1. Rejected

With hardly anyone around to celebrate with her, Scarlett, an A-Class fighter, spent her twentieth birthday training. It helped keep her mind off the loss of her parents, who died in a fight against rogues on the day she was born.

“Grrawww.” The growl emanated from her chest, her breath heavy and her brow glistening with sweat. Satisfied with her efforts and progress, she rose from the training mat.

‘We did well,’ her free-spirited wolf, Ulva, howled, standing on all fours in her mind.

‘Yeah, we did,’ Scarlett replied telepathically.

‘Now, let’s head back home,’ her wolf said with pride in her exceptional fighting skills and dominance.

Scarlett smiled at her exuberance. Though she was as calm as the extravagant Ulva, and they were two souls in one body, they were entirely different.

She left the training field, making her way toward the pack house. She could have used her car but chose to walk instead. It would allow her to arrive home as late as possible, which was her preference that day. Who wanted to celebrate a birthday on the same day their parents died?

Not that she’d had a terrible life without them. Her uncle and aunt, both from the alpha bloodline, inherited her parents’ Alpha and Luna positions after their death. Thankfully, they adopted her and raised her as their own daughter, and they had always been kind to her.

At least until recent years. When they found their long-lost biological daughter, Olivia, four years ago, they began to ignore Scarlett. But when the goddess takes one thing, she often gives another, and Scarlett was presented with her wonderful boyfriend and mate. George Weston was an orphan and an amazing person, and he’d come into her life the first day she shifted. For the last four years, he gently soothed her wounded soul, helping her forget the pain of her loss.

She would have lost her desire to return home if not for him. But George assured her he would wish her a happy birthday, and what more could she ask for? He never forgot her special day.

It was a significant day for other reasons, too. Though George didn’t know it yet, she planned to ask him to mark her.

‘Is he waiting for us, Scar?’ Ulva purred from the corner of her mind.

‘Daydreaming much, Wolf?’ Scarlett chuckled, earning an internal scowl from Ulva.

‘Don’t tell me you’re not,’ Ulva said with a snort. ‘Because I know you’re expecting him, too… And what do you think about being marked tonight?’

‘I’m so excited… and slightly nervous, too.’

When Scarlett arrived home, George stood in the doorway. She happily ran to him to hug him. “Oh, Geo! You—”

Olivia appeared, pushed her out of the way, and slapped her hard across the face.

“Ugh!” Scarlett gasped to catch her breath, seeing white dots before her eyes.

“How dare you touch my mate!” Olivia shouted, her harsh words piercing Scarlett’s ears.

Scarlett’s eyes locked onto Olivia’s, and she blinked in confusion, shock, and annoyance all at once. “Excuse me?” she said in disbelief.

“My mate,” Olivia declared, gripping Geo’s hand. “George Weston is my mate,” she proclaimed triumphantly.

“What?” Scarlett said in a hushed whisper as her eyes remained fixed on their intertwined hands. She looked up at the man she had trusted, expecting him to deny everything Olivia had dared to declare so falsely.

George was her chosen mate. There could be no other. Unless mates rejected one another, there was no chance for second mates, and she and George had accepted each other.

“Aren’t you going to say something, Geo?” she asked, somewhat terrified by his silence.

“Of course not,” Olivia interjected confidently. “There’s nothing to say.” She turned to Geo. “Right, baby?” She pulled him toward her for a kiss.

Scarlett gasped at her brazen actions, then gaped when George didn’t resist or push her away. A twisting ache overtook her heart, and her body burned with fiery pain. Meanwhile, Ulva howled in agony. As chosen mates, neither could be intimate with another without causing unbearable anguish that intensified with the depth of their connection.

Gritting her teeth, she couldn’t help but pull them apart. “We’re mates!” she cried as the pain engulfed her. “How could you betray me?”

Her Aunt Helen appeared from the hall, shouting, “How could you be so shameless?”

Scarlett did a double take, then stared at the woman, whom she had allowed to fill her mother’s place, her disbelief palpable. Where had this side of her aunt been for the past twenty years? Had it all been a façade? Was this reality?

“Mom, don’t blame her,” Olivia said. “Geo has grown up with Scarlett. He treats her so well that she might have misunderstood his intentions.”

“No!” Scarlett shouted. “He’s my mate, and everyone knows it. Geo, please say something.” Scarlett reached out to hold his hand.

He refused her touch. “I’ve always seen you as my younger sister, Scarlett. I didn’t expect anything more. But you need to know that my only mate is Olivia.” Geo’s bitter words struck Scarlett like a slap in the face.

“No!” Scarlett’s voice quivered with desperation. “You can’t do this, Geo. We’re mates, the destined ones! How can you deny that?”

“Oh, shut up!” Helen said, her voice sharp. “You claim to be his mate?”

“I am his mate!”

“Then why aren’t you marked?”

“Becau—”

“I’ll tell you why. Because my daughter is his mate. That’s why.”

Geo nodded in agreement, his expression unyielding. “Luna is right, Scar. And I think it’s time I make it crystal clear. I, George Weston, a proud member of the Night Walker pack, reject you, Scarlett Rowan, as my mate.”

“Nooo...” Scarlett’s anguished howl echoed through the hall, the searing pain of rejection tearing through her very bones. She crumpled to the ground as an indescribable ache welled up in her heart. The weight of the mate bond rejection felt as heavy as a mountain, suffocating her.

“Did you hear that? Geo rejected you,” Luna Helen taunted.

Shattered by the shame and humiliation, she needed to escape. Clenching her teeth, she pulled herself to her feet and dashed out of the pack house. She tried to reach for Ulva to shift, but her wolf was too distraught by the rejection and wouldn’t allow it.

Weak-kneed, Scarlett stumbled, falling face-first in the dark jungle. She didn’t bother trying to move. Instead, she allowed her tears to flow freely, crying for what felt like an eternity.

When there were no tears left, she summoned the strength to get up and drag herself to the pub at the edge of the pack area. It was larger than the other pubs in the pack region and usually filled with teens. Scarlett often went there with her best friend, Alaina, the beta’s daughter, for some quality time. But that night, however, she just wanted to be alone.

It wasn’t meant to be. Her best friend, Alaina, showed up right after she took a seat. “Finally, I’ve found you. I’ve been searching everywhere,” Alaina said, looking relieved.

“I’m here,” Scarlett said softly.

Alaina sat by her side, her relieved expression turning into one of concern. “What’s wrong? You don’t look right.”

Scarlett fought to stay strong and not break down. However, the comforting presence of a trusted scent made her defenses crumble, so she explained the ordeal between hiccups and sobs.

“Oh, baby,” Alaina embraced her, gently caressing her back. “That bastard was a scam. Forget about him, Scar. He’s not worth your tears.”

After much coaxing and several drinks, Scarlett descended from her emotional turmoil, and they talked for a while.

“I don’t understand,” Alaina said. “How could Alpha and Luna support this nonsense? Couldn’t they do something?”

Scarlett smiled bitterly, then took a gulp from the bottle. “Why would they when Olivia is their real daughter?” She recalled how their attitude changed the moment Olivia appeared. “I’m just an outsider to them,” she painfully added, then emptied her bottle in bitterness, adding to her already deep alcohol-induced haze.

Sighing, Alaina snatched the bottle from her. “That’s it, you’ve had enough.”

Scarlett didn’t stop her. She’d already finished the bottle anyway.

Besides, something had distracted her. She had that feeling as though she were being watched. She turned and peered into the darkness of the bar, then locked eyes with a pair of blazing green orbs.

Even from a distance, his intense stare sent shivers down her spine. Still, she returned his gaze, utterly mesmerized. Lost in his eyes, she forgot her sorrows. “Damn... he’s gorgeous,” she murmured.

Her words didn’t escape Alaina’s notice. Frowning, she followed Scarlett’s gaze and gasped. “Oh... it’s him.”

The man withdrew his gaze, focusing on the man next to him, listening to his words.

Scarlett blinked; it felt like something within her had shattered, and all her troubles rushed back in. Still, she worked to focus. “Do you know him?” she asked Alaina, her gaze still fixed on the man.

“He’s George’s uncle,” Alaina whispered.

Scarlett’s eyes snapped open. “What?” she said, with her voice pitching up. She dated George for four years and had never heard of any uncle.

“Mm-hmm.” Alaina nodded. “Yesterday, at the pack’s banquet, Dad introduced him as George’s uncle. I was just as surprised as you.” She kept her voice low.

“Where has he been for the past four years?”

“Well, I don’t know much about him, only what my father said. Apparently, he’s not from our pack. He joined another pack ten years ago and just returned to our pack for business a few days ago.”

Scarlett stole another glance at him. Her eyes narrowed. “Are you sure it’s the same guy?”

“Of course,” Alaina said. “Look at him. Is he someone you think anyone could easily forget?”

Scarlett turned to him, tugging her lower lip under her teeth. “Right,” she murmured. There was something undeniably magnetic about him, as if he were drawing her toward him.

And as though he sensed her thoughts, he turned his gaze in her direction once more. Their eyes locked, and his emerald eyes enveloped her. Then she watched in disbelief as he stood and walked toward them.

“Oh, is he coming here?” Alaina whispered excitedly.

Scarlett remained silent, unable to move, as if an invisible force held her back. With each step he took, her heart raced involuntarily, and her breath nearly caught when he stopped right in front of her.