Rejected by My Fated Alpha

The tenth time Damien Anderson stood me up for the marking ceremony.

Once again, he found an excuse to prioritize Adelina Stone, the Lycan Princess. I was finally fed up and decided to volunteer as a roving healer, traveling between packs to offer my services. Yet Damien, as if in a frenzy, pleaded with me to come back home. Too bad for him, I was done.

After waiting outside the pack’s ceremonial grounds for an hour, shivering in the cold autumn air, I finally decided to give up on Damien Anderson. People often say never to repeat something more than three times, but he had bailed on me regarding this marking ceremony ten times—ten whole times. Each time, he would nonchalantly say, "Adelina isn’t feeling well. It’s just a ceremony; we can do it anytime. But Adelina is different. If I don’t go, and something happens to her, can you handle that responsibility?"

With a few words, he completely absolved himself, leaving me feeling as if I were the culprit. How absurd.

I returned to the Silver Moon Pack’s healing quarters, still chilled to the bone. Arthur Porter, our head healer and my mentor, noticed my disheartened state and gave me a puzzled look. "Lilliana, isn’t today supposed to be your big day with the Alpha? Why are you still here?"

I’d handed out wolfsbane flowers yesterday, taken a day off, all for today’s ceremony. Everyone in the pack found it odd, Arthur especially so.

"Did something happen?" Seeing my trembling lips, Arthur quickly brought me a cup of warm herbal tea, his gaze freezing over. "What’s going on in this cold weather?"

"Arthur," I addressed him more familiarly, rubbing my hands together as I spoke. The reason I came here in the first place was because Arthur had been my esteemed mentor during my training—he was so proud of me, his best student. Now, this student was being treated poorly.

"What happened? Tell me slowly. I’ll help however I can," Arthur said, sitting beside me, his face filled with the warmth only a parent could have.

I swallowed hard. "Arthur, I want to participate in the roving healers’ program."

It wasn’t just a wish—it was a necessity. I had initially been selected for this program, but Arthur had thought better of it since I’d just found my mate and wanted to avoid separating newly bonded pairs. So he let someone else take my place.

"Did you have a falling out with the Alpha?" Arthur asked, momentarily taken aback, and then he reached for his phone to call Damien.

"Arthur," I quickly stopped him, shaking my head firmly. "Damien and I failed to complete our marking ceremony ten times, which means we’re not meant to be together. Without a reason to continue, it’s time to move on."

"Please, Arthur, help me. Right now, I just want to serve and make a difference. Matters of the heart aren’t enough to hold me back."

As I said this, I lifted my head