Rejected By MY Mate And Claimed By A Ruthless Alpha

CHAPTER ONE Lyra’s POV I wasn’t supposed to find out like this. Tonight was meant to be mine. My Mating Night. The night I had waited for since I turned eighteen. The night my wolf was supposed to awaken fully, when I would finally belong somewhere… to someone. To him. Kael. I stood outside his chamber door, my hands slightly shaking as I reached for the door handle. My heart was racing, but I wasn’t scared. I was excited. Out of everyone else, Kael had chosen me, Even though I was nothing. Just the weak girl everyone whispered about. The one without a wolf. The one they called useless. Still… he chose me. A part of me wondered why, But the reason why he chose me didn’t matter much to me. All that mattered was that he chose me, I smiled to myself, pushing the door open. “Kael—” The word died in my throat. My body froze. Everything froze. Confusion filled my head. At first, my brain didn’t understand what I was seeing. It refused to, because what I saw didn’t make sense. The shapes didn’t make sense, two bodies where there should have been one, laughter that didn’t belong to me, a voice I knew too well tangled with one I grew up with I walked in. And on top of him— Her. My stepsister. Selene. She was moving against him, her head thrown back, her soft moans filling the room like she had every right to be there. Like I didn’t exist. Like I had never existed. My chest tightened so suddenly I couldn’t breathe. “No…” I whispered. Selene’s eyes snapped to mine. Then— She smiled. Slow. Mocking. Cruel. “Oh,” she said softly, not even stopping. “You’re early.” Kael stiffened beneath her. His head turned. Our eyes met. For a moment… He looked shocked. Guilty. But it didn’t last. It never did. “Lyra…” he breathed. My name sounded wrong coming from him now. Broken. Empty. I took a step back. “What is this?” My voice shook, no matter how hard I tried to steady it. Selene let out a soft laugh, rolling her hips slowly against him like she wanted me to see everything. Like she wanted it to hurt. “Can’t you see?” she said. “We found each other.” My stomach dropped. “No…” Kael sat up slightly, his hands still on her waist. Still holding her. “I didn’t know this would happen,” he said. But he didn’t push her away. Didn’t even try. “We’re fated mates, Lyra.” The words hit harder than anything else. Fated? Mate? I felt like something inside me cracked. Tonight was supposed to be our mating night. We had planned it. He said we would mark each other before the Moon Ceremony. Before fate could interfere. Before something like this could happen. “You said…” my voice broke. “You said we would choose each other.” Selene laughed again, leaning down to press her lips against his neck. “And he did,” she murmured. “Just not you.” My hands clenched at my sides. This wasn’t real. It couldn’t be. Kael looked at me again, and this time, there was no guilt left in his eyes. Only coldness. “Fate chose for me,” he said. Just like that. Like everything we had meant nothing. Like I meant nothing. “So that’s it?” I asked quietly. Silence. Then— “Yes.” It was like at that moment everything around me felt like it was fading. My heart beating fast and with every thump came with pain, the kind I had never felt before. The word destroyed whatever was left in me. A small sound escaped my throat, something between a laugh and a sob. “I was nothing to you?” “You were…” he paused. “Convenient.” That hurt more than the betrayal. More than seeing him with her. Convenient. Selene smirked at me. “You should be grateful,” she said. “At least he paid attention to you for a while.” I could feel the tears coming out, But I refused to cry. Not in front of her. Not in front of them. “I hate you,” I said, my voice shaking. Selene tilted her head. “Oh, I know.” Kael’s expression hardened. “You should leave.” Just like that. Dismissed. Like I was nothing more than a mistake. I stared at him for a few seconds. At the man I thought I loved. The man I thought would protect me. The man I thought would choose me. Then I turned. And walked out. — The night air hit my face, cold and sharp. But it didn’t help. Nothing helped. My chest hurt too much. My thoughts were a mess. My steps were unsteady as I ran, not caring where I was going. Not caring who saw me. I just needed to get away. Away from them. Away from that room. Away from everything. Tears blurred my vision, but I didn’t stop. Didn’t slow down. I ran past the castle gates, past the guards who barely even looked at me. Of course they didn’t. Why would they? I was just Lyra. The girl with no wolf. The one everyone pitied. Or laughed at. “Useless.” “Broken.” “Not even a real wolf.” Their voices echoed in my head. I hated it. I hated all of it. I didn’t stop running until I reached the forest. The dark trees closed in around me, the moonlight barely touching the ground. It was quiet here. Too quiet. I finally slowed, my breathing heavy. My legs felt weak. I dropped to my knees near a small clearing, my hands pressing against the cold ground. “Why…” I whispered. Why me? Why did it have to be me? A soft breeze passed through the trees. Then I smelled it. Something… different. Warm. Strong. It hit me all at once. My body stiffened. My breath caught. “What is that…?” I whispered. I inhaled again. Deeper this time. And the scent grew stronger. Rich. Dark. Intoxicating. It wrapped around me, pulling at something deep inside my chest. Something that had always been silent. Something that had never responded before. My wolf. For the first time in my life— I felt it. A sudden heat rushed through my body, starting low in my stomach and spreading fast. Too fast. My fingers curled into the dirt as a soft gasp left my lips. “No…” This wasn’t possible. My wolf was dormant. It had always been dormant. But this— This felt real. Too real. The heat grew stronger, making my head spin. My body reacted in ways I didn’t understand. My breathing became uneven. My skin felt too sensitive. “What’s happening to me…?” I whispered. Then— A sound. Footsteps. My head snapped up. I wasn’t alone. Figures stepped out from the shadows. Three… no, four men. Their clothes were rough. Their eyes darker. Dangerous. Rogues. Fear shot through me instantly. “Well,” one of them said slowly, his eyes running over me. “Look what we found.” I tried to stand, but my legs felt weak. The heat in my body wasn’t helping. “Stay back,” I said, my voice not as strong as I wanted it to be. They laughed. “A little wolf in heat?” another one said. “This is our lucky night.” My heart pounded. “No… I’m not—” “Don’t lie,” the first one said, stepping closer. “We can smell it.” They started circling me. Cutting off my escape. Panic rose fast. “Please…” I whispered, stepping back. But there was nowhere to go. One of them lunged forward, grabbing my arm. I gasped, struggling instantly. “Let go of me!” He only laughed. “Relax. We’ll take good care of you.” Tears filled my eyes as I fought against him, but I was too weak. Too overwhelmed. The heat. The fear. Everything crashed into me at once. Then— A voice. “Take your hands off her.” It cut through the air like thunder. Cold. Sharp. Deadly. The rogues froze. Slowly… They turned. And so did I. A man stepped out of the shadows. Tall. Broad shoulders. He wore dark clothes that looked expensive even in the dim light. His eyes cold, hair was slightly messy, falling over his forehead with a sharp Jaw to accompany it. His presence alone made the air feel heavier. More dangerous. His eyes landed on me. And for a second… Everything else disappeared. The fear. The pain. Even the heat. All I could feel was him. Strong. Dominant. Terrifying. And something else… Something that made my heart beat faster. The rogue holding me tightened his grip slightly. “You don’t want to get involved,” he said. The man didn’t even look at him. His eyes stayed on me. Only me. Then he spoke again. “Let her go.” And this time… It wasn’t a warning. It was a promise. And something told me They should have listened.