FATED TO THE RIVAL

RONAN'S POV

The forest reeked of Silvermoon stench.

I stood on their border, the cold wind brushing against my bare arms, but the fury boiling in my blood kept me warm. I shouldn't have come. I told myself that a hundred times. But something—some pull—dragged me here.

My wolf had been restless for days, pacing, growling, demanding we move. And now I knew why.

I had barely stepped into the clearing near the training grounds when the scent hit me.

Pine. Fresh and wild. Sharp but comforting — like the woods after a storm. It curled around my senses, silencing every other thought.

Mate.

The word thundered in my skull before I could stop it. My wolf howled, clawing to the surface with a force I hadn't felt before. My entire body went rigid, my heart thundering like war drums.

Then I saw her.

A girl—no, a wolf not yet shifted—standing just beyond the treeline. Her eyes met mine.

And the world stopped.

Silver hair pulled into a braid, eyes like burning embers. Even from across the space between us, I could feel the bond snapping tight, invisible and unbreakable.

She's ours. Take her. Now.

My wolf was rabid, demanding. Possessive.

But she…

She took a step back. Her face twisted into something between fear and defiance. And then—she turned and ran.

Something inside me snapped.

I moved without thinking, following the trail of that pine-and-rain scent she left behind, my breath heavy, my chest tight. Every part of me screamed to catch her. Claim her. She was mine. Mine.

But she ran like I was her nightmare.

Good.

Let her fear me. Let her know that no matter where she goes, I'll find her.

I stopped at the edge of the woods, watching her disappear through the trees. My jaw clenched, hands curled into fists.

A Silvermoon.

Of all the cursed places, the Moon Goddess gave me her. The daughter of my enemies. The bloodline that destroyed my mother. The same line I swore I would ruin.

The world was sick with irony.

But I wasn't going to reject her. No.

I'd take her.

I'd drag her from this pathetic pack, break her pride, and bind her to me. Whether she wanted it or not.

"Run, little wolf," I murmured into the wind.

"But know this — you're already mine."