Page 21 of Rejected by My Shadow Alpha (Mate to the Fallen #1)

Ruby

Drew's voice echoed in my mind like a heartbeat.

I love you, Ruby. Deeply. Always.

I lay curled in his arms, our bodies tangled in the afterglow of something that felt indescribable.

My skin still hummed from his touch, my breath steady now against his chest. His fingers had stopped tracing my back moments ago, stilled by sleep, and yet the imprint of his hands lingered on my waist, my thighs, and my heart.

I closed my eyes, letting the memory of what we shared settle inside me like a secret. It was different this time, deeper, fiercer, and soul-deep. The way he touched me and kissed me felt like I wasn't a mistake or a tool for revenge, but something he needed to survive.

It wasn't like Westbrow. It didn't feel like the night he marked me and watched me walk away with ice in his eyes. That memory jabbed like a thorn, even now. No matter how warm his embrace, it couldn't erase the cold I'd once known.

I raised my head to look at him.

Drew slept beside me, naked and peaceful, his brow smoothed, his lips slightly parted to a perfect O that made me want to kiss him.

He looked young and vulnerable and not like the man who'd rejected me, not the avenger of his pack.

He was just Drew, the man I'd once desired and was attracted to, the man I still somehow wanted.

But what did I know of his love now? What proof was there that he wouldn't wake up and see me again for what I've always been to him—his enemy's daughter?

My heart twisted.

He had saved Liora and fought off a deranged wolf with no hesitation, protecting her like a true father would. He'd said the wolf was sent, not just feral. We'd been safe, quiet, and hidden in Littleton until he came. Now it was one attack after another. Nia had warned me: The storm is coming.

And what if it's already here? I couldn't stay tangled in this lie, this fantasy. I slowly shifted in his arms. His brows furrowed, his grip tightening instinctively around my waist. I held my breath, pulling free gently, careful not to wake him, but his eyes fluttered open, catching me mid-step.

"Ruby?" His voice was sleep-laced and low. "What's wrong?"

I looked down at him, resisting the urge to kiss him and lie next to him and stay all day in my bed with his arms around me. My heart thudded with dread, pained at what I was about to do.

"Nothing," I said. "You should get dressed. You need to leave."

He blinked, confusion chasing away the sleep. He sat up slowly, sheets pooling around his waist. "What?"

"I said leave, Drew," I said, my tone firm and insistent, a far contrast to how shattered and torn I felt within.

His jaw clenched. "Ruby, please don't push me away. You were in my arms minutes ago, and I swear, it felt right."

"Not to me," I lied, my heart sinking at the denial. I gestured between us, my voice sharp and cracking. "This thing between us was a mistake. It's not real. Whatever fantasy we slipped into some moments ago doesn't erase the past."

He shook his head, his eyes dark. "You're wrong, Ruby. What we shared was real. Every part of it, and I meant every word. I love you."

"You don't get to say that now!" I snapped, stepping away. I picked a robe from my hanger and covered my nakedness. "You don't get to reclaim me after rejecting me. You chose hatred and vengeance. Do you think a few words and a kiss will fix everything?"

"I'm not going anywhere," he said firmly. "Not now. Not ever."

I stared at him, my heart pounding, surprised at his firm stance. What would it take me to get him away from Liora and me? I kicked myself for letting my body betray me at the feel of his touch. Drew stared at me, his gaze pleading yet firm with a quiet resolution.

"I know Liora is mine," he said quietly, his tone firm yet unaccusing.

The world tipped beneath me. "What?" I breathed. Who told him, I wondered, my heartbeat increasing.

"I know she's my daughter, Ruby."

Panic clawed at my throat. "Who told you? Who the hell told you that? Nia?"

"No," he cut in. "She didn't, but I felt it in my bones and in my blood. A part of me knew that she was mine. There was no mistaking it. The bond I felt with her was different. It lit up everything inside me, and I wasn't the only one who knew."

My heart dropped, and I felt fear settle in my gut. "What do you mean?"

"Someone in my pack knew before I did. They cast that blood curse."

I said nothing. His words only confirmed my suspicion all along, yet Drew saying it made me realize how deep the war between our packs could go to bring us down. "Do you know who did this?" My voice shook.

Drew shook his head. "No," he sighed. "I don't know the person behind this, but I know they used a blood curse. Maybe to kill her as some form of vengeance."

I folded my arms, and a tremor of fear ran through me. "I felt it that day…the day she was attacked. A dark presence was in her room, something vile and evil."

"She's in danger from both sides, Ruby," he said, his voice low and tight with conviction.

"Your father is still looking for you. If he finds her, he won't hesitate to hurt her, and someone in my pack wants her dead.

That wolf wasn't just sick. It was sent.

You really think I can walk away now, knowing that? "

I had no words to argue, only silence. A part of me acknowledged he was right, but it was not as simple as Drew made it sound. What we were facing was deadly and dark, and I would not put Liora in harm's way again. The silence between us was thick, pulsing with everything left unsaid.

"Ruby," he said softly. "Can I ask you something? Why did you leave New York and Westbrow? You were so passionate about your job. I never expected you would move to this part of the world."

I turned to him, my heart pounding. His eyes weren't accusing, just searching, haunted by a need to understand. I met his eyes.

"My father found out I was pregnant. When he realized I was carrying your child, he demanded that I terminate the pregnancy. He said no child from the ashes of Lunaris should be born into his world."

Drew's breath left him in a jagged gasp. His face contorted, pain, guilt, and rage all tumbling through him in waves. The words seemed to freeze the air. He crossed to me slowly, cupping my face with both hands.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered, his voice raw. "I didn't know. If I had known, Ruby, I swear, I never would've…" He cradled me in his arms, and I closed my eyes, strangely comforted by the solid hardness of his chest.

"I won't let you lose anything else," he said fiercely. "Never again, not with me here. I'm not walking away. I'm not abandoning you again."

Something in his voice and the protectiveness in his eyes moved me, but it wasn't enough to erase the fear.

I moved away from his embrace and stilled my mind not to give in, hardening myself.

In the past, I would have considered going with him anywhere, but not with Liora.

I wouldn't put her in danger because of what I felt for Drew.

I had to protect my child from this hate and danger between our families.

"No," I said, my voice cold. "You are part of the reason we're being hunted, Drew, from the very beginning. Now someone in your pack wants my daughter dead, and don't pretend you didn't know." I added, my tone accusing.

Drew blinked, shocked. "You really think I'd do that?" His voice rose. "You think I'd harm my own child?"

My heart faltered. It couldn't have been him, but I shrugged, my tone careless. "You marked me and left me bleeding. You knew what that bond meant, and you tore it apart like it was nothing. So yes, Drew, forgive me if I don't rush to trust you."

He sighed in frustration, his jaw set. He seemed to be fighting hard to stay calm.

"I'm sorry," he said, his voice hoarse, "for everything, for hurting you, for letting my rage blind me.

I can't undo it, but I am trying. Let me prove it.

Let me try to be the man you and Liora deserve.

Ruby, I am sorry I hurt you. It was the hardest thing I ever did, and I have regretted it every day.

If I could turn back time, I would never hurt you like I did. "

Tears shimmered in my eyes, but I blinked them away. "Too late, Drew," I murmured. "You don't get to come back and rewrite the past. Please leave and take your promises with you. I won't have Liora caught in your wars or my father's vendetta. We're leaving."

"You don't mean that," he rasped.

"I do," I said. "This thing between us can't work. I will protect my child. Even from you."

There was a long silence. Drew stood there, his breath shallow and eyes dark with grief and rage.

Then, without a word, he turned, picked up his clothes, and dressed swiftly.

Before leaving, he paused at the door and stared at me, eyes pleading.

I looked away, my wolf whimpering and begging me to go to him.

And then he was gone.

The silence that followed was colder than anything I'd ever known.