Her husband only touched her when he needed an heir.
It took her vanishing for him to finally see her.
For five years as Alpha Kieran’s wife, Mira nearly died giving him a daughter-and received nothing but disdain from him and his family for bearing the “wrong” heir.
With every cold, calculated touch, she felt less like a mate and more like a vessel. A useful womb, kept only because the woman he truly loved couldn’t risk pregnancy.
The final betrayal? Her own daughter, slowly turned against her.
So Mira did the one thing they never expected:
She disappeared.
Now she’s back-not as the pleading Luna they broke, but as a force they can’t control. And when her eyes meet Kieran’s, there’s no warmth left. Only ice.
Watch an Alpha unravel as the woman he shattered becomes the one he can never have again.
Some regrets last forever.
This one is his.
The Broken Luna, Now His Regret Chapter 1 The Breeding Mare
The moon was full when Mira Whitmore returned to Ravencrest Manor. She’d checked her cycle three times before making the drive from the medical center where she’d been working late. Ovulation peaked tonight-her body’s brief window of fertility that had become the only reason her husband came home anymore.
The manor loomed against the night sky, all dark stone and darker windows. Only the master bedroom glowed with warm light. Kieran was already here, waiting. Of course he was. Selene would have reminded him. His mother tracked Mira’s cycle more carefully than Mira did herself.
Mira parked her modest sedan next to Kieran’s sleek black SUV and sat for a moment, hands still gripping the steering wheel. Through the windshield, she could see that lit window. Her bedroom. Their bedroom. Though it hadn’t felt like “theirs” in years.
Just get through tonight, she told herself. Maybe this time will be different.
She cut off the thought. Four years of “maybes” hadn’t changed anything yet.
The house was quiet when she entered, her footsteps echoing on marble floors. The butler, Fletcher, appeared from the shadows with his usual impeccable timing.
“Luna,” he greeted with a respectful nod. “The Alpha is upstairs.”
“Thank you, Fletcher.”
She climbed the grand staircase, each step heavier than the last. The master bedroom door was ajar, light spilling into the hallway. Mira pushed it open.
Kieran stood by the window, phone pressed to his ear, his back to her. He was already dressed in sleeping pants and nothing else, his broad shoulders tense. Even from across the room, Mira could feel the restless energy of his wolf-impatient, duty-bound, wanting this over with.
“I’ll call you back,” Kieran said into the phone, his voice low and warm in a way it never was with her anymore. He ended the call without waiting for a response and finally turned to face her.
Alpha Kieran Ravencrest was objectively beautiful. Dark hair, sharp features, eyes that shifted between gray and gold depending on how close his wolf was to the surface. When they’d first met six years ago, Mira had thought herself the luckiest woman alive to be chosen as his mate.
Now she just felt tired.
“You’re late,” he said, glancing at his watch.
“I had a patient emergency. A child with a severe allergic reaction. I couldn’t just leave.”
“You’re a healer, not a doctor. There are others who could have handled it.”
But I’m the best one, Mira wanted to say. Instead, she said nothing and moved toward the bathroom.
“Don’t take too long,” Kieran called after her. “I have an early morning.”
Of course he did. He always had somewhere else to be.
Mira showered quickly, trying to wash away the feeling that she was preparing for a transaction rather than intimacy with her husband. When she emerged in her nightgown, Kieran was already in bed, scrolling through his phone with a slight frown.
He looked up when she approached, and for just a moment-so brief she might have imagined it-something flickered in his expression. Recognition, maybe. Or memory of what they used to be.
Then it was gone.
“Come here,” he said, setting his phone aside.
Mira slid into bed beside him, and Kieran reached for her with practiced efficiency. His hands were familiar but not gentle, his touch skilled but not tender. He knew exactly how to prepare her body for what came next-four years of scheduled encounters had made him efficient.
But efficiency wasn’t the same as desire.
The act itself was mercifully quick. Kieran had always been considerate of her physical comfort, even as he’d grown indifferent to everything else. When it was over, he rolled away immediately, chest rising and falling with measured breaths.
Mira lay still, staring at the ceiling, feeling the familiar emptiness that came after these encounters.
Once upon a time, they would have stayed tangled together, talking and laughing until dawn. Now the silence was so heavy it hurt to breathe through it.
Kieran got up without a word and headed to the bathroom. Mira heard water running, the sounds of him washing her off his skin. When he emerged, he was already half-dressed.
“Remember to take a pregnancy test,” he said, buttoning his shirt with brisk movements. “Let me know immediately if it’s positive.”
“Where are you going?” The question slipped out before Mira could stop it.
“Back to the city.” Kieran didn’t look at her as he fastened his belt. “I have meetings tomorrow.”
Meetings. That’s what he called the time he spent with Astrid Sinclair, his mistress. The she-wolf he’d been openly involved with for three years now, whose existence everyone in the pack knew about but pretended not to see.
Mira pushed herself up on her elbows. “Kieran-“
“What?” He finally looked at her, and the impatience in his eyes made her chest tight.
“Could we… could we talk? About us?”
“Us?” Kieran’s brow furrowed as if the concept confused him. “What about us?”
“Our marriage. We never see each other anymore. You only come home when-” She gestured helplessly at the bed between them.
“When it’s time to try for an heir,” Kieran finished bluntly. “Yes. That’s the priority right now.”
“But what about after? What if I do get pregnant? Will things change?”
For a long moment, Kieran just stared at her with those cold gray eyes. Then he picked up his jacket from the chair and shrugged it on.
“If you give me a son,” he said carefully, “then we can discuss what comes next. Until then, I don’t see the point in this conversation.”
If you give me a son. Not “when we have a child together.” Not “when our family grows.” Just another transaction. Another duty to be fulfilled.
“And if it’s another daughter?” Mira whispered.
Kieran’s jaw tightened. “Let’s hope it’s not.”
He moved toward the door, and desperation flared in Mira’s chest.
“Kieran, please. Can’t we at least try to-“
“I’ll be home next month,” he interrupted, not turning around. “Same schedule. Make sure you’re here.”
Then he was gone, the door closing with a soft click that sounded like a cell lock engaging.
Mira sat in the big empty bed, surrounded by silk sheets that smelled like nothing, in a room that had never felt like home. Slowly, she reached for her phone on the nightstand. Her fingers moved on autopilot, opening the social media app, typing in the name she’d memorized against her will.
Astrid Sinclair’s profile loaded-public, always public, like she wanted the world to see her happiness. The latest post was from twenty minutes ago. A photo of a champagne glass catching candlelight, the edge of a masculine hand visible across the table. The caption read: “Perfect endings to perfect days ✨”
The post already had dozens of likes. Mira scrolled down, torturing herself with evidence of her husband’s real life. Astrid at pack gatherings Mira wasn’t invited to. Astrid laughing at restaurants Kieran had never taken Mira to. Astrid wearing jewelry Mira recognized from Kieran’s favorite boutique.
A life in full color, while Mira existed in grayscale.
Her phone buzzed with a text from an unknown number. Mira opened it and immediately wished she hadn’t.
He says you have pretty eyes when you cry. Does he make you cry a lot?
The message was unsigned, but Mira knew it was from Astrid. It wasn’t the first time the other woman had sent her cruel little reminders of who really mattered to Kieran.
Mira deleted the message and set her phone down with shaking hands. She should feel rage, shouldn’t she? Heartbreak? Something hot and sharp and alive?
Instead, she just felt numb.
Her eyes fell on the bathroom counter, where three pregnancy tests sat waiting. She’d bought them on the way home, ever-prepared, ever-dutiful.
But as she stared at them, something stirred in her memory. The fatigue that had plagued her for weeks. The nausea she’d hidden during morning rounds. The way her body felt different, changed.
She’d suspected. Deep down, she’d known.
Mira walked to the bathroom and unwrapped one of the tests, following the familiar routine. While she waited for the result, she caught her own reflection in the mirror. When had she started looking so hollowed out? When had the light gone out of her eyes?
The timer on her phone chimed. Mira looked down at the test in her hand.
Two pink lines.
Positive.
She’d suspected for weeks-the fatigue, the nausea she’d hidden. But seeing it confirmed made everything terrifyingly real.
The Broken Luna, Now His Regret Chapter 2 First Acts of Defiance
Mira stared at the two lines. She should be happy. Relieved. This was what she’d been trying for, what would secure her position, what might finally bring Kieran home for good.
But all she could think about was the clinical encounter that had created this life. The cold efficiency. The immediate departure. The total absence of love.
Voices drifted up from downstairs-Kieran’s deep rumble and another voice, older, sharper. His mother. Selene must have been waiting in the study.
Since their wedding, Selene had been a fervent heir-planner. But after Mira gave birth to their daughter Brielle four years ago, nothing had followed. The difficult delivery had nearly claimed Mira’s life and had drained her body dry. Almost as soon as she’d recovered, Selene had placed the task of producing a son squarely on her agenda.
What left Mira feeling most powerless was that Kieran had offered almost no objection. She had thought he might have considered her feelings, at least a little.
Mira let out a silent sigh. It didn’t matter now. She was finally pregnant again. She hoped this would put an end to the whole charade.
Pushing the door open softly, she headed downstairs to share the “good” news with Kieran. The study was directly below the master suite, and the old manor’s ventilation system carried sound perfectly. She’d discovered this accidentally years ago and had hated herself for using it since, but tonight she couldn’t help herself.
“-handled it?” Selene was saying. “Did she take the test?”
“She will.” Kieran sounded tired. “She’s very dutiful about these things.”
“If it’s another daughter, we need to consider alternatives.”
Mira’s breath caught. She pressed closer to the doorway, heart hammering.
“What alternatives?” Kieran asked warily.
“Astrid is young, healthy. She could bear you a son without complications.”
A silence followed, and Mira felt her heart twist into a cold knot. So that was their next move? But Kieran’s voice cut through her spiraling thoughts.
“Absolutely not.”
There was a new tension in his tone, and relief flooded through Mira so intensely she felt dizzy. He’d refused. Finally, he was standing up for their marriage. Maybe she’d been wrong. Maybe he did still care-
“I haven’t forgotten how difficult Mira’s last delivery was,” Kieran continued. “She nearly died, but she survived it. She can handle that risk again if needed. But Astrid-she’s never been through childbirth. I won’t put her in that kind of danger.”
The world stopped.
Mira stood frozen in the doorway, the positive pregnancy test still clutched in her hand, as her husband’s words replayed in her mind.
She can handle that risk again.
Not “I won’t risk my wife’s life.” Not “I care too much about Mira to endanger her.”
Just… she could handle it. She’d survived it before. She was the safe option because she was already broken, already used, already disposable.
While Astrid-precious, delicate Astrid-had to be protected.
Something cracked open inside Mira’s chest, something that had been holding together through sheer stubborn hope.
Five years of marriage, of devotion, of nearly dying to give him a child, and this was what she meant to him. Not a partner. Not a mate. Just a vessel that had already proven it could take damage and keep functioning.
Was that truly how he saw her? Was that the entirety of her worth in this marriage?
“Well, we’ll see what this month brings,” Selene said. “But Kieran, you need to be firm with her. She needs to understand her duty.”
“I know, Mother.”
Their voices faded as they moved toward the front of the house. Mira heard the front door open and close, heard Kieran’s car engine start, heard him drive away into the night.
Back to his perfect life. Back to Astrid.
Mira looked down at the pregnancy test in her hand. Her vision blurred with tears she hadn’t even felt fall.
Two pink lines that should have meant joy, hope, a future. Instead, they felt like a prison sentence.
She couldn’t tell them. They didn’t care if she lived or died, and she couldn’t bear to imagine the fresh hell that would await her if this child, too, was a girl. Would they cast her aside, scorn her for a useless womb? Or simply schedule the next attempt?
Stumbling back to the bathroom, she braced one hand on the vanity, the other pressed over her heart. No sound of pain escaped her lips, but inside, everything was breaking.
She lifted her gaze to the mirror. Same face, same body, but something fundamental had changed. The woman looking back at her wasn’t the hopeful, devoted mate who’d arrived at the manor tonight.
That woman was dead.
Mira turned on the faucet and splashed cold water on her face, watching droplets fall into the white porcelain sink. When she looked up again, her eyes were clear. Hard.
She can handle that risk again.
No. No, she couldn’t. She wouldn’t.
She’d spent four years making herself smaller, quieter, more convenient. She’d given up her career, her friends, her sense of self. She’d nearly died bringing Brielle into the world, and Kieran hadn’t even visited her during the three days she’d spent in a coma.
And now he expected her to do it again-not because he loved her, not because he wanted a family with her, but because she was the safe option. The one whose life didn’t matter.
Mira picked up the positive pregnancy test and looked at it one last time. Then she wrapped it carefully in tissue and placed it in her pocket.
Not to show Kieran. Not to celebrate.
Evidence. For later.
She walked to the closet and began pulling out clothes, packing a small bag with steady hands. She’d go to the estate tonight-see Brielle, kiss her daughter goodnight.
For years, she’d been kept at a distance from her own child under the pretense that she needed to focus entirely on conceiving again. Selene had insisted Brielle was cared for by the staff and that Mira’s most important duty was to get pregnant, undistracted.
She had argued, fought, tried in countless ways, but it was useless. Only a few limited days each month, after fulfilling her “duty,” were granted for her to be with her daughter.
As she stepped out the door, bag in hand, the full weight of her own foolishness settled upon her. How had she ever believed this compromise could lead to peace? She was Kieran’s Luna, yet she had been reduced to something less than an omega.
This should never happen again.
She pulled up to Thornfield Estate just before midnight. The house was mostly dark, but Brielle’s bedroom window glowed with a soft nightlight.
Mira parked and sat for a moment, gathering her courage. Her daughter. Her baby. The little girl she’d nearly died to bring into this world.
Please, Mira prayed to no one in particular. Please let her still love me.
She got out of the car and walked to the front door, using her key to let herself in quietly. The estate was silent except for the ticking of the grandfather clock in the foyer. Mira climbed the stairs to Brielle’s room and eased the door open.
Her daughter was still awake, sitting up in bed with a picture book in her lap. At four years old, Brielle was the perfect blend of Mira and Kieran-dark curls from her father, green eyes from her mother, and a serious little face that made her seem older than her years.
“Mommy?” Brielle looked up, surprised. Then her expression shuttered slightly, becoming more guarded. “What are you doing here?”
The question hurt more than it should have. What are you doing here? As if Mira needed a reason to visit her own child.
“I came to see you, sweetheart.” Mira moved into the room slowly, not wanting to spook her. “I missed you.”
Brielle set her book aside but didn’t reach for Mira the way she used to. “Daddy said you were busy working.”
Of course he did.
“I was working, but I’m never too busy for you. You know that, right?”
Brielle shrugged, a gesture far too adult for a four-year-old. “Auntie Astrid says you have important things to do. She says that’s why she takes care of me now.”
Auntie Astrid. The affectionate title made Mira’s head spin. So while Kieran had restricted her access, he’d freely allowed his mistress to step into this role? How could he?
A cold, sharp resolve tightened in her chest. The decision she’d made before leaving solidified into something urgent and unshakable.
“Brielle, baby…” Mira sat on the edge of the bed, careful not to crowd her daughter. “I want you to know that I love you more than anything in the world. More than any job, more than anything else. You’re the most important thing in my life.”
“Then why don’t you live here?” Brielle’s voice was small, but the accusation in it was clear. “Auntie Astrid lives here. She reads me stories every night and makes my favorite breakfast and plays with me. Where do you go?”
Mira felt something crack in her chest. “I live at the manor with Daddy. But I know I haven’t been here as much as I should. That’s going to change, I promise.”
“Daddy doesn’t live at the manor. He lives with Auntie Astrid in the city.”
The casual way Brielle said it-as if it were just a normal fact of life-made Mira want to scream. How had she let things get this bad? How had she been so focused on trying to save her marriage that she’d missed her daughter being stolen from her?
“Brielle, I need to ask you something.” Mira took a breath. “Do you want a little brother or sister?”
Brielle’s face brightened. “I want a brother! Then I could teach him things and play with him.”
“And what if Mommy said she was scared to have another baby? That it might be dangerous?”
Brielle’s expression changed, became stern in a way that was clearly parroted from adult conversations. “That’s selfish, Mommy. You weren’t afraid when you had me. Why would you be afraid now?”
The words struck like a physical blow. Four years old, and already wielding guilt like a weapon she’d been taught to use.
“You’re right,” Mira whispered. “I wasn’t afraid then. But things are different now.”
Brielle yawned, her small body relaxing back into the pillows. “I’m sleepy.”
“Okay, baby. Let me tuck you in.”
Mira helped Brielle settle under the covers, stroking her dark curls until her breathing evened out. But just as Mira thought she was asleep, Brielle’s eyes fluttered open.
“Mommy? Will you stay tonight?”
“Of course I will.”
Mira lay down beside her daughter, holding her close, breathing in the sweet scent of her hair. And for a few precious moments, everything else faded away. The betrayal, the pain, the impossible choices ahead-none of it mattered.
Only this. Only Brielle.
But even as she held her daughter, Mira’s mind was working. Tomorrow morning she’d call Zara to schedule the appointment. Tomorrow she’d drive to Windmere. Tomorrow she’d end the pregnancy that Kieran saw as just another duty, another risk she could “handle.”
Tomorrow she’d start choosing herself.
For tonight, she’d hold her baby and pretend the world wasn’t falling apart around them.
But tomorrow, she would begin the fight to secure a future-for herself, and for her daughter.
Tomorrow, she would file for divorce from Alpha Kieran, whatever the cost.
The Broken Luna, Now His Regret Chapter 3 I Want A Divorce
Mira woke to sunlight streaming through Brielle’s bedroom window and small feet pressed against her ribs. Brielle was starfished across the bed, covers kicked off, one tiny hand clutching her stuffed wolf.
For a moment, Mira just watched her daughter sleep, memorizing the curve of her cheek, the flutter of her eyelashes. This was what mattered. This tiny person who deserved so much better than parents who’d forgotten how to love each other.
Carefully, Mira extracted herself from the bed and padded downstairs. The estate’s kitchen was smaller than the manor’s but infinitely warmer, with morning light painting everything gold. She started coffee and found ingredients for Brielle’s favorite breakfast-chocolate chip pancakes.
“Luna Mira?”
Mira turned to find Ingrid, one of the estate’s staff, in the doorway. The older woman looked surprised but pleased to see her.
“Good morning, Ingrid. I hope you don’t mind-I’m making breakfast for Brielle.”
“Of course not. It’s wonderful to see you.” Ingrid hesitated, then added quietly, “We’ve missed you here.”
The simple kindness in those words made Mira’s throat tight. “I’ve missed being here too. That’s going to change.”
Ingrid smiled and began helping with the pancakes, the two of them falling into easy rhythm. By the time Brielle thundered down the stairs, hair wild and still in her pajamas, the table was set with a stack of pancakes.
“Chocolate chips!” Brielle squealed, the careful guardedness from last night forgotten in the excitement. She climbed into her chair and attacked the pancakes with focused intensity.
Mira sat across from her, sipping coffee and just watching. When had she last done this? Just been present with her daughter, without rushing off to pack duties?
Too long. Far too long.
After breakfast, Mira helped Brielle get dressed-a battle involving a tutu, rain boots, and a princess tiara that Brielle insisted “matched.”
“Can we go to the garden?” Brielle asked, tugging on Mira’s hand. “I want to show you my fairy house!”
They spent the morning outside, Brielle chattering about everything while Mira helped her arrange pinecones and flowers around the elaborate fairy house construction. The reserve from last night had melted away entirely, and for a few hours, Mira could pretend everything was normal.
But eventually, reality intruded. Her phone buzzed with a message from Fletcher, the estate steward: Luna Mira, Alpha Kieran requests your immediate return.
Mira stared at the message, a flood of familiar reactions washing through her. The old Mira would have been thrilled by his “need,” would have rushed to see what he wanted. The woman she was now saw it for what it was: a summons.
She texted back: Tell him I’m with our daughter.
Then she silenced her phone and attempted to put it away. Another message came in, this time from an unknown number: How dare you disrespect the Alpha. Return to the manor immediately.
Selene. Of course.
Mira deleted the message without responding and pocketed her phone.
“Mommy? You okay?” Brielle was watching her with those too-perceptive green eyes.
“I’m perfect, baby.” Mira smiled. “Now, tell me more about the fairy queen who lives here…”
They played until lunch, ate sandwiches in the garden, and then Brielle started yawning. Mira carried her inside for a nap, settling her in bed with her stuffed wolf.
“Will you be here when I wake up?” Brielle asked sleepily.
“I’ll be here as long as you want me,” Mira promised.
She waited until Brielle was deeply asleep, then headed downstairs. She needed to leave soon-the drive to Windmere was two hours, and she’d call Zara from the road to schedule an appointment for later this afternoon.
But when she entered the study, she froze.
Selene Ravencrest sat in the chair behind the desk, spine straight, hands folded, radiating disapproval like a cold front.
“Luna Mira.” Her voice could have frozen water. “How kind of you to finally appear.”
Mira’s first instinct was to apologize, to explain, to make herself smaller. Four years of conditioning died hard.
But then she remembered: She can handle that risk again.
“Selene.” Mira kept her voice level. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to discuss your recent behavior.” Selene stood, and despite being shorter than Mira, she had a way of looming. “Leaving the manor after your duty without permission. Ignoring my messages. This is unacceptable.”
“I don’t need permission to visit my daughter.”
“You need to remember your place.” Selene’s voice sharpened. “Your duty is to produce an heir, not to play house whenever the mood strikes you.”
Something dark and hot flared in Mira’s chest. “My place? My duty? Is that all I am to this family? A womb that occasionally gets to visit her own child?”
“Watch your tone-“
“No.” The word came out harder than Mira intended. “No, I’m done watching my tone. I’m done being quiet and dutiful while my husband keeps a mistress and you all decide I’m not important enough to include in my daughter’s life.”
Selene’s face flushed with anger. “How dare you speak to me this way. You forget that I am the former Luna of this pack-“
“And I am the current Luna.” Mira stepped forward. “Or have you forgotten that?”
“You are Luna in name only,” Selene hissed. “You’ve failed to provide a male heir. You’re barely present in pack matters. The pack deserves better. Kieran deserves better.”
“Then maybe Kieran should divorce me and marry Astrid.” The words came out before Mira could stop them. “Maybe she’d be happy to be reduced to a breeding vessel.”
Selene’s hand moved so fast Mira barely saw it coming. The slap cracked across her face, snapping her head to the side.
“You will kneel,” Selene commanded. “You will apologize, and you will remember your place.”
Mira touched her stinging cheek, tasting blood where her teeth had cut the inside of her mouth. If this had been any moment in the last five years, she would have dropped to her knees immediately.
But that Mira was dead.
Mira raised her own hand, steady and without hesitation.
“Mira.” The new voice froze them both.
Kieran stood in the doorway, still in his suit. His eyes were cold, his jaw tight as he took in the scene. He strode forward and caught Mira’s wrist before her palm could connect with Selene’s face.
“That’s enough,” he said quietly.
For a wild moment, Mira thought he might be defending her. Then he shoved her arm away like it disgusted him.
“Control yourself,” Kieran said, contempt dripping from his voice. “I’m not in the mood for your dramatics today.”
He turned to his mother, his expression softening. “Mother, I apologize for my wife’s behavior. Why don’t you wait for me in the car? I’ll handle this.”
Selene smoothed her skirt, shot Mira a triumphant look, and swept from the room.
Silence fell between them, heavy and suffocating. Kieran ran a hand through his hair, gold bleeding into his eyes.
“What the hell was that?”
“That was me refusing to be hit anymore,” Mira said flatly.
“She’s my mother-“
“And I’m your wife!” The words exploded out of her. “Or have you forgotten that between your breeding appointments and your cozy nights with Astrid?”
Kieran’s jaw clenched. “Watch it, Mira.”
“Or what? You’ll stop pretending I exist entirely?” Mira laughed bitterly. “You can’t threaten me with something I already have.”
“I don’t have time for this.” He checked his watch. “We can discuss your attitude later. Right now, I have-“
“I want a divorce.”
The words hung in the air between them, stark and final.
Kieran went utterly still. His gaze sharpened.
“What did you say?”
The sheer force of his Alpha presence rolled over her, but Mira dug her heels in, refusing to yield. She lifted her chin, meeting his gaze head-on.
“I. Want. A. Divorce.”
For a moment, she saw a flicker of something dangerous in his eyes-a predator recognizing a threat. Before he could say anything, his phone rang. He glanced at the screen, and something in his expression shifted-softened in a way it never did for Mira.
“I have to take this,” he said curtly.
“Kieran-“
But he was already answering. “Hey. Yeah, I’m handling it now. No, it’s fine. I’ll be there soon.” A pause, then quieter: “I know. Me too.”
He ended the call and finally looked at Mira again, but it was like looking at a stranger. There was nothing in his eyes-no anger, no hurt, no recognition that she’d just asked to end their marriage.
Just impatience.
“We’ll discuss this later,” he said dismissively. “I have to go. There’s an important matter that requires my attention.”
He turned toward the door.
“Kieran, I’m serious. I want a divorce.”
He paused but didn’t turn around. “No, you don’t. You’re upset. You’ll calm down, and we’ll talk about this rationally next month.”
Then he was gone, his footsteps echoing through the estate, the front door closing with finality.
Mira stood alone in the study, her cheek still burning, her wrist aching, her chest hollow with the realization that she’d just asked for a divorce and her husband couldn’t even be bothered to acknowledge it.
She pulled out her phone and checked the time. If she left now, she’d make it to Windmere before late afternoon. She could call Zara from the road.
Mira grabbed her bag and walked toward the front door. At the top of the stairs, she paused outside Brielle’s room. Her daughter was still sleeping peacefully, clutching her stuffed wolf.
“I love you,” Mira whispered. “I’m so sorry for everything. But Mommy needs to take care of herself now. I promise I’ll come back. I promise I’ll be better.”
She kissed her fingertips and pressed them to the doorframe, then turned and walked away.
The drive to Windmere passed in a blur of tears and determination. Halfway there, she called Zara.
“Mira? Is everything okay?”
“No.” Mira’s voice was steady despite the tears streaming down her face. “Can you see me this afternoon? I need… I need your help with something.”
“Of course. Come straight to my office when you get here.”
By the time Mira pulled up to the medical center, her face was dry and her resolve was steel.
Zara was waiting in her office, concern etched across her features. She took one look at Mira and pulled her into a fierce hug.
“Tell me what you need,” Zara said.
“I need to end a pregnancy,” Mira said quietly. “And I need to end a marriage. Can you help me with the first part?”
Zara pulled back, searching Mira’s face. “Are you sure? Your body hasn’t fully recovered, MiraThis will hurt. You could wait until things are more settled-“
“I can’t wait,” Mira’s hands clenched into fists. “Once Kieran knows I’m pregnant, he will never let me go.”
“Mira.” Zara’s face was a mask of pain. “The cost is so high. Are you certain.?”
“I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life,” Mira’s voice didn’t waver.
Zara sighed, then nodded slowly. “Okay. Let’s get you prepped.”