Chapter one

The hall went silent, waiting for the Alpha to speak up. They could vaguely sense the reason for the meeting and they had braced their minds for what was to come. 

Alpha Zeke cleared his throat. The crowd tensed up. Dozens of ears perked up, every gaze shifting between the towering Alpha and the woman standing before him. Her auburn hair cascaded in waves down her back, her chin raised in quiet defiance. 

“I, Alpha Zeke of the Bloodcraw pack, reject you Ivy Hale as my mate” 

The words fell like a stone into still water. 

All eyes turned to her, some with pity, others with disdain and most with curiosity. They knew what would happen next, the pleas, the cries and when the Alpha remains unmoved, she would reluctantly accept the rejection. That's what they all do. 

What they did not expect was her reaction. 

She went silent. And then she blinked. 

Once. 

Twice. And smiled - the kind that tug at her lips in amusement. 

A ripple of unease swept through the hall, it wasn't supposed to be this way. The pleas and cries should have started. 

She wasn't supposed to smile. 

The smile still tugging at her lips, she took a step forward. 

Then another till she was standing before him. 

“I, Ivy Hale, do not accept your rejection” The smile grew wider. 

A beat passed allowing her words to sink in. Gasps echoed across the hall. Whispers burst like sparks in dry air. 

What the hell just happened? Was the question on everyone's lips. They had seen many rejections but no one like this. 

Where the female refuses to accept the rejection? It's unheard of. 

“What do you mean?” Zeke's voice restored silence to the hall. 

She took a step closer, almost pressing against the Alpha. 

“You can't just reject me right?” She tilted her head to get a clearer view of his face - eyes gleaming with mischief “I mean, I didn't accept the rejection so I'm technically still your mate right?” 

His nostril flared. “Do you think this is a game?” 

“You make it look like one” She retorted “Rejecting me in front of everyone like it's a choice. I'm sorry but I don't know how to take rejection” 

“Then learn! You should accept it ” He muttered, his eyes turning cold. 

“Well” She drawled “I won't. So I guess you would be seeing me around often now… Mate” She smiled sweetly earning a chuckle from the crowd. 

His jaw twitched - barely but enough for her to notice and it only served to widen her grin. 

Zeke narrowed his eyes at her and turned to walk away as he could feel his patience thinning away. 

“Guess you are stuck with me now, Stoneheart” She whispered under her breath but she knew he heard it. In the way his shoulders tensed. Probably through the mate bond. 

The meeting dispersed in quiet murmurs, the pack did not know whether to laugh, cry, gossip or hide. They had never seen anyone defy an Alpha before and especially not that Alpha. 

Zeke didn't look back once. He walked out of the hall with rigid precision, but inside his wolf was pacing. 

Her words rang in his head “I don't accept your rejection” What did she mean by that? 

No one dared defy him. No one. Not his warriors, not even his council and certainly not his supposed mate. 

He had clearly rejected her but why did he still hear her jumbled thoughts through the mate link?

By the time he returned to his chambers, the sun had dipped low - hiding beyond the trees, casting red streaks of light on the wall. 

He shut the door behind him, exhaled slowly and loosened the cuffs of his shirt. 

He needed silence. Control. Order. 

Instead… 

A voice purred behind him. “Nice place Stoneheart. Needs a touch of color though” 

Zeke froze. 

He turned sharply, eyes narrowing and there she was - on his bed. Lying across it like she owned the damn thing, her auburn air spread across his pillow, one leg dangling by the side. 

For a moment, his mind blanked. Then his voice low and dangerous. 

“What. Are. You. Doing. Here?” 

“Where?” She raised her head slightly. 

“Don't play with me” He growled. 

“Oh” She smiled innocently. “You mean on our bed. I'm just making myself comfortable, you know after the rejection stuff, my wolf craved warmth” She blinked her eyes rapidly. 

Zeke's eyes widened slightly and then with a slight edge in his voice “Get out” 

“No” She said, patting beside her on the bed “Come on, stop looking at me like that. You're acting like I bit your favorite shoe” 

Zeke's hands curled into fists at his side. His patience was fraying “This isn't a joke” 

“Who said it was? I was just testing your theory” She propped herself up on one elbow. “If I'm rejected, why does my wolf still feel this bond humming when you walk in, and why?” Her lips curved, eyes gleaming with mischief. “Why do your shoulder tense anytime I say your name or when I'm around you” 

His muscles went rigid. For a moment, silence filled the space, thick and charged.

“Careful” He said lowly “You're testing more that a theory, Ivy” 

“I know, makes it more fun, don't you think?” 

For a moment, they held each other's gaze - the playful defiance in her eyes, the restrained fury in his and then Zeke took a slow step forward. She didn't flinch. 

He leaned closer, his voice a warning rumble “You think you can play games with an Alpha?”

“I don't play games” She whispered “I win them” 

He exhaled sharply, turning away before his control snapped. 

“Get out, Ivy” He muttered, running a hand through his hair. 

She slipped off the bed, her movements languid and teasing “Fine, but don't miss me too much Stoneheart” 

She walked past him, brushing his arms lightly - just enough to make his wolf growl in his chest. 

When the door shut behind her, he stood there for a long moment, jaw clenched, pulse unsteady. 

What had he gotten himself into?