Chapter 3

Kieran's POV

The moment I left Selene standing in that clearing, I wanted to turn back.

Not to convince her. Not to plead with her to accept the bond.

No.

I wanted to remind her exactly what she was rejecting.

Instead, I forced myself forward, deeper into the forest, my wolf pacing furiously beneath my skin.

Every instinct screamed at me to go back, to take what was mine, to claim her and make her understand that fate was not something she could simply walk away from.

She was a fool if she thought rejecting me would free her. The bond between us might be damaged, but it wasn't broken - not entirely.

She would feel it. The pull. The ache in her chest. The way her body craved mine even as she denied it.

And if she didn't come back willingly...

A growl rumbled in my chest. I wouldn't allow myself to finish that thought.

The night air was thick with the scent of blood. The bodies of the rogues I had slaughtered lay in twisted heaps behind me, their lifeless eyes staring at nothing, but I had no interest in them anymore.

Once, the sight of fallen enemies would have satisfied something deep inside me. Not tonight.

My thoughts were consumed by her.

By Selene Everhart.

The woman fated to be mine - the woman who had just made herself my greatest enemy.

A sharp breeze cut through the trees, carrying a scent that didn't belong here.

I stopped mid-step, my body tensing.

It was subtle at first - faint, almost masked by the coppery tang of blood. But now that I was still, I caught it clearly.

Smoke and steel. Something across behind it.

Unfamiliar.

And I wasn't alone.

A low chuckle echoed through the trees, smooth and taunting.

"That was quite the show, Alpha Blackwood."

I turned slowly, my claws unsheathing, my eyes scanning the shadows.

And then I saw him.

Leaning lazily against a tree, arms crossed over his chest, dark eyes gleaming with amusement.

His stance was casual, but there was nothing relaxed about the way his muscles coiled beneath his clothes, like a predator poised to strike.

Recognition settled in my gut like ice.

Darius Nightshade.

The Alpha of the Nightshade Pack.

My rival.

The bastard was smiling.

"I have to say," he mused, tilting his head, "it's not everyday an Alpha gets rejected by his mate in front of an audience. Must be humbling."

The growl that rumbled from my chest was low, dangerous.

Darius chuckled. "Careful," he warned mockingly. "You wouldn't want your little mate seeing you lose control."

I took a step forward, my movements measured, my claws twitching with the need to sink into flesh.

"What do you want?" I asked, voice sharp as steel.

Darius exhaled like he was bored. "Maybe I just wanted to witness history. The mighty Kieran Blackwood, brought to his knees by a woman."

I clenched my jaw, forcing my anger to remain steady. He wanted a reaction. I wouldn't give him one.

"Or," Darius continued, his smirk widening, "maybe I'm here to make things interesting."

I narrowed my eyes. "Meaning?"

His gaze flicked in the direction Selene had gone, and something dark flickered across his expression.

"You see, Alpha," he drawled, "when a fated mate rejects the bond, they become... vulnerable."

A slow, cold dread settled in my chest.

Darius smiled, slow and knowing. "You know that, don't you? The way she's weaker now, the way her wolf is struggling to adjust.

If you wanted to protect her, you should have forced her to stay."

My blood burned. "She doesn't need protection from you."

Darius let out a low hum, amused. "Are you sure about that?"

A storm of rage threatened to consume me. I took another step forward, my voice dropping into something guttural.

"If you lay a hand on her, I'll rip you apart."

Darius's smirk never wavered. If anything, his amusement deepened, like I said exactly what he wanted to hear.

"Oh, Kieran." His voice was almost pitying. "Who said I was talking about myself?"

A chill raced down my spine.

I stiffened.

And in that single hesitation, he stepped back into the shadows, vanishing like he had never been there at all.

But the words lingered.

The threat sank its claws into my mind.

And for the first time since Selene had rejected me, I felt something far worse than anger.

I felt fear.

For her.