Rejected by My Pack, Cherished by the Alpha

I pushed through the revolving glass doors of the arrivals terminal, pulling my single suitcase behind me. The damp autumn wind hit my face, carrying the scent of pine and wet asphalt. Home. Or at least, it used to be.

I was only here for Grandpa Edward. He turned eighty tomorrow. Out of the entire Hawthorne Pack, he was the only one who never looked at me with disgust.

Three men blocked the crosswalk, forming a solid wall of muscle and hostility between me and my waiting town car.

My older brother, Derek Hawthorne.

My childhood best friend, Noah Sterling.

And Tristan Blackwood. The fated mate who let me rot in the dark.

"You actually had the nerve to show your face," Derek said. He didn't offer to take my bag. He just glared, his arms crossed tight over his chest.

"Hello to you too, Derek," I replied, keeping my voice perfectly level. "Move out of my way."

Noah stepped forward, blocking my path to the sedan. "Why did you come back, Elena? Do you know what your arrival is doing to Lillian?"

"I assume she's breathing," I said. "Which is more than I can say for myself the last time you all locked me in a room."

Noah flinched, but quickly recovered his righteous anger. "She was shaking all morning. Mom and Dad had to call the pack doctor to give her a sedative. You know how fragile she is."

"Lillian Frost is not my sister," I reminded him. "And her fragility is an act you all bought. I don't care about her panic attacks."

Tristan finally moved. He closed the distance between us, his tall frame looming over me. Three years ago, his proximity would have sent a rush of warmth through my veins. The mate bond used to sing for him. Now, looking at his sharp jaw and cold eyes, I felt absolutely nothing.

"You're going to march straight to the packhouse," Tristan ordered. "You will get on your knees and apologize to Lillian for what you did at your coming-of-age ceremony."

I laughed. A short, sharp sound that startled all three of them. "Get on my knees? Are you insane?"

"You ruined her life!" Derek shouted, drawing stares from passing travelers. "You bullied an orphaned girl because you were jealous Mom and Dad loved her more!"

"I never touched her," I stated, repeating the same truth I had spoken three years ago. "But you all made your choice. You tossed me into the confinement cell. You knew I had severe claustrophobia. You left me in the pitch black for an entire night, screaming until my throat bled."

"You needed to be punished," Tristan said, though a flicker of unease crossed his features. "You needed to learn a lesson."

"Oh, I learned it," I told him. "I learned that my family, my best friend, and my mate were worthless."

Tristan's eyes flashed gold. He reached out and grabbed my upper arm, his fingers digging into my jacket. "Listen to me very carefully, Elena. You will apologize to Lillian today. If you refuse, I will stand up at the Alpha's banquet tomorrow and publicly sever our mate bond."

He waited for my reaction. He expected tears. He expected me to beg.

"I'll let the entire werewolf world know that you are still a vicious, malicious girl," Tristan threatened, his voice dropping into a low growl. "You'll be an outcast. Even that European pack you married into won't want you once they hear the truth."

I stared at the hand gripping my arm. Then I looked up into Tristan's eyes.

"The moment you chose to believe her three years ago, I stopped being the Elena you knew."

I violently wrenched my arm out of his grasp. The sudden movement caught him off guard, and he stumbled back half a step.

"Sever the bond, Tristan," I challenged, my voice ringing clear over the noise of the airport traffic. "Do it tonight for all I care. We haven't been mates since the night you let them lock that door."

I turned my back on him. The driver of the sedan had already opened the rear door. I slid into the leather interior and pulled the door shut myself, sealing them outside.

Through the tinted glass, I watched them. Noah was shouting something, gesturing wildly. Derek looked furious. But Tristan just stood there, staring at the car, his fists clenched at his sides.

My phone buzzed against my leg.

I pulled it from my pocket. A video call from Kael Nightfang.

The heavy, suffocating anger in my chest evaporated the second I saw his name. I swiped the green icon.

Kael's face filled the screen. His striking silver eyes immediately scanned my face, searching for any sign of distress.

"You landed," Kael said.

"I'm in the car," I replied, the tension bleeding out of my shoulders.

"Mommy!" A high-pitched voice shrieked. The screen shifted, and my two-year-old daughter, Aria, squished her chubby cheeks against the camera lens. "You went on the big plane!"

A massive, genuine smile broke across my face. "I did, baby. Were you a good girl for Daddy?"

"I ate all my pancakes!" Aria announced proudly.

Kael chuckled, gently pulling the phone back so I could see them both. He sat in his massive leather office chair, our daughter perched happily on his lap. He was the heir to the Nightfang Pack. The man my grandfather had arranged for me to marry to get me away from this toxic town. Everyone here thought it was a cold, political transaction.

They didn't know Kael had loved me from afar for years. They didn't know he spent every single day of our marriage proving that I was worthy of being cherished. He made me the happiest Luna in Europe.

"Are you okay, Elena?" Kael asked, his tone shifting. He read my micro-expressions better than anyone.

"I'm fine," I promised, softening my gaze. "Just tired from the flight."

Outside the window, Tristan stepped closer to the glass. He couldn't hear the conversation, but he could see my face.

He saw the radiant smile. He saw the pure, unfiltered love shining in my eyes.

Tristan's jaw went slack. The arrogant anger melted off his face, replaced by a sudden, jarring shock. He pressed a hand against the tinted window, as if trying to reach through the barrier. For the first time, the reality seemed to crash into him. I wasn't the broken, desperate girl crying for his attention anymore. I had a family. I had a life. I was completely, irrevocably gone from his world.

The driver pulled away from the curb, leaving Tristan standing in a cloud of exhaust.

"Elena," Kael murmured through the speaker, drawing my attention back to the screen.

"Yes?"

"You didn't really think I was going to let you handle the Hawthorne Pack all by yourself, did you?"

I blinked. "Kael, we talked about this. You have the pack summit—"

"The summit is handled," Kael interrupted smoothly. A dangerous, thrilling smirk curved his lips. "Aria and I just boarded the private jet. We'll be landing in your hometown in exactly five hours."