Chapter 4 — The Ultimatum

POV: Selene

I didn't stay in the hotel room for long.

I took a quick shower, washing away the smell of cheap tequila and club sweat. When I put the oversized men's dress shirt back on, the heavy, lingering scent of cedar, rain, and dark smoke wrapped around me again. It felt like a phantom touch against my skin, making my inner wolf stir restlessly for the first time in years.

I ignored it. I found my hospital sweatpants folded neatly on a chair, put them on, and ordered a cab back to the Draven estate.

I was done crying. Waking up in that hotel room, completely alone but safe, something inside my chest had fundamentally shifted. For six years, I had bent over backwards trying to be the perfect Luna, the perfect wife, desperately hoping Kieran would eventually love me. I had swallowed my pride, endured his coldness, and accepted the scraps of affection he threw my way.

And what did it get me? A dead son, a coma, and a husband sleeping with my sister on our living room couch.

Dignity was not something you begged for.

The cab dropped me off at the front gates. I walked up the long driveway, my head held high, my spine straight. I wasn't going to fight for a man who didn't want me. I was going to pack my things, walk out the front door, and never look back.

When I walked into the grand foyer, the house was quiet. I headed straight up the sweeping staircase toward the master suite. I needed my clothes, my passport, and whatever cash I had stashed away.

But when I reached the end of the hall, the doors to the master bedroom were wide open.

"Careful with that! It's pure silk, you idiot," a sharp, familiar voice snapped.

I stepped into the doorway and froze.

The room was completely transformed. My clothes, books, pictures, even the small vanity I had used for six years were completely gone. In their place were rows of designer luggage, expensive dresses, and heavy gold jewelry boxes.

Jessica was standing in the center of the room, wearing a sheer silk robe, and sipping a glass of champagne while directing two maids.

She turned around and spotted me. A slow, wicked smirk spread across her perfectly painted lips.

"Oh, look who finally decided to come home. I was starting to think you actually ran away. But then again, where would you even go? You have no money and no degree."

"Where are my things?" I asked, my voice completely flat.

"I had them moved," she said casually, waving her hand. "This is the Alpha's suite, Selene. It belongs to the Luna. And since I am moving in permanently, there was simply no room for your cheap, depressing clothes."

The old Selene would have lowered her head. The old Selene would have cried and begged for her space back.

Instead, I stepped fully into the room, my expression turning to ice.

"You can have the room, Jessica," I said, my voice shockingly steady. "You can have the bed, the title, and the miserable man that comes with it. God knows you two deserve each other."

Jessica’s smirk faltered, her eyes narrowing. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me," I walked right past her, heading straight for the walk-in closet. A few of my leather travel bags were still shoved in the back corner. I grabbed the largest one and yanked it out, tossing it onto the white duvet of the bed. "I don't want this life anymore. You want to be his second choice six years late? Be my guest."

"I am not his second choice!" Jessica hissed, slamming her champagne glass down on the nightstand. "I was always his first choice! You were just a warm body, a pathetic stand-in until I decided I wanted him back."

"Then congratulations on reclaiming your garbage," I replied smoothly, unzipping the suitcase. "Now, where did you put the rest of my clothes? I have a taxi to catch."

"What is going on here?"

The deep, commanding voice boomed through the bedroom.

I didn't flinch. I turned around to see Kieran standing in the doorway. He was wearing his workout clothes, a towel thrown over his broad shoulders, his dark eyes instantly locking onto the open suitcase on the bed.

He looked at Jessica, then at me, his jaw clenching.

"What are you doing, Selene?" Kieran demanded, stepping into the room. His Alpha aura flared, heavy and suffocating, designed to make omegas and weaker wolves submit.

I didn't drop my gaze. I zipped the empty suitcase back up and gripped the handle.

"I'm leaving," I said clearly. "I want a divorce."

The room went dead silent. Jessica blinked, looking genuinely surprised, before a triumphant smile tugged at her lips.

Kieran, however, did not smile. He stared at me for a long, tense moment, his dark eyes searching my face for any sign of a bluff. When he found none, a harsh, mocking laugh ripped from his throat.

"A divorce?" He echoed, shaking his head as he walked closer to me. "You think you can just pack a bag and walk out of my pack?"

"I am no longer your Luna, Kieran. You made that perfectly clear yesterday. I will not stay in this house and watch you play house with my sister. Send the divorce papers to my lawyer. I’ll sign whatever you want."

Kieran’s amusement vanished instantly. His hand shot out, his fingers wrapping painfully tight around my upper arm.

"You aren't going anywhere," he growled, his voice dropping into a dangerous whisper. "I am the future Alpha of this pack. I do not get divorced. I will not have my perfect reputation dragged through the mud because my First Wife decided to throw a temper tantrum."

"My presence here damages your reputation more!" I yelled, trying to yank my arm out of his grip. "You are parading your mistress around the house! Just let me go!"

"No," Kieran sneered, leaning down until his face was inches from mine. "You are going to stay exactly where you are. You are going to put on a dress, you are going to smile for the cameras, and you are going to personally help plan my mating ceremony with Jessica to show the elders that our household is united."

"I will never do that," I spat in his face. "Watch me walk out that door."

Kieran’s eyes darkened with pure cruelty. He let go of my arm and took a step back, straightening his posture.

"Walk out that door," He challenged. "But know this, Selene. Amelia is my daughter. She was born under Draven pack law. If you step foot off my territory today, I will have you marked as a rogue and you will lose all maternal rights and never see Amelia again. Don't think the law will save you, I am the law.”

My blood ran ice cold.

The air completely left my lungs and I stared at him, my heart shattering all over again. He wasn't bluffing. As a pack Alpha, he had the power to banish me, to legally sever my ties to my own child.

He was using my daughter, the only piece of my heart I had left, as a hostage to force me to smile at his wedding.

Jessica giggled softly from the corner of the room. "Don't worry, Selene. I'll take great care of her. She already calls me Mum."

A violent, burning rage ignited inside my chest. It wasn't the weak, desperate sadness I had felt for six years. It was something entirely new. Something dark, cold, and utterly ruthless.

I looked at the man I had spent my entire adult life trying to love. I looked at the sister who had betrayed me.

Slowly, the tension drained from my shoulders. The panic faded from my eyes.

And for the first time in three months, I smiled.

It wasn't a warm smile. It was a terrifying, dead, bone-chilling curve of the lips.

Kieran frowned, clearly unsettled by the sudden shift in my demeanor. "What is so funny?"

"Nothing," I whispered smoothly, letting go of the suitcase handle. I took a step away from the bed, smoothing down the front of my sweatpants. "You're right, Kieran. I shouldn't damage your reputation and tear our family apart."

Kieran’s posture relaxed slightly, a smug look of victory returning to his handsome face. "I'm glad you finally understand your place."

"I do, very much, and I will gladly plan your mating ceremony."

Jessica eyed me suspiciously, but Kieran just nodded, adjusting the towel around his neck.

"Good and you should be grateful since you won't have to do it alone. My best men just called this morning to say that they'd like to help with the ceremony. So, they'll be moving into the house tonight. You are going to personally make sure they are comfortable."

My heart skipped a beat, the scent of cedar suddenly rushing back into my memory.

"Who?" I asked, perfectly keeping my composure and hoping against the moon goddess they weren't who I thought they were. 

But of course she didn't listen.

"The Ashbourne triplets," Kieran announced. He turned around, walking out of the bedroom without looking back. "They'll be here in two hours. Get dressed.”