Chapter 1

Cora

"You don't know how much my blood boils whenever I oversee such a case. Did you know this guy has been hitting her for years and threatened to kill her if she ever mentioned it to anyone?"

"Yes, you mentioned that earlier." Flora rolled her eyes she served me a bottle of cold water. I chugged down a large quantity and dropped the can roughly.

"Careful, Cora. You might actually hurt the can." She snatched the can from me and kept it far away.

"Whatever. I don't think you understand my point." I groaned and covered my face with my palms.

"I understand you perfectly Cora. You hate cheating men and they irritate you. But then again, there's nothing you can actually do about it. That's the kind of world we live in. It will keep happening again and again."

"Well, I'm fine with it as long as it doesn't happen to me."

"Men are very unpredictable. I know that for a fact." She folded her hands and faced me with a deadpan expression.

"What if your husband cheats on you?" She asked me. I was taken aback a bit by that question.

"If he ever does, I will leave immediately," I replied with confidence. Nothing could ever change my mind about men who cheat on their wives.

"Are you sure about that?" She questioned with an arch brow.

"You know what?" I asked, standing up from the couch. "I don't want to talk about this anymore. I'll see you later, girl." With that, I scurried off to the hospital. Our conversation kept playing in my head. I don't condone infidelity and my standard will never change, no matter who it is.

The nurses greeted me with smiling faces. Instinctively, I waved at them. Heading for my doctor's office, a door was opened abruptly, almost slamming me in the face. I frowned and looked at the offender. It was none other than my former best friend.

"Oh hello, Cora. Long time no see." She smirked as she placed her hand on her stomach. I ignored her greeting and made to walk past her but she just scoffed.

"I wonder where you're in a hurry to go to. It is not like you're going to deliver a baby or something."

I sighed and turned to her with a fake smile.

"Listen, Zaria, I don't have time for your petty arguments. As you know, I am a very busy woman. I'd advise you to get yourself something important to do and stop bugging people who have things to do."

"Do you think making a baby is not tedious work? An alpha's child. Come on Cora, even you couldn't do that." She laughed and placed her hand on her stomach, caressing it in circles. That was when my eyes to her baby bump. She wasn't married so how was she pregnant?

"What did you say? Which alpha?" I asked when I remembered her last sentence.

"How many alphas do we have in this pack, huh? Your husband, of course."

I didn't know when my hand moved but it sure landed on her cheek, making her stagger a little bit.

"Are you mad? How dare you accuse my husband of cheating? Do you know what your punishment will be?" I thundered. Our argument attracted the attention of the nurses and a few patients.

Zaria looked at me with bloodshot eyes. Her breathing was erratic and I could feel her vibration.

"How dare you touch me? I'm carrying the child of the alpha." She screamed. "Do you want to infect me with your barrenness?"

My heart broke into a million pieces at that statement. I wasn't able to give the alpha a child even after five years of marriage. But what hurt more was that it was coming from someone I once called my best friend. I held back my tears and proceeded to warn her when I started hearing some commotion from the entrance. I looked up to see my husband running toward me.

Why was he at the hospital? I smiled upon him reaching me but he ignored me and embraced Zaria who was now crying. My whole world flashed before my eyes. I looked back to see him pecking her forehead. My bag dropped to the ground.

So it was true. My husband was indeed the father of her child. I wanted to scream, yell, and break things but I couldn't. I was too stunned to even move a finger.

"What is wrong with you, Cora? Did you really have to hit her? Do you want to kill the baby?" He faced me with an angry expression. His fists were clenched and that made me wonder if he ever thought of hitting me too.

"So it's true." I nodded with a pained smile.

"All those times, you were really cheating on me. You know, I couldn't believe it. I thought you were an upright alpha as you claim to be. Not knowing that you were just a dirty lying cheating alpha." I was disappointed. I knew how furious he usually gets seeing men who cheat on their mates. But there he was, doing the same thing without shame.

My heart thundered against my ribcage as we stared at each other.

"Listen Cora. I didn't mean for this to happen. You have to know that I'm desperate. My position," He took three steps closer to me and grabbed my shoulders.

"Our position is being threatened. Did you expect me to sit back and watch us being thrown out? Never. I did us for us." He spoke softly as his gaze bore into my mine.

I smiled as brought his hands down.

"You never would have told me if I didn't find out myself."

"Why won't you understand?" He yelled, brushing his hair backward. He was frustrated that I wasn't seeing reason with him.

"We made a vow, Liam, and you broke it. I guess it didn't mean anything to you. And I will have my baby in this marriage, but it definitely won't be coming from you."

I heard Zaria scoff immediately.

"Good luck with that."

As I walked away, the tears I tried too hard to hold back began pouring. The man I sacrificed five years of my life for just left me for another woman, just because I couldn't bear him a child yet. Five years was still too little to determine if I was barren or not.

I wished the ground should just open and swallow me up. The pain I felt was unbearable. As I got to my doctor's office, I wiped my face dry and entered with a smile. Nobody must ever see the weak side of me.

I don't know how long I sat there waiting for the test result I had been coming to run every three months. But so many things ran through my mind.

Since he cheated on me, I have to leave, right? That has always been my slogan. You cheat, I leave. But why do I feel so reluctant to leave Liam? It was as though I was still attached to him in one way. Was it the mate bond? Yes, definitely it.

"You're pregnant, Luna." Those three words made me snap back to reality. I looked skeptically at the widely smiling woman who had become my doctor all through these five years.

"Sorry. Please, what did you say?" I questioned. I was too stunned to try to remember what she said.

"You're pregnant, Cora. Congratulations." She happily handed me the test result. My eyes roamed the result sheet. Was this real or was I dreaming?

"Please, could you keep this a secret? I want to be sure." I pleaded and she nodded.

My hand went to my stomach and rubbed it a little.

I could finally hold my little one in my arms.