I Rejected My Alpha In Front Of The Pack

Chapter 2

The road reopened the next day. I took the vehicle arranged by the rescue station down the mountain and headed back to the Frostpine Territory alone.

Ronan did not show up until late that night.

When he walked through the door, I was sorting through bank statements and my grandma's care documents.

His footsteps finally came to an abrupt halt when he caught sight of my medical brace.

"You are hurt this bad, Nora?" Ronan asked.

I did not answer.

I had already told him that yesterday.

Serene was right on his heels, wrapped in my beige cashmere shawl.

Ronan was the one who had dug that exact shawl out of my travel bag.

She stepped forward and set a box of chocolates on the table.

"C'mon, don't be mad," Serene said, her voice dropping as she looked at my arm. "I had no idea that wolf would lose his mind like that."

I glanced at the chocolates, then lifted my eyes to her.

"Leave the shawl," I said.

Her fingers curled tight around its edge.

"I am a little cold."

"Then put on your own clothes."

Ronan reached out to take the shawl as she pulled it off, his brows knitting into a deep frown.

"Nora, she is here to apologize," Ronan said.

"I heard her. I am not accepting it."

Serene's eyes instantly stung red, and she hurried back to huddle at his side.

He went quiet for a few beats, then pushed the box of chocolates off to the side.

"That guy will be punished. I give you my word," Ronan said.

"What about your part in this?"

"What?"

"You gave him your jacket. You texted me to come over. What are you going to do about those things?"

His hand, resting on the edge of the table, clenched into a fist. "I never told him to hurt you."

I gave a slow, sharp nod. "But you made me believe the person standing there was you."

Ronan had nothing to say about that.

I snapped my document folder shut and walked past him. He reached out to steady me, but I twisted away sharply.

"Where are you going?" Ronan asked.

"To see grandma."

"It is late. She is already asleep."

"Then I will just sit next to her for a while."

He stepped in front of the door, blocking my way.

"Stop being so stubborn about this," Ronan said, his voice rising in frustration. "Your grandma's care fees, this house, your safety, do I not cover every single one of those for you?"

Serene kept her eyes fixed on the floor, not saying a single word.

I stared at Ronan's hand propped on the door frame, and it all suddenly clicked. That was why I had grown more and more afraid to push back against him these past three years.

Every favor he had ever done for me always got dragged out, one by one, exactly at moments like this.

It was like the other side of those bills was a list of all the obligations I supposedly owed him in exchange.

I was twenty-three when I met Ronan, working at a textile restoration workshop in town.

He tracked me down and said his wolf recognized me.

Fated mates.

For him, it was an unshakable, bone-deep call. For me? It was nothing more than a confession from a total stranger.

I did not have a wolf inside me, so I could not hear that so-called bond he kept going on about. He explained that I would only be able to feel that connection once we both agreed, and he would give me his permanent mark.

We dated for three whole years.

He never held the official bonding ceremony, claiming the elders needed time to get on board with accepting a human Luna.

I bought it.

I even believed that when he sewed that red butterfly onto my clothes and arranged it for my grandma's care, he truly meant to build a real home for me.

Right then, I reached for the door lock. "Move."

Ronan did not budge an inch.

I lifted my head to glare at him. "If you do not get out of my way right now, I am calling the guard dispatch line again."

He blinked at me like he was looking at a total stranger, and slowly pulled his hand back from the door frame.

As soon as I stepped outside the house, I got in touch with the clerk from the Moon Court.

The Moon Court was not under the control of any pack. It handled cross-pack disputes, and it was also the official body that witnessed the dissolution of mate contracts.

I asked if a person without a wolf could reject their fated mate.

The clerk only asked me one thing in return, "Are you sure about this?"

I did not hesitate.

"Yes," I replied.

She told me to book an appointment for the witness ceremony, and added that I did not need to wait for Ronan's signature to leave the territory.

A soft click echoed in the quiet air as I jotted the date down on my phone.

Next up, I just had to sort out a new place for my grandma to stay.