Fated to Fall

Chapter 3

Selina’s POV

The next day started with whispers, fragments of hushed tones and strained laughter that drifted through the pack like smoke.

I had just finished my morning rounds, checking on the training grounds and inspecting the pack's new herb shipment. I was headed toward the smithy when I heard the first comment.

“Did you hear? Alpha Kalen’s fallen for another Luna.”

“Not just any Luna. Sierra Whitlock of Frosthollow. She’s from Alpha Caelum’s line—they say she’s the perfect match.”

“Poor Selina… she doesn’t even know, does she?”

Their words sliced clean through me like the edge of a silver dagger.

When I passed, they didn’t even have the decency to hide it.

Their stares followed me—some filled with pity, others with smug curiosity, and a few with outright malice.

One bold she-wolf from the seamstress guild even smirked and said, “Should’ve known fate would send someone better eventually.”

I clenched my fists until my nails bit into my palms.

Myra whimpered in the back of my mind, but she said nothing. We were both too stunned, too humiliated.

The walk back to Havencrest Estate was a blur. Even the guards at the gate gave me strange, careful glances, as if I might shatter on the steps.

I stepped into the foyer to find Kalen in the main hall, seated like nothing had changed, still dressed in training gear, skimming through reports like he hadn’t just made me the laughingstock of the entire valley.

I didn’t speak to him.

What was there to say?

I went straight to our room and locked the door. My breathing was shallow. My hands trembled as I stripped off my clothes. I showered quickly, the steam doing little to soothe the chill that had settled beneath my skin.

I wrapped myself in my robe and stepped out into the bedroom. He was waiting there, leaning against the window frame, watching me with that furrowed brow he always wore when something troubled him.

“You’ve been quiet,” he said gently.

“You’ve been wearing a strange expression—did someone upset you?”

I gave a humorless laugh.

"Why don’t you ask yourself that?!"

He took a step closer.

“Selina, I can explain.”

“No, you can’t,” I snapped, brushing past him toward the wardrobe.

“You think there’s anything left to explain? The entire pack is talking. They're calling her your next Luna already.”

Kalen winced, his voice soft.

“That’s not going to happen. I swear it.”

I turned sharply.

“Is that before or after you finish rolling around in her bed?”

His shoulders tensed. “It only happened once. That night. And it didn’t go that far. I stopped it—I swear. I couldn’t go through with it.”

I stared at him, disgusted.

“You stopped yourself from what? Marking her? Claiming her? Finishing what your wolf started?”

He looked wounded, but I didn’t care.

My pain outweighed any guilt he could feel.

“I didn’t mean to hurt you,” he whispered.

“But you did!” I said flatly. “You broke something we spent a decade building, Kalen. And you did it with someone you just met.”

“I didn’t choose this,” he said, moving closer. “I didn’t want a second mate. You know that.”

I stepped away. “You did choose it. When you followed her. When you kissed her. When you got into her car and ignored every vow you made to me.”

He swallowed thickly, jaw clenching.

“You don’t understand what it feels like. The bond—it’s primal. It’s overwhelming. Varric fought me every step of the way. I didn’t even want Aria’s birthday to be such a big party that several people would attend, remember? I had a feeling, something was wrong.”

I laughed bitterly.

“Don’t turn this into fate’s fault. You kissed her. You betrayed me. That's on you.”

His hands fell limp at his sides.

“I know. And I hate myself for it.”

I watched him sink to his knees in front of me, head bowed, shoulders shaking.

“I’m sorry. I truly am. If I could undo it, I would. But I’ll stay away from her—I promise you. I’ll find a way to fight the bond. I won’t let her come between us again.”

I wanted to believe him. Yes, I did! But I couldn’t forget the way my soul had splintered the night I felt his lips on hers through our bond. I couldn’t erase the phantom pain that still echoed in my chest.

“We have an event to attend tonight,” I said coldly. “We should prepare.”

“I’ll have the car ready,” he replied, wiping his face before rising.

Hours later, as we arrived at the event, I refused to take my usual place beside him. Instead, I sat at the far end of the hall near Luna Mireya, my half-sister, who eyed me with quiet sympathy.

“You heard, didn’t you?” I asked.

She didn’t answer right away.

She simply smiled, her eyes drifting toward nothing in particular.

“I lived it, Selina,” she murmured.

“Three years ago. Ronan found his fated in the middle of a business conference. Took her to bed before the week was out. Got her pregnant before I could even react.”

Her voice didn’t shake, but her eyes were tired.

“I tried to fight. I tried to remind him of our bond, our years together. But in the end, I was just… excess. The one who stayed for the sake of appearances.”

“Do you regret it?” I asked.

She smirked.

“Every day. But I couldn’t leave either. No other pack will accept a claimed wolf. Not as Luna. Not as mate. We’re tainted now, Selina. Marked.”

Luna Elira approach us.

She had always been more than just a family friend—almost like an aunt.

“Hey, Selina. How are you holding up?” she asked gently.

Before I could respond, she offered a warm smile and gave my back a reassuring pat, as though she could already sense the weight pressing down on me.

“Selina, I heard the rumors. Don’t let this break you. You see, Braxton found his mate four years ago. She lives on the eastern edge of the territory. I haven’t seen him sleep beside me in over two years.”

We shared a silence that felt more like mourning than conversation. The kind of stillness born from shared heartbreak.

Eventually, the event began.

Kalen was already seated with the other Alphas, his jaw tight and his gaze flicking toward me repeatedly.

I ignored him.

Let him feel the distance. Let him sit in the absence he’d created.

When the session ended and we were heading for the car, Nolan—Kalen’s closest friend and Beta—pulled him aside.

“I need to speak to you,” I heard Nolan mutter as I stood near the car.

Kalen nodded grimly and walked with him a few feet away. I didn’t move, but I listened.

“You know Sierra’s family, don’t you?” Nolan asked.

“They’re not just powerful, they’re relentless. You were seen with her. In her car. Kissing her and... Everyone knows.”

“I told you it was one time,” Kalen growled.

“And it’s over!”

Nolan shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. She’s Alpha Caelum’s daughter. They won’t let this go. You marked her emotionally, even if not physically. That’s enough.”

“She’s not mine,” Kalen snapped.

“She is,” Nolan replied.

“Whether you want her or not. You think you can just ignore this? Her pack won't allow it. They’ll push for marriage. An alliance. They see you as already bound.”

Kalen ran a hand down his face, exhausted.

“What the hell am I supposed to do?”

“Prepare,” Nolan said.

“Because this isn’t over. And Selina? She deserves the truth. All of it.”

Kalen didn’t respond.

I climbed into the car, numb, my gaze fixed on the road ahead. He joined me minutes later, but I didn’t turn to him. I stared out the window, broken.