All Chapters of The Independence My Alpha Regretted: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

"Tomorrow morning?" Dr. Morris looked up from my chart, sure he'd misheard me. "You don't want to wait a few days? Alpha Ronan gets back tonight. I'm sure he'll want to be here with his Luna."I closed the folder. "You're removing a few silver splinters under local anesthetic, not replacing my heart. I've already signed the consent forms."He kept staring.Everyone in Silver Ridge knew how dependent I'd once been on Ronan. When I sprained my ankle during training, I'd refused treatment until he got out of a council meeting. Once, the metal edge of a folder sliced my finger, and I'd held it up to him until he kissed it better.So when I said I could manage alone, Dr. Morris didn't know what to do with me.I left his office and stopped dead in the medical center lobby.Ronan Hale had just walked through the main doors, pulling a carry-on behind him. He was broad-shouldered and imposing enough that the younger wolves moved aside without thinking. One hand rested at my stepsister Sienna's

Chapter 2

"Morning-sickness pills won't fix all her problems," I said. "What Sienna really wants is someone who'll always put her first and come running whenever she calls."Sienna flushed. "Maeve, that isn't what I meant."Ronan's face darkened. "You've been looking for a fight ever since I left for the northern council meeting in Vancouver. It was pack business. Do you expect your Alpha to report every step he takes?"Two weeks ago had been the anniversary of our mate bond.I'd spent three days preparing dinner: rosemary lamb, his favorite bourbon, and the custom obsidian fountain pen I'd ordered months earlier. I waited until the fire died and the candles burned down to wax.He never came home.After midnight, Sienna posted a picture from Silver Ridge's Vancouver residence. She stood on the terrace while Ronan sheltered her from the wind.The caption read: [With you in my corner, I'm not afraid of anything.]When I called him, his voice stayed maddeningly calm. "Two packs added last-minute ne

Chapter 3

The room I'd prepared for Harper was unrecognizable.The clean bedding had been stripped and tossed over a chair. Leather jackets and evening dresses packed the closet. Sienna's skin-care products, camera, and shopping bags covered the dresser, while an enormous stuffed white wolf sat in the middle of the bed like a flag marking conquered territory.The front door opened downstairs, followed by Sienna's laugh. "Thanks for taking me to the winter light show, Ronan. Today was awful, but that cheered me right up."Ronan walked in, pulling off his gloves. "Sienna had another run-in with the patrol trainees. The council is investigating, and the dorms have turned hostile. I told her she could stay here for a few days.""I told you last week that Harper was moving into this room tonight."He paused for half a second.That was all I needed. He'd forgotten completely.When I'd asked him, he hadn't even looked away from his laptop. He'd said Harper was my friend and I didn't need his approval.

Chapter 4

I pulled free. "Doesn't the Alpha have a hundred responsibilities? Since when do you care where I'm going?"Ronan fell silent. Months earlier, when I'd asked why he hadn't come home for three nights, he'd used those exact words on me.At last, he said, "I should've told you about Vancouver. I was wrong." He hesitated. "But tomorrow I have to attend Sienna's disciplinary hearing. She's accused of attacking a patrol member first. If her appeal fails, she'll be banned from pack gatherings for three months. I need to find out what really happened."Even in an apology, Sienna still came first."Move your surgery to the day after tomorrow," he said. "As soon as the hearing ends, I'll go with you.""Don't bother. I don't need anyone with me."He spoke as if he hadn't heard the refusal. "I'll put the best surgeon on standby and stay until you wake up."His phone rang before I could answer. Sienna's terrified voice came through the speaker. "Ronan, someone's been pacing outside my hotel room. A

Chapter 5

My first week in London was a mess.Someone filed my employment contract in the wrong department. My security access took three days, and my new computer wouldn't connect to the internal system. Once those problems were fixed, I was handed the division's ugliest account: an impossible deadline and a notoriously difficult pack as the client.It didn't take long to figure out why.On paper, the company belonged to the founder's son, Ethan Mercer. He was young, brilliant, and next in line to become Alpha of the Stonebridge Pack, but he spent most of his time traveling between projects. The regional director controlled the office day to day, and the two men disagreed on almost everything.As a new hire from an unfamiliar pack, I'd become the easiest pawn in their private tug-of-war.When my budget request stalled for the fourth day without a reason, I opened my pinned chat and sent a crying-raccoon sticker. I meant to complain to Harper.The reply came almost at once.[I'm here.][What hap

Chapter 6

"Would it have changed anything if I'd told you?"The line went silent.Ronan knew exactly where those words came from. Every time I'd tried to discuss his coldness, he'd ended the argument with the same question.When he spoke again, his voice had softened. "There's a small Alpha dinner on Friday. Several people you've always wanted to meet will be there with their mates. I can come to London and bring you back.""I'm not going."Months ago, I'd been desperate to feel like part of his world. Ronan always said he needed space and that pack business wasn't for me. Now that I'd walked away, he suddenly wanted to open the door."You used to go out with Harper all the time," he continued, sounding like he was working through a list. "From now on, I can take you shopping, to shows, or away for the weekend. Whatever you want."I almost laughed. I'd begged him to do those things for years, but there was always another meeting, another patrol schedule, another excuse. Eventually, the shows end

Chapter 7

I was trying to come up with a polite response when my phone buzzed again.[Were you trying to tell me something?]A banking alert immediately followed. Someone had transferred a five-figure sum into my account.I stared at the number, convinced I'd counted the zeros wrong.Ethan's next messages appeared.[Not a mistake.][Come to New York with me this Saturday. A distant cousin is getting married, and my mother will spend the entire day asking why I don't have a mate.][I'd rather hire a fake date than answer her. You're single now, right? Consider the money hazard pay.]I burst out laughing. Unfortunately, Harper's wedding was the same day.For the first time in our friendship, an amount large enough to cover six months of rent was trying to compete with my loyalty.I stared at my balance and sighed before replying.[Thank you for your generous offer, Mr. Mercer.][But my best friend is getting married on Saturday, and I promised I'd be there.]When I hit send, I could practically he

Chapter 8

The groom kept his eyes on Harper. "I also never want you to wonder whether you're bothering me. If something makes you happy, I want to hear it. If something frightens you, I want to know that too.""No matter how small it seems, I hope I'm the first person you think of. The people who matter deserve an answer."Applause filled the room.Across the guests, I found Ronan standing at the back of the hall. He wasn't clapping. He only watched the newlyweds in silence.Then he turned and met my eyes.Once, a single look from him could send my heart racing.Now, I felt nothing.After the ceremony, I changed out of my bridesmaid dress and headed to the reception. The seating chart had been altered at the last minute, and my place card was missing. A little girl in a flower crown took my hand."I think you sit over here."She led me to a table in the corner. Nearly every seat was occupied by children. Only one adult sat at the far end, wearing the same baffled expression as me.He looked up.

Chapter 9

No one knew how long Sienna had been listening outside.She stepped in with a tentative smile."No," Ronan said.She froze. "But you always handled these things for me before.""That's why you never learned to take responsibility for your own choices."Her smile faded. She turned to me, her voice still soft. "Maeve, please don't take your anger at me out on Ronan. I never meant to break you two apart.""Don't worry. Our relationship is over whether you admit your part in it or not."For one split second, the emotion in her eyes wasn't sadness. It was relief.Ronan looked at her. "If you're confused about the seating chart, ask the pack secretary. You'll also speak for yourself at the disciplinary hearing. If the council suspends your privileges or bans you from events, I won't make it disappear."Sienna tightened her grip on the envelope. "You never thought helping me was a burden before.""I failed to set boundaries. I told myself looking after you was my responsibility to Maeve's fam

Chapter 10

Ronan used to disappear the moment a dinner ended. If I followed up, he'd always ask, "Don't you have anything to do besides wait for my messages?"I didn't need anyone to report to me anymore.Still, the few seconds Ethan spent explaining where he'd been settled like warmth in my chest.[It's fine. Finish your work.]"Typing..." appeared almost immediately.Then a longer message came through.[No one is too busy to give a heads-up to someone they care about. It takes seconds to say, "I'm going into a meeting. I'll call later."][The people who matter deserve an answer.][I hope that one day, you'll let me be that person for you.]I stared at the screen for a long time without responding.That afternoon, I left the office early, partly for a follow-up appointment and partly because I wasn't ready to face Ethan.But the man waiting outside the building was Ronan.He held a bouquet of deep red camellias. Snow drifted through the streetlights and settled on the shoulders of his black coat

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