Mated to My Fiancé's Rival Alpha

Silvia

I buried the only parents who ever loved me in the pouring rain.

When I came home--soaked, hollow, desperate for warmth--

I found my fated mate in our bed with another she-wolf.

"It's just instinct," Zack smirked, sweat still glistening on his chest.

"You'll always be my Luna... even if I seek out others."

That was the moment my world split in two.

My wolf, Keal, howled for blood. For vengeance.

But instead of tearing out his throat,

I did something far worse--

I rejected him.

And then I married his half-brother--his greatest enemy.

--

Earlier that night.

The rain poured down as I stood in the cemetery, watching the twin headstones of my adoptive parents blur through my tears.

They had been everything to me. And now, because of a cruel twist of fate on the road, they were gone too.

"I miss you,"I whispered, the words breaking apart in the storm.

My wolf, Keal, whimpered inside me. She was just as heartbroken as I was.

The water soaked through my black dress, chilling me to the bone,

but I couldn't bring myself to leave.

When I finally did, every step away from their graves felt like a betrayal.

I needed Zack now more than ever.

My mate--the one the Moon Goddess had chosen for me, claiming me as his forever.

I drove to our apartment--the one we'd decorated together.

Keal paced anxiously within me, seeking our mate's presence for comfort.

When I unlocked the door, the scents hit me immediately.

Zack's familiar pine and cedar, but underneath it, something else--something sweet, floral, and distinctly omega.

Foreign. Female. My heart plummeted to my stomach.

"No," I whispered, but Keal already knew.

Keal growled,"Who in there!? Let's shift-- I'll kill her!"

The sounds coming from our bedroom confirmed my worst fears before I even pushed the door open.

"Harder, Zack--don't stop!" the blonde omega moaned, her voice shamelessly echoing off the walls of our bedroom.

The sound carved through me like claws to the chest. The mate bond burned, searing and twisted, every heartbeat a reminder of his betrayal.

They froze the moment they saw me standing in the doorway, drenched from the storm, my eyes wide with disbelief.

"Silvia!" Zack scrambled off the bed, his face blanching before panic flickered in his eyes. "I--what the hell are you doing back already?"

The blonde omega pulled the sheet lazily across her chest, not so much embarrassed as irritated, like I had ruined her evening. She arched a brow at me, her lips curling in a smirk that made my stomach turn.

"How could you?" I whispered, my voice sounding distant to my own ears. "How could you do this when my parents just died? When I needed you most?"

Zack's expression shifted from shock to defensive anger. "Look, it's not what you think. This is just--this is nothing. It's just instinct, Silvia. It means nothing."

"Nothing?" I echoed, feeling something crack inside me.

"She came onto me," he continued, gesturing dismissively toward the omega who now looked outraged. "Come on, you know how this works. Sometimes I seek out others. But you're my mate. You'll always be my mate when I take over Nightfang Pack."

A hot, useless laugh escaped me. "So I'm supposed to swallow this? Let you bring strangers into our bed? Why do I have to accept it?"

He rolled his eyes, slipping into the patronizing tone I'd come to hate. "Don't be dramatic. If you weren't my destined mate, you wouldn't have any of this -- the protection, the status. I can give you more than you'll ever lose."

I looked at Zack--really looked at him--and wondered how I'd never seen his true nature before. This entitled, arrogant werewolf who thought being an Alpha's son gave him the right to treat me like this.

Inside me, Keal howled with righteous fury.

"Silvia, he is not worthy of our love, we must leave him!"

I straightened my spine, squared my shoulders.

"I, Silvia of Blackwood Pack, hereby reject you, Zack of Nightfang Pack, as my destined mate!"

The pain hit instantly--like molten metal poured directly onto my heart.

I gasped, clutching my chest as the mating bond began to tear.

Keal howled in agony within me, the rejection ritual tearing at our very souls.

"Silvia, you can't!" Zack's face drained of color as he lunged toward me. "Take it back! You have no idea what you're doing!"

I yanked the Red ruby necklace--his claiming gift--from my neck, ignoring how the chain cut into my skin. With trembling fingers, I threw it at his feet.

"I know exactly what I'm doing," I managed through gritted teeth. "I'm choosing myself."

Turning my back on him was agony -- each step a struggle against the bond tearing inside me.

But Keal and I pushed through, leaving behind his desperate calls.

"Silvia!" he shouted after me. "You can't leave me! We're destined!"

The door slammed behind me.

--

The drive back to my childhood home was hazardous in my condition.

Keal had gone silent inside me--a terrifying development.

Rejected wolves sometimes went dormant, but I needed her strength now more than ever.

"Stay with me, Keal," I whispered, gripping the steering wheel so tightly my knuckles turned white. "We'll get through this together."

Keal answered weakly from inside me, "I'm still here... just weakened."

By the time I reached the Blackwood Pack territory, night had fallen.

Our pack home--once bustling with activity when my parents were alive--now stood quiet and imposing against the stormy sky.

Only Noah and I remained of what had once been our small but proud pack.

The house was dark when I entered, which was unusual. Noah always left a light on for me.

"Noah?" I called out, flicking on the hallway light. "I'm home."

Silence greeted me, heavy and unnatural.

My wolf senses--diminished as they were from the breaking bond--still picked up something wrong.

The air smelled of distress and pain.

My heart rate accelerated as I noticed a book lying splayed on the floor, a coffee table knocked askew.

Signs of a struggle.

"Noah!" I shouted, panic rising in my throat as I rushed toward his bedroom.

His room was empty.