Pain.
That was the first thing I felt when I woke.
Not the sharp kind that fades after a wound, but a deep, relentless ache that lived in my chest and refused to loosen its grip. It pulsed with every heartbeat, slow and cruel, like a reminder carved into my soul.
Rejected.
The word echoed through my mind, over and over, until breathing itself felt like a punishment.
I lay on the cold wooden floor of my small room in the servants' quarters, staring at the ceiling as dawn's pale light slipped through the thin curtains. My dress from last night was still on, wrinkled and stained with dirt from the clearing.
I hadn't even made it to my bed.
My wolf stirred weakly inside me, a broken whimper echoing through our shared mind.
Mate…
Her voice trembled with longing and grief, and the bond answered with a violent twist of pain that stole the air from my lungs. I curled onto my side, clutching my chest as tears slipped silently down my temples into my hair.
Even after rejection, the bond still lived.
It still wanted him.
It still reached for him.
And that was the cruelest part of all.
A knock sounded at the door.
Not gentle. Not kind. Sharp and impatient.
"Get up," a familiar female voice called. "The Alpha wants the servants working early today. The pack has guests."
The Alpha.
The title sliced deeper than any blade.
My mate.
My rejector.
My heart shattered all over again.
I forced myself to sit up, my limbs heavy and slow, as if the bond had drained the strength from my bones. My reflection in the cracked mirror across the room barely looked like me.
Pale skin. Red eyes. A girl who had cried until she had nothing left.
No Luna.
No mate.
No future.
Just a servant again.
My hands trembled as I splashed cold water on my face, trying to erase the evidence of last night. Trying to erase the memory of his voice echoing through the clearing.
You are weak.
The words repeated in my mind with brutal clarity.
My wolf whimpered again.
He didn't mean it… the bond insisted weakly.
But he had.
And somehow, that hurt more than the rejection itself.
Because Kael had once looked at me like I was his entire world.
I remembered stolen smiles in quiet corridors. His warm hand brushing mine when no one was watching. The way his voice softened when he said my name.
"You'll stand beside me one day."
A sob rose in my throat, but I swallowed it down.
Promises were easy when no one was watching.
Reality was cruel when everyone was.
The morning air outside was crisp as I stepped into the courtyard, keeping my head lowered as servants rushed past me with baskets and crates. No one spoke to me. No one met my eyes.
But I felt it.
The whispers.
The pity.
The judgment.
The quiet cruelty of knowing smiles.
The rejected mate.
My chest tightened, the bond pulsing faintly again, as if reacting to something unseen.
And then the scent hit me.
Cedar. Smoke. Storm.
My breath stopped.
Every nerve in my body came alive, electricity racing beneath my skin. My wolf surged forward desperately, her grief transforming into aching need.
Mate.
I hadn't even seen him yet, but the bond knew.
It always knew.
My head lifted before I could stop myself.
Across the courtyard, standing at the top of the stone steps, was Alpha Kael.
Sunlight spilled over his broad shoulders, turning his dark hair almost silver at the edges. He looked powerful, untouchable, every inch the Alpha the pack adored.
The same man who had shattered me before an entire pack.
Our eyes met.
The bond exploded.
A violent pull yanked at my chest, so strong my knees nearly buckled. Heat rushed through my veins, wild and desperate, screaming for closeness, for touch, for him.
His jaw tightened.
And for the briefest moment…
Pain flashed in his eyes.
My heart stuttered.
The bond trembled, fragile and hopeful.
He felt it too.
Even after rejection…
He still felt me.