Rejected By My Cruel Alpha, Saved By My Cursed Mate

Kiera's POV

I woke to sunlight filtering through the window. The scent of food filled the air and my stomach growled with hunger.

I opened my eyes and found Caden sitting in a chair beside me. A tray of food sat on the nightstand.

"You stayed."

"I said I would," He said, reaching for the tray. "Now eat. You need your strength."

I accepted the bowl he handed me with trembling fingers. "How long have I been here?" I asked between spoonfuls.

"Two days."

Two days. I'd been unconscious for two whole days

I set the bowl aside carefully. "Your pack. Do they know about me?"

"They know I found my mate." His eyes didn't leave mine, pinning me in place. "That's all they need to know for now."

For now.

Meaning eventually they'd find out the truth. That I was a rejected, banished wolf with no pack and no wolf of my own. That I was cursed and broken.

"They won't want me here," I whispered.

"You're my mate. That makes you their Luna. End of discussion."

Luna.

My throat tightened until I could barely swallow. The word felt heavy and wrong when applied to me. I'd never even dreamed of being a Luna before. Girls like me didn't get happy endings like that.

"I can't be a Luna," I said quietly.

"You will be." He stood and walked to the window. "But first, you need to heal. Regain your strength. Then we'll deal with everything else."

"Can I see the pack?" The request surprised even me, tumbling out before I could think better of it. "If I'm going to be here for a week, I should meet them. See what this place is like."

Caden turned slowly. Something flickered through his eyes.

"I was going to suggest exactly that. They need to see their Luna. You need to establish your place here."

"I'm not—"

"You are. Get dressed. Someone left clothes outside your door. We're going downstairs for lunch with the pack."

------

An hour later, I stood in the hallway dressed in simple jeans and a sweater that someone had left folded neatly outside my door. My hair was brushed and clean, falling around my shoulders in damp waves. But I still looked pale and hollow-eyed in the mirror.

Caden waited for me outside. "Beautiful"

I didn't have time to process the word before he took my arm in a grip and led me down the stairs.

My palms grew sweaty. I wiped them on my jeans, leaving damp streaks on the denim.

My heart hammered against my ribs so hard it hurt. Every step felt heavier than the last, like I was walking toward my own execution. I could already imagine their faces when they saw me—the disappointment, the confusion, the disgust.

We reached the doors to the dining hall, and I stopped breathing entirely.

"Breathe," Caden murmured softly against my ear. His grip on my arm tightened. "Just breathe."

The large room was filled with wolves seated at long tables with food spread before them. Every head turned toward us in unison, and the silence that fell was deafening.

Heat crept up the back of my neck. I could feel their eyes on me—assessing, judging, finding me lacking in every possible way.

My free hand gripped Caden's arm tighter. My nails dug into his flesh through his shirt hard enough to leave marks.

"Everyone," Caden's voice rang out across the room. "This is Kiera. My mate. Your Luna."

The silence stretched for a heartbeat. Then two.

"She's his mate?"

"Where did she come from?"

"Look at her—she's so small and fat."

"That's the Luna?"

My ears burned with each comment. Heat spread across my cheeks and down my neck, I stared at the floor, unable to meet anyone's eyes.

A woman stepped forward from the crowd. She was beautiful—long dark hair that fell in perfect waves, a slender frame that moved with the kind of confident grace I'd never have.

Her upper lip curled as her eyes scanned me from head to toe.

"Alpha. Forgive me for speaking out of turn, but are you certain? She doesn't exactly look like Luna material."

Caden's entire body went rigid beside me. His muscles coiled tight beneath his shirt. "Lydia."

His hand found my waist, pulling me closer against his side. His fingers dug into my hip hard enough that I knew there'd be marks later.

"And who the hell do you think you are to question my choice?"

Lydia stepped back half a step but held her ground, her jaw clenching. "I'm simply concerned about the pack, Alpha. We don't know anything about her. Where she comes from. What pack she belongs to."

Her eyes slid to me, and something cruel flashed in their depths. "Or why she doesn't have any pack scent on her whatsoever."

The assembled wolves murmured in agreement.

Bood drained from my face. They could sense it. They knew immediately that I'm packless and a rogue.

"That's enough," Caden growled. "Kiera is my mate. Question her place here again, and you'll answer to me personally."

"But Alpha—" An older man spoke up from the back. He crossed his arms tightly over his chest. "Surely you understand our concern. A Luna should be strong. Capable of leading in your absence."

His eyes swept over me with open disdain, his lip curling.

Tears burned at the back of my eyes. I blinked rapidly, desperately trying to stop them from falling, but my throat closed up completely.

"I said that's enough." Caden's eyes flashed pure red. A vein throbbed visibly in his neck. His fists clenched at his sides so hard his knuckles went white.

"Anyone who has a problem with my mate can challenge me for the position of Alpha right now. Otherwise, shut your mouths and show some respect."

No one moved. Lydia's lips curved into a smile. She exchanged meaningful glances with the older man, and I saw something pass between them.

"Of course, Alpha. Forgive us. We're simply... surprised. You've never shown interest in claiming a mate before. And suddenly now..."

She trailed off, leaving the implication hanging in the air.

That I'd trapped him somehow.

That I'd used magic or manipulation.

That I wasn't worthy of him and never would be.

The weight of their stares pressed down on me. My chest constricted. I couldn't get enough air into my lungs no matter how hard I tried.

"I need air." My voice came out barely audible. "Please."

Caden's grip on my hand tightened. "Kiera—"

"Please."

He studied my face for a long moment. Then he nodded curtly. "We'll continue this discussion later."

The threat in his tone made several pack members go visibly pale.

He led me out of the dining hall. I stumbled over my own feet, my legs shaking so badly they could barely hold my weight. He caught me before I fell, supporting me, practically carrying me through the corridors.

We stepped out into a garden at the back of the mansion.

"I'm sorry." His jaw clenched so tightly I could hear his teeth grinding together. "They had no right to speak to you that way. No right at all."

"They're not wrong though." I wrapped my arms around myself, hugging my chest tightly like I could hold the pieces of me together. "I don't look like a Luna. I am everything they said.

"No." His hands gripped my shoulders hard enough to hurt. "You're everything they're too blind and stupid to see."

"You don't have to lie to make me feel better."

Tears streamed down my face now. I couldn't hold them back anymore. My nose ran and I sniffled pathetically, wiping at my face with the back of my hand like a child.

"I know what I am. A rogue with no pack and no wolf of my own."

"Stop." His fingers dug into my shoulders, bruising. "Stop saying that."

"It's true!" My voice rose higher and louder, breaking on the words. "They saw it immediately. I have no pack scent. I'm nothing. Just a rejected, broken wolf that you saved out of pity."

"Pity?"

A dangerous laugh escaped him. His eyes flashed red, then blue, then red again in rapid succession.

"You think I claimed you out of pity?"

"What else would it be?" My voice broke and my throat felt like it was being squeezed in a vice. "Look at me. I'm cursed. I'm packless. I have nothing to offer you. You'd be better off with someone like that Lydia woman. Someone who at least looks like she could be a Luna."

"You think I want her?"

"I think you deserve someone who isn't me!"

The words spilled out and my hands shook violently. "Someone who can actually be what you need. Someone who isn't cursed and broken and completely useless and—"

I didn't get to finish.

His hand shot out and fisted my hair, yanking my head back with enough force to steal the breath from my lungs.

His other arm wrapped around my waist, crushing me against him with bruising force that left no space between our bodies.

"Shut up."

Then his mouth crashed down on mine, silencing me completely.