âYou stink. You should shower.â
~He stunk. Really?~
âI think Maya is trying to say she doesnât like you smelling like another woman was all over you,â Olivia chimed in with a tight smile.
âNo, I think he just stinks.â
âMaya.â
âHe does.â
âSheâll work on her people skills.â
âFirstly,â Maya laughed, âI wonât. Secondly, I donât think ~you~ should be lecturing ~me~ about improving my ~people~ skills.â
âWant to join me in the shower?â he suggested, stepping forward, ignoring the jab she took at her friend. âYou could help me wash off the smell.â
âIf youâve forgotten how to clean yourself, Iâm sure you can ask Willow for help. Sheâd be more than happy to assist.â
One thing was clear about Mayaâshe was straightforward. He hadnât expected anything less, honestly.
He knew it would come to this the moment Willow touched him.
Being in the same room with her was one thing, but physical contact was another.
And that was enough to set Maya off, though heâd be lying if he said he didnât enjoy seeing her so worked up.
It stirred a sense of pride in him, and he couldnât help but wonder how red her cheeks could get.
He couldnât afford to let his mind wander down this path.
Because if he allowed himself to dwell on the blush of her cheeks, heâd inevitably think about how she looked when she was breathless, the expression in her eyes when she moanedâ¦
The flavor of her skin, the sweetness of her lipsâ¦
~These thoughts were a minefield.~
~A dangerous minefield.~
Because sometimes heâd forget why he couldnât take what was rightfully his.
All Julian had was her. Why couldnât he have her? Why did he have to wait? Her fiery hair was swept back, revealing her neck.
He yearned to press his teeth into her pale skin, to mark her, to claim her.
âDonât even go there,â Mayaâs voice sliced through his thoughts. Her narrowed eyes and slightly parted lips as she leaned in communicated angerâbutâ¦
There was another scent in the air.
A blush colored her cheeks, hiding her freckles, and he could hear her heartbeat quicken. Maya knew what he was thinking. She could sense the desires he held for her.
âYou might want to consider a ~cold~ shower,â she suggested, stepping back from him.
Instinctively, he moved forward. It was a game of cat and mouseâand he wanted to catch her.
She held up her hand, shaking a finger at him. âI will kick your ass.â
He knew she would tryâand he would enjoy it.
âYes, maâam,â he responded, his voice strained, though he meant to tease her.
Her intense blue eyes locked onto his, and he gritted his teeth. ~Walk away.~ He had to resist the urges, the turmoil inside him.
None of this was right. From Willowâs longing for him to the distance between him and Maya.
Julian didnât know what his past life was like, but he knew this wasnât the life he wanted. He couldnât just take what he wanted and claim it.
He could, but it wouldnât be right. If he wanted Mayaâall of herâ¦
He would have to find another way.
And he would need a shitload of patience.
~Stupid mate.~
~Stupid alpha.~
~Stupid Maya.~
Her hormones and her brain were in total chaos. She hated how she was losing control of the situation.
She wanted to handle things calmly, but every damn time, she lost her cool.
The bitch was turned on, and it pissed her off. She could smell it. At least the bitch had the decency to keep her distance from Maya, but she couldnât control her desires.
It wasnât that Maya was bothered by his past. She had one, too. They all did.
What bothered her was that the clueless tree girl knew he belonged to Maya yet she continued to want him.
Sure, they hadnât slept together or mated. Of course not. How could they when everything was a chaotic mess?
And damn, did Maya need to get laid.
Maybe it would relieve the tension in her muscles and soothe her overloaded mind. But sex was a risky road, especially with him.
There was no way she would sleep with someone else, so she was stuck in this fucking mess.
At this point, her only option seemed to be to muzzle him and fuck him anyway.
~No, wait. Maya, you canât muzzle him.~
Besides, he was an alpha. She doubted he would let a beta dominate him like that. It could be a twisted kink. She wouldnât mind beingâ¦
This dry spell was doing her no favors. That was exactly why she was out here, seeking some fresh air.
~Not that fresh air could replace a mind-blowing fuck, but whatever.~
If only she could find a way to discover his true identity and everything that came with it, then it would be easier to make a decision. Although there was one thing that would remain the same.
If they mated, she would have to leave. Two alphas couldnât coexist.
She had always been prepared for that, and since she didnât have a permanent place anywhere, she was always drifting. But no, she shouldnât think about it now. It was pointless.
She would focus on one thing at a time, and right now, her focus was on finding somethingâanything.
If that girl was who she claimed to be and if everything she said was true, there might be a clue hidden within her. And if she was lying, then Maya was determined to uncover the truth.
Then she could consider scratching her face off.
Whichever came first.
~Preferably the face-scratching part.~
No, no. She was out here to stop being a raging bitch, and she would succeed. The more she let her emotions take over, the less control she would have.
She was the one in charge, and she needed a clear mind.
Now she had to concentrate on what was ahead.
They were on a quest for answers, sniffing out any leads that could guide them.
The narrative was veering off course. Every fresh clue only served to confuse them further, and Maya couldnât give a damn about the fate of people she didnât even fucking know.
But she had to find out what had happened to him.
This whole goddamn mystery was throwing her life into chaos. Maya remembered how she had initially brushed off the whole Olivia and Alex situation as nonsense.
~Just get together already!~ It shouldnât be this complicated.
But life had a knack for messing with her, and voilà ! Another disaster, tailor-made for her!
So ifâbig ifâshe could solve this, they could move on and she could start the next chapter of her life, their life, whatever that might entail, whatever it might look like. End of story.
So there she was, out in the open, trying to put the pieces together.
~Crunch.~
She froze, one eyebrow raised. ~Shit.~ She had shifted back into her human form, hoping her hands would be more useful in the search, and now she was left exposed and defenseless.
Her green eyes flicked left, then right.
Nothing.
No one.
Not even a hint of a scent.
Whatever had made that noise wasnât a wolf. So what the hell was it?
She couldnât afford to waste time.
Her face twisted as she quickly shifted back into her wolf form, landing on all fours with a loud thud.
~Run.~
The command echoed in her mind, repeating over and over. But she didnât need the reminder. She could feel it.
The fur on her back bristled, her heart hammered in her chest, and a cold shiver ran down her spine.
Her life was at risk.
But she couldnât see the damn threat.
Maya spun around, tail between her legs, and sprinted back toward the packhouse. ~Hurry.~
She zigzagged, instinctively avoiding a straight path. It made her feel less like a sitting duck.
She was the hunter, not the hunted. So why did she feel like she was being stalked?
Saliva dripped from her fangs, her long pink tongue hanging out of her mouth. She had never run this fast before.
~Just a little further.~ She could see it. There was no way she was still being chased.
Nothing could move that fast without being detected.
She would be okay.
She would be safe.
Then suddenly, she couldnât breathe.
Maya gasped for air; her sprint came to an abrupt end as she tumbled forward. She rolled through the tall grass, air forced out of her lungs and refusing to come back. She couldnât breathe.
Pain surged through her body in waves, and she writhed on the ground.
Bones snapped, heat burned, and without her willing it, she shifted back into her human form. Her mouth gaped open as she struggled to draw breath, her throat on fire.
Her eyelids fluttered open, and she looked down at her body.
~What the hell?~
Blood. So much fucking blood.
~An arrow? A FUCKING ARROW?~
Her pale hands shook as she tried to move them, still struggling to fill her lungs with air. She reached for the shaft sticking out of her stomach, trying to pull it out, but it was no use.
Her hands were slick and sticky with blood, and she didnât have the strength to do anything about it. Blood continued to flow from the wound as she fought to keep her eyes open.
Maya tried to scream, but no sound came out.
~No, get up, you lazy girl. Get up!~
This was not how she was going to die. Maya, of all people, was not going to be taken down by a random arrow. ~No. Get up!~
Tears of anger mixed with her saliva, but she still couldnât speak. All she could do was spit out the little saliva she had left.
A scream.
Because that arrow didnât fire itself. Someone would come to check if it had hit its target. And it had. She was the fucking target.
The choices were clear: move or die.
And Maya was not going to die.
She took several painful breaths, ignoring the intense pain radiating through her body. With great effort, she rolled onto her side.
~Oh, shit.~ Too far, too far. Sheâd accidentally pushed the arrow in deeper~. Shit, shit.~
Maya used her elbow to drag herself closer to the packhouse, all the while keeping one hand pressed against the wound. She was losing bloodâway too much of it.
She wouldnât make it back home; she would bleed out before she reached safety.
The more she moved, the more blood she lost.
She kept going until her eyelids became too heavy to keep open. She kept going until her arm was scraped, bleeding, and throbbing with pain. She kept going until her vision started to blur.
The last thing she saw: him running toward her, shouting her name.
~Julian.~