Rejecting My Alphas for the Vampire Prince

My foster brother Caelan used to say he'd only ever marry me.

Then three months ago, Mira Ashby arrived—and suddenly she was his "true fated mate" all along.

Tonight was their marking ceremony. The whole pack gathered to watch the Alpha heir bond with his chosen mate. I stood near the back of the hall, trying to make myself small.

I was human. The only one in the Thorne pack. For eighteen years, Caelan and his younger brother Ronan made me feel like I belonged anyway.

That changed when Mira came.

I planned to slip out before the ritual began. The marking ceremony used Silverbloom incense—it heightened wolf senses but was toxic to humans. Caelan and Ronan always made me wait outside during these things.

"Elara!"

Mira's voice cut through the crowd. She rushed toward me, her delicate frame wrapped in ceremonial white. Every wolf turned to look.

"I've been searching everywhere for you." She clasped my hands, eyes wide and earnest. "You're not leaving, are you?"

"The incense—"

"But you're family." Her grip tightened. "This is the most important day of my life. I want you there. Please."

The wolves around us murmured approval. What a kind, inclusive mate for our future Alpha.

I glanced toward Caelan. He was watching us, expression unreadable.

"Of course," I heard myself say. "I'd be honored."

Mira beamed and pulled me toward the front row.

The incense was lit. Silver smoke curled through the air, sweet and heavy. Within minutes, my throat began to burn.

I tried to breathe shallowly. The ceremony had just started—I couldn't leave now. Mira stood at the altar, radiant, as Caelan took her hands.

"By blood and bond," the officiant intoned, "do you claim this wolf as your fated mate?"

"I do."

The pack erupted in cheers. More incense was added to the braziers.

My vision blurred. My lungs felt like they were being scraped raw from the inside. I gripped the back of the chair in front of me, trying to stay upright.

I remembered being seven years old, crying in the courtyard because the other wolf pups said I smelled wrong. Caelan found me and sat with me until I stopped. "You're pack," he said. "Anyone who says different answers to me."

I remembered being fourteen, sick with a human flu that baffled the wolf healers. Ronan stayed up three nights straight, researching human medicine, making me drink bitter tea every four hours.

Now Ronan stood beside the altar, applauding his brother's union. He hadn't looked at me once tonight.

The smoke thickened. My knees buckled.

I hit the ground hard. The stone floor was cold against my cheek. Through the haze, I saw Mira gasp and clutch Caelan's arm.

"Oh no—is she alright? I didn't think—I just wanted her to be part of this—"

Caelan's face appeared above me, but his body was angled toward Mira. "Someone take her to the healers."

Not I'll take her. Just someone.

Ronan stepped forward, then stopped when Mira let out a small sob. "This is my fault, isn't it? I ruined everything—"

"You didn't ruin anything." Ronan's voice was gentle. "You couldn't have known."

But he knew. The thought surfaced through the fog. He's always known.

Arms lifted me—pack members, not my brothers. The last thing I saw before darkness took me was Mira weeping prettily into Caelan's chest while Ronan stroked her hair.

I woke in the healing ward. My throat was raw and my skin was covered in red welts.

The wolf healer told me I'd inhaled too much Silverbloom. The damage wasn't permanent, but I'd need a week to recover.

Footsteps. I turned my head.

It was Mother—Helena, the pack's Luna. She sat on the edge of my bed and took my hand.

Eighteen years ago, my human parents died in a wolf territory war. Helena and her husband, Alpha Thorne, took me in. Raised me alongside their sons. She was the only mother I remembered.

"I heard what happened." Her voice was soft.

I didn't say anything. What was there to say?

She was quiet for a moment. Then: "The Draven family contacted me again last week."

My chest tightened. Three months ago, the vampire royal house sent an envoy to our pack. They said their prince's bloodline prophecy had revealed his fated mate. Me.

I refused without hesitation. Leave Caelan and Ronan? Leave the only home I'd ever known? Impossible.

"They asked if you had reconsidered," Helena continued. "Their prince hasn't withdrawn the offer. He told my messenger he would wait outside our borders. However long it takes."

I stared at the ceiling. The welts on my skin throbbed with each heartbeat.

You're pack. Anyone who says different answers to me.

Caelan's words from eleven years ago. Tonight, he didn't even carry me out of the room.

"Tell them yes," I said.

Helena's hand tightened on mine. "Elara—"

"I've made my decision."

She looked at me for a long moment. Then she nodded and rose to send word.

After she left, I lay in the silence. And somewhere beyond the pack borders, I could almost hear a voice:

You finally changed your mind. I'm still here.