The Heartbroken Luna's Choice Banish Love novel Chapter 298

Third Person's POV

Alaina pointed a trembling finger at his face, her voice exploding with rage. "Are you satisfied now? You forced your own mate to kill her child just to protect some stray's bastard!"

Cassian looked like he'd been hollowed out. He slumped into a chair, his voice a jagged rasp. "Mom, Samantha was exiled for six years because of me. Grandpa forced her out. She was brutalized out there—that's how she ended up with that child. She only came back because she couldn't survive anymore. I was just trying to make it right..."

Alaina's entire body was shaking with fury. "Make it right? Does 'making it right' involve playing daddy to another man's spawn and throwing your entire life into the trash?"

Cassian shook his head in agony. "Samantha was a mental wreck when she got back. I agreed to hide the boy's real father because I was afraid Grandpa would go after her again. I just wanted her to get back on her feet—to live a life without looking over her shoulder."

He pressed a hand hard against his chest, trying to stifle the dull, throbbing ache radiating from the mating bond.

He had arrogantly believed he could balance Trista and Samantha, never imagining things would spiral this far.

He certainly never expected Trista to hide her pregnancy and then ruthlessly erase their bloodline behind his back.

Alaina looked at him with pure coldness. "Cassian, I gave birth to you. I know exactly what's going on in that head of yours. This mating ends now—whether you like it or not!"

"I'm not letting go!" Cassian's eyes were full of pain, but his tone remained stubbornly fixed.

"You are exactly like your father and your grandfather! You Ironthorn men are all the same—cold-blooded and selfish!"

Alaina was deathly pale from anger. "You keep calling it 'compensation,' but how do you explain lying to Trista about business trips for a month? How do you explain renting yachts and private beaches for that woman? You personally baked her a cake and posted it on the pack socials to brag—how do you explain that?"

Cassian leaned forward, burying his fingers deep into his hair.

After a long silence, he whispered, "Mom, Samantha was my first love. Grandpa tore us apart. I admit, I was emotional when we reunited, but I have lines I don't cross. I never touched her. I didn't betray Trista, and I never intended to end our mating!"

Alaina knew arguing was pointless. she reigned in her emotions, her warning coming out one cold word at a time. "There are many types of betrayal, Cassian. Mental drifting is one of them. The moment you decided to claim that bastard, the ending was written. You couldn't keep the child, and you won't keep Trista."

"Your grandfather found out last night that you lost his great-grandchild for the sake of a mutt. He collapsed and is in the clinic now. You'd better end the mating and move Samantha out before he wakes up. That might be the only way you can protect them from the family's fury."

Seeing Fred appear at the door, Alaina turned and walked out.

Cassian slumped back in his chair, looking wasted.

Fred noticed Cassian's hand was shaking so badly he couldn't even light his cigarette. Fred took the lighter and did it for him.

Fred adjusted his cuff and picked up an empty whiskey glass from the table.

He gripped the rim and slammed the base of the glass against the corner of the desk.

Cassian watched, eyes fixed on the movement.

Fred let go. The glass shattered, shards spraying across the floor between them.

"Cassian, you're the Alpha of Ironthorn. You have all the power in the world. But that glass is broken—can you make it whole again?"

Cassian's face was like stone, his lips pressed thin.

"Even if you find the best craftsman to fix it, or melt it down to start over, is it ever the same glass?" Fred stared him down.

Cassian opened his mouth, his breathing turning shallow and fast. The wolf inside him was clawing at his chest in panic.

"A broken rope always has a knot, no matter how you tie it back together. 'Happily ever after' is a fairy tale for people like you. It's easy to say sorry; it's impossible to go back. The rift between you and Trista is a canyon you ripped open. You'll never cross it. Even if you refuse to sign the papers, you'll never walk into her heart again."