Page 7 of Rejected By the Alpha

Lex nodded at Leah to indicate she should follow with her own vow. She didn’t speak immediately but cast a glance at her parents in the crowd. I saw her mother give her a hard look. I wondered what Leah had been told about her responsibility to go through with becoming my mate.

“I, Leah Smith, take you, Alpha Killian Stone, to be my mate,” she said quietly.

“You may kiss,” Lex said to me.

When Leah’s dark brown eyes widened in fear as she looked up at me, I realized I couldn’t kiss her now. I had seen women who had been forced into physical affection before, and I never wanted to make my mate feel afraid of me.

Instead, I bent down and kissed her gently on her dimpled cheek. I heard her sharp intake of breath as my lips contacted her smooth skin. I pulled back and saw that her eyebrows had furrowed slightly in confusion.

“I won’t force you,” I mumbled so that only she could hear.

“Thank you all for being present,” Alpha Lex said, addressing the assembled wolves. “You are all invited to stay for a reception in the dining room.”

Leah and I turned forward to greet the guests, but none of them were looking at us. Unlike other ceremonies I had attended, there was no celebration of the fact that we had just pledged our lives to one another. I looked at Leah to assess her opinion of the guests’ reaction, but she was gazing into the distance listlessly. It seemed she hadn’t been expecting a loving reaction from any of them.

The guests, including Leah’s parents, meandered into the pack house with us following behind them. When we got inside, her mother accosted me.

“There you are!” she exclaimed. “Come this way, I want you to meet my friends.”

Without another word, she pulled me by the arm toward a group of women holding champagne glasses. I grabbed Leah’s hand as I was dragged away and felt a slight resistance as we approached the group. Her small hand felt limp in mine, and I could tell she wanted to be anywhere other than in this room with me.

“Dears, this is my new son-in-law, Alpha Killian,” Mrs. Smith said to her friends, batting her eyelashes at me as she spoke my name. “Alpha, these are my closest friends.” She proceeded to introduce them by name.

“Pleasure to meet you, ladies,” I said politely.

I answered their queries as briefly and succinctly as possible before excusing myself and Leah to greet the other guests. At each group we came to, all attention was on me. Most of them didn’t acknowledge my mate at all, and the few who did looked her up and down judgmentally without speaking to her.

“Don’t you have any friends here that you want to talk to?” I asked Leah quietly.

“I only have one friend,” she replied. “And it looks like my parents didn’t invite her.”

I sighed as she confirmed my suspicions about her treatment in the pack. “Then we need to go,” I said.

“Why?” she asked, surprised by my abrupt declaration.

“Because if one more person looks at you disrespectfully, I might just take their head off,” I said simply. “Where are your things?”

“Um, I think they were going to put everything in your car,” she said uncertainly.

“Great,” I replied.

I grabbed her hand and strode from the room. Leah walked quickly to keep up with my long strides as we headed for my car.

“Shouldn’t we say goodbye?” she asked hesitantly.

“Do you want to?” I asked, stopping short just in case I had misread the situation. “I didn’t get the impression you were overly fond of anyone there.”

She shook her head, confirming my suspicions.

“Then no,” I said. “I think everyone got what they needed from today. No need to prolong their false affections, don’t you agree?”

Chapter 4 - Leah

I knew I would be leaving with Killian eventually, but I hadn’t been prepared for such an abrupt departure. Still, the relief at finally escaping from my parents was palpable. I felt my body relaxing as we left the courtyard, but when my new mate opened the door to his car, I hesitated.

“Something wrong?” he asked, waiting for me to climb inside.

I eyed him suspiciously, unsure of how to proceed. My eyes darted down the street, and I wondered if I could make a run for it. But my parents’ threats echoed in my head: if I left, I would be without a home forever. Just the thought of excommunication from the packs made my chest tighten in fear.

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