The night Kael Blackridge rejected here, the moon was full.
Elara Moonfall did not remember the sound of the crowd.
What stayed with her, even years later, was the silence.
The moment the bond snapped into place, the world had gone quiet as if the Moon herself had pressed a hand over Elara's ears and asked her to listen only to fate. Warmth flooded her chest, sudden and overwhelming, so intense it stole the breath from her lungs.
Mate.
Her wolf stirred, not in fear, but in recognition. In certainty.
Elara turned slowly, her heart pounding as her gaze found him across the clearing.
Kael Blackridge.
He stood beneath the full moon like he belonged to it, tall and unmoving, his presence commanding without effort. Wolves stepped aside for him instinctively, bowing their heads in respect. He was already Alpha, already powerful, already everything the pack admired.
And he was staring at her.
For one fragile heartbeat, something softened in his eyes.
Hope bloomed in her chest before she could stop it.
She took a hesitant step forward, the invisible pull between them tightening, warm and alive. The bond hummed with promise, with belonging. Her wolf pressed forward eagerly, certain that this this was what they had been waiting for.
Kael felt it. She knew he did.
Then his expression hardened.
He looked away.
The bond jolted, confused, as if it did not understand what was happening. Elara's breath hitched. Her steps slowed, uncertainty creeping in where joy had been only seconds before.
No.
He wouldn't
"Elara Moonfall."
The Alpha's voice cut through the night, sharp and formal. Conversations hushed. All eyes turned toward her.
Her heart sank.
She stepped forward because she had no other choice.
The clearing felt too large as she entered the circle, the space between herself and Kael stretching unbearably. He stood beside the Alpha now, his posture rigid, his jaw clenched. He still would not look at her.
"Elara Moonfall," the Alpha said, "do you acknowledge the bond placed upon you by the Moon Goddess?"
Her voice trembled despite her effort to steady it. "Yes."
The word tasted like truth and fear.
The Alpha turned to Kael. "Kael Blackridge, do you accept this bond and claim Elara Moonfall as your mate?"
Time stretched thin.
The bond pulsed wildly, aching, hopeful, terrified. Elara's wolf pressed against it, trusting without reservation.
Kael inhaled slowly.
"I don't," he said.
The words were quiet.
They shattered her anyway.
Pain ripped through Elara's chest, sharp and merciless, as if something vital had been torn from her. Her knees weakened, but she forced herself to remain standing. Around her, gasps broke the silence, but she heard none of them.
"I reject the bond," Kael continued, his voice controlled, distant. "For the good of the pack."
For the good of the pack.
Her wolf cried out in anguish, collapsing inward as the bond recoiled, broken but not gone. The warmth faded, replaced by a cold ache that settled deep in her bones.
"Elara Moonfall," the Alpha said gently now, "do you accept this rejection?"
There was no mercy in the question.
She lifted her chin, refusing to let anyone see how badly she was breaking.
"I accept," she said.
The bond shrank, fractured and wounded, leaving behind a dull, constant ache—a reminder of what had been taken, and who had taken it.
Elara turned away.
She walked out of the clearing alone, her steps steady even as her heart splintered with each one. No one followed her. Not the pack. Not the Alpha.
Not Kael.
That night, Elara Moonfall lost more than her mate.
She lost the male she would spend the rest of her life remembering.
And somewhere beneath the same moon, Alpha Kael Blackridge stood still, learning that some choices could never truly be undone.