After My Alpha Chose My Sister Over Me

The scent of rosemary and seared steak filled the kitchen, a smell that usually brought comfort, but tonight, it only fueled the knot of anxiety tightening in my stomach. I hummed a soft, trembling tune—one of the few things my grandmother had left me—as I arranged the garnish on the plate. It was our third anniversary. Three years of silence. Three years of sleeping in the guest room while my mate, Alpha Ryker Davis, pretended I didn’t exist.

But tonight, I had hope. I had prepared his favorite meal. Maybe, just maybe, the Moon Goddess would finally soften his heart.

The heavy oak doors of the pack house burst open, slamming against the walls with a violence that made me jump. A gust of wind swept through the hallway, carrying a scent that made my blood run cold. It was heavy, floral, and suffocatingly sweet. Artificial roses.

I stepped out of the kitchen, the heavy silver tray trembling in my hands. There, standing in the entryway, was a vision of perfection that haunted my nightmares. Natalia. My older sister. She was supposed to be in France, but here she was, her blonde hair cascading over a designer coat, her blue eyes sparkling with a triumph I knew too well.

"Ryker!" she cried out, her voice a melodic lure.

Ryker appeared at the top of the stairs. He froze, his dark eyes widening as they locked onto her. The cold indifference he always wore around me shattered, replaced by a raw, hungry desperation. He didn't even look at me. He rushed down the stairs, moving faster than I had ever seen him move toward me.

"Natalia?" he breathed, inhaling deeply. "You’re back."

He reached her in strides, bypassing me completely. In his haste to get to her, his shoulder clipped mine. It wasn't an accident; he simply didn't care that I was in his path. The impact sent me stumbling. The silver tray slipped from my fingers, crashing onto the marble floor with a deafening clang. Fine china shattered. The steak, the rosemary, the three years of hope—it all lay ruined in a heap of grease and porcelain.

Ryker didn't flinch. He had Natalia in his arms, burying his face in her neck, inhaling that masked scent as if it were oxygen. "I knew it," he murmured, his voice thick with emotion I had craved for a thousand days. "My true mate."

Natalia looked over his shoulder, her eyes locking onto mine. A slow, cruel smirk spread across her lips. She had won.

Finally, Ryker pulled back slightly, turning his head to glare at me. His eyes were hard, devoid of any warmth. "Clean up this mess, Angelina. You’re ruining the moment."

He turned his back on me, guiding Natalia toward his office—the Alpha suite I was never allowed to enter.

The next morning, the sun rose grey and bleak. I hadn't slept. I was still scrubbing the phantom grease from my hands when the summons came. The Alpha commanded everyone