I Refuse to Be Your Luna

Ch. I Refuse to Be Your Luna 27 I Refuse to Be Your Luna 27

hapter 27 Cheap Blackmail

Lady Flourish’s POV

130

The call ended with Harold still standing somewhere in his villa, staring at a shattered picture frame while trying to convince himself that reality would bend to his will if he simply refused to acknowledge it.

I lowered the phone from my ear and stared at the dark screen for several seconds. My wolf was pacing restlessly beneath my skin, still agitated from the conversation.

“Are you alright Lady Flourish?” Walter asked from the front seat.

I blinked and glanced up. We were parked outside my company building, and the evening sun had begun to sink beneath the skyline.

No, I wasn’t alright. I was exhausted.

Exhausted from spending years trying to earn affection that should have been given freely.

I leaned back against the leather seat and closed my eyes as Harold’s voice echoed through my head. “I never agreed to a separation.”

I scoffed. He made the statement as though my life belonged to him, or my future required his permission. Like I was some possession he could place on a shelf and retrieve whenever he pleased.

A bitter laugh escaped me. The more he fought this, the more determined I became.

Eventually, I opened my eyes and stared out the window.

There was one person left to tell this formally. My father. If I was serious about ending this, then sooner or later Alpha Garret would have to face reality.

I reached for the door handle.

“Lady Flourish?” Walter called cautiously.

I paused. “Take me to Alpha Garret’s residence.”

Walter’s expression immediately tightened.

“Are you certain?”

I turned toward him. “Yes, Walter. I am.”

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Chapter 27 Cheap Blackmail

He nodded and started the engine.

គ 39

Finished

The drive across the territory felt longer than usual. As the familiar roads passed by, memories followed close behind. I remembered being a little girl running through the gardens while my father chased after me with a smile on his face.

I remembered sitting on his shoulders during festivals. I remembered the nights he carried me back to bed after I fell asleep in front of the television. Back then he had been my father, not Alpha Garret.

Not some political leader or a wolf obsessed with reputation. Just my father.

The realization made my chest ache. Somewhere along the way, I had lost him, or perhaps he had lost himself.

The car eventually rolled through the gates of the estate, and I stepped out before Walter could open the door for me.

Servants bowed as I walked through the mansion, but I barely noticed them. My destination was clear, and I just wanted to do this and get it over with.

When I reached the heavy wooden doors, I knocked once before pushing them open. My father sat behind his desk surrounded by stacks of documents. His reading glasses rested low on his nose as he signed several pages.

Without looking up, he waved a hand dismissively. “Come back later.”

My jaw tightened. This was way too typical for him. “No, Alpha.”

That made him pause, and slowly he lifted his head. His eyes narrowed the moment he saw me. “Flourish, whatever the fuck you need can wait till later.”

“I need to speak with you.” I said firmly.

His expression immediately darkened. “I am busy, and you’re not grasping that.”

I folded my arms and leaned back. “Then make time.”

The atmosphere inside the office became tense, and for several moments neither of us spoke. Finally, he sighed heavily and set down his pen.

“Fine. Sit.”

I remained standing, and his brows furrowed.

“I said sit.”

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I stayed where I was.“I won’t be staying long.”

Finished

Something flickered across his face, but he gestured for me to continue. I took a deep breath as the words left my mouth, feeling

strangely liberating.

“I came here to formally inform you that I have ended things with Harold.”

The silence that followed was absolute, then his chair scraped violently against the floor. He stood so abruptly that several documents slid off his desk. “You did what?”

“I said I ended things with Harold.”

His eyes widened with disbelief. “No, that’s a funny joke Flourish. All that nonsense about ending things was a tantrum, and you’ll stop it now.”

I stared at him. “No?”

“No.” The sheer absurdity of his response almost made me laugh. My father pointed a finger at me. “You do not make decisions like that without my approval.”

I folded my arms. “Where did I state that I was asking for your approval?”

His face began turning red. “Did Harold agree to this?”

The question irritated me immediately. Why did everyone keep asking that? Why was Harold’s opinion somehow more important than mine regarding my own future?

“Of course not.” I replied.

My father’s expression immediately relaxed, as though that settled everything.“As I thought.”

I stared at him in disbelief. “What exactly does that mean?”

He stared at me. “It means this your ridiculous tantrum ends now.”

A cold laugh escaped me. “Tantrum?”

“Yes, tantrum. Harold clearly has no intention of ending the engagement.”

“Neither did I when he spent years humiliating me, but somehow that didn’t matter.”

His hand slammed onto the desk. “I have told you before, you will watch your tone.”

“I’m tired of doing that. Maybe you need a tone that’s high enough for you to hear.”

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Finished

His eyes flashed, and I could practically feel his wolf pushing against mine. Years ago that would have terrified me, but today it only made me sad.

“I am not getting mated to Harold,” I said firmly. “Whether he accepts it or not is no longer my

concern.”

My father took several steps around the desk. “You are behaving like a pup.”

“And you’re behaving like this is still fifty years ago.”

His nostrils flared. “You belong to this family, Flourish.”

I shot him a look. “I know exactly who I belong to.”

“You belong to this pack.” He tapped his hand on his table again.

I shook my head, cutting him off. “No.” The office fell silent again, and my voice softened.

“I belong to myself.”

For a moment, something almost human appeared in his eyes. Then it vanished and his expression hardened into stone.

“If you break this mating agreement, there will be consequences.”

I stared at him. “What consequences?”

“You know your grandmother’s annual care obligations.”

My stomach dropped. Every year, the elderly wolves of the territory were supported through a program established by my grandmother décades ago. The initiative was known as the Silvermoon Elder Care Covenant.

Medical support, Housing, Food, Everything.

The program cost a fortune, and my grandmother had spent years keeping it alive.

After her health declined, my father assumed responsibility.

Now he was weaponizing it.

“If you walk away from Harold,” he said coldly, “the entire burden of the Silvermoon Elder Care Covenant falls to you. Every expense. Every obligation. Every debt attached to it.”

I stared at him. I searched his face for some sign that this was a joke. Some indication that my father would never actually use elderly wolves as leverage against his own daughter, but I found nothing.

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AGE

Finished

The man standing before me looked nothing like the father I remembered.

Nothing.

The realization hurt far more than I wanted to admit.

My hands trembled from pure anger. For years I had tolerated his cruelty. For years I had convinced myself there was still something worth saving between us. I had waited for him to choose me.

Now he was threatening me with responsibilities that were already his.

Threatening me with my grandmother’s legacy, because I refused to sacrifice myself for his convenience.

My vision blurred with rage and I took steps forward until I stood directly in front of him.

My wolf surged to the surface, and my eyes burned gold.

“You will not threaten me with your own responsibility!”