The sickened luna’s last chance

Ella

Election day came sooner than I anticipated. On the morning of, I woke to find Alexander already out of bed and nowhere to be found. I discovered through Lilith, as I scarfed down a plate of toast and eggs, that he had left at the crack of dawn to handle last–minute meetings and preparations.

“Do you think he’s going to win?” I asked around a mouthful of eggs as Lilith sipped her coffee across from me.

She shot me a look. “Do you think he’s going to win?”

“You’re deflecting,” I chuckled.

Lilith sighed, then nodded. “I think he has a very good chance. Thanks to you.”

Right. Thanks to me. Not the baby I was carrying in my belly. “Sometimes, I think the growing bump gave him a little push.”

“In more ways than one,” Lilith commented.

My brows shot up. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You don’t think he’s been acting differently?” Lilith asked. “He certainly seems to be looking at you in a new light.”

I couldn’t help the blush that spread across my face at her words. It was true; things felt… different between us lately. Even now, days after the picnic, I could still picture the look on his face when he felt our kicking. He’d looking almost… loving.

But of course, there was the matter of the contract. We hadn’t had a chance to talk about it since that night, seeing as how busy he was preparing for the election, but the last conversation we had was nothing short of confusing.

Alexander had said that he wanted to extend the contract to include the first eighteen years of our child’s life. And yet, when I asked if he really intended to have a fake relationship for that long, I could have sworn I saw something almost hesitant in his gaze.

I didn’t want to read too much into it, but it was easier said than done.

I needed a distraction.

Pushing away from the table, I said, “Let’s bake a cake.”

Lilith looked surprised, but she wasn’t the type to pass up the opportunity to bake something. For the next few hours, we worked side by side, measuring ingredients and mixing batter. The familiar rhythm of baking was soothing.

“You know,” Lilith said as she greased the cake pans, “I really haven’t seen Alexander smile as much as

he has lately.”

folding chocolate chips into the batter. “The campaign’s been going

that’s

“Listen, I just don’t want to get my

“Very wise of you.”

voice from the kitchen doorway made us both jump. I turned to find him

I set down the mixing bowl

get your hopes up. About Alexander, I mean.” Gabriel’s eyes

endured years of Gabriel’s nonsense, and I was fucking done

closer, letting my Luna authority bleed into my voice without even meaning to. “You seem to

he was trying to resist my Luna Voice, just as he had that one time in the alleyway. But my wolf wasn’t dormant anymore, rendering it nearly

“You’ve never deserved him, and everyone in this

it.”

smiled sweetly. “Was that so hard? Now everyone knows exactly what kind of Beta you really

Lilith made a small sound that might have been

loyal to this pack,”

that what we’re calling it

opened his mouth to respond,

sneer at me. “We’ll see who’s

stalked out of the kitchen. Only once he was gone did I notice

after a moment. “That was

day I’d married Alexander, and his bitter comments weren’t anything new. If anything, I felt

said, sliding the cake pans into the oven. “Let’s finish getting ready for

our guests had gathered in the living room. Liam

members had joined us to watch

cake Lilith and I had baked was hidden in

for the

me on the couch, his

could feel the tension radiating through the bond, and

and touched

at our joined

just how shocked I was that

“I think you’ll win.”