Hated by My Mate

Chapter 1

Aurora

Mating...

Imprint...

Significant other...

True love...

Growing up in wolf society, I heard those words a lot in our village.

Yeah, you read that right. Wolf society.

I am a werewolf. Believe it or not, we do exist. In fact, we live among humans, unknown to them.

We usually walk around in our human forms, and we develop the capability of transforming into wolves once we turn eighteen years old.

And when that happens, we find our mate.

You see, the Moon Goddess designed a significant other for each and everyone of us. And once we find them, we love no one except that single person for the rest of our lives.

Not many of us have that chance, though. In this day and age, it is rare for a wolf to find their mate.

Mostly because our numbers are fewer and fewer every day, due to the constant hunting we face from human hunters and rogue trackers.

My parents were one of the lucky few to be married to their mate.

My father met my mother at a gathering of the neighbouring villages, and fell deeply in love right away. But unfortunately, my mother died while having me—Aurora Craton.

My father remarried out of sorrow, and his second wife, who became my stepmother, took over the reigns of the Craton household.

My father was a warrior for our pack, the gamma to be more precise, but he died in duty five years ago.

Now, I was a couple of days away from turning eighteen. I was nervous about finally meeting my wolf.

And more importantly, finding my mate.

"Aurora! Are you done with the laundry? Dinner's ready, you know," my stepmother shouted from inside the house.

"I'm coming, Montana!" I shouted as I hung the last garment on the line. I looked up at the sky, enjoying the warmth the sun offered.

It was a rare sight, as we lived in a little village named Iliamna, in Alaska.

Our pack, the Blood Moon pack, lived among humans who had no knowledge of our existence.

As I stepped into the house, Iwas greeted by my stepmother's hideous sneer.

"What took you so long? I'm starving!" she said.

"You could've started without me,." I said as I sat at the table and began eating.

I had to give it to Montana. Her cooking was excellent.

"So, Rory...in a couple of days you'll become of age, right?" my stepmother asked.

I looked up from my plate of food. "Huh? Oh...yeah," I mumbled, turning my attention back to my meal.

"You know...it's about time you started making your own money. Rodrick's pension is getting low."

I looked up at her again, almost choking on my food. "Excuse me?"

"Yes, and it wasn't much to begin with, dear. And having to share it between the two of us has had a huge impact on it," she said.

"So, I decided I'd offer your name for the leader's house. They are in desperate need for housemaids, since it's the alpha's birthday celebration," she continued.