BORN TO BE HIS CURSE

THE ALPHA WHO REFUSED THE BOND

They locked me in the east wing.

Not a cell—no chains, no bars—but a room meant to look like mercy. Stone walls washed with torchlight, a wide bed layered in dark furs, a single narrow window that faced the inner courtyard.

A gilded cage.

The door closed with a final thud that echoed through my ribs.

I sat on the edge of the bed, fingers clenched in my lap, trying to steady my breathing. Every part of me was still aware of him—as if the Alpha King’s presence had branded my senses. My skin burned where his nearness had been. My pulse refused to calm.

The bond stirred again.

Soft. Insistent.

Hungry.

I pressed a hand to my chest, heart racing. “Stop,” I whispered—to myself, to the moon, to fate.

It didn’t listen.

I felt her before I saw her.

The air shifted—sharp, perfumed with roses and dominance restrained by lineage. The door opened without announcement.

She swept in like she owned the space.

Tall. Beautiful. Wrapped in crimson silk that hugged her curves unapologetically. Her golden-blonde hair cascaded down her back, meticulously styled. Her eyes—icy blue—slid over me with open disdain.

“You’re smaller than I imagined,” she said.

I stood slowly. “And you are?”

She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes.

“Lady Selene of the Western Pack,” she replied. “Future Luna. Or I was—before you collapsed dramatically at my Alpha’s ceremony.”

Future Luna.

The words struck like a slap.

“I didn’t plan—”

“No,” she interrupted, circling me like a wolf assessing prey. “Girls like you never do. You just exist, and chaos follows.”

Her gaze lingered on my face. My neck. My lips.

Then it sharpened.

“But tell me,” Selene said softly, “did you feel it too?”

My silence was answer enough.

Her smile vanished.

“So it’s true,” she hissed. “The bond awakened.”

She stopped inches from me, her presence heavy with practiced confidence. “Listen carefully, cursed girl. I have spent years preparing to stand beside him. I was chosen. You are nothing more than a mistake written in prophecy.”

“I don’t want this,” I said quietly.

She laughed—cold and sharp. “Oh, but you do. Your body wouldn’t betray you like that otherwise.”

Anger flared. “You don’t know anything about me.”

“I know enough.” She leaned closer, voice dropping. “He may deny the bond, but wolves don’t lie to themselves forever.”

Her eyes flickered with something darker—fear.

“And when he breaks,” she whispered, “it won’t be for you.”

She turned sharply and strode out, silk whispering behind her.

The door slammed.

My knees went weak.

I didn’t sleep.

Every time I closed my eyes, I felt him—his presence brushing the edges of my thoughts. Restraint wound tight as steel. Desire buried beneath fury. And something else.

Hate.

For me.

For fate.

For the bond he refused to acknowledge.

Just before dawn, the door opened again.

This time, no announcement was needed.

The room bowed to him.

Alpha King Kael stepped inside, cloaked in shadow and authority. His eyes found me instantly, glowing faintly in the low light.

“You should not have spoken to Selene,” he said.

“I didn’t invite her.”

A muscle jumped in his jaw.

“She is under my protection.”

“So am I,” I said before I could stop myself.

He stilled.

The bond flared—violent, hot, undeniable.

We stared at each other across the room, the air thick with unsaid things. He took a step closer. Then another.

I backed up until the bed pressed against my knees.

“You are playing a dangerous game,” he murmured.

“I’m not playing anything.”

His gaze dropped—to my throat, where my pulse leaped wildly. His hand lifted, slow, controlled… then stopped, trembling slightly, inches from my skin.

“Say it,” he said quietly.

“Say what?”

“That you don’t feel this.”

I swallowed.

“I can’t.”

A low sound escaped his chest—half growl, half curse. He turned abruptly away, dragging a hand through his hair.

“You were born to destroy me,” he said, voice rough. “And I will not let you.”

He looked back at me—eyes burning, restraint fraying.

“Stay away from my wolves. Stay away from Selene. And above all—”

His gaze darkened.

“Stay away from me.”

The door slammed behind him.

I sank onto the bed, breath shaking, my body still aching with the echo of his nearness.

Outside, the moon rose pale and patient.

Waiting.