Untamed (Rejected Mate Academy #1) - E. M. Moore Page 0,9

should’ve come out fucked up or something, right? Otherwise, what’s the big deal? Despite my inner beliefs, her words ring around in my head. Could anyone really blame these wolves for taking solace in another when they’ve just been through the biggest hurt of their life?

I guess in Greystone Academy’s eyes, you can.

“Noted,” I mutter, slinking back. I barely listen as she points out several more rooms in the tour.

Her reaction to my joke is just more evidence that I don’t actually belong. No one thinks like me.

4

Ms. Ebon leaves me outside a room in the Lunar Pack wing, handing me a rather modern-looking key despite the castle-like appearance of the corridor. The echo of her retreating heels bounces off the walls as she descends the winding, stone staircase, leaving me alone to peer inside my new digs.

It’s bigger than my bedroom.

The bag I packed sits inside the doorway. Against the far wall, lying horizontally, is a full-size bed, and to my left sits a simple, dark wood desk. I suppose I’ll be able to study whatever the academy feels necessary to learn in order for me to win Jonah’s heart here. I fake gag, and my wolf practically rolls her eyes at me. At least she’s paying attention instead of hiding in her own self-misery. To my right, a big TV is attached to the wall above a massive dresser. Adjacent to that is a closet and a door to my very own en suite. I don’t know why I’d expected a roommate to be waiting for me. Maybe because that’s how they depict dorms in movies? Thankfully, I don’t have to deal with being around someone twenty-four seven on top of getting my heart broken.

Honestly, this room is ten times nicer than home. My parents are so far down the pack line that we have the worst house in Lunar. It’s a small two-bedroom surrounded by woods. It’s furthest from the center of town where all the other wolves live, but I’ve always loved how out of the way it is, like a built-in sanctuary. Plus, I love the expanse of land. There’s so much space for growing my plants. I might have a bit of a green thumb, which is as weird for shifters my age as it is for humans.

Oh well. No one has ever accused me of conforming. Obviously.

Lunar Pack linens stretch across the mattress, our moon crest taking up the foot area of the charcoal comforter. The midnight-blue sheets are the perfect complement. I trail my fingers over the soft fabric, then plop my book bag down in the center. It’s late, and I’ve had a shitty day. My eyes are itchy and begging to close now that everything is settling down. The shifts are getting to me.

Twice in one day on my first day. That’s unheard of.

On top of that, instead of celebrating with my parents, I was sent away. At home, others are commemorating becoming one with their wolves, and for some, their new mates. I was so preoccupied with finding my own, and subsequently being rejected, that I didn’t pay attention to who else mated.

In my world, today is one of the most important days of the year. Graduation from our primary studies is coupled with becoming one with our shifter form. It’s symbolic to becoming adults. Even I was looking forward to my initial shift, and I don’t look forward to anything pack related.

For a few minutes, my wolf and I were gleefully happy together romping through the woods. But when we caught Jonah’s scent, everything changed. He sent us into a spiral, leaving us at odds again. Since I was a pup and she started to awaken inside me, we’ve fought. She wants to belong to the pack, while I’ve shied away because I knew what waited for me if I tried.

I unpack my things into the dresser, and in the process, find black socks and shirts donning the Greystone Academy crest already folded inside. I don’t think much of it until I move to the closet. A whole slew of skirts and sweaters with the same crest are tucked inside. I pause, my fingers tightening around my one fancy shirt from home. “No fucking way.”

I immediately bring out the booklet from my bag, scanning through the index until I find the dreaded word—uniform. I quickly turn to page seventeen, and sure enough, we’re required to wear matching attire. A pleated skirt paired with a polo and a sweater