Rejected by Another, Chosen by His Brother

Serena's POV “Tonight you will be my Luna.” Hawk's words rang in my mind again; the corners of my lips met my ears, and my smile grew broader. Four years (actually, it felt like four decades) of proving myself to the Bloodstone pack left to Hawk alone; he always wanted me to be his Luna, but gaining the approval of his pack members was important as well. I raked my fingers through my hair, smoothing out the knots; a comb would have been helpful, if I owned one. Slowly, my vision swept across the basement—my room. I had cleaned it up quite nicely. When Hawk first brought me down here, his face was knotted in clear worry. “I'm preparing another room for you, my love, but I don't know if you can bear with this for now,” he could have said those words while presenting me to a cave, but seeing the strain on his handsome face would have made me say 'yes' anyway. In the end, he was just too swamped with alpha duties to remember, so he was unable to sort out the other room, and I got comfortable here. I smacked my tongue against the roof of my mouth, pulling myself to the present, the present where I would truly become officially his, adored and respected. Tonight was our mating ceremony and my coronation as Luna. I had helped with the preparations with a smile I could never slap off, knowing it was all for him, and I made every backbreaking labor worth it. There was even a healing burn on my shoulder from helping out in the kitchen, but I wore it like a gem bracelet, knowing it was all for him. Oh, my dear Hawk, I'm coming! With a glide, I made it over to the door, then reached for the handle and shook it. Something happened, something that made my blood run cold. The door refused to give in. I wiggled it a couple more times because it had had problems for like forever, but after a few more fruitless attempts to open the door, I came to one inevitable conclusion. It had been locked from the other side. My stomach twisted into tight knots; I wasn't even surprised, just disappointed. It was probably Thalassa, my future mother-in-law, that did this. She always went out of her way to humiliate me, but I doubted that tonight would be the same. My attention flicked back to the watch hanging on the wall once it was midnight; the coronation would have to be moved to the next full moon. And I had exactly 10 minutes until midnight. There was no time to think; I bolted up, my body curling and slamming into the door with all the force I could muster. This was the first time in years I was grateful that I didn't have the fragility of a biscuit; if not, that would have hurt way more. The hinges gave in, and I was racing up the stairs in a blaze. I wouldn't have to be worried about Thalassa planting guards because most of them would be at the coronation ceremony being held at the heart of Bloodstone Woods. Other than the mild dislocation in my shoulder, I was smiling happily. Thalassa might have tried to ruin tonight for me, but she couldn't. It wasn't even really about the Luna position. It was about a Hawk. I wanted to be his in every way. Which is why I run faster, avoiding branches that seem to stretch out like blackened hands, leaves that itched at my skin when I passed them, and the overall ache that my body screamed against. I had been much stronger. But there was only so much you could do after giving up your wolf. I finally made it to the heart of the woods, heart pounding like a drum. For a moment my smile dipped when I noticed that hours of work had gone down the drain. My one good dress had been ripped into rags; my hair covered with stray leaves and twigs. None of this msatters, I told myself, repeating it like a mantra. Around me were carefully set tables with mint cloths thrown over them. Each table had flowers on top, magnolias, and tulips. The smell of the food yet to be served from the buffet nearly lifted me off my feet from the scent alone, and the high-ranking waves that came were all dressed to the nines. I puffed out my chest a little, proud of filling it. I had arranged for every single detail, from the carefully folded napkins on the table to the colors the guest would be wearing. All of it had to work with the location, surrounded by trees and centered around the pack's lake. “Tonight is about one special woman,” Hawk’s voice boomed through the light chatter between guests, and all of them turned to him; his alpha aura was too much to ignore even if they wanted to. “She has already done so much for this pack, and it's about time we acknowledged her.” I struggled with whether I was supposed to feel troubled or joyful. Hawk was about to call me out, but the poor thing had probably not noticed that I had not been able to make it yet. He's just always carrying too much on his shoulders; once I become Luna, I'll make sure to lighten his load. My eyes fell to the disaster that was me again. To say I wasn't presentable was an understatement right now. These high-ranked snobs would probably turn their noses down at me. Not like that was a novel experience, but today was different. But Hawk, my darling Hawk, would understand; he'd place that crown on my head even if I was walking up to him in a garbage bag. So I gathered my breath and my courage and waited for him to call my name. “Now without any further ado, I would like to call on the love of my life, the only one suitable enough to rule as your Luna…” Hawk's eyes swept around, and probably with his heightened alpha senses, he was able to catch me, his eyes holding mine as I hid behind the shrubbery, and in that moment, he stilled perfectly, his knuckles tightening and his lips stretching into a sharp line. Our interaction was so quick that I was still wrapping my head around it when his booming voice was announced. “Elisa Greenfield, please come to my side.” The whole world tilted on its axis. A petite woman with blonde hair that flowed like water stood up, seizing the breath of the crowd, and my whole heart sank. There was no doubt about it that it was her… Hawk's first love.