Rejected Heir, Eternal Queen

The Alpha's Regret

I couldn't breathe.

I stood in the middle of the gym, surrounded by cheering wolves, and I couldn't f*****g breathe.

"Did you see her face?" Celine laughed, her arm still wrapped around my waist. "She actually thought you loved her."

I said nothing.

My wolf was howling inside my chest. Screaming. Clawing. Begging me to run after her. To fix what I'd just done.

But I didn't move.

Because if I moved, I'd fall to my knees. If I moved, everyone would see that the great Damon Kingsley—future Alpha of Northwood Pack—was breaking apart inside.

"What's wrong, babe?" Celine tilted her head, her emerald eyes searching mine. "You look pale."

"I'm fine." My voice came out flat.

Her smile wavered. Just for a second. Then it was back—perfect, polished, plastic.

"Let's get you some champagne," she purred. "You deserve to celebrate."

She pulled me toward the refreshment table. I let her. Because I was a coward. Because if I told her to get away from me, she'd ask why. And I couldn't tell her the truth.

The truth was this:

When I looked at Celine, I felt nothing.

When I looked at Raven, I felt everything.

And I'd just burned that everything to the ground.

---

The party ended at midnight.

I drove home in silence, Celine chattering beside me about dresses and parties and how she couldn't wait to be Luna. I nodded. Grunted. Said nothing.

When I finally pulled into the Kingsley estate, I didn't bother parking in the garage. I just stopped the car in the middle of the driveway and sat there, hands gripping the steering wheel.

"Damon?" Celine's voice was hesitant now. "Are you coming inside?"

"In a minute."

She hesitated. Then she leaned over and pressed a kiss to my cheek.

"I'll be waiting," she whispered.

She got out and walked inside. I watched her go—golden hair, perfect figure, everything a future Alpha should want.

Everything except her.

I slammed my fist against the steering wheel. Once. Twice. Three times.

"Stupid," I hissed. "Stupid, stupid, STUPID."

My wolf snarled. You chose wrong. You chose WRONG.

I know, I snapped back. I know. Shut up. I know.

The bond was still there—frayed, poisoned, bleeding. But it wasn't dead. Rejection doesn't kill a fated bond completely. It just breaks it. Leaves it hanging like a severed limb, still twitching, still aching.

And that ache was eating me alive.

---

I finally went inside.

My father was waiting in the study.

"Alpha Kingsley," I said stiffly, stepping through the door.

He was sitting behind his massive oak desk, a glass of whiskey in his hand. Gray-haired, cold-eyed, carved from stone. He looked at me like I was a stranger.

"Sit."

I sat.

"You did well tonight," he said.

I said nothing.

"The Blackwood girl is gone. The Alliance is satisfied. And you have a beautiful future Luna by your side." He took a sip of whiskey. "You should be proud."

"She almost died," I said quietly.

"She should have died." His voice was ice. "The fact that she didn't is a problem we'll deal with later."

My fists clenched. "You told me if I rejected her publicly, she'd be safe. You said the Alliance would leave her alone if I severed the bond."

"I said they'd leave you alone." My father set down his glass. "The girl is a threat. The last Silvermoon heir? Do you understand what that means? If she awakens fully, she could unite every pack in the country under her rule. Including ours. Including the Alliance's enemies. The Alliance will never allow that. And neither will I."

"So you just—" My voice cracked. "You used me. To kill her."

"To protect this pack." He stood, walking around the desk to tower over me. "You are the future Alpha of Northwood. Your duty is to this pack. To our legacy. Not to some orphan Omega who should never have survived her own birth."

I looked up at him. This man who raised me. Trained me. Shaped me into a weapon.

"Did you ever love her?" I asked. "When she was little. When she was just a kid in our pack. Did you ever once see her as anything but a threat?"

My father stared at me. Something flickered in his eyes—something almost human.

Then it was gone.

"Love is weakness," he said. "You'd do well to remember that."

He walked out. The door slammed behind him.

I sat alone in the study, the silence pressing in on me.

And then I felt it.

The bond. It flared.

Not with pain. With something else. Something golden and warm and powerful.

Raven.

She was alive.

I gasped, clutching my chest. She was alive and she was... changing. Growing. Her wolf was awake.

And it was magnificent.

I stumbled to my feet, my wolf howling with joy and agony all at once. She's alive. She's alive. She's OUR MATE.

I ran out of the study. Up the stairs. Into my room.

I locked the door, fell to my knees, and—

I broke.

Tears streaming down my face. My body shaking. My wolf whimpering.

"What have I done?" I whispered. "What have I done?"

---

A knock at my door.

"Damon?"

Celine.

I wiped my face, forced my voice steady. "Go away."

"Let me in. I know you're upset."

"I'm not upset. Go away."

Silence. Then the door creaked open.

She'd picked the lock. Of course she had.

Celine stepped inside, wearing a silk robe, her hair loose around her shoulders. She looked like a goddess. A predator. A snake in heels.

"You're crying," she said.

"I'm not crying."

"Your face is wet."

I didn't answer.

She walked toward me slowly, deliberately. "Damon. Look at me."

I looked at her.

"I know what you're feeling," she said. "The bond is still there, isn't it? Pulling you toward her?"

I didn't answer.

"It's just biology," she said, sitting beside me on the bed. "Instinct. It doesn't mean anything. What we have—what we could have—that's real. That's choice."

I stared at her. Perfect Celine. Head cheerleader. Most beautiful girl in Northwood.

And I felt nothing.

"Do you love her?" she asked suddenly.

"No."

"Liar."

I flinched.

"It's okay," she said, her voice honey-sweet. "I'm not jealous. I know you chose me. That's what matters."

She leaned in, her lips brushing my ear.

"Besides," she whispered. "If you try to go back to her... I'll make sure the Alliance finishes what they started."

I went cold.

"You—" I pulled back. "You're working with them?"

Her smile was beautiful and terrible.

"Let's just say I'm very good at making sure people get what they deserve." She stood, smoothing her robe. "Sweet dreams, Alpha."

She walked out, closing the door behind her.

I sat there in the dark, heart pounding, and realized the truth.

I was trapped. Betrayed. Surrounded by enemies.

And the only person who could ever save me was the one I'd thrown away.

---

The next morning, Brett knocked on my door.

"Alpha," he said, avoiding my eyes. "We found her."

I was on my feet in an instant. "Where? Is she okay?"

"She's..." He swallowed. "She's in a cabin in the Whisperwood. With someone."

"Who?"

"Silas Voss. The Voss heir."

My blood turned to ice.

Silas Voss. The rogue. The ghost. The one who'd refused to join any pack, who'd disappeared years ago, who—according to rumor—had been waiting for something.

He was waiting for her.

"Take me there," I said.

"Alpha—"

"NOW."

Brett nodded and ran.

I grabbed my jacket and followed, my wolf howling in my chest.

I don't know what I was going to do when I got there. Fight him? Beg her? Kneel at her feet and pray she'd forgive me?

All I knew was this:

If Raven Blackwood was truly the Silvermoon heir...

Then I'd just rejected a queen.

And I'd spend the rest of my life trying to earn back her throne.

---