Rejected by My Alpha, Claimed by His Godfather

Mira

"If you're saying all this to deliberately seduce me, Alpha Kellen's bride..." Aiden's voice was hoarse. "That would be incredibly foolish."

My legs locked around his taut waist.

Heat radiated from my abdomen, pooling between my thighs.

I moaned, feeling every inch of his body—tense, scorching.

I was kissing my fiancé Kellen's godfather.

And next, I might bond with him. Be marked by him.

But I couldn't stop.

Hours earlier.

"Alpha Kellen sent word that tonight's marking ceremony is postponed. Emma's old illness has relapsed, and he must take her to the Northern Main Temple for treatment."

"He—he's already left with her."

The messenger knelt before the altar, not daring to meet my eyes.

"He won't be coming back to mark you."

My wolf, Seraphina, whimpered.

I didn't answer, still desperately searching for Kellen's scent.

The scent my father had taught me to recognize since childhood.

Kellen was the youngest alpha of the Silver Thorn pack, bound to me by years of betrothal.

Yet on our wedding day, one second before marking me—he had fled for my sister.

For three years since our engagement was finalized, the thing I feared most had finally happened.

My sister had finally taken everything from me. Including my fiancé.

Hundreds of gazes stabbed into me simultaneously—pity, mockery, curiosity, and naked malice.

Emma Vaughn. That name, sharing my surname, now burned through my blood like a branding iron.

All my life, whatever I wanted, my stepsister Emma coveted.

Father's attention. Invitations to balls. Approving glances from the pack elders.

And every time I gained something, she would turn those innocent eyes to others and murmur, "If Mira has it, I'd like to try it too."

Three winters ago, she had ventured alone to the borderlands of the Northern Lands to gather herbs. When she returned, her face was ashen, claiming she'd ingested wolfsbane by mistake.

Since then, her health had been fragile—fragile enough to demand everyone orbit around her.

Fragile enough to steal Kellen's attention and love. The only person I still cared about. My final line.

But I, well-versed in herbology, knew the truth: Emma had no illness. Never had. Wolfsbane was merely her tool for extracting sympathy.

Rage nearly consumed me.

"Steady, Mira. Never let anyone see you break," Seraphina growled low.

Yes. Right now, dignity was the only thing I had left.

Finally, I drew a deep breath. I lifted my chin, letting moonlight illuminate my expressionless face.

"Kellen will pay for his choice."

I glanced at the moonbeam piercing through the dome, then reached up and tore the wedding gown from my shoulders. My eyes fell on the wine pitcher at the altar—the wine meant to celebrate the newlyweds' union.

If I didn't get drunk, I might not survive this night.

The harsh liquid seared down my throat, and the world immediately tilted.

I kicked off my shoes and stepped barefoot onto the cold stone steps. The chill shot up my spine, jolting me briefly sober.

I walked out.

Not until the temple's stone doors sealed behind me, not until the whispers faded beyond hearing, did I begin to run.

The remnants of my gown dragged behind me. Branches lashed my arms, leaving streaks of blood.

I didn't stop, though I had no destination.

The gates of Vaughn Manor would never open for me again, nor would Silver Thorn territory. And my mother's pack had long been absorbed.

Near the full moon, forest mist swallowed all sense of direction. My steps had to slow.

Then the medicinal wine's delayed kick hit. My vision blurred; the ground swayed beneath my feet.

"Careful, Mira. Another werewolf's scent," Seraphina warned.

She arched her back sharply, a vigilant rumble rising in her throat.

I lifted my head with effort. Through my hazy vision, a black lacquered carriage stood at the end of the path.

Someone descended from the cabin—but there were no footsteps.

Moonlight outlined a tall male silhouette: broad shoulders, narrow waist, like an alpha surveying his domain.

Seraphina growled low.

That growl carried something unusual—a rare mix of desire and excitement.

You're insane, I scolded her internally. Now is not the time to go into heat.

I swallowed hard, unsteady on my feet.

He approached.

I still couldn't make out his features, only those eyes glowing in the darkness—left eye amber, right eye brown.

Those eyes belonged to Aiden Dravenhall.

My blood turned to ice.

In the Northern Lands, the name Aiden Dravenhall was synonymous with death.

He was Kellen's late father's closest friend. When the old alpha died, he entrusted his only son to Aiden. That year, Aiden was seventeen.

He personally installed Kellen as alpha, taught him strategy, taught him how to make enemies beg.

But Kellen didn't thank him. Kellen only feared him.

"Kellen's bride?" He looked down at me, voice gravelly. I could finally see his face clearly.

I nodded. The wine blurred my vision but not my instincts. I still assessed him.

He was far younger than I'd imagined.

I wanted to retreat, but alcohol had seeped into my bloodstream, numbing my limbs.

My heel caught on a tree root, and my body pitched forward—

My forehead collided with his chest. Hard. Burning. I shuddered all over.

Was he running a fever?

I tried to grab his collar, but my fingers slid helplessly down from his collarbone, grazing the hard muscle beneath the fabric.

He exhaled with restraint, his knuckles tightening.

I couldn't move.

I looked up for help, then saw his furrowed brow.

Shit. I crossed a line.

A voice whispered in my mind. But another immediately followed:

Tonight's already rock bottom, Mira. You were abandoned at your own wedding. You're drunk. Can it possibly get worse?

"There never was any damn Kellen. Only me." I laughed bitterly, and the next second felt the world spin.

His palm settled on my waist, effortlessly steadying me.

A tingling current swept up my spine. Seraphina burst into a shriek.

"Something's wrong with him! He's in—"

The next second, my vision went black.

I woke on a cold, luxurious, unfamiliar bed. Aiden's scent surrounded me.

I followed the sound of running water to the bathroom door.

Cold water cascaded down, washing over his broad, scar-crossed back. Droplets rolled along the lines of his shoulder blades, converging at his narrow waist.

His muscles were drawn impossibly tight, like a drawn bow; his skin flushed with suspicious heat.

I suddenly understood what Seraphina's scream had meant.

The alpha before me was in rut.

I hadn't made a sound, but he sensed me almost the instant I pushed the door.

"Out."

His voice scraped from deep in his chest.

I suppressed my racing heartbeat and cleared my throat.

"Your servant said you weren't to be disturbed. But I—"

"Don't need it." He cut me off, tone frigid. "Unless I've lost my mind, I won't touch Kellen's woman."

I'd actually wanted to say I could prepare medicine for him.

Back home, I was my father's least favored omega, relegated to poring over ancient texts in the library to pass time.

Over the years, I'd learned to use herbs for wolfsbane poisoning, silver bullet wounds, and various unspeakable ailments.

That was why Silver Thorn had chosen me as bride.

"I'm not anyone's woman."

He paused, turning his face slightly.

"He ran off with my sister at the ceremony." My gaze was steady.

He narrowed his eyes, his scrutiny dragging slowly across every inch of my skin.

My whole body burned. I knew how dangerous this was.

I was disheveled, reeking of scent. Anyone would think I'd come to deliberately seduce an alpha.

But none of it mattered anymore.

Kellen's betrayal had been a knife, peeling away the compliant fiancée skin I'd worn.

I'd played her too long. Long enough to nearly forget who I was. Maybe only a mindless fuck could remind me.

Aiden finally turned his head and stood. I swallowed.

The outline of his cock beneath the towel was unmistakable—pulsing, thick, nearly tearing through the thin fabric.

An alpha in rut at his most primal.

He closed in slowly.

Before I could react, his hand was around my throat.

The violent aura overwhelmed every cell in my body.

The heat from his lower half pressed against my abdomen. That pulsing, even through the towel, nearly undid me.

"If you're saying all this to deliberately seduce me, Kellen's bride..."

His voice was hoarse, lips grazing my vulnerable neck.

"That would be incredibly foolish."

My entire body flushed. Seraphina moaned in my mind.

"Mira, his wolf and I feel each other. I want him. Now."

Impossible, Seraphina. My wolf should belong to Kellen, shouldn't bond with anyone else. Unless—

Before I could process it, his hand slid from my throat to my waist, clamping down hard.

The next second my back hit stone wall, legs forced to wrap around his waist.

My inner thighs pressed flush against his Adonis belt. Hard. Scorching.

My legs slid down involuntarily, kicking away the loose towel.

"I gave you a chance to run."

He pried open my lips and teeth.

His canines scraped my lower lip, breaking skin.

Our breaths mingled, so potent I nearly fainted.

I closed my eyes.

Pleasure spread from my lips to my spine, from spine to my core.

I was being obliterated.

The next second, he shoved me away violently.

My back slammed against the stone wall. Cold.

His chest heaved. Hands braced on either side of my head. He was trembling.

"Go back to your room. Now."

His voice had regained its coldness, but a rasp betrayed him.

"Tomorrow morning, a servant will take you back to Kellen's manor."

He paused.

"No one will know what happened tonight."

I sobered too. Not suddenly. Gradually—like a receding tide.

Indeed, under the combined influence of medicinal wine and his rut, I'd nearly given myself to Kellen's godfather.

Too taboo.

I pushed past his arm and turned. My steps were unsteady, but my spine straight.

At the door, I heard a suppressed groan wrenched from deep in his throat.

Low. Broken.

Saturated with desire.

When I pushed open the door to Silver Thorn Manor, Kellen glared at me furiously. Behind him stood a timid Emma.

His gaze landed first on my neck.

A vivid red mark—left by Aiden last night.

"Whore."

I didn't rush to explain. Instead, I looked at Emma. Her face was pale, but her lips glowed with healthy color.

"What's the hurry to find me? Your Emma looks perfectly fine."

Kellen let out a low snarl.

"Your sister nearly died! I searched every healer in the Northern Lands last night, and you were out there finding men?"

I laughed coldly. Absurd.

"Remember the vows you made at the altar? 'Under the Moon Goddess's witness, I pledge my life to eternal loyalty to my mate.'"

I repeated it word for word.

"Then you ran. In front of everyone. For this fraud."

"Are you jealous? You slept with some random man to get back at me?"

I laughed harder at the absurdity. I smoothed my skirt and arched an eyebrow.

"That's right. I slept with someone else."

"But he wasn't some random man. He was an alpha."