana. I'm so happy for you.""I don't know how you did it." She's crying openly now. "I don't know what strings you pulled or who you talked to, but thank you. Thank you so much. You saved him."I didn't do anything. Not really. I just sent a text message to someone I haven't seen in three years, and somehow he made the impossible happen."I'm just glad he's safe," I say quietly."I owe you." Diana's voice is fierce. "Whatever you need, whenev