Page 2

Chapter

One

D ANNY

As the clan gathered in front of the wooded area behind my parents’ house, the most intriguing scent hit my nostrils: a mixture of pine and leather that was strangely enticing. I breathed it in and looked around, searching for the source.

I weaved between the clan members that were hovering near the food table nibbling on the finger food that Momma had prepared, and moved toward the house. As I did so, the combination of pine and leather grew stronger, but I couldn’t quite figure out where it was coming from.

Before I could track it down, Dad’s voice boomed through the yard. I pushed into my tiptoes and spotted Milo and Everett a few feet away, so I made my way to them, listening as Dad told the clan about Milo’s kidnapping yesterday and his safe return.

I was tempted to cling to Milo. I’d felt sick when I’d seen him getting taken away, and I’d worried myself into such a state I was surprised I didn’t have an ulcer. I hadn’t known him for long, but he was impossible not to like. There was something so sweet and guileless about him .

Once he’d finished giving a rundown of the confrontation at Moonlight Cove, Dad announced Milo’s pregnancy. His pride was evident in the warm gaze that landed on Milo and the subtle expansion of his chest.

I ruffled Milo’s hair. If anyone deserved happiness, it was him.

“We also have a new clan member,” Dad continued. A figure moved behind him. “I’d like to introduce Knox Kingston.”

The new clan member came into focus as he stepped up beside my father. A breeze stirred my hair, and my gut dropped as the scent I’d been following intensified. Knox’s dark gaze swept the gathering, stopping when it locked on me. His eyes flashed from brown to green, and his fangs dropped. He took another step forward.

My chest seized.

Oh, fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.

The scent was him.

And the fact I could smell him like this and was reacting so strongly could only mean one thing: he was my fated mate.

I stumbled backward, horrified as my own fangs dropped, responding to him.

No, no, no.

This couldn’t have happened at a worse time. I was broken. Scared of alphas. What if I disappointed him?

What if he was like Rex?

I spun away from him and started running, tearing off my clothes as people sprang aside to let me pass. As soon as I was naked, I shifted and fled into the woods, crashing through the underbrush, too unnerved to pay attention to where I was going.

I ran and ran until my legs were shaking beneath me, but no matter how far I went, that intriguing scent of leather and pine followed me. I couldn’t outrun it.

Eventually, I slowed and perked my ears up. Thankfully, no one seemed to be on my tail. I slumped against a tree, grateful to my fur for keeping me warm and protecting me from the roughness of the bark.

I closed my eyes and my mate’s image appeared in my mind. Gods, he’d been handsome. So tall and broad, looking like a sexy badass in his leather jacket with his dark hair tied at the nape of his neck. His full lips had parted when he’d seen me, and I couldn’t help but imagine how plush they’d feel against mine.

Not that I’d ever find out. I was too fucked up for that.

All I could focus on was the fact he was several inches taller than me and that his hands were twice the size of mine. He could do some real damage with those things.

And he was a former mercenary.

I may not have seen him before tonight, but my brothers had mentioned the alpha wolf who’d been involved with kidnapping Milo. Surely, someone capable of hurting an omega as sweet as Milo couldn’t be trusted.

Although… he had changed allegiances when he’d scented his mate on Milo’s clothing.

His mate.

Me .

No. I couldn’t think about that.

I dragged myself back to my feet and looked around, not a hundred percent sure which direction I’d come from. In my distress, I hadn’t taken the time to get my bearings or pay attention to the sights and scents I’d passed along the way.

I took off in the direction I thought led back to my parents’ house. Once I was moving again, my thoughts returned to Knox. The alpha fated to be mine. Was he upset? He’d probably imagined meeting an eager little omega who’d be happy to merge their lives straight away.

Instead, he’d gotten me.

The gods weren’t smiling on him today. I wasn’t as small as most alphas wanted or as docile, and as I’d already proven, I had some issues.

Assuming Knox wasn’t an evil, kidnapping psychopath, he must be so disappointed.

A familiar scent tickled my nostrils, and I paused. It wasn’t the tempting aroma of my mate, or the comforting smell of my family and Grizzly Ridge. It was something darker that reminded me of one of the most terrible nights of my life.

Bitter coffee. Rex’s scent.

My gut lurched, and I stopped immediately, pivoting to go in the other direction. I had to get away. I had to—

I bowled into a grizzly that had been approaching me from behind. The bear stumbled backward, catching himself before he fell.

Oh gods, he’d found me.

I sprinted away, moving as quickly as my furry legs would carry me. But as I dodged a tree, a voice called after me.

It wasn’t Rex. It was Zander.

I collapsed to the ground and allowed myself to shift back to my human form. “It’s Rex,” I panted. “I smelled him.”

Zander rushed over and dropped to his knees beside me. He was naked, like me, but it didn’t bother either of us. Shifters were accustomed to seeing each other without clothes on.

“It’s just his cottage.” He started to reach for me, but then stopped. “We’re almost on his land. ”

A growl rumbled through the woods, raising the hair on the backs of my arms.

That wasn’t Zander.

My brother grabbed my arm. “Hurry. There’s been enough fighting this week. We need to get out of here.”