Reject Me Again, My Alpha
Chapter 3

The door slammed on my bedroom door, my mother’s angry figure had just stormed out. I felt the warmth of tears sting my eyes. They were all going out on a pack run tonight. The moon was high and it called the wolves to bask under it , like we were slaves to it’s glory. I wanted to go , I wanted to join them. But my mother wouldn’t let me. I had to stay here and hide , like I had done all of my life.

The first tear slipped down my cheek and I quickly swiped it off. I feel like all I did was cry these days. It was not my fault I was born early , that I wasn’t as strong or as fast as other shifters. I did not ask to be conceived or born. But yet , I am always treated like it is my fault , like I chose this. My mother ,my father, well, he had told me she was a popular shewolf at my age. Proud and beautiful , a social group of friends a mile long. That when he scented her as his mate , he was over joyed. Thinking he wouldn’t ever have gotten so lucky to nab a woman like her. He said the single men of the pack had been disappointed, all wishing it was them.

But when I had been born too early and weak , she had become the talk of everyone. Her friends turned their backs and the men were glad she had’t been there, mate. She had worked hard to gain her place back amongst people , birthing my brother had helped. Me being born had then in her mind become no longer her fault. And she hid me away so that people would just forget my existence. Meanwhile, she paraded my brothers off in their faces.

She wasn’t completely rancid to me , she didn’t beat or hit me or continuously throw nasty remarks or names at me. She just ignored me most of the time. My father told me she had always longed for a girl. I think he told me all of this to try and justify her actions , but all it did was make me feel worse. And hate myself more for who I was. If I was different , I would have the mother my brothers had. I envied them for it. Over the years, my brothers Samuel and Timothy picked up her behavior of ignoring me. But not Peter.

I was the oldest at twenty four , then Peter at twenty three , Samuel twenty one and then Timothy eighteen. All of them had shifted before me. They had all done it around the age wolves are meant to, anything from fifteen to eighteen. I had disappointed her again when I had failed to. And I had only done it four months ago. And all hope of my wolf fixing any damage done when I had been born early was eradicated. My parents expected my wolf to make me stronger , faster and more like everyone else. But it hadn’t.

I wonder how my mum would react if she knew that night I had also seen my mate. And he was no other than the Alpha’s son and the next Alpha. But just that thought had my heart feeling like it would explode with pain in my chest again. I had not seen him since that night , he had not sought me out or anything. He had made himself clear that night. His words hurt more than any taunt anyone had ever thrown at me. “This wolf will never be accepted “. Meaning he would never accept me either.

The door to my room clicks open and pulls me from my thoughts. Peter was standing there. He looked back down the hall and then snuck in, shutting the door quietly behind him. He came and sat on my bed and put his finger to his lips , telling me to be quiet. Then he pulled his phone out of his pocket. He typed furiously and I couldn’t help but smile at him. Peter had been my saving grace , the one that kept me here and alive. On nights I used to lay thinking that if I just ended it all , I wouldn’t have to feel this pain and loneliness anymore. Wolves thrive on packs and people close to them. Although I was in a pack , I didn’t feel like I was.

Then an image of Peter would pop into my head and I couldn’t. He had always been my bestest friend , my protector and the only person that actually knew me because he spent time with me. He passed me the phone and he had written out a message.

The Pack is running on the west side , in the mountains tonight. If you go east near the lakes , you won’t be seen. You can let your wolf out to run. Just be back before we all come back.

I looked up at him , a flurry of excitement busted in my stomach. But then reality and doubt set in. What if I was caught ? What if someone saw me ? So I typed back.

I can’t. If I am caught, everyone will know.

He reads it and scowls , then takes the phone and types again.

Anthea , you have only been in your wolf form twice. She needs to come out , you and your wolf need to bond and connect. That can’t happen if you just ignore her. If you keep her in. She could abandon you. Mum and dad know this and are f*****g idiots.Only letting you shift again once since your first one isn’t enough. I have been asking my wolf questions and he said if you don’t form a bond she will leave !!

I felt fear grip me , we are born with the genetics to shift. But the fates choose our wolf spirit for us. They are as alive as we are. The only other time I had shifted, dad had taken me off of pack land to do it. My wolf had been furious , she was definitely a lot more feistier than me. But she was cryptic when I questioned why she didn’t fix me , she had said I didn’t need to be and I should trust her. Then she had a few very choice things to think about Enzo and my parents.

I’ll go, but only for an hour.

I typed back and he grinned and nodded. He took his phone, leant forward and kissed my cheek. ” Be safe “, he whispered in my ear.Then he got up off of the bed and left my room. Nervous excitement , mixed with fear, swirled in my stomach. I did’t do the sneaking out thing , well I hadn’t before. Before I scented him , now I snuck out when everyone was sleeping or working on the pack land, hoping to get a glimpse of him. I don’t know why , it ended up in me hurting. Especially these last two months. Chatter had begun , Enzo had been doubling in strength. Out powering his father now, so preparations were being made for him to take over the pack. He had been bedding girls left, right and centre , girls came from other packs. An Alpha needed a mate. He was keeping up the rouse that he had not found his yet.

And when I had been catching glimpses of him , he was usually with a girl. And I had to swallow bile that had lurched up into my mouth and made me ill, at the sights I had seen. It wasn’t the s****l act making me sick , it was the fact his hands were touching someone else. It should be me. I’m his mate. He knows I am , Enzo the big strong Alpha, too chicken to come and face me for the last four months. Not to even reject me properly to my face.

An hour later, I heard them all leave. I waited another half an hour until I heard multiple, if not hundreds, of wolf howls pierce the night’s air. The pack run had begun , so I hopped off of the bed and ran away from where they would all be. I ran as fast as my feet would carry me down to the lakes on the east of the pack land. When I got there, I was still too scared to shift. I kept straining to hear something. But I couldn’t and my wolf got impatient , the excitement of being free made her take over. I went from being on two feet to paws within seconds. After that first shift, these two had been like second nature and painless.

I felt peace settle over me. I felt the warmth of her go all around me as in a tight hug. She was over joyed and elated. She didn’t speak to me at first. I wasn’t sure if she was mad at me or just too overjoyed to be free. She ran about and jumped into the lake and swam around, then got out and she just seemed to lay us under the moon. She just wished to be as free as much as I did.

” Anthea ” I heard my name whisper , like it passed by on a breeze. ” Anthea , don’t block me out ” it said again. How could you feel tears in your subconscious? But I did. ” I don’t want to , but you can not be as free as you wish to be. I know it’s unfair , but we are different “. I heard her growl and snap ” SPECIAL ” at me.

I was about to answer her , when I heard a loud menacing growl. It wasn’t coming from her though. We looked where it was coming from and a huge black and brown wolf stood tall on a rock at the other side of the lake. In one massive leap, he cleared the lake and landed in front of us. Fear coursed through me but I heard my wolf make a snide comment ” Dickhead “. Any other time I would have laughed at her, but not now, not in the face of danger. But then a scent washed over me and I felt my heart rate pick up. Enzo.

It was him. Even that knowledge didn’t give me less fear. If anything more. What was he doing here ? Why wasn’t he pruning with the rest of the pack ? s**t were they all heading here ?

I scurry back away from him , his wolf walks slowly towards our retreating form. Infront of my eyes , he shifts back to Enzo the man , standing in all his naked glory. ” Shift back, Athena ” he says down at me. Powerless, I did as I was told. Standing awkwardly, I tried to disguise my nakedness. My wolf had ripped my clothes off before I had the chance to remove them. I guess I hadn’t thought of that detail until now. His eyes look down at my body and then back up at me. ” Why are you here ?” he snaps.

” I , my wolf, wanted to run.So I got away from the pack . I came here so I wouldn’t be seen “, I stammered out. My eyes looked towards the trees. ” Are the pack coming ?” I asked in fear. He huffed ” Half the pack are f*****g , the other half hunting ” he says annoyed. I looked at him with wide eyes , at his crassness, he tilted his head, picking up on my uncomfortableness . ” It’s a full moon Athena ” he says, as that would explain his words. When I still show no knowledge he sighs and looks away , like my existence annoyed him. ” Full moons make us horny , that’s why my damn wolf fled here as soon as he f*****g scented you. It wants to pin you down and f**k you. Claim you as ours”. He takes a step closer and I feel my breathing go choppy ” You know what horny is, right ?” he asks me.

Of course I did. I knew because I felt it now. He was just so outspoken about it. He leans forward and sniffs the air and laughs. ” Course you do , I scent your wetness from here” Then his face hardens when he sees me glancing at his hardness , standing hard and proud against his belly. ” Don’t get any ideas , my wolf can want you , my body can even want you. But they will not have you. We will not be mated to you, Athena”. He clears his throat and looks away , then he storms forward and grabs my arms, holding me in place. His eyes bore into mine. ” Athena , I reject you and your wolf” he said with absolute certainty. No hesitation.

He kept looking at me , while tears streaked down my face at the pain I felt. ” Why isn’t it working ? Why do I still scent you as my mate ? Reject me , say you reject me ” he snarls. Through the tears and sobs , I said something I never thought I would say. I had prayed for a mate, someone who would love me wholeheartedly. I never thought I would be rejecting mine. But I would not force him to be with me. ” I reject you and your wolf “, I stammered out.

” Nothing , it’s not working. All the stories say this is what you do. Why is it not working ? It’s got to be because of you and how you are. You’re broken and now we can’t break this. I can’t have you, Athena , cant ” He snaps and turns. He shifts and runs off into the dark. My fault , just something else that was my fault.