Chapter 2 - Never!

Zara's POV

"Over my dead body," I spat. "You had your chance!"

"Zara!" Noah grabbed my arm, and anger flared up inside me, making Kaya release a warning growl. Nevertheless, Noah disregarded the warning, tightly gripping my arm to keep me in place.

"I think you should let go of my arm before my wolf rearranges your pretty face," I growled. "She will not hesitate to strike and kill you; she is very protective of me."

Noah winced, but he held onto my arm.

"You believe I have a pretty face?" Noah taunted, a grin on his lips. "I feel flattered."

"Let go!" I hissed. "Before-"

"Come one, Zara," Noah said, lowering his head down to my ear. "Do you really think that your wolf would hurt her fated mate?"

"Do you want to put that theory to the test?" I roared, moving nearer and cocking my head to meet his gaze.

Noah and I started staring at each other as our tension increased.

I refuse to back down. He had better step down before I let Kaya have him.

"Luna Zara, Alpha Noah," the hosting Alpha called. "Is there an issue?"

I guess he must have noticed the commotion.

"No," Noah replied, a smile playing at the corners of his lips and a look of amusement crossing his eyes.

With a slow motion, Noah released my arm, raised his hands in the air, and retreated one step.

"Now if you would excuse me," I hissed, anger radiating off me as I straightened my midnight blue dress. "I have better things to do than to talk to my two-minute ex-mate!"

Noah opened his mouth to say something, but I flipped him the bird and bolted as fast as I could down the hall, heading in the direction I saw Levi go.

No matter how good his excuse was, there was no way in which I would give that son-of-a-bitch another chance.

Noah appeared unfazed. I could hear his shoes squeaking on the polished floor behind me. He was clearly determined to speak with me.

"There is something off about Alpha Noah," Kaya remarked. "He seems incredibly eager to make his point."

"Too eager," I agreed.

Doesn't Noah understand that he rejected me and I had moved on? The bond is severed. It is nonexistent. I have no feelings whatsoever toward him.

"Where the hell is Levi?" I growled. "He is meant to stick by my side and shield me from my obnoxious, conceited ex-mate."

I lifted my nose in the air and took a whiff while searching for Levi.

I narrowed my eyes when his scent led me down a long and dark corridor.

What the devil happened to him?

A few minutes later, I discovered a door that led to the garden outside.

After several minutes, I finally noticed Levi sitting by himself on a bench near the goddess's feet. He had his hands buried in his hair.

"He seems sad," Kaya whimpered, and a cold feeling washed over me.

I hurried over to be by Levi's side.

"Levi?" I called. "Are you alright?"

Levi shook his head, but he avoided turning to face me.

"What the heck happened?" I asked, moving closer.

"I should have realized it was too good to be true," Levi whimpered to himself.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, startled.

Oh, Goddess. Tell me, please, that this is not what I believe it to be.

"That he did not want me," Levi sobbed.

Sh*t!

"You found your mate?" I questioned carefully.

Was that the reason why Levi rushed out of the hall, leaving me alone with Noah?

"Yes," Levi cried, his lower lip trembling.

"What happened?" I asked, sitting down next to Levi and placing my hand on his back.

"He rejected me," Levi said, and he sniffed. "He spared me not even five minutes of his time."

I felt a surge of anger.

Who would do such a thing? Levi is the kindest and most compassionate person I know.

"Who is this guy?" I asked, curling my hands into fists. I was already furious. I would not mind extending my claws and taking a big chunk out of the wolf.

"Alpha Harrison," Levi mumbled, and fresh tears streamed down his cheeks.

My heart skipped a beat, and I sighed, relieved. The rejection was a blessing in disguise.

Alpha Harrison was a jerk. He is a heartless, ruthless Alpha who cares more about his wallet than his pack. Everyone despises him. I could not bear the thought of my closest friend getting paired with that awful Alpha.

I took Levi in my arms and gently placed his head on my lap. While I attempted to comfort and reassure him, he silently sobbed from his broken heart.

I knew Levi was depressed, so I inadvertently began to play with his hair, an old habit of mine.

I sighed.

Knowing how much pain Levi was going through on the inside broke my heart, and I had a feeling that after this, he would be very brittle and wary of love.

I turned my head as my eyes noticed movement, rolled my eyes, and grunted inside when I saw Noah standing a few feet away. He was leaning against the pack house wall, grinning as he watched us in silence.

Could he give his stalking a break?

"The nerve he has," Kaya growled. "To think that, after rejecting us, he is now stalking us like some wild animal."

"Ignore him," I said, turning my attention to Levi. He was whimpering, even though his crying had stopped.

"I tell you what," I said. "I have something at home that can help mend a broken heart like yours."

I gently wiped the tears from Levi's face as he straightened up. His skin had already become scarlet from the tears.

"You do?" He asked, a sob escaping his lips.

"I do," I said tenderly. "Come on. Your name is written on a large bucket of ice cream. And you are welcome to add as many toppings as you would like to go with it."

"Even strawberries?" He asked.

Levi loved strawberries, and they were one of my favorites too.

"Even those," I said. "On the way back, we can make a stop to get you some juicy red ones."

I stood up and extended my hand to take Levi's. "Come on. Let us get going! Let's not waste another minute."

The return trip home was a quiet one.

The desire for his mate lingered in Levi's eyes as he gazed out of the window.

A year ago, when Noah rejected me, I had the exact same dejected expression.

My mind drifted back to that horrible evening.

I didn't take the car home. Kaya took control, shifted, and took off, running into the rain, as fast as her legs would carry her, away from Noah.

We simply ran through the forest for hours on end in an attempt to find relief from the constant ache in my chest.

I eventually returned home, shivering, exhausted, and cold. The pain would always be etched in my heart, a scar that would never truly go away. There was no way for me to overcome it.

I hurried straight to my room when I got back to the pack house. I did not even bother to inform Levi that I had returned.

I was heartbroken to no avail—inside, I felt so empty and cold. The fact that my mate chose someone else over me made me feel ashamed.

I allowed myself to be miserable for just one night.

I kept the rejection to myself, and I never told Levi about Noah. I did not want Levi to feel sorry for me.

I noticed a black SUV trailing behind us.

"It never ends," snarled Kaya. "Allow me to have him!"

"Calm down," I replied. "I think we could lose him in the forest."

Kaya scoffed at me, but she was aware of the reality. Compared to regular wolves, silverback wolves were significantly faster and stronger.

I told our driver to pull over, and he brought the car to a stop.

"What's going on?" Levi asked, surprised.

"Our wolves could use a little run to release some steam," I remarked as I opened the car door. "It will improve their mood."

"What about our clothes?" He asked. "Your dad—"

"Levi," I interrupted him. "I am sure you will never put those clothes on again. Not after tonight, and my father will understand."

With a defeated sigh, he unlocked the car and got out.

I quickly gave the driver his orders, shifted into my black and silverback wolf, and darted toward the forest with Levi's wolf nipping on my tail, hoping to outrun Noah tonight.

****