Page 11 of Rejected By the Alpha

We arrived at the small store, and I opened her door for her. “I have to be honest: I’m not used to grocery shopping,” I admitted as we walked inside. “When I was in the Dark Moon Pack, Alpha Jasper would cook for members of the pack at least once a day. I bought a few things to keep at my house, but nothing for real meals.”

“Then you brought the right girl,” Leah said.

We walked through the aisles together, talking about recipes and meal preferences. It felt like she was starting to open up when we ran into Luke and Brittany, a couple who had recently joined my new pack.

“Alpha Killian,” greeted Luke. “How are you?”

“Well, thank you,” I replied. “Just getting a little shopping done. How are you two?”

“We’re enjoying getting groceries without bringing the pups with us,” Brittany said with a laugh. “Those three are a handful.”

“I bet,” I said with a chuckle.

“How are you, Luna Leah?” Brittany asked kindly, shifting her attention toward my mate.

Leah’s eyes were wide as she looked at the couple in fear. “Fine, thank you,” she said quietly.

“I’m sure you’re used to many more options than we have here,” Brittany continued, trying to coax Leah out of her shyness. “But hopefully, you’re finding everything you need?”

Leah nodded but didn’t respond. I’d sensed that she had become more cautious and hesitant in the time since we first met, but I felt myself getting annoyed by her lack of effort with the pack. Where did the vibrant, intelligent, fiery woman I had known disappear to?

“Well, we’ll let you two get back to your shopping,” Luke said, breaking the awkward silence.

“Thanks,” I replied. “We’ll see you two later.”

The couple continued down another aisle while Leah and I headed toward the checkout area. She nearly jumped when the cashier greeted us, and it made me wonder what had happened to her. To have such a reaction to general conversations could only mean that her pack had treated her quite badly.

I wanted to ask her about it, but not out in public. We finished our shopping trip and put everything away when we arrived home. By the time we were done, it was lunchtime, and I made us sandwiches to eat. Once we had finished, I finally got up the courage to open a conversation about how she had acted at the store.

“Is everything okay?” I asked. “When we were at the grocery store, you acted like you were afraid of the other pack members.”

“I don’t know how to act around them,” she admitted. “Having conversations with others isn’t something I have a lot of practice in.”

“You talk to me just fine. Or did you forget how you yelled at me yesterday?” I asked, trying to bring a little humor into the situation.

“That’s different,” she said.

“Why?”

“Because you’re… you,” she said, waving her hand in the air. “I already know you, kind of. I don’t know anyone else here.”

“Well, I have a plan for that, actually,” I said excitedly. “Last night, you got to meet a few members of each of the packs, but tonight, they’re hosting an official welcoming party. All three packs will be getting together so you can meet everyone.”

I had expected her to look forward to being welcomed into the community, but her face showed that it had the opposite effect.

“Don’t worry, it will be fun,” I continued, trying to convince her.

“Please tell me you’re joking,” Leah groaned.

I winced. “No, it’s already set up. Everyone is really looking forward to meeting you.”

“Can I get out of it?” she begged.

I shook my head regretfully. I felt guilty that I hadn’t waited to plan this until we had a chance to discuss it, but there was no choice now. She was my luna, and she needed to be there whether she liked it or not.

Leah threw her hands up in exasperation and walked to the bedroom. I followed behind her, hoping to make things right, but she had locked the door.

“Leah,” I said, knocking on the wooden surface. “Can you let me in?”

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