#Chapter 2: The Notorious Alpha

Lana

I’d only seen Kade in passing a handful of times, and clearly, he didn't who I was. I doubted he even knew we went to the same university.

Kade's scent had overtaken me. It was much more intense than what Caleb could have ever done and it seeped into my every pore.  My wolf, Alruna, awakened and howled in expectation as he came closer.

But something felt wrong. How could anything feel stronger than the mate bond between fated mates?

Surprised by Alruna’s excitement inside me, I turned to avoid his kiss but still felt the press of his lips on my cheek.

That small press of moisture upon my face caused Alruna to flare like a fire inside of me. She wanted Kade in a way she never had with Caleb. My body began to tingle as I backed up a step unsure what to do with these new, unexpected sensations inside me.

Pulling my lower lip between my teeth, the sharp pinch slowly clearing my head.

Letting this mistake with Kade play out right now might satisfy Alruna’s sudden, fierce craving—and god, wouldn’t it be the perfect revenge on those two cheating rats?

But Kade wasn't someone I could mess with lightly.

Besides being Caleb’s biggest rival in the campus rankings, Kade was famously known as a virgin hunter. As the heir to the leader of the Western Packs, he had the freedom to live like that—and I wanted absolutely no part of it.

Kade was still exploring my skin as if mesmerized, his mouth trailing lower, aimed for the sensitive curve of my neck. Every instinct in my blood screamed for me to give in, to sink into the dizzying, desperate hunger he ignited.

But I clawed back my will, gathering every shred of resolve, and shoved my palms hard against the solid wall of his chest. Through flesh and bone, I could almost feel the frantic, pounding rhythm of his heart beneath my fingertips.

"Let me go," I managed, the words raw and strained.

“I’m sorry, I must have the wrong room,” I said to him and backed up.

Kade looked puzzled. “Oh you have the right room, I told you it would be open and to come in.” his lips crooked into a half smile.

The realization that Kade couldn’t even recognize his "date" only steeled my resolve to stay away from him. I said, “Well, I’m not your date, or whatever.”

To my surprise, Kade didn't let go. Instead, he pulled me even closer, his voice a low murmur near my ear. "Well, looks like my plans for the night just opened up for a little change of scenery."

“You know, I wouldn’t mind if you were my appetizer before the main course gets here. You can even stay all night if you like.”

Disgusted at the suggestion, I put a steady, firm distance between us, even as Alruna grumbled her displeasure inside me.

My gaze locked onto Kade, who seemed genuinely confused by my refusal. "You have your game," I said, my voice low but clear. "But I'm not part of it.”

Kade’s captivating coffee-colored eyes flickered with surprise. "You’re the first girl to ever say that to me." But he didn't press further, stepping back to give me space.

My gaze dropped to his still-bare, muscular chest, and I flinched as if burned. I whirled around and headed for the door without another word.

His alluring laugh followed me as I exited the door and he said, “If you end up changing your mind, you know where to find me. My little bird.”

-

After confirming the correct room number with a housekeeper in the hallway, I finally found my room on the fourth floor.

Once there I did a sweep of the place to be sure there were no more mostly naked Alphas waiting for me. Just thinking of Kade with nothing on but a hope and prayer his towel stayed in place, had me flushed all over again.

Little bird...? What kind of stupid pet name is that? My pulse fluttered, traitorous and warm, even as I tried to brush it off.

Trying to push the thoughts of that annoying Alpha from my mind I decided a hot bath and bed would probably be best.

Using the provided soap, I filled the tub with plenty of bubbles and slid into the hot sudsy water. It enveloped me in a satisfying way, and I sighed wishing my muscles and my mind would ease soon. My muscles did relax, the smell of lavender helped calm me as well, but my mind seemed to have other plan.

The hot steam surrounding his body, with the water still clinging to him, his towel all for show, and that devilish smile spread cross his lushes, full lips.

Smacking my forehead I tried, yet again, to push the image of him from my mind. Goddess, it was worse than Caleb! Sure I had fantasized about our first time, but after seeing Kade like that all those fantasies of Caleb felt more like a laundry list of a plan, not really a fantasy.

Once out of the tub and dried off, I crawled into bed. Sighing, I rolled over and tired hard to think of anything else and of course my mind strayed back to Kade. By the feeling of Alruna inside me she was more than happy to let the memory of him linger in my mind.

Letting out a deep sigh, I got under the comforter and forced myself to sleep, visions of Kade still plaguing my thoughts.

The next day I awoke worn. Dreams of Kade haunted me all night. I called the student housing office to see about a transfer but was given excuse after excuse as to why it couldn’t be done. Sighing, I hung up my phone, what else should I have expected as an Omega with no protection.

Stretching out on the bed, I checked rental listings on my phone. The longer I scrolled the worse I felt. There was no place I could afford close to campus. Irritated, I decided to make my way back to campus to see if there were any small apartments or rooms available nearby it not listed online.

Walking the side streets by the campus I saw a few signs out for a room to rent, but just as I had assumed the rent was way too high. Just then, a voice cut through my jumbled thoughts. "Looking for a place around here?"

I looked up to see a curvy woman with thick raven hair and midnight eyes. Her smile was warm, her eyes bright.

Without thinking, I found myself admitting, "Yeah, but everything near campus is way out of my budget. I might have to look further out."

She shook her head, her smile turning a touch mysterious. "Actually, I have a room for rent. Upstairs. We can work something out on the price. Interested?"

The agreement was right on the tip of my tongue. But could my luck really be this good?

She seemed to sense my hesitation and spoke first, extending her hand. “Hi, I’m Maeve.”

I took her hand and shook it. “I’m Lana. I attend school at Fenrir and am looking for a place that isn’t too costly.” Laughing a little nervously, I dropped her hand only to see a surprisingly kind smile on her lips.

“You’re the omega at the school? How interesting. Well, would you like to see the place? It isn’t much, but it will be a lot bigger than a dorm.”

The place was nicer than she had made it out to be so I was a bit concerned why she was renting it for such a low price. It left me worried she had some questionable behavior but I couldn’t afford to be picky, and Maeve was no doubt better than Olivia. I had to secure it fast.

“This is really nice, and you haven’t listed it yet?” I said.

“Nope, I just wanted to find the right person for this room. You always get some weirdos online, you know?” Maeve let out a laugh that was warm and comforting.

“I don’t mean to be too forward, but I could give you a deposit now. I was hoping to find some place today,” Looking at Maeve she had an unreadable smile on her face, so I added, “I’ll even do all the cooking and cleaning since it’s such a great price.” Hopping I didn’t sound as desperate as I thought I did, I let out a small laugh.

Maeve chuckled, “Sold! How could I say no that deal?”

— Third Person POV —

Kade was exiting class when his phone began to vibrate in his pocket. It was his sister.

“What’s good Maeve?” he said.

“Oh, just that I found the perfect roommate for you.” Her voice was laced with laughter.

He stopped walking to his next class for a moment and pinched his brow before continuing on. “This is a joke, right?”

“You know you have to get ready to live at the Packhouse so this will be your test run.”

Kade couldn't help a small, exasperated sigh at his big sister's sometimes-overbearing need to meddle. Still, he knew it came from a good place.

"Fine," he relented, "But if he can't handle the sounds of me fucking someone different every night, that's on him."