THE ALPHA'S REGRET

The moon was full the night everything changed. I had always hoped my eighteenth birthday would bring freedom. A fresh start. Maybe even the chance to finally feel like I belonged. Instead, it brought him. Alpha Kael Blackthorne. Six-foot-four of muscle, menace, and power. The youngest alpha in a century, feared across the region for his strength and brutality. And apparently, my mate. I smelled him before I saw him. That addictive mix of pine, rain, and danger. My heart stuttered, and my wolf whimpered in my head. “Mate.” I froze, the cafeteria going silent as the crowd parted like a wave. Kael’s cold eyes locked on mine—silver, sharp, and unblinking. The moment his scent hit him, I saw it. The recognition. The bond. And then, disgust. He stalked forward until he stood right in front of me. I barely reached his chest. "Aria Nightfall," he said my name like it tasted foul. "You’re my mate?” My lips parted, hope blooming like a fool. “Y-Yes. I think so—” Kael stepped back, eyes narrowing. "No. I reject you." The room gasped. I blinked, stunned. "What?" "In front of this pack, under the witness of the Moon Goddess, I, Alpha Kael of the Blackthorne Pack, reject you, Aria Nightfall, as my mate." The bond between us snapped like a cord pulled too tight. Pain ripped through my chest—hot, searing, and cold all at once. My knees buckled, but I stayed standing. Barely. Laughter rippled in the background. His fiancée, Princess Seraphina, stood near the doorway, smirking. Of course. Of course it was her. A royal. Beautiful, perfect, cruel. And me? Just an orphaned omega, raised by the lowest-ranking wolves in Moonclaw. I forced a breath. My heart was bleeding, but I wouldn't let him see it. “I accept your rejection,” I whispered, though the words felt like poison. His jaw twitched. For a second—just a second—I thought I saw something flicker in his eyes. Regret? Confusion? No. It was gone. I turned, walked away, my back straight even as my world shattered. But something inside me shifted. A whisper in my blood. A pulse in my bones. The Moon Goddess wasn’t done with me yet.