The Rogue that Rejected the Alpha

Seeing Her Again

Elijah POV

“The gammas are really getting worked up over this ghost wolf business,” Jerome said. He’d been sworn in as Beta just two days prior, and was already sick of my frequent disappearances.

To be fair, I was too.

I had laughed it off when she’d told me I’d never see her again. Of course, I would- I was just downwind from her. It was a fluke that she’d stayed hidden from me for so long.

But every time I wound my way up the mountain at night, I lost my way- unheard of for a wolf. But I found myself walking in circles, following her scent back down the mountain. Once, I even ended up clear on the other side!

It was frustrating, and after a week and a half of not seeing her again, I was antsy and irritated, and everyone around me was feeling it too.

I wished I cared.

“Have there been any more sightings?” I asked, almost too excitedly. I had honored her wishes to keep her secret and hadn’t told anyone that the Ghost of the Wood was my mate (and their rightful Luna) but it wasn’t easy. I especially wanted to tell Jerome.

Or Rosalia, strange as that may seem.

“Yep,” he said. “A couple of teens went up the mountain as a ‘test of courage,’ and saw the big hulking shadow monster. Apparently, they got a photo of it.”

“Let me see,” I said, sitting upright.

He pulled the photo up on his phone. I was disappointed that not only was she not present, the photo was blurry and inconclusive. It could be the strange shadow beast she’d commanded to toss me out on my ass, but it also could just be… well. Shadow.

“This looks like…”

“Nothing,” Jerome finished for me, putting his phone away. He whistled as thunder shook the window panes. Turning his attention back to me, he added, “Any luck on your nightly investigations?”

“None whatsoever,” I sighed, sinking to rest on my hands at the desk. “You’d think it would be easy.”

“Hey, that’s a good thing isn’t it? The Ghost of the Wood is afraid of the big bad Alpha of Jade Moon,” Jerome slapped my back with a good-natured grin. “It means it won’t be coming any nearer.”

I wished I could tell him how unhelpful that sentiment felt in the moment.

“Tell them I’m working on locating it, but as it has presented no actual threat at this time, we will continue working on the zoning project,” I replied, massaging my temples.

Jerome stayed still a moment, eyes looking anywhere else but at me. I raised my brows. “Anything else, Beta?”

“It’s just… they’re under the impression that the Ghost is causing the accidents at the worksite.” He said, dropping into a seat with a sigh. “They want to stop and try again somewhere else.”

I met his eyes. He looked like he’d rather be about anywhere else right now, and I couldn’t blame him. “What will it take to get them working again?” I asked, “We’re on a pretty strict timeline for accommodating the new wolves. And we have those new mated pairs from the New Moon ball to worry about next.”

“I know,” he said, running a hand through his hair. “I know. Maybe if you get that coven in here to do something about all that creepy stuff they keep finding.”

I nodded, “I’ll keep on them.” I decided to keep to myself that they had already gotten back with me with an outrageous price estimate for the services. Since buying more land was likely in our future, their services were not. At least, not at that price.

If only I knew a witch nearby, I thought, dryly, knowing Ambrosia would likely never come down off her mountain to help me. Hell, I couldn’t even get her to come off the mountain to meet me.

“You’ve got that look on your face again,” Jerome said, tapping the desk to get my attention. “The lovesick puppy look.” He hesitated another moment, then lowered his voice, as if he hated to say the words. “Is this… is this about Rosalia, dude?”

I flinched, but not for the reason he might be thinking. I hadn’t so much as thought of Rosalia in the past few days. She’d sent me some pictures and texts, wishing me well, but I’d ignored them.

If I wasn’t busy working, I was busy trying to get back to Ambrosia.

“No,” I said, after a too-long pause.

Jerome sighed, “Man, you’ve got to get over her. She’s with her mate now. And, honestly, between you and me, she was always a little toxic.”

That caught my attention. “Rosalia? What? No.” The absurdity of the statement made me chuckle- I shook my head, standing and stretching. My migraine was coming back, but I wanted to get out into the woods. The fresh air helped my head, and so did the prospect of meeting her again. “Anyway, I told you it's not about her. Really, I’m all focused on this Ghost right now.”

It wasn’t a lie.

“Are you going to go look for it tonight?” Jerome said, brows shooting up. Lightning lit the night sky, and just seconds later a large crack of thunder shook the windows again. “In this weather?”

I pulled on a raincoat. “Don’t ghosts like weather like this?” I teased, “It might give me a better chance, actually.”

“That’s probably the craziest thing I’ve heard you say… ever,” Jerome said. “You should stay inside tonight, Alpha. Pick it back up tomorrow.”

“I won't stay out long,” I lied, “Just long enough to catch a scent. I can't afford to lose any days at this rate.”

“The pack's going to think you're insane if they find out about this,” Jerome stood, stretching his arms high above his head. “To be honest, I'm starting to wonder about your sanity myself.”

I paused. I didn't want to keep lying to Jerome. This was the first time I'd kept anything secret from him-and for it to be such a large secret, he was going to be furious when he found out. For a moment, I considered coming clean to him. I considered what details I might be able to slip to him without betraying Ambrosia's request. I thought twice about it and decided against it- knowing his Luna was just up the mountain would be enough to drive him mad. Or worse-he could suggest I reject her outright.

I could never.

So instead, I donned my rain boots and disappeared into the rainy night with a vague promise to be back soon.

Ambrosia POV

The chimes were ringing again. It was becoming nearly impossible to enjoy my nightly tea and read without the damned things going off. I had been doing research about the proper way to reject a mate, but it was in none of my books. In my desperation, I had very nearly descended the mountain with the intent to ask one of the guards at the border.

I knew that wouldn't go over well, so I refrained.

I had expected peace tonight. The storm outside was so violent that I could hear the tree branches scraping my roof, despite the fact that they should have been cleanly trimmed to keep a respectable distance. Only a madman would wander out into this storm, and Elijah was an Alpha. He was supposed to be wise and stable.

I was beginning to learn that he was many things. Persistent being chief amongst them.

I ignored the chimes at first. If he had braved the storm, surely he would not be braving it for long. The winds continued to batter at my window, and it began to hail. I found myself completely unable to focus on my book, and shut it in favor of staring out the window and watching the elements as they raged.

Still, the chimes rang.

The growing anticipation proved too much- I threw on a plastic rain poncho and some rain boots and ran out the door.

Going to fetch your mate? Sylvia asked, an air of judgment in her voice.

“I can't just let the i***t wander around in this,” I groaned. I had a warm cozy fire going in my cottage, and tea that was hot and steeped to perfection. I would have to think of a suitable punishment for him pulling me away from that.

But first, I would have to find him.

It was much easier for me to find somebody on my mountain than for somebody to find me- I picked up his scent immediately, even through the rain, and followed it. Mountains in particular are very dangerous in a storm- the ground can be loose, and mud slides are not uncommon. I found him at the bottom of one such mudslide, staggering through the thick earth and struggling to free himself.

“Ambrosia!” He called, spotting me immediately. He struggled to unstick his feet and grinned at me sheepishly. “I could use some help, actually.”

I crouched, perched above him from where the earth had given way. “Maybe I should leave you,” I suggested, “you might actually learn a lesson that way.”

He had the audacity to grin. “I wouldn't. I promise.”

I groaned. I hadn't come equipped with rope or rescue supplies- I hadn't thought he'd be dumb enough to actually get stuck out in a mudslide like this. So, I did the next best thing.

“Sylvia,” I called.

She materialized out of the darkness, her one yellow eye peering down at me from the canopy. Yes? She asked. I could tell from her voice that she wouldn't be letting me live this down anytime soon.

“Can you help me get him back to the cottage?” I asked.

I can pull him out of the mud for you, but I would need an incentive to do much more, she replied, licking her paw lazily.

“Fine. I suppose anything helps,” I replied, moving my hair out of my face. Even through the poncho I was getting soaked, and the rain was freezing. I'd been lucky enough to avoid hail but I was confident that luck was coming to an end soon.

Sylvia leapt from the canopy, landing amidst the mudslide with Elijah. He yelped as the darkness surrounded him, taking hold and pulling him free of the mud. She brought him to me and deposited him. He landed unsteadily on his mud-coated legs, swaying a bit before standing upright.

His hands were on me in a minute, grasping my hips and pulling me close to him. “Found you,” he purred.

I pushed him away, “Congratulations,” I said dryly. “Let's get back to my house and dry off. I'll yell at you there.”

He grinned, which was quite possibly the most infuriating reaction he could have had. “Looking forward to it.” He took hold of my hand, and I was happy for the darkness that masked the blush on my cheeks.

How could it be, even now in the freezing rain, that he was so warm?