Unwanted Rejection

Episode 6

Pregnant

Gabriella's POV

I woke up with my teeth chattering and my lungs burning — punishment for my breakdown in the storm at midnight. The taxi driver who eventually stopped for me even had the gall to joke about “drowned rats” while looking at me funny in his rearview mirror. If I weren’t so abominably grateful for the lift, I would have had a retort.

At home, I stripped out of my clothes like a second skin and turned the shower as hot as it would go. Not that anybody had noticed I’d been out all night. Why would they? The great one, Alpha Nicklaus, had picked their finest daughter — the one who might actually turn into something more than a sick kitten.

“Hallelujah—” My sister Tracy flung open my door without knocking, as was her wont. “You look like something the omega patrol dragged in. Twice.

In response, I let out a fit of violent sneezing, my body, as always, picking the ideal moment.

“Charming,” Tracy said, but the worry in her eyes gave her away. She placed her hand against my forehead and pulled it away. "You're burning up! What made you decide to swim in a thunderstorm?

“Just testing a theory about lightning and where it strikes if you’re pathetically desperate,” I muttered, huddling deeper under my blankets.

Tracy's brow furrowed. “This is not just a cold, is it? This is about Nick."

The sound of his name struck my chest with a new pain. “Aren’t you supposed to be trying on your wedding dress or something, huh? Your groom awaits."

“The wedding planners are taking care of it all. My sister needs me right now.” She pulled out her phone. "I'm calling Dr. Reynolds."

“Janet, don’t trouble Father with my—”

“Father can stick his opinions where the moon don’t shine.” Tracy raised a dangerous glare. "I'm calling the doctor."

Dr. Reynolds put him on rest, fluids and a medication that turned the room upside down. Sick of tea, I forced myself to the kitchen and then fumbled the cup and sent ceramic pieces flying across the floor — just as my father walked in.

“You couldn’t do one thing right? he barked as he stepped over the mess—and me—without a second look.

“Sorry for being such a failure,” I said, my voice ragged with cough. “Next time I’ll remember to break stuff out of your sight.”

His gaze was frigid as he turned slowly. "Watch your tongue, Omega. Your sister’s wedding is in a few days, and I won’t have you drama queen it up.”

“God forbid anyone knows you have two daughters!” I shouted, my voice cracking. “One’s marrying my mate, and the other might as well be a speck on me face!”

"ENOUGH!" He pounded his fist on the counter. "You're no daughter of mine. You’re a genetic malfunction—a werewolf who can’t shift. You reckon Alpha Nicklaus would want you or a variation of you? He needs strength next to him, not weakness.”

Every word was a dagger, but I would not fold in front of him. “At least now I know where I stand,” I told him quietly, lifting my shoulders and walking around him.

Days blurred together in a haze of fever and heartbreak. The mansion was abuzz with wedding preparations; voices and laughter drifted up to my room where I lay unremembered. Even the staff were told to pay attention only to the wedding — can’t have the defective daughter upstaging the proceedings.

I was curled up on the floor somewhere between self-pity and plotting my father’s untimely demises when the creak of my bedroom door surprised me.

“If that’s another wedding planner looking to discuss floral arrangements, I swear I’m going to —”

“Just me, your much less stylish though infinitely more devoted best friend.” Jane appeared in the doorway, arms full of takeout bags with the most exquisite smell.

"Jane!" I launched myself at her and nearly knocked us both over.

Then she hugged me tightly, and held me at arm’s length, and her eyes got big. "Damn, Gabby. You’ve lost weight — and coming from a guy who once called you ‘skinny b***h’ as a pet name that’s saying a lot.”

I attempted to laugh, and it became a sob.

"Oh no. Hell no.” Jane guided me to the bed, seated me, and shoved a container of soup into my hands. "Eat first, cry later. Your blubbering when you’re hungry anyway.”

Between spoonfuls of the best chicken noodle soup I’d ever tasted, I dumped it all out — the mate bond, the rejection from Nicklaus, my father’s cruelty.

“He said I wasn’t good enough,” I murmured, looking into my empty container. "That I'm nothing."

Jane’s eyes sparkled threateningly. “I’d like to introduce his royal Alpha ass to my knee. Look how powerful he thinks he is there.”

That elicited a genuine laugh out of me.

“Listen to me, Gabriella Martinez,” Jane said, putting her hands on my shoulders. "You are not nothing. You’re loyal, intelligent, and you have more heart in your pinky finger than that whole pack combined. So you can’t transform — big furry deal. You've got other gifts."

"Like what? My remarkable knack for getting colds?”

"Like your compassion. Your resilience. The way you look at people—actually see them.” Jane brushed a tear off my cheek. “One day, someone deserving will see you for you too. And it is not your job to convince others of your worth. If they don’t, it’s their loss.”

It was the first time in weeks that another, tiny ember of warmth flickered in my chest.

That glimmer of hope had long since fallen flat just two months later, as I stared at the pregnancy test in my shaking hands. Two pink lines — as stark and accusatory as a death sentence.

“No, no, no …” I dropped to the bathroom floor, mind spinning. One night. One stupid, perfect night with my not-going-to-want-me friend, and now I was pregnant with his baby. A child who would be cousin to his own half-siblings. A child who could be passed my “defect.”

The cold reality of my situation hit me. I couldn’t tell anyone — not my father who would disown me, not my sister whose happiness I’d ruin, and certainly not Nicklaus who had made his feelings about me crystal clear.

"Gabriella?" I flinched at Tracy’s voice coming from outside the bathroom door. "Are you okay in there? You’ve certainly been quiet these days.”

I slipped the test into my pocket. "I'm fine! Just... showering!" I ran the water for dramatic effect.

"Well, hurry up! Let me show you my wedding dress.” It's absolutely perfect!"

My hand wandered to my still-flat belly. “I’ll be right out,” I called, my choice crystallizing with terrible clarity. I had to go — before I began to show, before I messed it up.

THE WEDDING

I had picked my outfit carefully — a flowy gown with an empire waist that hid any traces of my condition. The makeup I put on did little to conceal the shadows under my eyes, but it would have to suffice.

The wedding venue was fairy tale magical with silver and blue everywhere. I slid into my seat, avoiding the gaze of the other guests. The defect omega daughter, unable to even keep the attention of her mate, so many whispering behind propped-up hands.

My heart did its usual gymnastics routine when Nicklaus walked in. Damn him for being so handsome in his formal Alpha garb, the line of his jaw hard and arrogant in that angle I'd once found so attractive. Our eyes locked for the briefest moment, and something flashed across his face — surprise? Regret? Whatever it was, it disappeared as quickly as it had come.

The music rose and all heads turned as Tracy, glowing in white, entered. My father looked proud as he walked her down the aisle — an expression he never even once gave me.

As vows were exchanged, I dug my nails into my palms to feel something. Don't think about that night. Don’t think about his hands, his mouth, the way he’d whispered my name before —

“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

The guests cheered as Nicklaus pulled Tracy into a kiss. A sharp thing, a cold thing lodged in my chest. It was done.

I waited until the dancing started before slipping away. In my room, I snatched my pre-packed bags and the emergency cash I’d been stashing. No note—they wouldn’t even notice I was gone until the honeymoon was over.

Outside, the night air smelled cleaner somehow. I let myself have one last look at the mansion, the life I was leaving, as I accepted my taxi.

Goodbye, Silver Moon Pack.” My hand went to my stomach protectively. “Your loss is going to be somebody else’s treasure.”

The taxi arrived and I straightened my shoulders. “South City Bus Terminal, please,” I said to the driver without looking back as we pulled away.

What I did not see was the dark figure watching from the shadows, eyes of gold narrowed as he followed my movements.

I didn’t even notice when, miles later at the bus station, a sleek black car pulled in behind my taxi.

And I surely hadn’t heard the low growl of a tall figure that had caught my scent — and the slight change in it that only a true mate could know.

“Pregnant,” Alpha Nicklaus said in a low whi

sper, his gaze flashing dangerously at me as I climbed up the last bus south. “My partner is pregnant with my baby.”