Chapter 4

Kaelen

I stormed out of the pack house, Jayden hurried right behind me. My head was spinning.

My stepsister was my fated mate.

But what made my blood boil was that she hadn’t reacted to me at all. There was no recognition in her eyes, no shock, nothing.

In my mind, Lou had gone completely silent. He had been so ecstatic the second he smelled her, but her total lack of reaction had broken his spirit. He felt rejected, like his own mate didn’t want him. I felt his heartbreak sharp in my chest.

How the hell did she not recognize us? The question pounded against my skull every time her beautiful face flashed in my mind. There had to be a reason. There had to be.

“Kaelen,” Jayden called out, snapping me out of my trance. “You okay, man?”

I cleared my throat and nodded stiffly. I wasn’t going to tell a soul about the bond until Elara knew first. “Yeah. I’m fine.”

“So,” Jayden smirked, jogged a step to keep pace. “What do you think of her?”

I stared at him blankly. “Who?”

Jayden frowned. “Elara. Your new stepsister.”

I shrugged, forcing my voice to stay completely flat. “She seems nice.”

It was a total lie. What I actually wanted to say was that she was the most intoxicating, breathtaking woman I had ever seen. In my head, Lou gave a sad whimper. He wanted to be near her, but we couldn’t do anything until we figured out why the bond was completely one-sided.

I looked ahead and saw the warriors waiting for me on the field. I turned to Jayden. “Get the equipment out. I’ll start the warriors on their warm-ups.”

Jayden nodded and ran off toward the shed.

I called the squad into formation, barking out commands for advanced combat drills. I needed to focus. I needed to get Elara out of my head, even if it was just for an hour.

Looking at the men and women before me, a surge of pride cut through my frustration. The Crescent Warriors were famous for a reason. This elite unit was my hand-picked squad. They were the ones I sent on the most dangerous stealth and intelligence missions. They knew how to track, how to fight, and how to kill without asking questions.

My father had formed this specific division when he was my age, and I was continuing the legacy. These were the people who would help me run this pack when I took over as Alpha.

Suddenly, a giggle from the sidelines caught my attention. I looked over and noticed a group of she-wolves lounging near the benches, watching us train.

My brow furrowed. “You need to leave,” I shouted across the field.

A few of the women started flirting, trying to catch the eyes of my fighters, while the female warriors in my squad just rolled their eyes. This was a daily distraction, and I wasn’t in the mood for it.

“You all have jobs to do,” I yelled, taking a sharp, dominant step toward them to show I wasn’t playing around. “Clear out. Now.”

They quickly scrambled away, and I went back to pushing the warriors to their limits. I joined in on the drills, using the brutal physical exhaustion to burn out the thoughts of Elara that kept trying to take over my mind.

By the time training ended an hour later, the sun was setting. The field cleared out, and Jayden walked over to help me lock up the gear.

“Good workout,” he noted, wiping sweat from his face. He paused, studying me closely. “Kaelen, where is your head today?”

I kept my eyes on the equipment chest. “What do you mean?”

“It felt like you weren’t even here,” Jayden said, his eyes drilling into mine. “Your body was doing the motions, but your mind was miles away.”

My gaze automatically drifted back toward the massive pack house. Right now, my family was sitting down for the welcome dinner. They were eating, laughing, and getting to know Elara. The mere thought made my heart beat double-time.

“I’m fine,” I muttered.

Jayden looked over his shoulder at the house and sighed. “You know, you still have time to make it to the dinner. Lou might actually enjoy meeting your new sister.”

Sister. The word tasted like ash in my mouth.

“No,” I said, making my refusal absolute. I couldn’t face her yet. Not until I understood why she couldn’t feel me. “I can’t go anyway. We have patrol tonight. West border.”

Jayden frowned. “Shaun and I can handle the west border. If you want to go to the dinner”

A dark growl ripped from my throat, cutting him off. I couldn’t take the pressure anymore. “I don’t want to go!” I snapped, way too loudly.

Jayden’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Come on,” I muttered, shaking my head. “Let’s move. Shaun is waiting for us at the clearing.”