Page 17 of Rejecting his Mate

I push up from the bench and join Tammy and the others, all the while wondering if anyone would notice if Dalton dropped off the face of the earth.

Chapter 4

Halle

The moon is full in the inky black sky. There isn’t a cloud in sight, meaning the stars twinkle back at me. I stare up at them, wondering what my future holds. Tonight is the most important night of my life.

My first moon ceremony.

The night my pack draws my wolf out of my body using old magicks.

It is a rite of passage all wolf shifters must go through, but it’s not one to be taken lightly, which is why all of my pack of the right age are gathered in front of the alpha to watch me take this step into adulthood.

Adeline straightens the white gown I’m wearing, bringing my attention back to her. It is nearly sheer, providing my body with some modesty, though nakedness isn’t something to worry about among our kind.

The garment clings to my breasts before cinching in just beneath them and dropping into a flowing skirt thatreaches my ankles. It is beautiful, covered in lace and pearls, inlaid with gold threads.

It feels like a straitjacket.

“You look beautiful,” my aunt says, her face softening as she studies me.

I smile because I don’t want her to worry, but my stomach churns savagely. I should feel elated, but I don’t.

The wolf I share my consciousness with, the wolf my alpha will force me to shift into, is quiet. I can barely sense her at this moment, and I wonder why she isn’t happy about what is about to happen.

Does she know something I don’t?

Sensing Dalton’s presence, I glance over my shoulder. He is standing with his father, talking, but his gaze locks on mine. The smile he gives me is so cold it makes my blood freeze in my veins.

I give him one just as cold back before Adeline takes my head in her hands, forcing my eyes to find hers. “I should never have pushed for your mating.”

This is the first time she has expressed her regret for chaining me to that monster. “It’s a good match,” I say, trying to defend something that cannot be defended.

“No, it’s not, Halle. I promise when the ceremony is over, I will find a way to dissolve your mating to him.”

I blink at her words. Matings can’t be undone—every wolf knows that—but the sentiment warms me. “I agreed to it, too,” I say. “I don’t blame you for this.”

Tears brim in my eyes, but I stop them from falling. I hate being seen as weak. To a wolf shifter, that is an insult, but I feel shredded right now. Raw. Scared.

It feels as if I’m standing on the edge of a precipice, waiting for something to happen.

The quick intake of breath before a storm.

“I blame myself. I thought it would be a good fit, that you would be happy with him, but he’s an asshole.”

I laugh, unable to stop the sound from sneaking out. “You just called Dalton an asshole.”

“I want to call him worse.”

I swallow down the emotions threatening me and change the subject because it is a pipe dream to think our mating can be dissolved. Mating bonds are created using magic. It is not something that can be removed.

“I hate this dress,” I murmur, tugging at the material like a whiny brat. It ticks me off that I’m doing it, but I feel like my throat is constricted like I can’t draw air past the lump occluding my airway.

“It’s tradition,” Adeline says absently.

“A stupid one,” I fire back. “Made up by old men who are long gone.”

“Tonight, you will meet your pack as an equal. You will no longer be a pup but an adult. You will greet your wolf for the first time. It is an exciting night,” she assures me with a watery smile. Her behavior has nervous energy dancing through me. What is wrong with her?

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