After Rejection Divorced Luna Becomes A Famous Doctor (Hailey and Dominic) novel Chapter 11

CHAPTER ELEVEN–1

HAILEY

The rest of my shift passed by in a blur, though I couldn’t remember a single patient’s face by the end of it. My hands moved with practiced precision, my voice issuing calm instructions to nurses and interns, but

my mind was nowhere near the sterile white walls of the ER.

Every beat of my heart was a reminder that Giovanni had been here. In my hospital. In my space. And that

he had left with more than just a mended body, he’d left with a piece of my truth.

And now, every single feeling from my past that I’d managed or thought I had successfully buried had

been yanked back to the surface, raw and bleeding like they’d only happened yesterday.

It was dangerous, how easily one familiar face could undo five years of careful silence. The emotions came in jagged waves, rage at the betrayal, grief for what I’d lost, terror for what I still had to protect. Every step I took through the hospital corridors felt heavier, like I was walking through wet cement, each breath a conscious effort not to break.

I remembered every single details. From the moment I met Dominic, to being mated to him, to feeling like since we were mates, he was bound to love me, to not knowing that he was still stuck up on his first love, to our third anniversary where everything went south.

It was like yesterday, I was twenty three and naive, making a romantic dinner for our third wedding anniversary, being excited because I got the greatest news of my life because I felt like my pregnancy was going to open a new chapter in our lives and make Dominic start to care for me again. That child was supposed to be our blessing, and make him love me more.

But, instead I was met with a cold divorce that shattered everything I thought I knew about love, loyalty, and the man I had bound my soul to. One moment I was holding a tiny box with a silver baby rattle inside, rehearsing how I would tell him the news. The next, I was standing in our kitchen, the scent of roasted rosemary chicken still in the air, as Dominic slid divorce papers across the counter without meeting my eyes. His voice was calm, too calm, as he told me it was over, that he couldn’t keep living a lie, that he

was tired of pretending.

I remember staring at those papers, the words blurring as my heart thudded painfully in my chest. At first, I thought it was some cruel joke, a test of my devotion. But then I saw just how much had that I didn’t.

She wasn’t just beautiful, she was effortless. The kind of beauty that didn’t have to try, the kind of presence that filled a room without demanding it. Her smile held a quiet victory, like she’d been waiting for this moment all along, watching from the sidelines as my marriage shattered thread by thread. I’d always suspected she existed, a feeling lingering in the corner of Dominic’s heart, but seeing her in person made it real. It made me feel small, replaceable, as though our bond had been nothing more than a placeholder

until he could have her again.

I remember gripping the arms of the chair so tightly my knuckles burned, trying to steady my breathing as

PERILEVEN 1

the lawyer droned on about terms and signatures.

Dominic sat beside her, shoulders relaxed, his eyes never once meeting mine. It was like I wasn’t even

there. Like the last three years, the nights I waited for him, the meals that went cold, the silent prayers for

our bond to mean something, had never happened.

And the worst part? She didn’t need to gloat. Her hand resting casually on his thigh told me everything I needed to know, I had been living in her story, not mine. I was the chapter Dominic had skipped through to get back to the ending he always wanted.

That day, I signed the papers with a hand that wouldn’t stop trembling. Not because I wanted to, but

because I realized there was nothing left to fight for. My mate had chosen his first love over me, over our

child, over the promise we made under the moon.

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CHAPTER ELEVEN–2

Now, all I felt was anger because I didn’t deserve that. I didn’t deserve to be his warm body while he waited for the right one, I didn’t deserve to be the consolation prize he settled for until fate gave him what he truly wanted.

I didn’t deserve to be the woman he touched out of duty while dreaming of someone else.

And yet, that’s exactly what I had been, his placeholder.

The cruelest part wasn’t even losing him. It was realizing I had never really had him to begin with. I had been building a home in the ruins of his heart, trying to patch up walls that were never meant to shelter me. Every kiss, every whispered I love you had been a lie he told because the bond demanded it, not

because his soul did.

And the most bitter truth? I still loved him. Even with the papers signed, even with the sight of her hand on his thigh burned into my memory, part of me still ached for him. That was the curse of the mate bond, it didn’t care about betrayal, or humiliation, or broken vows. It only cared that he was mine.

Now, all I wanted was to rip that bond out of me, root and stem, and burn whatever was left to ash.

I didn’t want the part of myself that still reached for him in my sleep. I didn’t want the echo of his scent that sometimes drifted into my dreams and left me waking with tears on my pillow. I didn’t want the weakness that made my heart skip at the thought of his name, even when my mind screamed to hate him.

I wanted my freedom back.

And now I have it.

And I’ll be damned if I let them ruin the little peace I’d built over the years.

And if Giovanni’s sudden appearance meant that Dominic was anywhere near my life again, I was prepared to protect that freedom with teeth and claws.

Because now, I had something far more precious than a bond to lose. I had Liam.

The thought of his warm little body curled against me, his tiny hand gripping mine as he fell asleep, steadied me in a way nothing else could. Dominic had taken so much from me, but I would die before I let

him take my son.

My shift finally ended, though I barely registered signing out. The hospital’s sliding doors opened and I rushed to my car and drove to Liam’s school. The drive felt longer than usual, even though my foot was heavier on the gas than it should’ve been,

By the time I pulled into the school’s small parking lot, my pulse had eased just enough for me to notice the late afternoon sun spilling gold over the playground. Kids darted between swings and slides, their

laughter ringing in the air, pure and unfiltered joy.

And then I saw him.

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NASTERE IVEN 7

Liam spotted me before I could even step fully out of the car, his small face lighting up like the sun had

personally called his name. He ran toward me, his little backpack bouncing with each step, his arms already outstretched.

The knot in my chest loosened.

I crouched just in time for him to crash into me, his soft cheek pressing against mine, his hair warm from the sun. The scent of him, soap, crayons, and the faintest trace of the outdoors was wrapped around me

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