“Soon to be?” I ask curiously.
“What’s your name?” He asks instead, bringing me out of my thoughts.
“I still didn’t get yours…”
“Leo. Leo Rossi,” he replies coldly, making me freeze.
My eyes widen in shock as my head snaps to the man before me.
No fucking way…
“Leo Rossi?” I jump off the bed, almost falling to the floor. Grabbing the towel and wrapping it around myself, I stumble over to him. “How did I not see it?” He frowns, stepping back just as I cup his face, feeling his stubble graze my fingertips. “Oh, Dante is never going to let me live this down! Oh my god, a Rossi? What will Dad think?”
My head is spinning, but I can’t deny the sliver of excitement that rushes through me at the thought of being mated to him. Kiara and I will be mated into the same family! I am mated to Sky’s cousin! Oh, Goddess, she definitely won’t be jealous, yup, definitely not. And Dad! What will Dad think, realising that both of his daughters are mated to tatted, pierced Rossis? My poor dad! And then –
“Who are you?” His voice is quiet yet deadly, and I freeze mid-thought, glancing back at him.
“You don’t recognise me?”
“Should I?” My smile falters at the hostility in his tone.
I know Leo has distanced himself from the Rossis to the pointthat he is never around. Marcel, his father, still holds the Alpha title, although Leo runs the pack, refusing to allow Leo to take over. The feud between Leo and the rest of the Rossis is from years ago, and it is obvious it still remains.
“Azura. Azura Rayne Westwood,” I state, no longer smiling as I look at him seriously. His eyes flash dangerously as they run over me. His heart is thudding, and when his eyes return to mine, I only see the blinding rage in them.
“Westwood. Is Selene for fucking real?” He almost spits, “I knew it was too fucking ideal.”
“What’s wrong with be – “”Being a Westwood? Sure, one of the elite packs, right? Entitled bastards who are free to do whatever the fuck they want.” He steps back. Eyes that had held desire and interest now hold nothing more than hatred.
“Hey, that’s not fair – “”I, Leo Rossi, future Alpha of the Sangue Pack, reject you, Azura Rayne Westwood, as my mate and Luna.”
I freeze as the violent ripping pain tears through me, and a scream leaves my lips. Burning pain grips my neck, and I fall to my knees. He mated with me, marked me, and then rejected me, causing the pain to be even worse than an instant rejection…
I can’t breathe, the intensity of the pain in my neck killing me. I claw at my neck, my heart beating harshly.
“I will never accept the daughter of an elite as my mate.” His cruel words are faint and far, and my vision darkens slightly. I look ahead, seeing him walk away. Only one truth screams in my head, leaving me completely devastated.
Rejected.
He rejected me.
Devastation
Azura
Four weeks have passed since his rejection. That night has shaken me far more than anything Judah has ever done to me. I still remember grabbing my clothes before I stumbled out of the penthouse. I had nothing, not my phone, not my bike. I had managed to beg someone for a phone, and I rang Liam as the rain began falling, washing away the scent of my so-called mate, but it couldn’t wash away what he did to me. My mark burned with agony, the healing slowing due to the rejection.
When Liam showed up, I had been silent. When he saw the state I was in, the anger in his eyes made me succumb to tears. I had never seen him so enraged, and if I didn’t grab onto him and reassure him that it was consensual, he was ready to kill. I had managed to tell him that my mate had marked and rejected me. If it was anyone else but Leo, I wouldn’t have cared, but I couldn’t tell anyone because it would ruin things. Alejandro would lose it, and Marcel, Leo’s dad, would feel guilty over it. This involved my entire family, not just me. I just couldn’t. I now clutch at my neck, where his mark stains it. It had taken a full week for it to heal.
Frustration and anger fill me as I stare at the message on my phone. Judah. He is a problem that still won’t go away, and he,like the rest of my pack, had found out I had been marked and rejected. His anger had been clear in his messages, and he had begun to ring me, too, calls I refuse to answer, which only makes his threats worsen.
The Blood Moon and its sister pack, the Blue Moon, combined are over four thousand members. We literally share the same territory, although the residency homes are separate. Years ago, we were like this pack of people living in the woods. Weird, right? Yeah, tell me about it, but now, we have a mini town here; shops, a restaurant, caf?s, even a school, and, of course, a huge hospital. Somehow, word of me being marked had still travelled like wildfire, even though I had tried to keep it a secret.
My mark… a crescent, shimmering, midnight blue moon, with stars and a lotus, set against a background of blue flames. A beautiful mark with an opposing ugly story. A reminder of the painful memories I want to remove.
I still remember the look on Dad’s face when Liam had brought me home, the way he had hugged me, the way his heart was thumping… Mama’s pain and the worry and anger in her blazing eyes. I had to stay quiet for everyone’s benefit, but they only got angry at me for refusing to share his name. I still haven’t said the words to accept his rejection… I know we don’t need to be face-to-face to do so, but still, it is daunting.
Two nights after what had happened, Liam had reinitiated me back into the pack. Only Mama and Raven had been there for it. When Leo had marked me, being of Alpha blood, his mark had the power to break my pack link to the Blood Moon, by default tying me to a prospective new pack, yet I was pretty much pack less now and rejected, and so had re-joined the Blood Moon.
Everything has made me sick; I have lost my appetite, and I am unable to focus on anything. I need a break from it all. I want to run away… and although Liam told me it wasn’t the answer, I still want to.
A light knock on my bedroom door makes my head jerk up.
“Hey, Zu,” Liam’s voice calls, concern clear in his magnetic blue eyes.
“Hey,” I reply, picking up my jacket and slipping it on.
“Are you going out?” He asks.
I nod as he steps into the room, wrapping his arms around me tightly. I close my eyes, hugging him back, his familiar scent reminding me of home. I want to cry and throw a tantrum for him to fix, but I’m not a child anymore, and this isn’t his problem to deal with. He has enough to handle with six kids and a pack to take care of.
“Talk to me, Zu,” he whispers, kissing the top of my head. I don’t reply, simply hugging him tighter.
“Am I your favourite sister, Liam?” I ask, looking up at him and using my best doe eyes on him, trying to sound cute. He smirks, amused, and cups my face, kissing my forehead.
“Without a doubt.” He gives me a wink, and I smile.
“You’re my favourite, too,” I say quietly, taking a deep breath as I step back. “Do you know where my old collection of voodoo dolls is that I didn’t want to throw away?” He looks at me worriedly.
“Umm, are you really going down that path?”
“I am tempted to learn some dark magic… I think I wouldn’t mind causing a few people some pain.” I’m sure I have a Leo Voodoo doll somewhere.
Leo Rossi. A man who is known to be ruthless, cutthroat, and dangerous. A man whose heart is frozen in ice. A man who cares for no one… I have heard the stories, but what he did just makes them all seem very real.
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