Page 19 of Claiming His Rejected Mate

He groans, not impressed by my reasoning. “You’re the Alpha, Kieran. You can’t just leave the pack to chase ghosts.” Damon rises, his gaze hardening. “And what if she doesn’t want to be found? What if she’s moved on?”

The words hit harder than I expected, but I don’t let it show. “Then I’ll deal with that when I see her.”

Hazel is out there, somewhere. And I won’t stop until I bring her home. I set out for Broadstone the next evening,

Broadstone’s streets hum with danger, the faint buzz of the city’s protective wards doing little to drown out the chaos that lurks just beneath the surface. My wolf is restless, pacing inside of me, his instincts flaring in warning. I pause, standing just outside the door to a bar I’ve been told is a favorite spot for Eldon’s men. The air outside the bar is heavy with the mingled scents of blood, alcohol, and tension. The flickering neon sign above the entrance casts a weak glow over the cracked pavement, and the sounds of muffled laughter and clinking glasses drift out into the night.

The moment I step closer, it hits me—a scent that stops me cold.

Familiar. Warm. Electric.

Hazel.

My chest tightens, the bond flaring to life as her scent wraps around me like a vice. It’s faint, but it’s there, cutting through the stench of rogues and stale beer. My wolf freezes, then snarls, its fury and longing crashing into me all at once.

She’s here.

And she takes my breath away. She has a glow about her as she smiles, her cheeks lifting as her face lights up. Her hair is shorter thanI remember, but it frames her perfect, round face so well. She's wearing a fitted lavender top, and the outline of her breasts makes my mouth water.

Our Mate. We've found our Mate. My wolf perks up.

I want to touch her again, cup her face, feel her smooth, soft skin again. I want to drown in the sparkle of her translucent eyes. Claim her, my wolf yearns. She tucks her hair behind her ears and rolls her eyes.

“Fuck,” I cuss under my breath, feeling my cock harden. She does it so effortlessly. She’s easily the sexiest woman I've ever seen. Everybody here must be after her.

My wolf growls at the thought. Yeah, no one better have touched her. I walk in her direction, but I notice she’s been talking to someone else. A man. I suppress my growl and keep moving, but she leaves before I make it to the counter.

Is she hiding from me? Is she Mated to him? Red flashes in my vision. It better not be that.

The bartender who replaces Hazel, welcomes me. But he sees my distracted gaze, trained on the path Hazel took. Then the man she was talking to goes outside as well. I'm trying to suppress my rage. “That’s Eldon’s girl. From Nightclaw, they say.”

The words hit me like a blow, my wolf growling low in my chest. Eldon’s girl?

A surge of fury courses through me, but it’s quickly swallowed by something colder. Betrayal.

I shove the feeling aside, locking it down as I step out of the bar into the alley. Whatever it is, she has some explaining to do.

My head reels. What if she is the reason Eldon had been in Broadstone all this time? She betrayed our bond. She let another male touch her. Why was I even going out after her? It’s clear she doesn’t care about me or our connection anymore. The nights spent awake looking for her, she must have been in Eldon’s arms, whispering sweet nothings to him. The image of her in his arms, like she had once been in mine, flashes in my mind, and my wolf snarls, low and ugly.

I scan the dark alley to the side of the bar, my senses sharp as I catch movement near the far wall. My eyes narrow as I make out thefigures—a group of rogue bear shifters and a pair of vampires, their predatory laughter echoing off the brick.

In the middle of them is a woman. I don’t need to see her face to know it’s Hazel. My entire body reacts to her presence, the bond thrumming like a live wire.

“Come on, sweetheart,” one of the bear shifters growls, his voice low and menacing. “Don’t make this harder than it has to be.”

“I said no,” Hazel snaps, her voice steady despite the tension in her posture.

The vampire closest to her chuckles, baring his fangs in a cruel grin. “We’re just following orders, little bird. No need to get hostile.”

I only hear a fragment of their words, but rage ignites in my chest, white-hot and unrelenting. How dare they touch her, put their hands on her? My wolf roars, demanding I tear them apart, but I force myself to stay focused. I shouldn’t be saving her. But then I remember why I’m here. If she belongs to Eldon, then she must know his plans. I have to take her back to Moonfang. She has information that our security teams need.

“Back off,” I warn, my voice low and even as I approach them. My boots crunch against the gravel, drawing their attention.

The bears turn first, their eyes narrowing as they size me up. The vampires follow, their movements fluid and predatory.

“This isn’t your business,” one of the bears growls, his tone edged with a challenge.

I step closer, my gaze locking onto Hazel’s. Her storm-gray eyes widen as she recognizes me, a flicker of shock flashing across her face before she schools her expression. I can see her desire for me, I feel it through our bond. I want her just as much. The guilt of how much she suffered weighs down on me. She must have blamed me for a long time. But she's gotten together with another male. How could she? She should be with me! She hid from me, evading my efforts to find her. I should be maiming her for having the audacity to do that, but my instincts are only to protect her right now.

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