Rejected By The Alpha, Chosen By Fate

Chapter Fifteen – The Rival Alpha

The forest carried his scent before he appeared—rich, sharp, unmistakable. Adrian.

My wolf bristled inside me, hackles raised, claws unsheathing. I clenched my fists, holding the beast back as footsteps crunched through the undergrowth. Then he stepped into the clearing, dressed in black, golden eyes gleaming with smugness.

“Damon,” he greeted, his voice too smooth, too calm. “I thought I’d save you the trouble of pretending you don’t know why I’m here.”

I bared my teeth. “If you’ve come to test my patience, you’ll leave in pieces.”

His smile widened, infuriatingly calm. “No. I came for her.”

The words hit harder than a blade. My wolf lunged, snapping at my control. I fought to cage him, to keep from tearing Adrian apart where he stood.

“You mean Aria,” I growled, her name low and dangerous.

“Yes. The Moon chose her. And you—” he tilted his head, eyes glinting, “—were foolish enough to throw her away.”

Rage flared so hot I almost lost myself. “I didn’t throw her away.”

“Then what do you call it?” His voice sharpened. “Rejection? Or cowardice?”

The last word ripped through me, stinging worse than claws. My wolf roared, demanding blood, demanding we tear Adrian limb from limb for daring to speak her name like that.

But behind the fury lay a truth I couldn’t shake: he wasn’t entirely wrong.

I had rejected Aria. Not because I wanted to, but because binding her to me could destroy her. I carried a curse, a prophecy, a fate no mate should bear.

And yet… the thought of her standing beside Adrian made my vision bleed red.

“You think you can protect her?” I spat. “You don’t know what she carries. That mark will consume her, and it will consume you too if you’re not careful.”

Adrian’s smirk softened into something sharper, colder. “Then maybe I’ll be the one strong enough to survive her.”

The forest fell silent, tension stretching taut between us. Two Alphas, two destinies, one girl standing unknowingly at the center of a storm.

I stepped closer, my wolf pressing against my skin, ready to strike. “Touch her, Adrian, and I swear—prophecy or not—I’ll end you.”

His golden eyes burned. “We’ll see, Damon. We’ll see.”

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