Rejected by the alpha who claimed me

I always believed the mate bond would feel like warmth.

Like safety.

Like coming home.

That was what the elders taught us as children, stories whispered by the fire, lessons passed down through generations of Nightfang wolves.

They said when the bond awakened, it would feel like the moon herself had wrapped her arms around you. That your wolf would sing. That your heart would finally understand what it had been searching for all along.

They never warned us about the pain.

I stood at the edge of the clearing, my bare feet sinking into cool earth as the full moon rose higher in the sky. Silver light spilled through the towering pines, bathing the Nightfang Pack grounds in an eerie glow. The air was thick with anticipation, with the scent of wolves and pine and something sharper, power.

Tonight was the Choosing.

Tonight, fate would decide everything.

My hands trembled at my sides as I lifted my chin, forcing myself to breathe. Around me, members of the pack gathered in a wide circle, their voices low, expectant. Some watched with curiosity. Others with pity. A few with thinly veiled contempt.

I knew what they saw when they looked at me.

Elara. Daughter of no one important. From a weak bloodline. Unremarkable.

Unchosen.

At least, that was what I had always been.

Until the bond snapped into place.

It happened without warning.

One moment, I was staring at the moon, wondering how I would survive another year of whispers and sideways glances. The next, something slammed into my chest so hard I gasped, my knees nearly buckling beneath me.

Heat exploded through my veins.

My heart stuttered, then raced, pounding so fiercely I thought it might break free from my ribs. A sharp, burning pull wrapped around my soul, yanking my attention toward the center of the clearing.

Toward him.

Kael.

The Alpha of the Nightfang Pack stood tall among the elders, his dark hair catching the moonlight, his presence dominating the space as effortlessly as breathing. He was power incarnate, broad shoulders, lethal calm, eyes like molten gold that had never once softened when they landed on me.

Until now.

Our gazes collided.

The world narrowed to that single moment, that single connection. His eyes widened, just barely, but I saw it. I felt it.

The bond.

My wolf surged forward, howling with recognition, with joy so sharp it hurt. Tears burned my eyes as the truth crashed over me, wave after merciless wave.

He was my mate.

The Alpha was my mate.

A collective gasp rippled through the pack as Kael took an unsteady step forward. The air between us crackled, heavy with the undeniable force of fate. I could feel him, his strength, his shock, his fury threaded through my own pulse.

This was impossible.

And yet, it was happening.

I didn't realize I was moving until I stood before him, my body drawn by something far stronger than fear. The bond hummed, urging me closer, begging