Rejected By The Alpha, Claimed By The King

The moon was too bright tonight. It was the choosing ceremony. The one I had been waiting for since I was 14 years. I was tugged at the stupid white dress and tried not to shake. I was sweating profusely. My palms were wet. Six hundred wolves were watching me, whispering. "Aria of the Omega house," the elder called my name aloud. My leg felt like water. I walked, one foot in front of the other. Whispering to myself. Don't fall. Don't cry. Not yet. Axel was on the platform. Alpha heir, the man I had been dreaming about since I was 16. For months my chest had been pulling towards him, that ache that meant mate. But he looked cold, the kind of man who never laughs at pack dinners. But I knew him, or maybe I thought I did. The elder raised her hands. "Moon Goddess, reveal the bond." And God, it hits me so hard, like electricity, like someone tied a rope around my heart and pulled. It was him. I looked up at him, dumb and hopeful. "Axel..." He looked down at me. His face was stone. Then Axel spoke, his voice was ice. "I, Axel of the Nightclaw pack, reject you, Aria of Omega house, as my mate." At that moment, the world stopped. "What?" The word fell out of my mouth before I could even think of stopping it. FIVE YEARS LATER In a dark motel room, I sat majestically, staring at the phone screen. "Did you see the announcement?" "Alpha Ezra is hosting a She-Alpha selection." "They say the Black Fang Rogue is coming." The photo on the phone screen was blurry. It was a woman with mask covering half her face and putting on black armor. Red eyes glowing in the dark. The most feared rogue hunter in the Eastern territories. That was me. Yes!! Five years of blood, training, and rage in the rogue lands. Five years of forcing a wolf to claw its way out of the body everyone called empty. And yeah, it worked. My wolf was a monster. She wasn't weak. I stood up and tossed the phone aside, the wind roared outside. The Obsidian territory was three days away. Axel wanted the Black Fang Rogue for an alliance, he needed help with the Eastern raids. He had no idea who I was. I pulled on my jacket, slid the twin daggers into my boots. "It's time to go home," I whispered. The bond in my chest, the one I thought was dead and gone, gave one small traitorous pull. ---