The Rejected Male Luna

Chapter 5

RUBY'S POV

I got to the border in record time after contemplating all through my journey, lost in thought over everything that had just happened. I could not smell any traces of Gerald, his woodpine scent being one that I had familiarised with overtime. I debated about coming clean about the situation with my mate but at the same time, was worried that once his status became public knowledge, his life would be even at more risk. I cared for my mate regardless of what everyone, including Mary thought,but I was at a cross road where one decision put another part of my life in jeopardy. I really needed to lay my cards right with Gerald tonight. We had been seeing each other for sometime but my certainty of us mating had dwindled down after the events of the night.

A rustling behind me broke me from my train of thoughts, followed by arms wrapping around my shoulders. It was Gerald and for

the first time, his arms did not feel like a source

of comfort around me. "Hey babe?" he greeted me while kissing me on the cheek, which caused Mary to recoil in disgust, her first reaction since the mating fiasco. "Hello," I responded, hoping he could not pick up on my lack of enthusiasm.

Moving away from his arms, I looked at him,his eyes sparkling with excitement which I did not share in. "I missed you," I said, smiling sadly. Gerald was more of a confidant for me than a lover. When we had met, he had been trespassing on our pack borders while I had just left home to clear my head away from the pack and my family. We had bonded over our similar situations. For him, his father was the primary source of his problems, as he was the only alpha child among all his fifteen siblings, his father having been adamant on producing an alpha heir. His father had solely focused on him moulding him to be the future leader of his pack. Both of us being the immediate leaders of our packs had been the foundation of the thought of us mating. I had definitely found him attractive since meeting him and the fact that he was my secret felt like he was my sign of rebelling against my parents.The only time I did.

"I missed you too hun,how was your presentation,ready for your gift?" he responded, then winked. I couldn't help the blush that spread along my cheeks. Regardless of my distraught emotions, the idea of getting my first kiss still gave me butterflies, but I needed to come clean with Gerald about everything that had taken place. He had always assured me he loved me and, since he was the closest thing to a friend that I had I needed to at least confide in him.

"It was really something," I replied while scoffing sadly.

"I am an Alpha, Gerald," I said slowly while gauging his reaction, "and I sort of found my true mate and rejected him." I finished while staring into his unblinking eyes. The quiet night was filled by the howling wind and the crickets chirping away. It was barely a minute, but I felt like the silence had stretched for hours.

"An Alpha? Wow! That's great I guess," Gerald responded while rubbing his chin. " I am so happy for you, but where does that leave us? And what about your mate? What happened?" he asked.

His voice did not match the enthusiasm he tried to portray, but I understood where he was coming from. We were both masking our true feelings tonight but for different reasons all together.

"We can still be together. That doesn't change," I replied while holding his hands in mine. "I rejected my mate because that is not the path I wanted for myself. I want to be able to choose my mate myself like everyone else," I reassured him.

"How did everyone react to you rejecting your mate? It's not everyday people reject their true mates and what about your wolf?How are they?" Gerald asked.

"They were okay, my wolf will come around as well," I responded, making my response as vague as possible, avoiding the specific details that would end up exposing more than I was ready to.Mary was not the tiniest bit impressed, rolling her eyes in disgust. Once again making her presence known before retreating away. I completely avoided telling him about the fact that my mate was a male omega and I hoped he was distracted enough not to ask more about the topic. The last thing I needed was another pack getting news of Max before he got the chance to make it far enough.I trusted Gerald but this was the one thing I did not feel comfortable enough disclosing to him. He would confront me about in future but for now, this was my secret to keep.

" I am proud of you for standing firm on your decision. I can't wait to officially court you now.I know the competition will be fierce but am confident since I got an early start, " he responded while grinning.

" I'm going to tell my father about us tomorrow. I am sure he will be overjoyed. We can now stop hiding our relationship,"he continued. I did not share in his enthusiasm as I expected.Those words would have brought me so much joy in another setting, but right now all that they left was a wave of uncertainty. I was probably overwhelmed and in the coming few days I would be excited, everything that happened being left behind.

Realising that time had quickly passed and border patrol would be coming to make their daily rounds I decided to bid Gerald farewell. I had not been discovered for seasons and this was not going to be the night things changed.

" Thank you for tonight. I know we had planned on doing something special, but can we do it sometime in the future? We now have all the time in the world.See you soon,we both need to get home," I told Gerald while getting up from the grass.

Nodding in understanding Gerald hugged me goodbye and I watched as he retreated along his usual path.

I was not ready to taint the experience with the events of the night, but little did I know I was going to get my kiss, but not from Gerald.

GERALD'S POV

Tonight's meeting was one that I had anticipated for a long time. I had worked hard at cultivating my relationship with Ruby.Earning her trust, learning her deepest fears and being her closest friend. The night we had met had been by coincidence but I had been planning on approaching her for sometime. My father and I were on a mission and she was a key asset to its fulfilment. The news she had given me had been anything but pleasing, but breaking character from her loving and supportive boyfriend meant exposing myself and undoing months of hardwork. The possibility of her being an Alpha was something we should have factored in. We had been blindsided, but thankfully she rejected her mate, making my work easier.

Rejected her mate willingly? I couldn't help but wonder. Mary was all kinds of naive but rejecting her mate was peak ignorance though.Her pack and family going along with it raised eyebrows even more. No one in that whole crowd had a semblance of common sense not to know the consequences? Good for me but bad in the same light.I needed to mate her as soon as possible, which would be hindered by the fact that she was now open to receiving suitors, which was customary where an alpha heir didn't have a true mate, which was her case. The process took a month but her body would grow extremely weak as she was away from her mate and so would be her wolf which, when the cause would be discovered, could halt all my plans. Did she have no idea the effect that it had on one's body, especially on true mates? I was a testament to that, considering I had to keep my mate close to ensure my wolf and I didn't die because of the mate bond. Even if we did not mate as long as they were close, that was the most important thing. She had not come clean over why she had rejected her mate, lying that it was because she wanted a mate of her choice, but the spy I had sent for her presentation would brief me tomorrow. Her becoming an alpha was an unforeseen outcome, my plan of merging and taking over her pack being discarded. She had the option of marrying, but relinquishing power from her being that she was the only heir was going to be hard. Let the games begin Ruby White. The Cresent Sun pack was meant to be mine and no one was going to stand in the way of it. I was going to make sure of it. The first order of business was to make sure her mate was eliminated as soon as possible.