Pursuing My Rejected Luna by Cara Anderson novel Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Skye

I sit up slowly, pushing my hair back from my face. “I was really tired. I don’t know why-”

But even as I say it, I realize that’s not entirely true. I do know why. My body is different now. More tired. More sensitive. The pregnancy is taking its toll, even this early.

The realization makes my throat tight.

“If you don’t want to be here, say that.” Jaxon’s voice cuts through my thoughts, sharp with impatience. “Don’t throw your tantrum in everyone’s face.”

The words hit like a slap.

“Tantrum?” I stare at him. “I was sick, Jaxon. I spent half an hour throwing up, and then I needed to rest. That’s

not a tantrum.”

“You’ve been ‘sick’ and ‘tired’ for weeks now.” He crosses his arms, leaning against the dresser. “Convenient timing, don’t you think? Right when Cassandra needs support.”

“When Cassandra needs-” I can’t even finish the sentence. “You think I’m faking being sick to spite her?”

“I think you’re making this harder than it needs to be.” His jaw tightens. “Liam asked where you were at dinner. Do you know how that looked? His father’s mate, too selfish to even share a meal with him?”

The accusation steals my breath.

“I’m not selfish for needing rest.”

“You’re selfish for making everything about you.” He pushes off the dresser, heading for the door. “This weekend was supposed to be good for Liam. Good for all of us. But you can’t put aside your feelings for five minutes to make this work.”

“My feelings?” My voice rises despite myself. “You moved your ex-girlfriend and her son into our house, forced me on a vacation to watch you play family with them, and I’m selfish for having feelings about it?”

He turns back, and for a moment, something flickers in his eyes. Something that might be guilt.

But then it’s gone, replaced by that cold Alpha mask.

“Get some sleep, Skye. We have a full day tomorrow, and I expect you to actually participate.”

He leaves without another word, the door clicking shut behind him with a finality that makes my chest ache.

I sit there in the dark, listening to his footsteps fade down the hallway.

And I realize, with devastating clarity, that he’s not coming back tonight.

He’s going to her.

I understand what I did wrong.

Jaxon holds his title sacred. The Alpha’s authority isn’t just about power-it’s about perception, about maintaining the image of strength and unity that keeps the pack stable. And I, his Luna, undermined that by

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disappearing on the first night of what was supposed to be a family retreat.

It doesn’t matter that I was sick. It doesn’t matter that watching him with Cassandra and Liam feels like swallowing glass. What matters is how it looked to the betas, to anyone who might hear about it later.

So for the rest of the week, I try. 1

I show up to breakfast on time, dressed and composed. I smile when Liam shows me the rocks he collected by the pool. I make polite conversation about the weather, the resort amenities, and the quality of the hot springs.

I perform.

The effort is exhausting in ways I didn’t anticipate. It’s not just the smiling or the showing up-it’s the constant vigilance required to monitor my own face, my own reactions. Every time Cassandra touches Jaxon’s arm, I have to keep my expression neutral. Every time Liam calls him “Daddy” with that pure, uncomplicated joy, I have to swallow the lump in my throat. Every time Jaxon looks at them with softness I’ve never earned, I have to prétend it doesn’t carve another piece out of my heart.

At night, alone in the bed Jaxon rarely comes back to before I’m asleep, I press my hand to my stomach and whisper apologies to the life growing there. I’m sorry you’ll grow up in the shadow of his other child. I’m sorry I can’t give you the father you deserve.

But I must be a better actress than I think I am.

Because Jaxon notices.

By the third day, something in him softens. Not much—just enough that when Cassandra mentions wanting to try the hiking trail, he turns to me.

“What do you think, Skye? Are you up for a hike?”

The question catches me off guard. It’s the first time he’s asked my opinion about anything all week.

“Sure,” I manage. “That sounds nice.”

It’s not nice. My body is exhausted, my feet hurt from the walk yesterday, and the altitude makes me feel lightheaded. But I go anyway, because this is what compromise looks like in a marriage where only one person is trying.

Jaxon walks beside me for the first half mile, pointing out landmarks and explaining the pack’s history with this land. It’s the most he’s talked to me in weeks. I should be happy about it.

Instead, I just feel tired.

“Cassandra was saying the view from the top is incredible,” he says, glancing back to where she’s walking with Liam a few paces behind us. “You’ve been up there before, right, Cassie?”

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