Rejected by the Alpha

Not now

"You seem distracted," Marcus said, watching Kade from across the small camp fire. "You've been staring at that same spot on the ground for almost ten minutes."

Kade didn't answer right away. He was still replaying the conversation in his head, the way Elena's eyes had looked when she said she wasn't going to pretend it didn't happen. Something about the way she spoke, quiet but firm, kept circling in his mind like it refused to leave him alone.

"It's nothing," Kade said finally.

Marcus raised an eyebrow. He had been Kade's beta long enough to know when his Alpha was lying, and he had also learned long ago when it was worth pushing and when it wasn't. Tonight, he decided to push.

"Nothing doesn't usually make you send a room full of people out on ten seconds notice," Marcus said. "What happened with the girl?"

Kade's head snapped up. "How do you know about that?"

"Because half the pack was standing outside those doors trying to listen," Marcus said, amused. "You're not exactly subtle when you clear a hall in front of two hundred people."

Kade exhaled sharply and looked back at the fire. "It's not important."

"You keep saying that," Marcus said. "But you also haven't touched your food, and you haven't stopped staring into the trees like you're expecting someone to walk out of them."

Kade didn't respond. He couldn't, not without saying more than he wanted to.

The truth was, he could still feel her. Even now, with distance between them, the pull hadn't faded the way he had hoped it would once he stopped standing in the same room as her. If anything, it felt stronger, like his body had decided on its own that being away from her was wrong, and it wasn't interested in his opinion on the matter.

He had heard about mate bonds his whole life. His own parents had one, a real one, the kind people wrote songs about. He remembered the way his father used to look at his mother before the trouble started, before everything fell apart the night Blackthorn Pack took him. Kade had always assumed that if the bond ever found him, it would feel like a gift.

Instead, it felt like a complication he did not have room for.

"Kade." Marcus's voice had lost its teasing edge. "Whatever it is, you know you can tell me."

Kade was quiet for a long moment. Then, low enough that only Marcus could hear, he said, "She's my mate."

Marcus went still. "The girl from Silver Moon Pack?"

Kade nodded once.

"The omega," Marcus said carefully. "The one Freya was talking about earlier. The one who can't fully shift."

"Yes," Kade said, his voice tight.

Marcus let out a long breath and leaned back. "Well. That complicates the Cross Pack alliance."

"I know," Kade said sharply.

"Your mother is not going to take this well."

"I know that too." Kade rubbed a hand over his face. "Which is why nobody outside this fire needs to know about it. Not yet."

Marcus studied him for a moment. "You're not going to reject her, are you?"

The question hit harder than Kade expected. He hadn't let himself think that far ahead, not really. But hearing it said out loud made something in his chest twist uncomfortably.

"I don't know what I'm going to do," Kade admitted.

"Kade." Marcus leaned forward. "A mate bond isn't something you can just set aside because the timing is inconvenient. You know what happens to wolves who reject their mates. You know what it does to them."

"I know," Kade snapped, more forceful than he intended. He softened his voice after. "I know, Marcus. I'm not stupid. But my mother has spent the last two years trying to secure the Cross Pack alliance. Blackthorn has been getting bolder every season. We need allies, strong ones, and Cross Pack is the strongest option we have. If I walk away from that now, over a bond that just happened today, it could put everyone at risk."

"So could rejecting a mate," Marcus said quietly. "You'd be putting her at risk too."

Kade said nothing.

The fire crackled between them for a long while before Marcus spoke again, gentler this time. "What was she like? The girl."

Kade thought about it. He thought about the way she had looked at him without flinching even when he was harsh with her, the way she had walked out of that hall with her shoulders straight despite everything, the way she had thrown that last insult at Freya without even blinking. Nothing about her had matched what he expected from someone the whole pack apparently saw as weak.

"She's not what I expected," Kade said finally.

Marcus smiled slightly. "That's usually how it works."

Before Kade could respond, one of the younger warriors approached the fire, bowing quickly. "Alpha. A messenger has arrived from Ashwood Pack. Luna Cordelia sent word. She says it's urgent."

Kade's stomach dropped slightly. His mother rarely sent urgent messages unless something important was happening, and given the timing, he had a bad feeling about what this one might say.

"Send him in," Kade said.

The messenger stepped forward and bowed. "Alpha Kade. Luna Cordelia asked me to inform you that the Cross Pack has agreed to move forward with alliance discussions. Alpha Reginald Cross will be arriving at Ashwood Pack within the week to finalize details, along with his daughter, Vivienne."

Kade's jaw tightened. "Finalize details of what, exactly."

The messenger hesitated, glancing at Marcus before answering. "The marriage alliance, Alpha. Between you and Vivienne Cross."

The fire crackled loudly in the silence that followed. Marcus's eyes flicked toward Kade, waiting to see how he would react.

Kade felt the weight of it settle over him like a stone. Just hours ago, none of this would have bothered him. It was simply the plan, the sensible path forward for his pack's safety. Now, all he could think about was a pair of steady grey eyes and a voice that had told him she wasn't going to pretend nothing had happened.

"Tell my mother," Kade said slowly, "that I received the message."

The messenger bowed again and left. Marcus waited until he was out of earshot before speaking.

"You have a week," Marcus said quietly. "A week before Vivienne Cross arrives expecting to be your future Luna. What are you going to do?"

Kade stared into the fire, his hands clenched at his sides.

"I don't know," he said. "But I know I'm not ready to say goodbye to something I haven't even had the chance to understand yet."