Rejected by the Alpha, Claimed by the King

The sun hung low on the horizon, casting long shadows across our territory as I watched Ace emerge from the treeline. My heart should have leaped at the sight of my mate returning after three days away, but something cold twisted in my stomach instead. He wasn't alone.

Beside him walked a she-wolf I'd never seen before—tall, elegant, with golden hair that caught the dying light like spun silk. Her clothes were expensive, the kind worn by pack royalty, not rogues like us. The way she carried herself spoke of privilege, of a life untouched by the hardships that had shaped our pack.

Our pack members gathered in the clearing, their voices dying to whispers as they took in the stranger. I placed a protective hand over my still-flat belly, where our pup grew beneath my heart, and stepped forward.

"Pack," Ace's voice carried across the clearing with Alpha authority, but I caught the tension underneath. "I present Dahlia Tucker, daughter of Beta Tucker from the Lycan King's Council."

Dahlia inclined her head gracefully, her amber eyes scanning our rough camp with barely concealed disdain. When her gaze met mine, I saw something calculating there, something that made my wolf bristle.

"She will be staying with us permanently," Ace continued, his words falling like stones into still water. "As part of a crucial deal for our pack's survival."

My blood turned to ice. Permanently? I searched Ace's face for some explanation, some reassurance, but he wouldn't meet my eyes. The pack murmured uneasily, sensing the undercurrents they couldn't quite understand.

"Welcome," I managed, my Luna voice steady despite the chaos in my chest. But Dahlia's smile in return was sharp as a blade.

That night, alone in our den, the truth came crashing down like an avalanche.

"The Lycan Council gave me an ultimatum," Ace said, his back to me as he stared out into the darkness. "Take Dahlia as my chosen mate to legitimize our pack and gain official territory rights, or face complete destruction by Lycan enforcers."

The words hit me like physical blows. "Chosen mate?" My voice came out as barely a whisper.

He finally turned, and I saw the torment in his dark eyes. "You'll remain my fated mate, Everly. In secret. But Dahlia must become the public Luna. It's the only way to protect our pack, to protect our pup."

"Protect our pup?" I stood slowly, my hand instinctively covering my belly. "By betraying everything we are? By making me hide like some shameful secret?"

"You don't understand—"

"I understand perfectly." The words came out harder than I intended. "You're choosing political convenience over our mate bond. Over me."

Ace stepped toward me, his hand reaching out, but I backed away. "Everly, please. I'm trying to save us all."

"By destroying us first." I turned away, unable to look at him anymore. "Get out."

"Everly—"

"GET OUT!" The command tore from my throat with Luna authority, and even my own mate couldn't resist it. The