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Author: King Emerald
last update publish date: 2026-04-24 15:01:39

ARIA

Blinking, the words caught and stayed lodged in my throat. He was not mine. Not now. Not ever. That truth had been carved in long ago. There was no right to feel anything about who stood beside him. No claim. No excuse.

Still, it burned.

She said something low to him. His brow creased, and he leaned down without hesitation. She lifted onto her toes, her lips so close to his ear that my chest tightened before I could stop it. The space between them felt too small. Too familiar.

My body mov
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  • The Alpha King's Rejected Mate    64

    LYDIA Tears fill my eyes, blurring everything before me. For a moment I can’t even breathe, then I nod, my voice trembling with the weight of what I feel. “I will,” I whisper, looking up at him. “I will marry you.”Dex smiles in a way that makes my whole body warm. Before I can say anything more, he lifts me into his arms and spins me around. My laughter spills out, free and bright, echoing through the quiet air.When he finally stops, his lips find mine. His kiss is soft at first, full of love and promise. But beneath it burns a fire that I’ve felt for so long. It moves through me until my heart feels like it could burst. All I want is to stay in his arms forever, to let the rest of the world fade away.“Do you mind if I…?” I begin, unsure of the words.“I was thinking the same thing,” Dex murmurs against my lips with a smile.He takes my hand gently, his fingers warm and certain around mine. We slip away from the others, walking down the quiet hall. My heart beats fast with every s

  • The Alpha King's Rejected Mate    63

    LYDIA The music floats softly through the night, a gentle melody that wraps around the air like silk. Everyone seems at ease, even though there is a quiet excitement in every laugh and whisper. Clara and Brad dance at the center of the floor, their hands clasped together, giggling as they try to feed each other pieces of cake without getting messy. Their laughter echoes across the lakeside, bright and free.I sit a little apart from the celebration, right at the edge of the lake where the moon’s reflection ripples like a dream. A glass of champagne rests in my hand, catching the silver light. The night smells of flowers and the faint smoke of torches lining the path. I take a slow sip, smiling softly at the sound of joy all around me.Dex joins me a moment later. He sits beside me without a word, his gaze fixed on the glowing scene before us. His family is in full celebration, the Silver Crescent Pack dancing and laughing as if the world itself has finally found peace.“I didn’t thin

  • The Alpha King's Rejected Mate    62

    LYDIAThe moon rises high in the sky, casting its soft glow over the garden. Flowers of every color decorate the space, their sweet scent filling the night air. The surface of the nearby lake is calm, reflecting the moon and stars so perfectly that it feels like another world exists beneath the water.“You look beautiful,” I tell Clara as she turns around to show us her wedding dress. Her cheeks turn pink, and she smiles like a child seeing her favorite dream come true.In the Silver Crescent Pack, wolves don’t often hold weddings the way humans do. We have bonding ceremonies during the first light of the full moon, a sacred moment when two souls are joined under the goddess’s gaze. Each bride gets to choose how she wants to celebrate, and Clara has always loved human traditions. That’s why she’s chosen this — a true wedding under the moon.Her dress is long and white, flowing like a soft breeze around her. Tiny flowers are woven through her hair, and a delicate veil falls to her feet

  • The Alpha King's Rejected Mate    61

    LYDIA She takes my hand and looks me in the eye. Her touch feels different this time, softer, not full of anger like before.“One day,” Linda says quietly, “we can sit down and talk about our lives. Maybe we’ll even forgive each other for everything that’s happened.”“Maybe,” I murmur. “But we still have a lot to deal with. It might take years before all of that is truly forgiven.”“Then let time pass,” she replies calmly. “I’m tired of living by someone else’s rules. This time, I’ll move at my own pace. No pressure, no deadlines, and no shapeshifters or goddesses telling me what to do.”I can’t help but smile a little at that. Linda’s smile isn’t full of love, but it’s honest. And right now, that’s the best I can ask of her.She stands up slowly, testing her strength as if making sure her body will hold her. After a deep sigh, she looks at me and nods.“Come on, Lydia. It’s time to say goodbye.”Our steps echo against the stone walls as we walk toward the entrance of the cave. Linda

  • The Alpha King's Rejected Mate    60

    LYDIA "You know," I say to Clara, who's busy straightening the blankets around me while Brad scribbles something about my recovery in his notes, "I wouldn't mind if I never have to see this place again."Clara smiles softly, fully aware of what I mean. Brad raises an eyebrow and gives me a suspicious look."Well, I wouldn't mind if you stopped taking up my gurney," he teases. "Some of my other patients need attention too, you know."I laugh weakly. He's right, though. I'm the only one still stuck in the infirmary. Everyone else has already been discharged. Their injuries weren't as serious as mine, and they didn't have to deal with vampire poison or near-death sacrifices to save the Alpha's life. Both Dex and Brad insisted I stay longer, just to make sure I was fully recovered before they'd let me go.Apart from me, there's only one other person here-Linda. She hasn't opened her eyes in almost two days. Brad says she's in a coma, but I refuse to believe she'll stay that way. Every ti

  • The Alpha King's Rejected Mate    59

    DEX Just when I’m about to lose all hope, a faint heartbeat echoes through the air. My eyes snap open, and I see Lydia’s lips part slightly. She breathes in, soft and shallow at first, like someone trying to hold on to life itself. Then, slowly, colour begins to return to her pale skin.“It’s working,” Brad says beside me, laughing with disbelief and relief tangled together.I let out a shaky laugh too and lean forward to kiss Lydia’s forehead. The wound on her chest starts to close, and the blood that once poured from her heart begins to slow. Her cheeks take on a soft blush, her eyelids gain warmth again, and her lips lose that lifeless blue. Her skin, once cold as ice, feels warm beneath my touch.As she heals, I feel something shift deep inside me. Lydia and I have always been connected, but this—this feels entirely different. It’s not just a bond; it’s as if a missing part of me has come alive again. Like remembering I had another heartbeat that had been silent for too long.Her

  • The Alpha King's Rejected Mate    33

    LIORAIf this were a movie, this would be the moment where the lead actress lay in a bathtub, a glass of wine balanced on the edge, rose candles glowing around her while she drifted through her thoughts.But this was not a movie. Even if it were, I would never be the lead. That role belonged to Vir

  • The Alpha King's Rejected Mate    31

    LIORAHands would not stop shaking as Ronan pulled me away. Feet barely touched the ground before everything blurred. Strength like that did not belong to normal people. Human or shifter, it was hard to tell. He lifted me like I weighed nothing at all.Ronan. That was the name Kael had used.Crying

  • The Alpha King's Rejected Mate    30

    LIORA“You could stab me a million times and it still would not hurt me.”The words sounded calm, almost bored, but my grip on the knife stayed tight. Letting it go felt like giving up the last thing keeping me alive.“What do you want from me?” The question came out again. Slower this time. Carefu

  • The Alpha King's Rejected Mate    29

    LIORAThis was how I died.I had always known my bad choices would catch up to me one day. Still, this felt especially stupid. A shifter who could not shift, sneaking out of Solar Peak Pack territory in the middle of the night. That alone was bad enough. Making it worse, I was doing it knowing exac

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