What the fuck have you done?

RIVER

Fuck.

I couldn't believe this... less than five hours on this pack lands, and I had already got caught.

The lake water was icy and very jarring, though not enough to numb the explosion of instincts that were clearly crackling under my skin.

I surfaced from beneath with a gasp, my ears ringing from the collision, with wet fur clinging to my sides. Wet dog. My heart? Well, that one was pounding loud enough to drown out everything else.

Everything except him.

Abso-fucking-lutely.

The wolf across from me.

He was massive and had dark fur that was now black because it was wet. Radiating this sort of dominance like he was a living storm.

For a second, a very dangerous and suspended second... all I could do was stare at the man. The Alpha stood waist deep in the water, fur slicked to powerful shoulders, gold eyes trained directly on me. Eyes that wouldn't look away, not even for a second.

Mine.

Who said that?

But without even looking around, I knew we were the only ones here. And he hadn't said anything. The voice came from deep within me... my wolf, snarling and desperate.

Possessive.

Mine. Mine. Mine.

I shook my head at him, hard. "No," I breathed, though the word came out ragged and broken.

It couldn't be.

It wasn't.

That was an Alpha. Anyone who looked at him knew he was clearly an Alpha. Just looking at him now was enough to make my stomach twist with heat and fear. And me... well, I was an omega.

A male omega. The rut of the pack, who was always told to know his place.

Every single person knew Alphas did not bond with omegas, let alone male omegas. We were not even supposed to exist in most packs. Most of the time, we were forced to suppress, hide who we were, or worse.

This match was doomed. Impossible.

Had I been such a bad person that the moon goddess decided that the best way to punish me was this?

To match me to this... man.

And yet... the way the Alpha looked at me. The way his own chest heaved, his own wolf pulsing just beneath the surface.

It was beautiful.

My instincts screamed at me to run. Dammit, I wasn't suicidal. Get out of the water, out of the forest, and out of the damned territory.

If only it were that simple.

"Well, goodbye now." I said through that mindlink most werewolves had, turning around already. I started to swim away, my claws slicing the water in frantic strokes.

Me wait for the inevitable rejection? Nope. Or violence. I had already had enough of both in this life.

What I needed was to find another...

SPLASH

I had barely got three feet in before it came. The Alpha had lunged at me.

"Arhgghhh." I cried out, twisting in time to see the dark blur hurtling toward me. He had his teeth bared, a snarl ripping from his throat as he collided with me mid-swim, dragging us both underwater. Again.

"Let go of me!"

I thrashed, believe me, I did. I kicked, but the Alpha was much stronger. Bigger, too. At that point, I could barely think as we resurfaced, soaked and snarling at each other, circling each other in the shallows.

The Alpha lunged at me again, this time not to kill, or I hoped that wasn't his intention, but rather, to dominate.

His jaw snapped near my neck, close enough to graze the fur there. A warning.

A challenge.

My back hit the rocks as I growled low in response, baring my own teeth at him.

"You want a fight?" I thought bitterly. "Fine."

I had no idea what this was about... my presence, maybe my scent, the bond currently spiralling between us... but I wasn't going to be bullied.

Alpha or not.

The Alpha snapped again, fangs flashing white under the moonlight. I ducked, twisted, and then proceeded to sink my own teeth into his shoulder. It was not that deep or fatal, but it was there.

It was enough to surprise him.

"So you do have some bite in you." The Alpha reeled back with a guttural growl, eyes blazing. His muscles rippled as he launched again... this time pinning me against the rocks with brute force.

Was this considered foreplay here?

I kicked out. Clawed at him. Snapped. But the Alpha only grunted in response, shoving me deeper into the bank like I weighed nothing.

He was clearly toying with me.

Fuck him!

I hated how hot his body felt beneath the pressure. How my wolf trembled... fucking trembled... with the need.

And rage.

"Get off," I snarled through the link again, though it was half-choked by water.

The Alpha didn’t speak.

Didn’t need to.

The growl rumbling from his chest was nothing short of animalistic. It built like a storm, loud enough to shake the ground. My wolf, not used to this, staggered a bit internally, keeping our ears back, and our belly low.

Submission.

I would not submit to this bully of a man.

With a final burst of strength, I twisted under the Alpha and bit back... this time I caught the asshole hard in the leg. The Alpha snapped, his rage now fully overtaking whatever cursed restraint he must have had before.

He grabbed me by the scruff with a massive jaw and slammed me down again... harder this time, with enough force to knock the breath out of my lungs.

What was he doing?

I didn't register it until it happened. One moment he was far, and the next moment I felt fangs, hot breath, and a snarl.

Followed by the searing pain of teeth breaking skin.

I didn't even have the time to scream.

This Alpha had bitten me down into the curve where my neck met my shoulder. The sacred spot. The claiming point. The place no wolf touched unless...

No.

No, no, no.

I was convulsing from the shock of it all, my mind going blank under the surge of the heat and chemical reaction as the bond began to ignite. This damn idiot was starting the marking process.

A permanent connection.

"Stop," I gasped. "Stop!"

I thrashed wildly. Kicked at him. My claws scraped against the Alpha’s ribs, but the bigger wolf didn't release me, instead he deepened the bite. Pain and desire blurred.

My heart was beating so loud I couldn't hear the forest anymore.

I was being claimed, and marked.

My wolf screamed in both agony and euphoria.

No. I didn’t choose this. I didn’t ask for this!

I released a cry which pretty much sounded like a howl, planted all four of my paws against the Alpha’s chest and shoved hard.

It took me a few tries but eventually, he had stumbled back, teeth releasing with a wet pop. I backed away immediately, my breathing so tagged, and blood kept on dripping from the mark. His entire body trembled.

Before the Alpha could move again, I shifted.

The transition was fast... seamless. Wet fur gave way to bare skin, chest heaving, long limbs collapsing against the riverbank as I clutched the searing wound at his neck.

I looked up.

The Alpha kept on staring at me, still in wolf form. Chest rising, eyes glowing, and what could only be smugness. This was a predator who had just taken what he believed was his.

But me... I felt it.

I touched my fingers to the fresh mark, wincing at the pain. The blood smeared across my palm, deep red under the silver moon.

“This isn’t real,” I whispered to myself since this is something that couldn't have happened. "What the fuck have you done?"