After My Mate Chose My Sister Over Me

The pack house buzzed with excitement as word spread like wildfire—Brooke Griffin was returning today. My half-sister. The golden child who had stolen everything I'd ever wanted.

I stood frozen in the infirmary doorway, watching pack members scramble to prepare for her arrival. Flowers were being arranged, banners hung, and the entire front hall polished to a shine. All for her.

"Keira!" Delta James called out, not bothering to hide his excitement. "Isn't it wonderful? Brooke's finally coming home!"

I flexed my damaged right hand unconsciously, feeling the familiar ache that Brooke had ensured would never leave me. "Wonderful," I echoed hollowly.

The sound of tires on gravel drew everyone outside. I remained in the shadows as a sleek black car pulled up to the pack house steps. My heart stopped when I saw who emerged first.

Alec.

My Alec. The man whose touch still burned on my skin from our last session. He moved with predatory grace toward the passenger door, opening it with a gallantry I'd never seen from him.

"Welcome home," he said, his voice carrying across the courtyard.

Brooke stepped out, a vision in a fitted red dress that hugged every curve. Her golden hair cascaded down her back, and her smile—that perfect, practiced smile—lit up as she took in the crowd.

"Thank you all for this warm welcome," she announced, her voice honey-sweet. "It's so good to be home."

Then her eyes found mine across the crowd. Her smile widened fractionally, triumph gleaming in those blue eyes so similar to our father's.

Alec's hand settled on the small of her back—a gesture so intimate it made my stomach twist. "Everyone, please welcome Brooke Griffin, daughter of Alpha Frederick and..." he paused, his voice softening, "my chosen mate."

The world tilted beneath my feet. Chosen mate. The words echoed in my head as pack members erupted in cheers and applause.

"Alec," Brooke murmured, loud enough for enhanced werewolf hearing to catch, "you're embarrassing me."

But her hand slid possessively around his arm, her fingers stroking his bicep in a way that made my wolf howl with rage and pain.

---

The formal dinner that evening was torture. I sat at the far end of the long table, watching Alec pull out Brooke's chair, his eyes never leaving her face as she seated herself beside him.

"The pack has missed you terribly," Beta Marcus commented from across the table. "It's been too long since you've graced us with your presence."

"Oh, I've been busy," Brooke replied lightly, touching her throat in that subtle way I knew so well. She did it whenever she was plotting, lying, or simply enjoying someone else's discomfort. "But I always knew I'd come back to where I belong."

Her eyes flicked to me briefly before returning to Alec. "Some people are just meant for greatness, while others..." She let the sentence hang unfinished.

I kept my expression neutral, though my wolf clawed at my insides. She had awakened fully now, and the mate bond pulled painfully toward Alec even as he sat beside my half-sister.

"Keira has been keeping busy as well," Brooke continued, her voice dripping with false concern. "Haven't you, sister dear? Though I imagine healing duties are quite... limited... for someone with your... capabilities."

The table fell silent. Everyone knew about my damaged hand, about the accident that had destroyed my dreams of becoming Lead Medical Healer.

"Keira is an excellent Pack Healer," Alec stated flatly, not looking at me.

But there was no defense in his tone, no real support. Just a statement of fact.

"Of course she is," Brooke agreed, her finger tracing the rim of her wine glass. "Though it must be difficult, knowing you'll never quite measure up to what you could have been. Almost like being an Omega, really."

I felt the weight of every gaze at the table. The pity, the curiosity, the barely concealed amusement.

"I'm content with my role," I said quietly.

"Oh, we all know you have to be," Brooke replied with a sympathetic smile that didn't reach her eyes. "It's not like you have much choice, do you?"

Again, Alec remained silent. His lack of defense cut deeper than Brooke's words ever could.

As the dinner progressed, I watched them together—my half-sister and my fated mate. Their heads bent close in conversation, her hand occasionally touching his arm, his shoulder. Each touch was like a knife twisting in my chest.

And through it all, my wolf whimpered inside me, recognizing what I had been too blind to see. The scent I had found so intoxicating wasn't just attraction.

It was the mate bond.

The Moon Goddess had played a cruel joke on me. My fated mate—the one person who should have been mine alone—sat beside the woman who had stolen everything else in my life.

And he was letting her.