The Beta Rejected Me, So I Claimed His King.

I stood at my mating ceremony, about to be joined with my pack's Beta, Brendan, under the watchful eye of the powerful Alpha King.

But just as the rites began, Brendan abandoned me at the altar. He ran off into the woods for another woman-a fragile rogue named Marina he had taken in.

He left me to face the humiliation alone. Then, a message came through the public leadership channel for all to hear. It was Brendan, announcing that Marina had attempted suicide and he couldn't leave her.

He then had the audacity to command me to apologize to the Alpha King on his behalf for the "disruption."

The man I had loved for six years, who had promised me forever just the night before, had traded my honor for a lie. He made me a laughingstock in front of the entire continent.

That night, drowning my sorrow in a human bar, I ran into the Alpha King himself. Fueled by whiskey and heartbreak, I made a reckless offer.

"He doesn't want me anymore," I slurred. "Alpha, do you want me tonight?"

To my shock, he accepted. And in his arms, I discovered a stunning truth: the Alpha King, my ex-fiancé's uncle, was my true fated Mate. My revenge had just begun.

Chapter 1

Eleanor POV:

ceremonial gown felt heavy on my shoulders, each silver thread a chain pulling me down.

I stood on the sacred grounds of the Silver Creek Pack, under the full moon's watchful eye. Tonight, I was supposed to become the mate of our pack's Beta, Brendan. Our union was meant to be a grand affair, witnessed not only by our own pack but also by our powerful overlords, the Bloodmoon Pack.

Their Alpha King, Darren, sat on a carved throne at the edge of the clearing, his presence a silent, crushing force that made the very air thick.

Brendan stood beside me, but he wasn't really with me. His eyes were distant, unfocused. I could feel the faint hum of his Mind-Link, the telepathic connection all werewolves share. It's a private line in your head, a gift from the Moon Goddess.He was talking to someone, and it wasn't me.

"Brendan," I whispered, my voice barely a rustle of leaves. "The Elder is about to begin. Please, show respect to the Goddess."

He flinched, his eyes finally meeting mine. There was no love there, only panic. Then, his voice flooded my mind, cold and urgent.

*Marina's in trouble. I have to go. Give me half an hour.*

My blood ran cold. Marina. The fragile little rogue wolf he'd taken in, the one who looked at him with wide, worshipful eyes.

Before I could process it, he was moving.

"Beta Brendan, where are you going?" one of the Elders called out, his voice sharp with disapproval.

"I must leave!" Brendan's voice was loud, strained. He didn't look at me, didn't look at anyone but the dark forest beyond the clearing.

"Brendan, no!" I pleaded, reaching for his arm, but he was already gone.

With a sound that was half-growl, half-sob, he let his wolf take over. The Shift was violent and quick, the sound of bones snapping and reforming echoing in the horrified silence. In seconds, a large brown wolf stood where my fiancé had been. He shot me a single, guilty glance before bolting into the trees.

He was gone.

He left me standing alone at my own mating ceremony, in front of two packs, in front of the Alpha King himself.

My heart hammered against my ribs. I tried to reach him through our private Mind-Link, the one we'd nurtured for years.

*Brendan? Where are you? What's happening?*

Silence. He had severed it. He had shut me out completely.

A desperate thought clawed its way into my mind: He shamed me in front of everyone for another woman.

The half-hour he asked for stretched into an eternity. The whispers of the crowd grew louder, a tide of pity and scorn that threatened to drown me. Finally, *a new message buzzed through my mind. It was from Brendan, but it wasn't on our private link. He sent it to the pack's leadership channel-a channel I was on only because I was his intended mate. A channel the Alpha King was certainly on.*

*His voice was cold, detached, and utterly humiliating.*

*Marina attempted to take her own life. I cannot leave her side. Eleanor, you will apologize to the Elders and the Alpha King on my behalf for this disruption.*

Apologize for him? For this humiliation?

My mind flashed back to just last night. He had held me close, whispering promises against my skin. "You will be my only Beta female, Eleanor. Forever."

Lies. All of it.

I looked out at the sea of faces, their expressions a mixture of pity for the weak Omega and contempt for the fool who was just publicly abandoned. I wouldn't cry. I wouldn't give them the satisfaction.

With a deep breath that did nothing to calm the storm inside me, I gathered the heavy skirts of my gown. I walked alone to the high platform where the Elders stood, my steps steady even though my world was falling apart.

My voice trembled, but it carried across the silent clearing, clear and final.

"My engagement to Beta Brendan is over."