Chapter 2
Juniper's POV
The word punched the air out of my lungs. "What?"
"Dad and Lily, they obviously belong together. Everyone sees it. Tyler needs a real family, and you're just making everything so difficult. Can't you be the bigger person here?"
The bigger person. She wants me to be gracious about my husband's affair and secret kid.
"Grace, I never stopped your father from—"
"That's the problem!" Her voice got louder. I could hear Lily's poison in every word. "You never supported their friendship. You made Dad feel guilty for caring about Lily after she lost her husband. She needed him and you acted jealous and petty."
"I'm your mother." Each word took everything I had. "I'm dying, Grace."
"Yeah, and whose fault is that? Maybe if you weren't so stressed out trying to control everything, you wouldn't be sick." She checked her phone. "I have to go. Tyler's waiting."
"Tyler." The name tasted bitter. "That's all you care about now? What about me? I'm your mother."
"And Dad's my father. Lily's been more of a mom to me lately anyway. At least she doesn't make everyone miserable all the time."
She left.
The tears came hard. This is my daughter. The kid I raised. And she thinks I'm the bad guy.
Hours crawled by. The sky outside went dark. The hospital got quiet. Griffin didn't call. Grace didn't come back. Just me, the beeping machine, and all my regrets.
I should have listened to them. To Mom and Dad. They saw what I was too stupid to see, that Griffin was weak, that I deserved better. But I was so sure I knew everything. So convinced that love was enough.
I should have gone home. After the first time I caught Lily touching Griffin's arm too long. I should have packed up Grace and driven straight back to Moonstone Pack. Mom would have hugged me. Dad would have forgiven me eventually.
But I was too proud. I couldn't face them saying "I told you so." Couldn't admit they were right all along. So I stayed and stayed and stayed, until staying turned into dying.
My breathing got harder. The beeping slowed down. This weird calm settled over me. Maybe acceptance, maybe just exhaustion.
The door stayed closed. Griffin was at Tyler's celebration, probably making some proud speech about the fine young man he'd helped raise.
At least I'll be free soon.
Everything got blurry. The room started spinning gently. So this is dying? Not dramatic at all, just fading away?
I thought about my parents one last time. Mom's face covered in tears as I ran away. Dad's anger hiding how hurt he was.
I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. You were right about everything and I was too proud and too stupid to come home. Too ashamed to admit my perfect love story was garbage. I hope you can forgive me someday.
The monitor's beep stretched out into one long tone. My heart fluttered, slowed, stopped—
I gasped and jerked forward. Air rushed into my lungs, easy and painless. The coffee in my hand sloshed, almost spilling on my lap.
Coffee?
I blinked hard, trying to figure out what the hell was happening. This wasn't the hospital. This was our living room, I was sitting on the couch.
My hands. I stared at them. Smooth, no IV bruises, no shaking. Young hands. Healthy hands.
What the actual hell?
The calendar on the wall caught my eye. June 15th. Not just any June 15th. I knew this date. This was the day everything went to shit, even though I didn't know it at the time.
Twenty years ago.
"Juniper? Are you listening?"
Griffin's voice made me jump. He sat in the armchair across from me, exactly where he sat that day. He looked so young, so handsome.
"Lily lost her husband," he said, all gentle and reasonable. "She's a mess. And Tyler's only eight, he needs a father figure. I can't keep running over to her place to check on her either, it's such a pain in the ass. I told her she and the kid could take the guest cottage. That's okay with you, right?"
I stared at him. My heart pounded so hard I thought it might explode. I remembered what I said last time, the words that started twenty years of hell: "Of course, Griffin. Whatever you think is best."
Twenty years of being second best, of being called selfish for having boundaries, of dying alone while he played happy family with his mistress and their son.
My hands shook. Coffee rippled in the cup. This is real. I'm really back. I have another chance.
"You want to what?" My voice came out rough and strange.
Griffin's smile slipped a little. "Is something wrong?"
Wrong? Everything was wrong. Everything had been wrong for twenty years, and I had to die to see it.
I looked at my husband. This man I threw away my family for. This man I built my entire world around. And for the first time ever, I saw him clearly.
He was weak, just like Dad said. And I'd paid for his weakness with my whole life.
I set down my coffee cup slowly. The clink against the table cut through the silence.
My heart pounded so hard. This is where I stop being a doormat.
I looked up and met his eyes. "Griffin, if she moves in, I move out."
His smile died on his face. He leaned forward. "What? Juniper, what are you saying?"
"You heard me clearly." My voice came out steadier.
Griffin stood up, and the warmth in his face disappeared completely. "She's just my childhood friend! Her husband died!"
I stood up too. Every word coming out of his mouth was exactly what he said last time. But this time I knew where it all led, twenty years of hell, that's where.
"Then Give her the widow's benefits," I said. "Arrange Tyler's education. We can help her without putting her in the Alpha's house."
"We should help pack members!" His voice got louder. "When did you become so cold and heartless?"
There it is. The same words. The same manipulation. Turning my boundaries into character flaws.
I forced myself to breathe normally. "I'm a Luna, not a saint. I care about my pack, but I also need to protect my family."
"I thought you were a caring Luna!"
"Caring doesn't mean having no boundaries." I looked at him, really looked at this man I'd chosen over my parents. This man I'd built my whole world around. "An Alpha should understand that. You've been helping her for eight whole years! Ever since she told you her husband died in that war eight years ago, you've cared more about her than your own family!"
His face flushed red. "You're being unreasonable—"
"I'm being clear." I walked toward the door. "This is my home too, Griffin, and I won't share it with her."
