Chapter 1
Chapter 1 — The Rejection
The night I met my mate was supposed to be the happiest night of my life.
Instead, it became the night my heart broke.
The music was so loud that the walls of the pack house seemed to vibrate.
Laughter filled the ballroom. Wolves from different packs had gathered for the annual Moonlight Ceremony, dressed in their finest clothes, celebrating beneath hundreds of silver lights.
But I barely noticed any of it.
Because the moment he walked through the doors, everything else disappeared.
My breath caught.
Him.
Alpha Adrian Blackwood.
The most feared Alpha in the Northern Territories.
Tall. Broad-shouldered. Dressed in a black suit that made him look even more intimidating. His dark hair was slightly messy, and his cold grey eyes swept across the room like he was searching for someone.
Then his eyes stopped on me.
My heart slammed against my chest.
And suddenly, a warm sensation spread through my body.
My wolf woke instantly.
Mate.
The word echoed inside my mind.
My knees almost gave out.
My mate.
After twenty-two years of wondering whether I would ever find him, I had finally found the other half of my soul.
I couldn't stop the smile that appeared on my face.
I took one hesitant step toward him.
Then another.
Every instinct inside me screamed to run into his arms.
But Adrian didn't move.
He simply stared at me.
His expression was unreadable.
I reached him, my heart pounding so hard I was certain everyone could hear it.
"You're my mate," I whispered.
For a moment, silence surrounded us.
Then Adrian's jaw tightened.
"I know."
Two words.
They should have made me happy.
Instead, something about his voice made my stomach twist.
I forced myself to smile.
"I'm Lily."
"I know who you are."
His cold response caught me off guard.
"Oh."
I looked down, suddenly embarrassed.
Maybe he was just overwhelmed.
Maybe he needed time.
After all, finding your mate wasn't something that happened every day.
I looked back at him.
"So... what happens now?"
His eyes hardened.
"Nothing."
I frowned.
"What do you mean?"
He stepped closer.
Close enough that I could feel the heat coming from his body.
His eyes locked onto mine.
"I mean there is no 'us.'"
My smile disappeared.
I stared at him, trying to understand.
"But we're mates."
"I know."
"You can't just—"
"I can."
His voice was firm.
Final.
My wolf whimpered inside me.
I felt the first crack forming in my heart.
"Why?"
For the first time, something flickered across his face.
Pain.
But it disappeared almost immediately.
"Because I don't want you."
The words hit harder than any physical blow.
I couldn't breathe.
The music continued around us. People laughed. Glasses clinked.
But all I could hear was my own heartbeat.
"I don't understand."
"You don't need to."
He took a step back.
Then he said the words that would haunt me for years.
"I, Adrian Blackwood, Alpha of the Northern Territories, reject you, Lily."
Pain exploded through my body.
I gasped.
My knees buckled, and I grabbed the edge of a nearby table to keep myself standing.
It felt like something was tearing through my chest.
My wolf cried out.
No...
Tears blurred my vision.
I looked at Adrian, desperately searching his face for regret.
There was none.
Only coldness.
"You can't mean that."
"I do."
"Please."
The word escaped my lips before I could stop it.
His expression didn't change.
"Don't beg me."
I swallowed the sob rising in my throat.
I had imagined meeting my mate countless times.
I had imagined his arms around me.
His smile.
Our future.
Children running through our home.
A lifetime together.
I had never imagined this.
Being rejected in front of everyone.
Being made to feel like I wasn't worth loving.
I wiped my tears quickly.
I refused to let him see me completely broken.
"Fine," I whispered.
His eyebrows lifted slightly.
I took a shaky breath.
"If that's what you want..."
I looked directly into his eyes.
"I accept your rejection."
The pain intensified.
I nearly collapsed.
But I stayed standing.
I turned around and walked away.
One step.
Then another.
I didn't look back.
I couldn't.
Because if I did, I knew I would run straight back to him.
I pushed through the ballroom doors and ran.
I didn't stop until I reached the darkness outside.
The cold night air hit my face.
Then I finally broke.
I sank onto the stone steps and covered my mouth as a sob escaped.
My wolf curled into herself inside me.
Why doesn't he want us?
I had no answer.
But there was something I didn't know.
Something Adrian hadn't told me.
The rejection wasn't because he hated me.
It was because he was terrified of what would happen if he accepted me.
And as I cried alone beneath the moonlight, Adrian stood inside the ballroom, watching me through the window.
His fists were clenched.
His eyes were filled with pain.
"Forgive me, Lily," he whispered.
Then someone stepped out of the shadows behind him.
"Are you sure you want to do this, Alpha?"
Adrian didn't turn around.
"I have no choice."
The stranger's voice became serious.
"If she finds out the truth, she'll never forgive you."
Adrian's eyes followed my disappearing figure.
"I know."
He paused.
"That's why she can never know."
But neither of them noticed the figure standing in the hallway.
Someone who had heard every word.
And that person was already smiling.
End of Chapter 1
