Love Me Back, Alpha

Chapter 3

Katie

My heart leaped at his request. Maybe I had been wrong to think Frank wasn’t into me. Perhaps his quiet, careful words earlier were just his shyness. He was just holding back because he was nervous about meeting me for the first time. And now that we were alone, he was more comfortable and could finally express himself better.

Smiling, I nodded and followed him away from the gathering. My heart beat so fast inside my chest. I was happy to finally be alone with him but also very nervous. What should I say to him? Should I try to be cool, or would I sound awkward? What if I say something that would turn him off? My lovesick mind was full of thoughts and questions I didn't even know how to address.

I wiped my sweaty hands on my gown as we walked. Even with all these worries, I couldn’t stop smiling. Being alone with Frank felt like a dream. I was filled with so much anticipation at the idea of what might happen next.

We stopped by a grove of tall trees. My pulse quickened as I looked at him. I had imagined this conversation so many times. I thought he’d tell me how thrilled he was that we were mates, that he, too, had dreamed of this day. But the look on his face wasn’t one of excitement or joy. His expression was cold and…well... distant.

And that sight made me utterly worried.

“Katie,” he began. “I need to be honest with you.”

A knot tightened in my stomach. The unease I’d felt earlier returned, and it was more intense this time. And yet, I pushed it aside, trying to focus on his words. I clung to the hope that maybe I was just overthinking, silently praying that he would discuss our future together instead of suggesting for us to be apart.

And with that, I tried to be optimistic with my words.

“Of course, Frank. You could be honest with me. You can tell me whatever is on your mind, and we can work it through.”

His eyes narrowed. I saw a flicker of regret in them, but it quickly disappeared as soon as he opened his mouth to speak again.

“I need to be clear about this whole thing. I don’t want this mateship, Katie. I’m sorry, but I can’t accept you as my mate.”

His words hit me like a physical blow. My breath caught in my throat. The world seemed to tilt around me. “What?” I whispered, barely able to form the word.

“I’m in love with another she-wolf, Audrey White, our Beta’s daughter,” he continued. “I’ve known her since childhood, and we’ve been a couple for a year. I never asked to be mated to you, and I won’t follow the Moon Goddess’s decree. I’m not going to be with you, Katie.”

The ground felt like it was slipping out from beneath me.

Audrey?

I had heard her name mentioned before, but never like this. The image of the life I had dreamed of with Frank—the future I had built in my head—shattered before my eyes.

“But… we’re mates,” I stammered. “The Moon Goddess—she chose us for each other. How can you—?”

“I don’t care about the Moon Goddess,” he interrupted. “I care about Audrey. I’m sorry if you had expectations, but this isn’t going to happen.”

Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. Not here, not in front of him. I had admired Frank for so long, held him on a pedestal, and now he was tearing down every dream I had ever built around him.

How could he reject me like this?

How could he turn his back on a bond as sacred as mateship?

“You don’t get to choose this,” I said as I gritted my teeth. “We’re meant to be together. The bond… it’s real.”

Frank sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. “Katie, I’m sorry, but I’ve made my decision. I can’t be with you. I won’t.”

I felt as though my heart had been ripped out of my chest. I had imagined this day to be the beginning of a beautiful future, but instead, it had turned into a nightmare. The joy I had carried earlier in the day—the excitement, the hope—all of it vanished. It was replaced by a hollow ache that I couldn’t ignore.

Frank didn’t say anything more. He turned and walked back toward the packhouse, leaving me standing alone in the moonlit grove.

The celebration continued in the distance, the sounds of laughter and music carrying through the night. But all I could hear was the deafening silence of my shattered world. Slowly, I made my way back toward the gathering. My steps were heavy and my spirit was already crushed. I tried to compose myself, to hide the anguish that threatened to consume me, but the pain was too much to bear.

My father was the first to notice. His eyes narrowed with concern as he approached me. “Katie, what’s wrong?” he asked softly.

I couldn’t hold it in any longer. The tears I had fought so hard to contain spilled over, and before I knew it, I was sobbing in my father’s arms. “Frank,” I choked out between sobs. “He… he doesn’t want me. He’s in love with someone else.”

The shock on my father’s face was immediate. He pulled me tighter. His strong arms offered what little comfort they could in that moment. “I’m so sorry, Katie,” he whispered. “I had no idea.”

It wasn’t long before Frank’s parents joined us. Their faces were filled with apologies. “We’re deeply sorry,” his mother said. “Frank… well, he’s always had feelings for Audrey, the Beta’s daughter. We thought, with time, he would come around to accepting the Moon Goddess’s choice, but—”

“But he didn’t,” I finished bitterly, wiping my tears. “He chose her over me.”

Frank’s mother reached out and brushed her hand against my arm. “This isn’t how we wanted things to go, Katie. Please understand, we never meant for this to hurt you.”

I nodded, though her words did little to ease the pain.

How could they?

The life I had dreamed of with Frank was gone, snatched away before it had even begun.