All Chapters of Rejected then Claimed by the Alpha: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Serena My heels touched the marble before my face did. I waited those few seconds on purpose because yes, I wanted all the attention when I finally stepped out. Once, I had been cast out of this mansion in shame. Now, I returned with Kael at my back, the Alpha who had begged for me to come. The sound of my heels filled the hall. Sharp. Deliberate. Each step its own declaration. I didn’t shrink. I didn’t hide. I lifted my chin and walked like I belonged here. Like I had never been pushed out in the first place. Eyes followed me. Some wide with shock, others narrowed with disgust. The staff froze, as if their very breathing could betray them. It was the silence that did it the brittle, sharp-edged silence that said, how dare she return? Just the right kind of attention I was looking for in that moment And yet, none of them stopped me. None of them dared. Because behind me was Kael. And Kael was not the Alpha they remembered. This was a man who had knelt for me. Begged

Serena It started with laughter. Not mine. Ari’s. the kind of laughter that didn’t belong inside a cold estate like this. It pulled me from the window. I stepped out onto the stone balcony and looked down toward the stables. And there they were. Kael and Ari. My son sat on a small dark bay horse, reins held in one tiny fist, the other clutching Kael’s sleeve as the Alpha led the animal in slow, careful circles. Ari was beaming, legs too short to reach the stirrups, his laughter ricocheting off the walls like magic. Kael said something, and Ari shouted, “Again!” And Kael, Kael laughed. Not a smirk. Not a scoff. A real laugh. I hadn’t heard it in years. It didn’t sound royal. Or proud. Or guarded. It sounded human. I leaned against the rail, arms crossed, heart tangled. I’d told myself I would keep my distance. That I’d never fall for this again. But it was getting harder not to look. — Later that morning, Ari begged to go back to the stables.

Serena The cup slipped from my hand before I even heard the knock. It hit the sink, water splashing up my arm, but I didn’t move. My chest already knew who stood outside the door. Kael. He had a way of always inviting himself over these days. I have to do something about that soon. And For a long moment I just stared at the doorway, wet fingers trembling, my breath caught somewhere between anger and something I didn’t want to name. I should’ve told him to leave. I should’ve let him stand there in the dark until he gave up. Instead, I dried my hands and walked to the door. When I opened it, his eyes met mine. And that was the problem. “What do you want now?” I asked while standing at the doorway “Is he asleep?” he asked. “Almost,” I said. He nodded once. “I can come back later.” I almost let him leave. Almost told him to turn around. But something inside me something stubborn, something that still remembered held me in place. “Come in.” His gaze f

The fire had burned low in Kael’s chamber. He didn’t add more logs. Let it die, he thought. The silence suited him. The shadows, too. He sat near the balcony door, the moonlight sliding across the polished stone floor like frost. Outside, the wind moved through the trees, restless. Almost like his wolf — pacing, unsettled, barely held in check. He hadn’t slept. Not really. Most nights, he didn’t anymore. Not since Serena came back. Not since Ari called him “Dad” for the first time. And especially not since his wolf had stirred for her like it never had for anyone else not even Mirah. Kael flexed his jaw. His shoulders ached with tension. His body, always wound tight, felt like it was being pulled in two. One half drowning in duty, the other clawing toward something he thought he’d lost forever. A knock shattered the quiet. Not gentle. Not waiting. The door opened before he gave permission. Mirah. He didn’t move. She stepped into the room, uninvited,

Serena I used to wonder what Ari’s fourth birthday would look like. In my mind, it was always quiet. A small cake, maybe, with Ma humming in the kitchen while I lit a candle. A paper crown, hand-drawn. Gifts wrapped in old newspapers. Maybe one or two friends from the neighborhood. Simple. Safe. But not this. Not banners bearing his name stretched across the vaulted ceiling of the Moonclaw Great Hall. Not golden ribbons on every chair, or Elders seated in a row of honor, waiting for the Alpha’s son to appear. Not waitstaff gliding silently with trays of roasted meat and fruit compotes. And not Kael tall, silver eyes, immovable standing at the entrance of the hall with Ari in his arms, his hand resting protectively on our son’s back. This wasn’t the birthday I imagined. This was something else entirely. “Are you alright?” Ma asked me as I adjusted my dress. Her voice was gentle, but her eyes didn’t miss much. “No,” I admitted. She nodded. “Good. Then you won’t be