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B ut, then again, Sandra—always the smart one—already picked it up. Her own eyes widened, she looked at her friend, "You know him?"

"O-Of course, I know him. I bumped into him that very day with you, remember?" Ismena was trying to throw her friend off.

"But that was a long time ago, and besides, he addressed you by your name too." Sandra isn't someone that can easily be thrown off. She added, "And it looks like he is here to see you... isn't that right?" That part was directed to Alphose.

Alphose, caught in the middle, was speechless but for an entirely different reason. Apart from the question he was asked, he broke out in cold sweat for an entirely different reason.

A minute of uncomfortable silence passed.

"We have to talk." He directed to Ismena at last.

"O-Okay."

To Sandra, he said, "We'll be back in a minute." He inclined his head slightly .

"Oh, of course." Sandra responded, baffled by the situation.

Why am I breathless just by seeing him again? She thought as she watched them leave the room.

Outside, Ismena palmed her head, "Oh my God, oh my God, I'm dead."

"Sandra? Is that her name?" Alphose asked softly, "Who is that woman to you?"

"She's my best friend. Her name is Sandra. Kassandra Almes. You might not remember her, but she was with me the very first day we met; when I bumped into you."

"She was?" No wonder he felt some kind of familiarity when he met her in the lobby.

He'd been so engrossed with Ismena's scent—the scent of death and a potential alpha's mate—that very first day, he'd never really paid much attention to her companion.

The thought that formed in his head the instant he walked through that hospital room, crossed his mind again.

Kassandra might be his mate. That woman in there might be the one destined for him.

The cougar definitely approved, letting out tiny little growls like a tamed kitten. The man can only think of it all as a dream. Can it be real?

Kassandra affected him the way a mate would, but, the only uncertainty there is that Kassandra does not have the scent of a potential Alpha's mate.

She does not have the scent of a 'mate' at all .

So, what is all this? Could it be just an attraction for the woman?

It might be from his side but his cougar's reaction to her is what makes him more confused. His cougar has never reacted this way with another woman.

"What are you thinking about so hard?" Her voice penetrated his thoughts.

His head cocked to the side, still thinking about it all. He said nothing.

Ismena has her own problems too. "Oh, God, I'm so dead.

Now, Sandra already has the knowledge that we know each other.

..! She might even think we're dating and I've been hiding it from her.

How do I explain to her that you're a changeling?

That you morph into a cougar? That you ain't even the changeling I'm sleeping with but another one entirely?

And that you only helped me come back to my world? How do I—?"

Alphose held her shoulders gently, forcing her to lose him in the eyes. "Ismena, calm down."

"I'm calm, I'm calm, trust me." A nervous laugh, "It's just that I don't want my best friend to feel bad that she has been crushing on a man—telling me all about him, including how she has been having wet dreams for him and all these while, I've pretended not to know the man?

And not only that, I've been ruthlessly sleeping with him behind her back—"

"Wait, wait, slow down. You have NOT been sleeping with me."

"She doesn't know that."

"And wait. You said she has been wet-dreaming about me? She...likes me?" The cougar definitely approved, wagging its tail like a puppy. The man felt warm in his chest .

Ismena took a deep breath and exhaled. "Yes, she does. Sandra likes you a whole lot." She admitted at last.

Her hands waved around helplessly, "Which is complicated because you're a changeling, and y'all only get really involved with your mates and all that, and I don't want my friend to get hurt—"

"Your friend, Kassandra, might be my mate, Ismena." Saying it out loud, made him realize how real all these might be. His mate.

That woman in there might be his mate. Or she might not.

But what if she is?

Ismena was speechless all of a sudden. "Wait. What?"

"Kassandra might be my mate." He repeated, his voice taking in a deeper baritone.

"She does not have the scent of a potential mate or even the scent of an Alpha's mate—which is confusing as hell— she does not have any of those scents, just like you did before the Alpha King began touching you. But all the other signs are there."

Ismena was trying to wrap her head around everything, "You're saying that my best friend might be your mate, but at the same time, she might not be?"

"Yes." His voice went deeper. The cougar suddenly wants out.

A shift. He was fighting a shift.

"Your eyes..." Ismena trailed off incredulously, "They are green..."

Alphose turned away from her, held the rails tight, and squeezed his eyes shut. The cougar was banging at his head. He has no idea why his other half wants out, all of a sudden .

Ismena waited quietly behind him when she realized what was going on. She'd seen it enough with her own mate—with Wolfaraine, she quickly corrected—to know it for what it was.

God, at the same time, she's also trying to contain her excitements too.

It'll be so much of a great thing if her best friend is Alphose's mate. She'll be in Naturiah with her. Sandra will keep her company. She'll never be so lonely ever again!

Ohmigod! Ohmigod!! Ohmyyyygod!!!!!

But, even with all the excitement, she was trying to contain, she was still holding her breath while waiting for Alphose to get himself under control.

When he did, all the corded muscles in his arms and neck relaxed. He released a very deep breath too, before he turned to face her. His eyes were back to gray again.

"Are you okay now?" She asked him, concerned.

"Yes." A nod, "We have to bring her back with us to Naturiah, Ismena. You have to explain everything about what I am to her."

"I have no idea how to tell her everything. She'll think I've lost my mind." She pointed out, truthfully.

Alphose thought so too. His head was working too.

Is it really a good idea to bring her to Naturiah? What if she isn't his mate?

The idea hurts, more than it's supposed to. He has waited for his mate all his life .

"I think we need time. Time to tell her everything and also time to explain to her that she needs to follow us to Naturiah." Ismena suggested.

"I know that. But time is the only thing we don't have right now. We need to leave. Now."

"Really? So sudden?" Her face fell. She wanted to spend more time with her family—with Valentina.

"Yes. The Wolfhunters know you are here. I have killed the threats I found, but I'm afraid their leader escaped to go and get reinforcements. I have to take you back as fast as possible before it becomes too dangerous."

"Oh, God..." Ismena's eyes widened fearfully, "What about my family? Are you sure they are safe—"

"They are. The Wolfhunters want you alone, because they believe they can find us if they have you since you were the one that pawned the ring. It has nothing to do with your family."

"And, what about my sister? I can't just leave her here all alone."

"When we get back to that room, you have to pick up your phone and call either of your parents to come back and stay with your sister. You can tell them that something came up or anything, but we have to leave now."

"Okay, okay. But what about Sandra?" She asked.

He thought about it for a minute.

And then, "How much does she trust you?"

"One hundred percent." The answer came without hesitation.

"Good." Alphose nodded, "Convince her to come with us first. We will find a way to explain everything on the borders of Naturiah. I still need to half-shift and piggyback you both through the Wild Forest, so, she will need those explanations."

Her head cocked to the side as she considered it.

Then, she agreed too, "Alright. I'll convince her. But, can you piggyback the both of us?"

"Huh?"

Unbiddenly, Ismena was recalling when she tried to piggyback her best friend one night she got drunk. She almost died a very sudden and harsh death that very day...

She shuddered visibly and bit her lips, "Sandra is my best friend and I love her so much, but I'll tell you something to save your life... She is not a lightweight."

For the first time, a smile formed on Alphose's lips.

Ismena blinked, "What's funny?"

"I can piggyback ten Kassandras at the same time, Ismena." He stated matter-of-factly.

Blink. Blink. "Oh."

She keeps forgetting that these people are not humans like them. A smile spread through her lips, "Of course. Okay, that makes sense."

"Yes, so let's go back." He pointed towards her sister's room.

"Alright." She nodded and led the way.