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Derek's POV

This couldn’t be happening. Not to me.

Of all the men in the kingdom, I, the King of Drogomor palace, had to be the first to be mated to the same gender. My jaw clenched as I watched Abigail beam beside her newest chosen omega—Nicolas, that was what I heard her call him. Just a slender boy with wide eyes and pretty features.

The irony was enough to choke on. The one person who my wolf had chosen, my destined mate, was the same person my ever bold sister paraded in front of the court as her newest conquest. And no one even blinked an eye.

Why would they? No one could feel the force pulling at me, screaming for me to claim what was mine. Only I felt the undeniable pull.

My wolf snarled at the thought, pushing against me, urging me to go to him, but I forced it down. I couldn’t—wouldn’t—allow myself to accept this.

No. I would reject him.

But even as the thought crossed my mind, I couldn’t move my gaze away from him. The boy stood frozen in surprise and something else I couldn’t fathom. I guessed he had just found out, too; I could tell by the shock on his face. He stood there in disbelief, staring deep into my eyes.

Abigail who was oblivious as always, was basking in her decision. The court watched her with amused smiles as she paraded her choice. No one questioned her, not even me.

I could think about how absurd this was. My sister picked my mate without even realizing it. And worse, Nicolas wasn’t just pretty—he was beautiful, in a way that irked me.

“How... how is this possible?” The words slipped from my mouth before I could stop them

“How is what possible, brother?” Abigail asked, but I didn’t answer her. My eyes remained locked on Nicolas, who opened his mouth as if to speak but said nothing.

How dare the Moon Goddess give me a male mate? How dare she make me question everything I believed?

Abigail clapped her hands in amusement “Isn’t he perfect?” she said with a laugh. “Such a beautiful boy. I’ve never seen anyone like him.”

“Damn it! Goddamn it!” The words came from me, louder than I intended.

Nicolas stepped back, his eyes widened with something—fear or recognition, I couldn’t tell.

“What do you think, bro....?" Abigail asked, still oblivious.

I couldn’t stand it anymore. Without another word, I walked out of the room in anger. How could this happen? How could I, of all people, be bound to a man? I would reject him. Break the bond and pretend it never existed. I would not be weak. I would not let this… this abomination ruin me.

No one could know. No one would know.

****

Nicole

This wasn’t supposed to happen. Not like this.

As soon as the princess dismissed me, I ran to my small room in the quarters.

Once there, I finally broke down, The events of the day replayed in my mind, too fast and chaotic to make sense of it all. Abigail… Derek... How had everything spiraled out of control so quickly?

Abigail. She called me her new chosen mate and will soon begin the ceremony. The words replayed in my head like a joke.

While Derek. My mate. My enemy. The one who had destroyed everything I cared about.

How could the goddess be so cruel? How could the one man I wanted to destroy be the very one my soul was bound to? I hated him. I hated everything he stood for. He was the reason my parents and pack members were dead. He was the reason I was forced to hide, to live a lie. And yet, the bond between us didn’t care.

I buried my face in my hands. I don’t have time for this. I needed to focus. I needed to think clearly.

I was about to stand up from the ground when a knock came on the door. Quickly, I got to my feet and wiped away my tears.

My face instantly turned pale when a young girl appeared with a grin

“I came to inform you that everyone is gathered in the pack’s hall for an announcement. Be there,” he told me before dashing off.

I sighed as I closed the door. I walked to my mirror on the table, and a weak sigh escaped my lips as I stared at my miserable reflection.

My life had been hard since I arrived at Drogomor Palace. Everything I did was in secret; sometimes, I sneaked out of the palace to visit my pack members' graves and promised them how much King Derek was going to pay for what he did wrong. I guess that's not going to happen anymore.

I quickly snapped those thoughts to the back of my mind as I walked out of my room, heading straight to the hall for whatever shitty announcement that is to be made which was not going to be in my favor

Was King Derek going to reject me? What was Abigail going to do with me? I wondered since I am now at the mercy of the Sinclairs.

Not surprisingly, there were a lot of people in the hall. I stood among the crowd, and from my standing position, I sighted Derek at the podium. Well, this announcement is about Derek. I could instantly guess what was about to happen when I saw a pretty woman standing close to him.

My suspicions were proven accurate when King Derek suddenly announced, "I have chosen Princess Isabella as my mate…” He continued as he turned to look at the pretty princess from another kingdom, “I want to spend the rest of my life with her."

I could hear my heart beating fast. I clenched my fists as I stared dead into his eyes.

"King Derek, what about your fated mate? Aren't you going to find her?" I heard a young girl ask innocently.

He scoffed, "My fated mate? I do not want to ever find the person!" He looked at me, his eyes boring into mine. Neither did I move my eyes away from his. "Wherever my fated mate is, I reject you!" he said, clearly directing the words at me from a distance.

I chuckled; Lycan king or not, screw him, screw the mate's bond; I was going to accept his rejection, maybe...just maybe I might add a little spice while clearly acct.

I didn’t care about his rejection. But deep inside, my wolf, Mina, let out a low, mournful growl. I could feel her sadness, even if I didn’t share it.

People gasped at his outrageous declaration. Some people’s gaze followed his to look at me, but they could never suspect I was his mate. Who would suspect his mate was a boy?

People began to whisper

"Lucky Princess Bella."

"Wow, this is great!"

"Poor mate!"

The deed has been done now!

After the announcement, everyone returned to their usual business as if my life hadn’t just been turned upside down. I slipped away from the crowd, to a quiet corner where I could finally breathe.

Today, my 18th birthday, Abigail had chosen me as her mate, and I’d learned that my true mate was my greatest enemy. It felt like an overwhelming twist of fate. I leaned against the wall, closed my eyes for just a moment, and then decided to finally head toward my room.

On my way, I heard footsteps behind me. I paused, hoping it was nothing, but then I heard Dean’s voice, and I knew I was in trouble.

I’d promised to wait in the casting line for him, covering his spot while he was tied up with some meeting. But things had spiraled out of control—the guards pushed me in, and Princess Abigail had chosen me as her mate. Now, Dean had found out, and jealousy was written on his face.

He blocked my path in anger. “So, our little stray thinks he’s important now?”

I took a step back, trying to keep calm. “Dean, I didn’t mean to cause trouble…”

“Oh, you’ve done plenty already,” he sneered, as he signaled to his two lackeys. “Thinking you can fool me, acting like you were holding my place, then manipulating the princess into choosing you?”

Before I could answer, one of his men shoved me, forcing me against the wall and I felt real pain

“Think you’re special because you’re pretty?” Dean said as he grabbed my collar, pulling me close as he whispered into my ear, “I’ll teach you a lesson you won’t forget. You’re nothing here.”

"No..please!" I begged

He ignored me as he landed a fist across my face, making me fall in pain.

"Arghh!"

Before I could fully understand what was going on was going on, a kick came across my ribs

"You son of a bitch,"

"Ugly duckling!" Another kick across my heart.

"You ungrateful bastard!" A kick across my face.

"we will kill you!"

I tried as much as possible to block the kicks, but I was just too outnumbered. I could sense more than one person was kicking me.

Suddenly, I heard a massive roar that shook the entire palace and stopped them dead in their tracks. I had no idea what it was or who it was, but a part of me was just glad it happened. I could feel myself going in and out of consciousness when the faint scent of fresh rain flooded my senses. Then I heard a very soothing, yet very pissed-off voice,

“GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM MY MATE!!!”

Wait, did he say mate?