Her only Alpha

Rejected

"A little presumptuous don't you think? What makes you so sure that I would ever agree to marry your brother?" I said to Aria.

She was breathtaking, with her platinum blonde hair and mischievous almond shaped blue eyes. Clearly the Agnor bloodline left many wanting. She was nowhere near as tall as her brother, but still, she was tall for a girl, taller than me by far. She also has the most gorgeous tan, I envy her golden skin and would trade mine for hers in a heartbeat. Here I was, pale and plain, in the midst of a family of demigods. Ok, not real demigods, but they do look the part though.

"Why would you not?" she frowns

"Well, for starters... he has a terrible temper... overly serious... way too controlling and... he never gave me the opportunity to chose to be here in the first place." I explain

"You can't be serious... he's not THAT bad!" her eyes roll as she speaks

"No matter how handsome... I refuse to be anyone's plaything!" I say with all jokes aside

"He's a good man Cora! That I can guarantee."

"Well if you say so... you are biased, he's your brother!"

"Give him a break will you? He's been through more than you know."

"Care to give me some background?" I say with a raised eyebrow.

"If I tell you... will you promise to keep it to yourself?" she tilts her head

"My lips are sealed" I say as I mime zipping my mouth closed.

"You see... when Adrian was 18 he found his first mate, Charlotte. She was 2 years his senior and already had her hookes into a powerful Alpha in Brazil. She rejected Adrian due to his age and lack of rank at the time." she explains

"Oh!" I don't know how else to respond.

"After being rejected he sulked for months, unwilling to accept her rejection of him... hoping she would change her mind... until he saw her with that Alpha's mark..." her eyes distant, reliving the memory.

"What happened after...?"

"She went off to Brazil, and Adrian, determined to never be weak again, did everything he could to empower himself and close off his heart." she states matter of factly

"Close off his heart?"

"My poor brother changed after that... he lost his spunk, his fun and playful side... and neglected his relationships with people. I lost my brother, in a sense." she trails off

"Does he still... want her?" I dare to ask

"Not in the slightest. He let her go the day he officially rejected her in return."

Our poor Alpha!! My wolf sniffs

Not you too!

Don't come acting all cold and heartless, you can't hide your true feelings from me. She sounds irritated

My true feelings... ffffff... I think I know my true freaking feelings. I argue

"Helloooo... earth to Cora?"

"Sorry... I was just... lost in thought."

"The only reason I told you was so you could understand... his tough exterior is all just a ruse."

"Thank you for telling me, I appreciate it."

"Seems like my job here is done!" she smiles incredulously

"You will remember your promise not to tell??" she eyes me

"Pinky promise!" I hold out my pinky.

Grabbing my pinky with hers she giggles with joy.

It was almost mid day when Aria volunteered to get us something delicious to eat. Apparently she knew just the place and shot out of here promising to return soon... with treats. We enjoyed talking and watching Netflix together as we passed time in Adrian'sroom.

You can say it now... my wolf says

Say what?

You were wrong about our Alpha.

Why would I say that?

Because you were... you're just too stubborn to admit it to yourself. she demands

I don't know...

You do! Just get over yourself already will you! she is getting impatient with me now.

Ok ok, I will give him a chance... but I don't promise anything. Don't go ringing wedding bells in my head now. I roll my eyes at her in exasperation.

Yay!! You will see! It will be awesome! Thank you! She cheers in excitement.

Oh, and I have a small gift for you! I have been working on it all day... She continues

Yes.... I encourage her to explain.

Look down!

At what might I be looking down at?

Your leg silly!!

I fling the duvet cover off of my leg to see what she is going on about. And there I see it... perfectly smooth skin.

The cut?? I was shocked.

What cut? She smiles back at me.

You... you... healed me?

Just hang on, before you attempt to do something extreme... I am not strong enough yet... to heal you completely. But patience Cora, PATIENCE. Soon you will be as good as new!

Thank you so much!

When speaking to my wolfy half, I recognized her human features but also the presence of our wolf form in the background. It was strange, and I couldn't help but wonder if everyone experienced their wolf in the same way. To me it's like looking into an interactive mirror, only your reflection is... perfect.

Just then the bedroom door swings open to reveal Connor standing in it's frame. Does this man EVER knock?!

"Cora..." he says scanning the room.

"You think you have it all don't you?!" he snears at me

"What? No!" I reply surprised. As he marches over to me.

"You think you can come in here and ruin everything I have worked for!" he growls

"That's not what I am doing..." I assure

"Oh is it not? So you are not turning my Alpha against me?! Do you know how rare it is for an Alpha to hate his Beta as Alpha Adrian hates me??" he almost shouts in my face

If only we could run! I am sorry I failed you Cora!

"I have done no such thing Connor, you are doing that all by yourself!" I say, standing up for my wolf.

He grabs me by my throat and lifts me up above where I was seated on the bed, with his one outstretched arm.

"I should have killed you as a pup!" He shouts as I struggle against his grip, feeling the life drain out of me as I fail to breathe.

"Pathetic!" he says as he tosses me down onto the floor. I splutter and gasp for breath as he turns and leaves. Curled up into a ball on the floor I cry hysterically in unbelief.

How could he hate me so

You did nothing wrong... it's him... there's something wrong with him!

Why can't he love me like a normal brother loves his sister... it must be me... if it was only him I would still understand but my parents disowned me too... it must be me...

*memory from a year ago*

I am sitting in the closet under the stairs, hiding away so they wont find me. It's cold and dark and all I can smell is dust and mothballs from the items packed away and forgotten. It would have been easier if only I was also forgotten, instead I was despised, which to me was much worse. No matter how hard I tried, I never could live up to their standards, and failing to phase on my 18th birthday just sealed the deal. I hear the voices of my family through the door...

"I told you Mary, I told you we should've just left her outside somewhere for someone to find when she was a year old... but now it's too late!" my father sounds furious.

"I know Chris, it was a mistake! But we were so hopeful that she would recover and develop into something better. I mean, who would have expected something like that to come from our family" my mother answered.

"We have to get rid of her! She is bringing shame to us all! And I will not have her drag Connor down too!" he was still shouting.

"If only she had phased. I somehow knew she wouldn't through, she is too frail and sickly. Werewolves don't get sick." mother said

"Mary, how would you have us do this? Kick her out or put her down?" my father asked

"I vote for killing her and getting it over with" I hear Connor's voice.

"We are not murderers! We will not allow her to destroy our integrity along with our reputation. We will throw her out and forbid her from ever coming back. She is not my daughter!" my mother suggested

"Agreed." my father answered

"What a pitty, I thought this was going to be fun." Connor adds.

I hear footsteps approach my hiding place and the door opening. A sudden pain shoots through my head as I find myself being dragged outside by my hair.

"Did you really think you were actually hiding with success? We can smell your stench a mile away." my father scolds

"Leave! You are not our daughter! You are not worthy of this family." my mother shouts

"Please mommy, please don't do this! I will be good! I will cook and clean... anything! Please mommy!" I begged with tears streaming down my face.

"Leave!" my father shouts and I feel a sharp pain in my back as he literally kicks me to the curb.*

As I lie on the floor, unable to pick myself up due to my current physical and emotional constraints, I drift away as I cry myself to sleep.

"Cora, I'm b..." A familiar voice speaks as the door opens, but stops mid sentence. Adrian is immediately at my side picking me up to cradle me in his arms.

"Cora, are you ok? What happened?!" he says distressed

"I... I... fell..." I lie and feel guilty instantly.

"I'm sorry Adrian, I lied." I look down feeling ashamed.

"Please baby, tell me what happened..." he says coaxing me

"I don't want to... get anyone in trouble..." I admitted.

"It's my fault anyway..." I continue softly

"Please just tell me, I need to know, I promise not to overreact..."

"Connor was here..." I say gently while avoiding eye contact. A dangerous growl escapes his lips, and as I look up I find his eyes glowing a bright red with his canines bared. I know it isn't aimed at me so I reach to touch his clean shaved and smooth cheek. His eyes turn their blueish green color again as he calms down.

"What the f**k is wrong with that deranged mutt, and what exactly did he do to you?" he says calmly, danger still in his voice.

"He blames me for the tension between the two of you..."

"That's ABSURD! There would be no issue if he could manage to keep his paws off of my mate!" he is furious

"Please Adrian, please calm down..." I say as I look into his eyes with my hand still cupping his cheek.

"Did he hurt you?" he demands

"I feel better now..." I try to assure him

"You are avoiding the question... what did he do... in detail."

"He... grabbed me by my neck, chocking me... then threw me to the floor..." I say softly, avoiding his intense gaze, before adding...

"Please don't reprimand him... it will only make matters worse... and he is still my brother."

"You are asking too much! My wolf would see him dead..." he growls

"Please Adrian, for me... please." I almost beg as I lean into him. After a long while, I feel his tense muscles relax as he finally sighs...

"You are too forgiving... Alright, but only this once!"

"Thank you!" I say, hugging him

I told you! My wolf chimes in my head

"Let me help you, what can I get you?" he demands sweetly

"I'm ok for now, thank you. Perhaps you can sit with me? I would love to hear about your meeting." I am trying to distract him from thinking about what happened with Connor.

"It's not good. A team of approximately 12 hunters have arrived here after the human girl told everyone what she had seen that night. The rumors were solidified, unfortunately, when you emerged the woods bloody. Anna apparently called her parents with news of your injury as to inform them of the postponement of her visit. Anna's parents told their friends who in return voiced their concern about werewolves being in Cold Spring..." he continued to explain

"I am so sorry Adrian... if I contributed to this at all." I said looking at him. I don't want to cause anyone pain. Hunters most certainly were capable of causing pain, and I indirectly contributed to bringing them here.

"It's not your fault, I shouldn't have demanded you to come here without your consent." he said quietly

Awwwwww... Cora!! Do something! You have to comfort our Alpha!

Uh... he does deserve to feel bad about that... but perhaps I could distract him.

"I was about to tell you something earlier..." I say cautiously gaging his reaction.

"Yes my princess..." he stares at me intently, still cradling me in his arms.

"I... I... have a wolf!" I say smiling up at him shyly