Chapter 3
1101 Words
The porch door swung shut behind Kai with a soft thud, leaving only the distant music and the crickets in the night air. My chest heaved with ragged breaths, the rejection pain still pulsing like a fresh wound, but something else burned hotter now—anger.
Lila rubbed slow circles on my back. “Let’s get you home, Evie. You don’t have to stay here and let them stare.”
Home. The tiny cottage on the edge of pack lands where I’d grown up scrubbing floors and dreaming of a mate who would see me. Not the broken omega everyone pitied, but me—Evelyn Harper, worthy of love.
I let her lead me down the steps and along the moonlit path. Every few seconds, that scent lingered in the air, faint now, like a ghost refusing to leave. My wolf—if I even had one—whined pitifully inside me, a sound I’d never heard before tonight.
We were halfway to the cottages when footsteps crunched behind us.
“Evelyn, wait.”
I froze. That deep voice rolled over my skin like thunder, sending unwanted shivers down my spine. I turned slowly.
Kai stood ten feet away, hands out of his pockets now, broad shoulders tense beneath the black shirt. Moonlight carved sharp shadows across his face, making his gray eyes almost silver. He looked… lost.
Lila stepped in front of me like a shield. “Haven’t you done enough tonight, Alpha?”
His gaze flicked to her, then back to me. “I need to speak with her. Alone.”
“Not happening,” Lila snapped. “You rejected her in front of the entire pack. Whatever you have to say, you can say it tomorrow when she’s not bleeding from the bond you just ripped apart.”
Kai flinched—actually flinched—at her words. Good.
But I was tired of hiding behind others. I gently moved Lila aside. “It’s okay. I can handle this.”
She hesitated, eyes blazing. “I’ll be right over there.” She pointed to a nearby tree. “One shout and I’m coming back.”
When she stepped away, the space between Kai and me felt charged, like the air before a storm. He took one cautious step closer. Then another. Until I could see the faint stubble along his jaw, the way his throat worked as he swallowed.
“I didn’t expect…” he started, voice low. “I didn’t expect it to be you.”
I laughed, but it came out bitter. “Yeah, well, the Moon Goddess has a cruel sense of humor.”
His eyes darkened. “Evelyn—”
“Don’t.” I held up a hand. “Don’t say my name like it means something now. You made your choice. Publicly. Irrevocably.”
“It’s not that simple.” He raked a hand through his hair, frustration clear. “The pack is under threat. Rogues have been testing our borders for months. We need alliances, strength—”
“And I’m weak.” I finished for him. “I know. You’ve made that very clear my entire life.”
“You don’t understand.” He took another step, close enough now that his scent flooded my senses again. My traitorous body swayed toward him before I caught myself. “Victoria’s father controls the eastern patrols. Her uncle leads our strongest warriors. If I take a wolfless omega as Luna—”
“Stop.” My voice cracked like a whip. “Stop justifying it. You felt the bond same as I did. For one second, you felt it. And you still chose power over destiny.”
His jaw tightened. Silence stretched between us, heavy and painful.
Then, quieter: “My wolf is tearing me apart right now.”
I hated that my heart stuttered. Hated that I wanted to reach for him, to ease the torment I could see flickering in his eyes.
“Good,” I whispered. “Maybe you’ll finally understand what rejection feels like.”
I turned to leave, but his next words stopped me cold.
“That night… after the full moon run three weeks ago.”
My blood turned to ice.
I didn’t turn back. Couldn’t. Because if I looked at him, he’d see the panic flashing across my face.
We’d both had too much of the ceremonial wine. The pack had scattered into the woods for the traditional hunt. I’d lingered by the bonfire, watching the warriors shift and disappear into the trees. Kai had stayed behind too—something about checking the perimeter.
We’d ended up alone.
Talking at first. Then closer. Then his hand brushing mine, sending sparks up my arm. One kiss turned into more. Urgent. Desperate. Clothes shed under the moonlight. His mouth on my skin, my nails digging into his back as he whispered my name like a prayer.
Just once.
I’d slipped away before dawn, mortified, convinced it meant nothing to him.
Now he was bringing it up. Here. After rejecting me.
“What about it?” I forced my voice to stay steady.
He stepped closer still, voice rough. “I haven’t stopped thinking about it. About you. And tonight, when the bond hit…” He exhaled sharply. “My wolf knew you before I did. He’s known all along.”
I finally turned. Tears burned my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. “Then why reject me? Why humiliate me in front of everyone?”
“Because I’m an i***t,” he growled, the admission torn from him. “Because I thought I had to choose the pack over my own happiness. Over what the Goddess clearly wants.”
Hope flickered, small and dangerous.
But then I remembered Victoria’s hand on his arm. The way the pack had agreed with him. The pain still radiating through my chest.
“And tomorrow?” I asked quietly. “When Victoria’s father threatens to pull his warriors? When the elders demand a strong Luna? Will you still feel this way?”
His silence was answer enough.
I nodded, swallowing hard. “That’s what I thought.”
I walked away.
This time, he didn’t follow.
But as I reached Lila and we continued toward the cottages, a new wave of nausea rolled through me—not from the rejection this time.
Morning sickness. I was almost certain now.
I pressed a trembling hand to my still-flat stomach.
Whatever Kai decided tomorrow or next week or never, one thing was clear.
I was carrying the Alpha’s pup.
And he could never know.
- Writer
