All Chapters of Rejected, Not Broken : Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

AVERY The pack clinic smelled like antiseptic and dried herbs, a sharp, familiar scent that usually meant safety. Today it only made my wolf restless beneath my skin. I sat on the edge of the exam table with my hands folded tightly in my lap, listening to the muffled sounds of the pack outside. Training drills echoed faintly through the walls, followed by laughter. Life moving forward without me, as if nothing had fractured.I hadn’t felt like part of it for weeks.My wolf was tired in a way that sleep didn’t fix. Slow to rise. Slow to respond. She no longer surged forward when I needed her, no longer offered comfort or strength. It felt as though my body was conserving energy for something it hadn’t explained to me yet. Every morning I woke heavy and fogged, as if the world required more from me than I had to give. I told myself it was stress. Rejection did that to a wolf.He wasn’t an alpha. He had never held rank or authority over me. But when he stood in front of the pack and rej

ROWANShe crossed the boundary at dusk.I felt it before I saw her. The wards along our territory didn’t flare or alarm. They didn’t need to. Something older than magic shifted instead, a low pull in my chest that made my wolf lift his head and go still.Mate.The word rose unbidden, sharp and unwelcome.Ash stirred beneath my skin, slow and dangerous.‘Easy,’ I warned him. ‘Not yet.’I stepped out from the tree line as she emerged from the forest, dirt-streaked and breathless, a packless wolf trying very hard not to look like prey. She carried a single bag slung over her shoulder, exhaustion clinging to her like a second skin. Her posture remained straight though, proud and controlled.Brave.Too brave for someone who didn’t know where she had landed.“Stop there,” I said calmly.She froze instantly, hands open at her sides, eyes lifting to meet mine. She was smaller than me, but there was steel in her gaze. Not defiance. Resolve.“I’m not here to challenge,” she said. “I’m asking fo

AVERY The first sign was heat.It bloomed low in my stomach, sudden and sharp, curling inward like something had been touched without permission. I froze mid-movement, fingers tightening around the vial I’d been cataloging.‘That’s not Rowan,’ Lila said instantly, hackles rising. ‘That’s wrong.’I swallowed and forced my breathing to steady. The pack clinic was busy around me, wolves moving quietly through their routines, the rhythm of work familiar and grounding. I focused on the shelf in front of me, on the neat rows of labeled vials, on the scent of antiseptic and herbs.Then the voice slid into my mind.‘Is it true?’Cade.The sound of him there made my skin crawl.‘Get out,’ Lila snarled, surging forward.‘Not yet,’ I replied grimly. ‘I need to end it cleanly.’I turned slightly, putting my back to the wall as if that would help. It didn’t.‘You’re pregnant,’ Cade said, the mental connection sharp and invasive. ‘Answer me.’I closed my eyes for half a second.‘Yes,’ I replied.T

AVERYstarted noticing Rowan in the quiet moments.Not when he spoke or gave instructions or moved through the pack with that steady authority everyone else seemed to accept without question. It was in the pauses between things. The spaces where awareness slipped in before I could stop it.The clinic was calm that afternoon. Ilyra had sent me to reorganize supplies in the back room, a task I welcomed for the solitude. My hands moved automatically, sorting bandages and tinctures while my thoughts drifted, grounding myself in the familiar rhythm.‘He’s close,’ Lila murmured.I stilled, fingers tightening around a bundle of dried herbs. ‘I don’t feel him.’‘You do,’ she said gently. ‘You’re just refusing to name it.’I exhaled slowly and returned to my work, focusing on the smell of antiseptic and dried leaves, the quiet hum of the clinic, the safety of routine.Rowan appeared in the doorway a moment later.He didn’t announce himself. He rarely did. He leaned against the frame, arms cros

AVERYRowan had not looked at me today the way he usually did.Normally, his attention carried weight. Not heavy or oppressive, just present. Like the air itself adjusted when he entered a space. Today, he had kept his distance. Polite. Controlled. Alpha perfect.It should have made things easier.Instead, it made my chest ache.I pressed my palms to the counter in the clinic storage room and forced myself to breathe evenly. The scent of antiseptic and herbs filled the air, but beneath it all was the familiar grounding presence of the pack. Emberfall felt solid. Safe.And Rowan was the center of that safety.‘You’re spiraling,’ Lila said gently.‘I’m thinking,’ I replied.‘You’re fighting,’ she corrected.I closed my eyes.Ever since I arrived, something inside me had been waking up. Not loudly. Not all at once. Just a quiet awareness that sharpened whenever Rowan was near. A pull that felt nothing like the bond I had lost.The old bond had hurt.This one felt steady.‘I already had a