Seventeen Times Forgotten: Rejecting My Alpha Mate

Mia POV

I sat in the quiet study of our shared home. The screen of my laptop glowed in the dim light. Alpha Howard's face appeared on the video call. He was a distinguished man with sharp features and a warm smile.

“Mia, I am beyond thrilled,” Howard said, his voice rich and welcoming. “The Lumière Pack has been waiting for your talent for years. We are bleeding market share to the Italian covens, and your designs are precisely the weapon we need to reclaim our standing.”

“Thank you, Alpha Howard,” I nodded. “I will cross the border and leave the territory in two days at most.”

“I will personally show you around our lands in Paris,” he promised. “You will be treated with the respect a true artist deserves.”

Before I could reply, the study door was pushed open. It was only eight o'clock in the evening. Ethan almost never came home this early. I quickly closed my laptop, cutting the call.

Ethan walked in, looking unusually energetic. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two glossy pieces of paper.

“Look what I got,” he smiled, tossing them onto the desk. They were VIP tickets to the Royal Lycan Gladiator Tournament. It was the most exclusive event in the werewolf society.

“I am taking Tiffany,” he said casually, pouring himself a glass of water. “She helped me sort out a mess in the archives today. I need to return the favor.”

I looked at the tickets. My werewolf senses were weak, but I could still smell the faint scent of old ink and the specific perfume of the ticket vendor. The scent was stale. He had bought these tickets yesterday. This was not a sudden decision to repay a favor. He had planned this.

I looked at his handsome face and decided not to expose his lie.

“Ethan,” I said softly, looking at his eyes. “Do you know what day it is today?”

He stopped drinking. He frowned, looking genuinely confused. “It is Tuesday, Mia. Why?”

My heart sank like a stone in a freezing lake. Today was my birthday. It was also the anniversary of our Recognition Ritual.

“Nothing,” I whispered.

“Listen, Mia,” he sighed, setting the glass down. “I know you have been moody lately. But you have to understand my stress.”

He walked closer, his tall frame casting a shadow over me. “You are an Omega,” he said, his voice taking on that lecturing tone. “Your physical constitution is too weak. Your wolf spirit is unstable.”

He was using my trauma as an excuse for his neglect. “I run an empire,” he continued. “I cannot always stop to hold your hand. You need to be stronger. I need a Luna who can stand as my equal, not a porcelain doll I must constantly shield from the wind.”

He consulted his heavy platinum watch, the light glinting off its face. “I have to go. The tournament starts in an hour.”

He turned toward the door.

“Ethan,” I called out. He paused, his hand on the doorknob. I forced a smile onto my face. “Can you bring me a matcha cake when you come back? The one with the wild mint herbs.”

“Sure,” he said without turning around.

“And Ethan,” I added, my voice completely calm now. “When you get back, I have something very important to announce. I am leaving the pack.”

“Yeah, yeah, we will talk later,” he agreed, clearly not hearing a single word I said.

The door clicked shut, the sound unnaturally loud in the silence that followed.

I was alone again. I opened my laptop and resumed my meeting with Paris. My inner wolf curled up in the dark corners of my mind. She let out a silent whimper, and then, she simply closed her eyes.

He had forgotten the moonstone. He had given the gladiator tickets to another woman. He had forgotten my birthday. He had forgotten the day our souls were supposed to bind.

My wolf was completely, finally dead to him. The countdown had begun. And this time, I would not be the one left bleeding.