Rejected Luna's New Strength

I woke to sunlight streaming through the curtains and an unfamiliar sensation rippling through my chest—pure, radiant joy emanating from somewhere deep inside me. My wolf was practically purring, a sound I hadn't heard from her in years.

*Pup,* she whispered, her voice trembling with excitement. *Pup, pup, pup.*

My hand flew to my stomach, fingers splaying across the fabric of Levi's old t-shirt I'd worn to bed. Nothing felt different, not yet. My belly was still flat, my body unchanged. But my wolf knew. After eight failed attempts spread across ten years of our mate bond, after countless disappointed mornings and whispered conversations that died in my throat, after becoming the subject of pitying looks and hushed speculation—finally, finally, new life was growing inside me.

I sat up slowly, afraid the dream would shatter if I moved too quickly. My enhanced senses reached inward, searching for confirmation my human consciousness could barely comprehend. There it was—the faintest flutter of a second heartbeat, so small and fragile I might have missed it if my wolf hadn't been singing.

Tears slipped down my cheeks before I realized I was crying. Ten years. A decade of hoping and trying and failing, of enduring the pack's whispers about the Luna who couldn't give her Alpha an heir. The shame had carved itself into my bones, made me question my worth as a mate, as a woman, as a wolf.

But not anymore.

I touched my stomach again, this time with reverence. "Hello, little one," I whispered. "I've been waiting so long for you."

Levi was on morning patrol, wouldn't be back until late afternoon. Perfect. I had time to plan something special, something worthy of this miracle we'd finally been given. My wolf danced inside me as I threw off the covers and headed for the kitchen.

For the next few hours, I lost myself in preparation. I made his favorite meal—rosemary garlic steak with roasted vegetables, the scent filling our home with warmth. I set the dining table with candles, pulled out the good wine glasses even though I wouldn't be drinking. My mind spun with possibilities for how to tell him. Should I just say it? Wrap up a pregnancy test? Let him figure it out through our mate bond?

I was chopping herbs when the first intrusion sliced through my mind.

*He promised me,* a female voice purred directly into my consciousness, bypassing every natural barrier that should have protected our private mate bond. *Promised he'd be there for every appointment.*

I froze, the knife clattering against the cutting board. My wolf snarled, hackles rising at the violation. No one should be able to breach our mate bond like this. No one except—

*Such strong hands,* Waverly's voice continued, dripping with false intimacy. *The way he touches my stomach, checking on my pup. So gentle. So protective. Just like he used to be with me before the Moon Goddess made her... mistake.*

The room tilted. I gripped the counter, knuckles