THE ALPHA’S PUBLIC REJECTION のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 1 - チャプター 10

“Excuse me Doctor Lily, your attention is needed at the manager director’s office.”“Ok. I will be with him shortly” I replied as I scrambled prescriptions on a sheet of paper for the patient staring at me wide eyed and I smiled at her and said, “Don’t be frightened dear, you don’t need many drugs…just lictogen, then you will be good as new.”Then I turned to the nurse standing silently beside me and asked, “are we good?”“Yes Doctor Lily” she replied, then I handed her the paper for the patient and left the ward, leaving the patient in her care.As I approached the managing directors office, my wolf, Nyla, sniffed out the scent of not only the MD, but my other bosses and I squared my shoulders immediately and wondered what might be the issue for them to gather like this within a short notice, which is rare.“Oh come in…come in Doctor Lillian” my manger said, ushering me in with a wave of his hand and I entered anxiously and bowed courteously at the men seated with their legs crossed

LILLIAN’S POV The cottage door creaked open before I could knock. Mum stood there, her apron dusted with flour, her grey streaked braids flying around at the ends. For an heartbeat, we just stared. Then her hands flew to her mouth. “Lillian” She gasped breathlessly. My name cracked in her throat like a bone. She lurched forward, crushing me against her chest. The scent of cinnamon and yeast…home, flooded my lungs. “I am sorry mum,” I whispered into her hair, my eyes wet with tears. “I am so sorry I stayed away—” She gripped my shoulders, her calloused thumbs digging in as she placed me at arms length, as her eyes roved around my body. “Look at you.” Her voice trembled. “My girl. All grown up and….” Her eyes flicked to my designer blazer, my manicured nails and muttered, “Different.” I flinched. Different. Not the tear stained, heartbroken girl who had fled Luxembourg in a hand-me-down coat. Inside, the cottage had not changed one bit. Same faded quilt on the sofa. Same

LILLIAN POVMy head pounded like a war drum.I groaned and peeled my face from the pillow, wincing as sunlight stabbed through the crack in the hotel curtains. “Goddess, why did I drink so much last night?”Then it struck me—the conference.My stomach twisted, and I barely had time to roll over before I was gagging, my body convulsing as I dry heaved over the side of the bed. Nothing came up—just bile and regret.I collapsed back against the sheets, my breath coming in short, shaky gasps. The memories of last night flooded back in jagged pieces—the manor, the garden path, the snap of a twig, and then him.Drake.“Lillian?” “You look…good?”“He asked about you every year”Who? Drake?The same Drake who never noticed me when we were kids? The same Drake who had organized the whole school to mock me? Yeah right.I forced myself to sit up, my head spinning and dragged myself to the bathroom, my legs unsteady. The mirror showed a stranger—pale skin, dark circles under her eyes, her hair

DRAKE POV The moment Lucas called my name, I turned—and my breath hitched. Lillian stood beside Salome, her dark eyes wide, lips slightly parted, her complexion pale. The conference hall lights caught the gold flecks in her eyes, making them glow bright like embers. She looked….stunning, beautiful. My wolf, Kael, stirred restlessly in my chest, a low growl rumbling through me. She was here. Lillian was here. But before I could take a step towards her, she appeared. Sharon. Her sickly sweet perfume invaded my senses as she draped herself over my arm, her long nails digging into my biceps like claws. “Drake, darling,” she purred, her voice laced with venom. “You didn’t tell me ‘Lily’ would be here.” Lillian flinched at the sound of her name, for it sounded as poison. “Drop it Sharon,” I snarled, my gaze never leaving Lillian. Lucas stepped forward, his usual easygoing demeanor gone. “Yeah, drop it,” he echoed, his voice loud and sharp. “You are embarrassing

DRAKE POVThe alcohol in my glass swirled like my thoughts—dark and unsettling.I drank the contents in one gulp, the searing burn doing nothing to erase the image etched into my skull…Lillian’s face when Andre had called her “mate.” The way her breath hitched. The way her fingers trembled and her lips slightly parted.Mine. Kael snarled inside me, claws raking my ribs. Ours.“She isn’t ours Kael,” I whispered. “She is Andre’s.”No!I crushed the glass in my fist and sent the shards flying in all directions.“Easy, Alpha.” Lucas leaned against my office desk with his arms crossed and brow raised skeptically. “That is the third one this hour.”I didn’t answer. I just shrugged it off and placed what remained of the glass back on the table. The shards but into my palm, with blood dripping onto the polished mahogany. The pain was a distraction. A weak one.Lucas sighed. “Okay. Talk to me. Is this about the letter? Or….” He hesitated and leaned in. “Lillian?”My jaw locked instantly and I