Alpha Ryder, My Second Chance Mate

Amelia’s POV The air was freezing. The cold clung to Amelia Grey’s skin like punishment as she knelt on the cold stone floor of the Silverbird Pack’s laundry house. Her fingers, cracked and red, worked numbly at a pile of damp, blood-stained tunics. Her breath came in shallow clouds, and her wrists ached. Still, she didn’t stop. Omegas didn’t get breaks. Especially not the forgotten ones. Her stomach growled for the second time that morning, but she ignored it. Hunger had long become background noise. The clang of pots, the bark of orders, the sneers of ranked wolves those were louder. Those demanded attention. Those could leave bruises. A door slammed behind her. "Ameliaaa!" someone barked. She flinched. It was Cook. Fat, loud, always sweating. "Get your useless hide up to the hall. They need hands for the feast. And clean yourself up! You smell like rot." She didn’t speak, just nodded and rose, biting back the sting in her joints. She wiped her hands on her skirt and tucked her silver hair into a bun, though it never stayed. That hair always set her apart. A soft, moonlit silver that no amount of grime could dull. It had earned her curses. Spite. And once, a slap for "trying to outshine a Beta's daughter." She didn’t want to outshine anyone. She just wanted to disappear. But not tonight. Not when the Alpha King and his heir were visiting. The pack house shimmered like something out of a dream. Chandeliers glittered, walls polished to marble sheen. Wolves from noble bloodlines swirled through the ballroom like stars, dressed in silk, laughing, clinking glasses. Amelia stood in the corner like dust. She balanced a tray of wine flutes, her eyes downcast, heart racing. She wasn’t supposed to be here not really. She was just the help. An invisible body with quiet footsteps and a bowed head. Still, something made her glance up. And then… everything stopped. He was there. Alpha Jayden. The future king. Golden-haired, broad-shouldered, his sea-green eyes cutting through the crowd like blades. His aura burned the air. He smiled lazily at a passing noble, utterly sure of his place at the center of the world. Then his gaze shifted. To her. Their eyes met. And the world split in two. It wasn’t a feeling. It was a pul. A bond. Instant. Fierce. Irrefutable. The tray in her hand trembled. Jayden’s smile faltered. Confusion flickered across his face. Then… revulsion. His lips curled. His eyes narrowed. And he turned away. Just like that. Like she was filth on his boot. She stumbled into the hallway outside the ballroom, her breath hitching, her heart thudding so loudly it drowned the music. No. No. The Moon Goddess wouldn’t be so cruel. She felt it. The mate bond. It was real. It had to be. "Amelia?" She spun. Lyra Dane stood behind her, cloaked in velvet, looking every bit the Beta’s daughter. Her dark hair was coiled like a crown, her lips red as wine. She tilted her head in mock concern. "You look pale. What happened?" Amelia hesitated. Her voice was barely a whisper. "Jayden. He… he’s my mate." Silence. Then Lyra laughed. hahaha…. Like it was the most ridiculous thing she’d ever heard. "You?" she said, stepping forward. "Oh, sweetheart. That’s not how this works. You’re an omega." "I felt it." "Then the Goddess made a mistake." Amelia stared at her, tears brimming. Lyra’s smile was all teeth. "Go back to your rags, Amelia. You don’t belong in his world." She didn’t know how long she wandered after that. The stars were out. The air had turned colder. The music had faded. Amelia walked blindly through the forest behind the pack house, barefoot, her skin stinging, her heart hollow. Then she heard it. A snap of a twig. She turned and froze. A man stood there. Tall. Towering. Wrapped in shadow and silver moonlight. His black cloak stirred in the wind. His dark hair fell around a face carved from stone. And his eyes… they were pitch black. Not empty, but endless. They locked on hers. And the bond struck again. Harder. Deeper. No, she thought. Not again. Not tonight. Her knees buckled, and she stumbled back. He caught her. His hands were warm, strong, steady. His scent hit her earth, pine, storm. Their gazes locked. He didn’t flinch. He didn’t turn away. He looked at her like she wasn’t a servant. Not a stain. Not a mistake. But something more. Something meant. She pulled back, breathless. "Who… who are you?" He didn’t answer. He just watched her. Like he already knew everything. Like she was the reason he had come. Amelia shook her head and ran. Back into the dark. Back to the only world she had ever known. But behind her… she felt him watching still. And the night had changed forever.