Abandoned While Pregnant, Claimed by the Alpha novel Chapter 3

I left the office in a hurry and headed straight to the hospital. After everything I went through yesterday, I needed to check on my pup’s health.

My best friend, Vicki, slammed her glittery diamond-encrusted iPad onto her desk with a loud thud.

“These brainless idiots,” she cursed, her white coat flying behind her as she moved sharply. “They have no clue what’s really going on.”

I picked up the iPad, but the glare from the screen made my eyes sting.

Social media was flooded with posts about “Alpha Brian’s noble sacrifice.” The top headline featured a photo of Brian pushing Silvia’s wheelchair as they left the office. In the picture, he was gazing at Silvia with such tenderness, his expression full of warmth and care. And as for me? I only got a tiny footnote—”the ex-wife with no wolf spirit finally knows her place and steps aside.”

The comment section? Utterly brutal.

“God bless Silvia, she’s the true Luna. Poor thing, after all she’s been through.”

“That Ashley? She should’ve been gone ages ago. She hogged the Luna title for three years and brought nothing to the pack. I mean, she can’t even have kids.”

“I heard she dragged out the divorce to grab more money? What a greedy leech.”

“Alpha still hasn’t stripped Ashley of her Luna title, probably because Silvia’s too fragile. I bet he had no other choice.”

Every word hit me like a slap, stinging deep.

“Stop looking at it.” Vicki snatched the tablet from my hands and turned off the screen. “These keyboard warriors just love spouting garbage online.”

I leaned back on the examination table, staring at the fluorescent light on the ceiling. The comments kept echoing in my mind, like venomous snakes slowly gnawing away at the last bit of my pride.

“It’s fine, Vicki,” I said, my voice oddly calm. “I don’t care what those people say. They’re irrelevant to me.”

But even I knew I was lying. When the whole world points fingers at you, it’s nearly impossible not to care.

Vicki studied my expression carefully—she knew me too well. “Ashley, listen. Even though Silvia might become Brian’s wife, technically she’s not yet. And think about it—Brian still hasn’t officially removed you as Luna. Maybe if you told him the truth, told him about the baby, things could turn out differently. Plus, Brian’s grandmother always adored you.”

I thought of her warm smile, her gentle words that used to comfort me: “Ashley, you are the kindest soul I’ve ever met. Brian needs a Luna like you.”

But that was all in the past now.

“No,” I cut Vicki off, the denial escaping my lips almost instinctively. “We’re divorced now. His mind is all about Silvia. I don’t want my child growing up in a toxic family.”

I couldn’t stop the memory of Brian’s words from resurfacing—”Even when I was making love to Ashley, it was your name I was whispering in my heart.”

That sentence, like a dagger, was still lodged deep in my heart.

“Brian said he doesn’t love me, Vicki. He even said…” My throat tightened, and my voice trembled slightly. “He said that even in bed, he wasn’t thinking of me.”

Vicki’s face turned dark with anger. “That bastard!”

“If he finds out about this baby, he’ll either see it as a burden or fight me for custody, only to dump the baby on some nanny. This child is mine. Only mine.”

Vicki stayed silent for a moment, then asked softly, “So, are you going to leave?”

I had wrestled with this question all night. Leaving would mean cutting ties with everything here—my carefully decorated room, the orphanage I poured my heart into, even the people I once thought were friends. But staying? Staying meant enduring endless humiliation and rejection.

“I have to leave.” I nodded firmly. “For my pup’s sake, I need to stay as far away from Brian as possible.”

“Where will you go? Your uncle’s territory?” Vicki frowned. “Ashley, your uncle doesn’t seem like someone you can trust. And with the Silvermoon Pack practically under his control now, going back might just be even more dangerous.”

I stayed quiet. Vicki was right. My uncle never liked me. If it weren’t for my father’s reputation back when he was alive, I’d have been kicked out of the Silvermoon Pack long ago. Now that I’ve lost everything, going back would only make me an easy target.

Right then, the image of that man—as dangerous and feral as a beast—flashed through my mind again.

No. No matter what, I would never step foot into another Alpha’s territory again. I had a second option. As soon as I moved out of the Alpha Commissioner’s residence, I would start re-mapping my future.

“It’s okay, Vicki. You know me,” I said, offering her a small, reassuring smile. “I always find a way to get back on my feet.”

Vicki let out a deep sigh and grabbed the ultrasound machine, squeezing a generous amount of cold gel onto the probe.

“Alright, lie down. Let’s see how your little one is doing.”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify