Until The Last Alpha Begs

~ Freya's POV ~ Tonight was the night. I could barely contain myself as I stood before the cracked mirror in my small quarters, twisting this way and that to examine the simple blue dress I'd pulled out from the bottom of my chest. It wasn't much to look at...well-worn and mended at the hem more times than I could count...but it was the nicest thing I owned. My fingers trembled slightly as I smoothed down the fabric over my stomach which felt unusually tight today. Probably just nerves, I told myself. Anyone would be anxious if they were about to be claimed by the most powerful alpha in Shadowbrook. My wolf whuffed softly inside me, her excitement mirroring my own. Kaelen was finally going to make it official. No more pretending we were just friends who happened to share meaningful looks across the clearing. Tonight, in front of the entire pack, he would declare me as his mate and his luna. I caught my reflection and allowed myself a small smile. My hazel eyes sparkled back at me and for once, I could almost see past the tired girl everyone else saw. Tonight everything would change. A sharp knock at my door startled me out of my reverie. "Freya!" The voice belonged to Lila, one of the gamma's daughters. Her tone carried that familiar edge that promised nothing good. "Are you hiding in there? We know you're home, omega." I sighed silently and opened the door before they could start banging. Lila stood flanked by her usual followers...Vivian and Tessa...all of them wearing their finest dresses for the festival, their expressions twisted into delighted sneers at the sight of me. "Oh, look at you," Lila drawled, her eyes raking over my simple blue dress. "Going to the gathering looking like a charity case. Didn't Alpha Kaelen give you anything nicer to wear? Or does he keep you around purely for entertainment?" The girls behind her snickered. I kept my expression neutral, though my wolf bristled beneath my skin. "The gathering starts soon. We shouldn't keep everyone waiting." "God, she really thinks she's something now," Vivian chimed in, her fake laugh high and annoying. "Heard she's been bragging to the healers about tonight. Said he's finally going to claim her." "As if," Tessa spat. "An omega? Weak little Freya who can barely shift without getting winded? Alpha Kaelen isn't stupid. He might play with you but have you seen who he's been spending real time with? Selene Mireaux is royalty from the Highmoon Pack. That's who a real alpha wants." My wolf snarled and I felt her claws extended mentally wanting to swipe at these girls who had made my life miserable for years. But I willed her down. Fighting back would only give them ammunition. It always did. "He's choosing me tonight," I said quietly, still polite and calm.. the way I'd always been. "You should probably get ready. The gathering..." "Shut up." Lila stepped closer and I caught the sour scent of her wolf's jealousy. "You think I don't know what's really happening? The elders have been pushing him toward Selene for months. You're just a placeholder, Freya. A warm body to keep his bed occupied while he waits for someone worthy." Behind her, Vivian and Tessa nodded eagerly like bobbleheads on a dashboard. Inside me, my wolf trembled with barely contained rage but I forced a small smile onto my face...the same smile I'd perfected over the years. "I'm sure the festival will be lovely. Excuse me." I tried to close the door but Lila's hand shot out and grabbed my wrist, her nails digging into my skin. "Don't turn your back on me, omega," she hissed. "I'm not finished with you." ‘Here comes the fun part,’ I thought dryly while my wolf groaned in frustration. A low rumbling growl echoed through the corridor vibrating right down to my bones. Every wolf in Shadowbrook knew that sound.. it was the sound of pure alpha authority, the kind that made even the strongest warriors submit. Lila released my wrist like she'd been burned. Alpha Kaelen rounded the corner and at six foot three, he filled the hallway with his powerful frame clad in a black shirt stretched tight across his broad chest. Multiple battle scars crisscrossed his forearms where the sleeves had been rolled up. His dark eyes...usually warm when they found mine...now blazed with an intensity that made even me want to drop to my knees. He wasn't in a good mood. "What," he said, his voice deceptively soft, "is going on here?" Lila went pale, her friends backing up behind her. "Alpha, we were just..." "Leaving," Kaelen finished for her. "Now. Before I decide you've earned a month of night patrols." They didn't need to be told twice. Lila shot me one last venomous look before sprinting off down the hall with her tail between her legs. Vivian and Tessa scrambled after her, nearly tripping over each other in their haste. Kaelen's eyes followed them until they disappeared then swung back to me. The hardness in his expression softened, replaced by something that looked almost like concern. "Are you alright?" I rubbed at my wrist where Lila's nails had left marks. "I've had worse." His jaw tightened. "You should have fought back." "What, and give them another reason to report me to the elders?" I smiled, though it felt a bit sad. "I'd rather keep my kitchen duties than spend a month mucking the stables because I couldn't control myself." Kaelen stepped closer, reached out and tilted my chin up, examining the marks on my wrist. "That's exactly what I'm talking about," he murmured. "You're too soft, Freya. These girls walk all over you because you let them." "Maybe I just don't see the point in fighting battles that don't matter." "Tonight matters." His thumb brushed my jawline, featherlight and possessive. "After tonight, no one will dare touch you. I'll make sure of it." My heart fluttered like a caged bird desperate for freedom. "Are you sure about this? The elders..." "Can go howl at the moon for all I care." His eyes met mine, burning with that fierce intensity I loved and feared in equal measure. "I'm Alpha. I'll mate whoever the hell I want. And I want you, Freya Marlowe. I've wanted you since the moment I first saw you tending that herb garden three years ago looking like a forest sprite with dirt on your nose." I laughed despite myself. "I remember. You knocked over an entire tray of moonbloom seedlings because you were too distracted staring at me." His lips twitched into a rare almost boyish smile. "Worth it." His smile faded and something flickered across his face...something troubled. I knew that expression. I'd seen it there more often lately. "What's wrong?" I asked. "Nothing." "Kaelen Draven." I used his full name which I rarely did and watched him wince. "Talk to me." He glanced down the hallway, checking that we were alone then exhaled slowly. "The elders have been... persistent. More than usual." My stomach tightened. "About what?" "About Selene." He said the name like it left a bad taste in his mouth. "They think I should choose her. That she's a better match for the pack. Apparently, an omega who can barely complete a full shift is 'detrimental to pack morale.'" I felt like someone had dumped ice water over my head but I kept my expression carefully blank. "And what do you think?" Kaelen's hands cupped my face, forcing me to meet his gaze. "I think they're talking about the woman I love like she means nothing. I think they're forgetting exactly who runs this pack. And I think they need to remember that I'm not some pup they're guiding anymore." "So you're not backing down?" "Never." He pressed his forehead to mine and I felt his wolf's fierce reassurance through the bond we'd quietly shared for years. "Tonight, I'm announcing our mating and tomorrow, I'll deal with any elder who has a problem with it." ***** I'd never seen so many pack members in one place...alphas and betas and omegas alike all crammed into the central clearing for the festival's highlight. My stomach still felt strange, tight and uneasy but I told myself it was just anticipation.. or maybe something I'd eaten at dinner. Either way, I couldn't focus on it.. not when I was about to become the happiest woman in the pack. I stood near the perimeter watching as Kaelen ascended the platform at the clearing's center. He was so handsome with his scarred chest barely visible beneath the leather vest and his dark hair swept back from his face. The crowd fell silent, all eyes trained on him. This was it. Everything I'd ever wanted, riding on his next words. Kaelen's gaze swept the crowd and I could have sworn it lingered on me for just a moment before he addressed everyone. "Tonight," his voice carried easily across the clearing, powerful and authoritative, "is a night of celebration. The full moon shines upon Shadowbrook and with it comes a new chapter for our pack." My heart pounded so loudly I was certain everyone could hear it. "As your alpha, it is my duty to ensure our pack's strength and prosperity and part of that duty involves choosing a luna...a mate who will stand beside me and help lead our people." The crowd murmured excitedly and I felt a hundred eyes glancing my way. I held my head high, my hand unconsciously rising to rest on my stomach. Almost there.. just a few more seconds and everything would change. "But I will not make this choice lightly," Kaelen continued and something in his tone made my wolf prickle with unease. "I must consider what is best for Shadowbrook. What will strengthen us. What will protect us in the dark times I see approaching." My wolf went very very still inside me. "Selene comes from a prestigious bloodline. Her family has connections, resources and power that could benefit our pack greatly. She is strong, strategic, and worthy of the position I am about to offer." The crowd erupted into cheers but I heard nothing. I felt nothing except the blood rushing in my ears and the sickening lurch of my heart dropping into my stomach. What was he saying? I watched, frozen in horror as Kaelen extended his hand toward the platform's edge. Selene Mireaux ascended gracefully, her platinum blonde hair flowing behind her like a banner, her cold blue eyes sparkling with triumph as she wrapped her arm around his with practiced ease. "Freya Marlowe is a kind soul," Kaelen said, his voice carrying that same calm authority, "but she is not fit to be a luna. She is omega-touched, frail and would only weaken my position and the pack's standing. She has been a pleasant distraction, nothing more." Someone in the crowd laughed but I couldn't tell who it was. Everything had narrowed to a tunnel dark at the edges. I should have moved.. should have run.. should have done something but I couldn't. My feet were rooted to the ground, my wolf cowering in shame inside me as Kaelen's lips found Selene's in a kiss that was witnessed by the entire pack. His hands were on her waist and her fingers threaded through his hair. Three years of believing, of hoping and of holding onto the fragile thread of fate that supposedly bound us together and it meant nothing..! My hand pressed against my stomach...that strange tightness I'd been ignoring all day.. the same tightness that had been there for weeks now.. the same queasy feeling every morning when I woke up. I was pregnant.. I was carrying Kaelen's child and he had just rejected me in front of everyone…