Selena's POV
I met my mate.
A vampire.
Out of all the twisted turns the Moon Goddess could've taken, she gave me… him.
My entire life has been a struggle.
A struggle to make my father look at me, just once with pride in his eyes.
My father, Garren Hemming, was the Beta of the Shadow Moon Pack. A warrior, a legend in our lands. The right hand of the Alpha, feared and respected. He was a man who believed in strength, in legacy, in having a worthy heir.
For the next Beta, he needed a son.
But instead, he got me.
A daughter.
And while giving birth to me, my mother… died.
He never forgave me for it.
Not once. Not in seventeen years.
He didn't say it aloud, but the resentment lived in the way he ignored my victories, the way his eyes hardened at my failures, the way his voice turned cold every time he said my name. I used to cry about it as a pup. Now I've grown numb to it.
I get it.
I probably would've hated me too if I were in his place.
So I tried.
I tried to be the son he never had.
All my life, I lived like what he wanted, a successor. His legacy. His pride.
These muscles? This strength? This stubborn shell I carry around? None of it was born with me. I carved it out with blood and will. I buried my softness, my cravings, my innocence. I trained harder than any warrior in my pack, ran longer, lifted more, broke bones more often, healed twice as fast.
I resisted every temptation that came my way. The softness of silk. The scent of honey-vanilla perfume Rose once gifted me. The delicate silver nail polish she sneakily left on my bedside.
I could never wear it.
I couldn't afford to be... feminine.
Not in front of him.
I was always the odd one out, the one everyone stared at but never approached. I was too harsh to be a girl, too curved to be a boy, too intense to fit into either. The boys mocked me. The girls stayed away. Rose was the only one who never judged.
So when I first heard about mates, I scoffed at the idea. The thought of being loved, desired, or chosen felt alien. Like a fairytale that didn't include characters like me.
I told myself long ago that no one would want me for who I am. And that was okay.
My mate, if I ever had one, wouldn't want me either.
I accepted it.
But a vampire?
A damn vampire?
That was even worse than having no mate at all.
Their kind drank blood. They thrived in the night. They had no ties to pack, to the earth, to the goddess. It was the ultimate betrayal of everything I stood for.
Yet… when I met him…
Everything in me, every wall, every defense, every carefully forged blade, shook.
It wasn't just his appearance, though Moon Goddess, he was dangerously beautiful. It was the way he looked at me. Like he'd been searching the ends of the world for something he never thought he'd find, and then there I was.
But I couldn't let myself feel it.
Not the warmth in his voice when he said my name.
Not the ache in his eyes when I turned away.
Not the sparks that shot through my spine when his fingers brushed mine.
I couldn't afford it.
After everything I endured, I had finally earned something, one thing from my father: approval.
Just once, during the last warrior trials, I saw that look in his eyes. It wasn't pride. Not fully. But it was… recognition. Like he saw me, not as a mistake, not as a replacement but as a warrior. As a Beta. As his daughter.
And I couldn't lose that.
If he ever found out my mate was a vampire…
That look would vanish.
And the hatred would return, twice as strong.
So I made up my mind.
I would reject the vampire.
No matter how much it hurt. No matter how much every cell in my body screamed otherwise. No matter how much I wanted to bury my face in his neck and never leave.
I would reject him.
I had to.
A Few Days Later
Liliac Kingdom
Another day in the royal court. Another attempt to act like everything was normal.
I had a mission.
Protect Rose.
Not just because she's my best friend. But because she's the only person who ever made me feel... seen.
I remember the day we met like it was yesterday. I was twelve, covered in mud after a training session gone wrong, while the court girls stared at me like I crawled out of a swamp. She passed by, looked me up and down, and said, "You look like you murdered a cake."
I blinked. "You look like a rejected unicorn."
We both raised an eyebrow. Then, we smiled.
That was it.
No judgment. No labels.
Just... acceptance.
That's what Rose was. A rare kind of soul.
So yes, I protected her. But she protected me too, in ways she didn't even realize.
That morning, I was making sure the palace gates were secure when a voice curled around me like silk and gravel.
"Hello, mi amor," he said in that husky, sinful tone that made my blood betray me.
Damn him.
His voice did something to me that no man ever managed.
It made my knees weak and my fists clench.
I turned, forcing every ounce of indifference into my voice. "I'm not your love."
"You are my mate, Selena."
The way he said my name... I almost melted.
No one had ever said it like that, like it meant something. Like I was something.
"Doesn't matter," I snapped. "I don't want a vampire mate. I, Selena Hemming, next Beta of Shadow Moon Pack, reject-"
"Don't reject me," he interrupted, his voice suddenly raw and trembling. "Not yet."
I froze.
There was a desperation in his eyes I hadn't expected. A pain so ancient it bled into me.
It was the kind of pain that told stories. That spoke of centuries of loneliness. That made you forget he was supposed to be the monster.
In that moment, I wasn't looking at a vampire.
I was looking at a man... who looked at me like I was the only light in his eternal night.
And it hurt.
It physically hurt to look away.
I wanted to run. I wanted to stay. I wanted to break something. I wanted to kiss him until my lungs gave out.
But I couldn't.
I couldn't let myself fall.
Because if I gave in...
I'd never be able to reject him.
And that was dangerous.
Because the moment I let my guard down... the moment I let him in...
I knew I'd never want to let him go.
So I steeled myself.
Tried again. "I don't want you. I don't need you. You're just a mistake in the Moon Goddess's design-"
"I waited centuries for you," he growled, stepping closer, his fangs barely visible. "You think I wanted this? You think I asked for a wolf mate? I didn't. But now that I've found you- don't you dare throw this away."
My heart thundered in my chest.
I opened my mouth.
Nothing came out.
Tears stung my eyes, but I blinked them back.
No. I couldn't cry.
I turned away and whispered, "It doesn't matter."
But even as I walked off, my soul stayed behind with him.
And I didn't know how long I could keep walking away.
Because every step hurt more than the last.
Every step pulled me farther from the one place that finally felt like home.