Chapter 2

The next morning, I woke up angry. Not because something has gone wrong .

Because something had gone too right.

The mate bond still buzzed inside me like a second heartbeat, stubborn and alive no matter how hard I tried to ignore it. I could feel him—Liam—somewhere downstairs. Awake. Breathing. Close enough to touch. Too close.

My wolf was already pacing.

I sat up in bed, dragging a hand through my tangled hair, trying to shut her out. She wanted him. She didn’t care that he was a nobody. She didn’t care about his missing past or the way he stumbled into the ceremony like a half-dead rogue. All she cared about was that he was ours.

“I don’t want a mate,” I muttered under my breath.

My reflection stared back at me from the tall mirror near the dresser. Sharp eyes. Strong shoulders. Alpha. I’d built everything I had without anyone’s help. I didn’t need a bond to complete me.

And yet…

Why did I feel hollow when I tried to reject the warmth he brought?

By the time I made it to the dining hall, Mira was already waiting for me. She stood when I entered, her expression unreadable.

“You didn’t come down last night,” she said carefully. “After the ceremony.”

“I wasn’t in the mood for celebration.”

“Not even for finding your mate?”

I glared at her. “He’s not found. He’s forced.”

She raised an eyebrow. “You sound like you’re trying to convince yourself.”

I didn’t answer. Instead, I poured myself a mug of black coffee and sat at the long table that overlooked the back courtyard. Beyond the windows, I could see the training grounds. My pack warriors were already up, running drills, sharpening blades, pushing each other to their limits.

They were my pride. My legacy.

And now the Moon Goddess had dropped a mystery into the middle of it.

“Where is he?” I asked, keeping my voice neutral.

“In the guest wing,” Mira replied. “He ate, showered, said thank you like some lost puppy, and now he’s… just waiting.”

“Waiting for what?”

“For you.”

Of course he was--

I found him sitting on the edge of the fountain outside the greenhouse. The sun lit up the copper in his hair, and his hands were cupped under the flowing water, like he didn’t know what else to do with them.

He looked peaceful.

He looked wrong here.

“You’re up early,” I said, making sure my footsteps were loud.

He turned quickly. “I didn’t know if I was allowed to leave the room.”

“You’re not a prisoner.”

“You sure? I have two guards watching me like I might explode.”

“They’re not watching you,” I lied. “They’re watching for threats.”

“Do you think I’m a threat?”

I folded my arms. “I think I don’t know you. And that’s reason enough to be careful.”

Liam nodded slowly, then looked down at his hands. “I don’t know me either.”

I frowned. “Still no memories?”

“Flashes,” he admitted. “But nothing clear. Just… sounds. Pain. Running. Screaming. A voice telling me to run.”

My wolf stirred at his words.

“Who was chasing you?”

“I don’t know.” His jaw clenched. “But whatever it was, it didn’t want me alive.”

That shouldn’t have mattered to me.

But it did.

The silence stretched between us. I hated how natural it felt standing there with him. I hated the pull I felt every second I was near him. And I hated that part of me wanted to reach out and touch him just to feel if the bond was real.

“You shouldn’t be here,” I said finally.

“I didn’t choose to be.”

“Well, you’re not part of this pack, and I have no intention of letting a stranger stay in my territory just because fate says so.”

His voice was soft. “So what happens now?”

“I should reject you.”

He looked up sharply. “Can you do that?”

“Yes.”

“Will you?”

My lips parted to say yes—but nothing came out.

I couldn’t say it.

The words burned in my throat.

Damn the Moon Goddess. Damn this bond.

I turned away, furious at myself. “I don’t know what you are, Liam. But if you’re lying—if any of this is some trick—I'll find out.”

“I’m not lying.”

“Then prove it,” I snapped. “Train with the warriors. Earn your place. Don’t just sit around waiting for me to fall at your feet like some fated fairy tale.”

Liam stood. “I never asked for that.”

“Good,” I said, walking away. “Because you’re not getting it.”

That Night…

I watched him from the balcony as he trained with the lower-rank warriors.

He wasn’t bad.

Clumsy at first, but he caught on quick. His reflexes were too good for someone without a past. Too sharp. Too instinctual. It made me uneasy.

And then it happened.

One of the senior warriors went at him too hard. A blade slipped, grazing Liam’s arm.

For a split second, his body convulsed—and then something flared under his skin. His eyes darkened. His entire stance shifted into something primal, something feral.

He grabbed the warrior’s arm and slammed him into the ground with a strength that wasn’t normal.

Not for a rogue.

Not for anyone.

I bolted down from the balcony and stepped into the ring before things got worse.

“Enough!” I shouted.

Liam backed off instantly, panting, blinking like he didn’t know what he’d just done.

I grabbed his wrist and looked at the cut on his arm. The skin was already healing. Fast.

Too fast.

“What the hell are you?” I whispered.

He looked at me, lost and afraid. “I… I don’t know.”

But I was starting to have an idea.