The Alpha’s forbidden Luna

Chapter 1: The Mate That Should Never Exist

The night of the Ascension Ceremony was supposed to change Prince Rowan’s life.

Instead, it changed mine.

I stood at the entrance of the Moonstone Palace with my basket of herbs clutched tightly against my chest. The towering silver gates glowed beneath the full moon, and music spilled from the grand ballroom where nobles laughed and celebrated.

I didn’t belong here.

I was Lyra Blackwood—the adopted daughter of my pack’s healer. While the Alphas and their families wore silk embroidered with silver thread, I wore a simple navy dress my guardian had stitched years ago.

“Keep your head down,” my guardian had warned before illness confined her to bed. “Deliver the medicine to the royal physician and leave. Don’t speak to anyone.”

Simple enough.

Or so I thought.

The guards barely spared me a glance as I entered the palace. Servants hurried past carrying trays of crystal goblets and roasted game, while warriors lined the marble corridors like statues.

I lowered my eyes and followed the familiar scent of medicinal herbs toward the physician’s chambers.

Then it happened.

A sharp pain shot through my chest.

I stumbled.

The basket slipped from my hands, glass bottles shattering across the polished floor.

My heart slammed against my ribs.

“What…?”

Heat spread through every vein in my body.

Inside me, my wolf—usually quiet and patient—burst awake.

Mate.

The word echoed through my mind like thunder.

My breath caught.

“No…”

I had dreamed about this moment since I was a little girl. Every werewolf did. The Moon Goddess blessed each wolf with one destined mate—the person whose soul completed their own.

But why now?

Why here?

The scent reached me first.

Cedar.

Rain-soaked earth.

A trace of smoke after a fire.

It wrapped around me like invisible hands, impossibly familiar.

My wolf whimpered.

Find him.

Against my better judgment, I followed the scent toward the royal throne hall.

The enormous doors stood open.

Inside, hundreds of guests filled the glittering chamber beneath crystal chandeliers. Banners bearing the royal crest hung from towering pillars while musicians played a triumphant melody.

At the center stood Prince Rowan.

Golden-haired, broad-shouldered, and every bit the future Alpha King the stories described.

Women watched him with admiration.

Men bowed in respect.

He smiled confidently as the High Elder prepared to place the ceremonial crown upon his head.

My wolf remained silent.

Not him.

Confused, I searched the room again.

Then…

I saw him.

Standing beside the throne.

Alpha King Kael.

The ruler of the Seven Kingdoms.

The man warriors feared and children admired.

He was taller than everyone around him, dressed in black ceremonial robes trimmed with silver. His dark hair brushed his collar, streaked faintly with silver at the temples. His face held the calm authority of someone who had carried the weight of a kingdom for decades.

His icy blue eyes swept across the hall…

…and landed on me.

Everything stopped.

The music.

The conversations.

Even the air itself seemed to freeze.

His eyes widened.

For the first time, the legendary Alpha King looked… shaken.

His lips parted.

“Mate.”

The word was barely a whisper.

Yet in the sudden silence, everyone heard it.

A crystal goblet slipped from someone’s hand and shattered.

Gasps rippled through the crowd.

“No…”

“It can’t be…”

“The King?”

“My Goddess…”

I couldn’t breathe.

My knees weakened as the bond between us snapped into place like an invisible chain.

It was real.

Impossible.

Terrifyingly real.

Kael took one instinctive step toward me.

Then he stopped.

Duty replaced emotion in his expression.

The king buried every trace of longing behind a mask of cold control.

Prince Rowan slowly turned toward the palace entrance.

His gaze moved from his father…

…to me.

Understanding flashed across his face.

Then came something far more dangerous.

Jealousy.

Without warning, he strode across the hall.

The crowd parted instantly.

Every step echoed against the marble floor until he stood directly before me.

“You,” Rowan said quietly.

I lowered my head.

“Your Highness.”

He tilted my chin upward, forcing me to meet his eyes.

“So…”

His smile was charming.

Too charming.

“The Moon Goddess has quite the sense of humor.”

Before I could react, he took my hand and turned to face the stunned crowd.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” he announced, his voice carrying effortlessly through the hall.

“I have decided that my future Luna will be chosen tonight.”

My stomach dropped.

No.

Please… no.

His fingers tightened painfully around mine.

“And I choose…”

He looked directly at his father.

“…her.”

Silence.

Absolute silence.

The entire kingdom watched as Prince Rowan claimed the woman destined for the Alpha King.

Across the hall, Kael’s fists clenched at his sides.

For one heartbeat, the air trembled with the restrained power of the strongest wolf alive.

Then he spoke.

His voice was calm.

Cold.

Deadly.

“Release her.”

The command echoed through the throne hall.

No one moved.

Not even Prince Rowan.