MasukXAVIER My job required a level head. My position as alpha demands I must never let my emotions get the better of me. My personal philosophy favours calm above all else. All of them were nowhere to be found. I was losing my mind.Days without Rune, without hearing her voice or seeing her face, were enough to send my wolf into a feral state. The creature inside me paced and snarled, demanding I find her, claim her, make her understand that she belonged to me. And now, suddenly, she was here. In my building. In my office. Her scent flooded my senses, sweet and intoxicating, and it took every ounce of control I possessed not to vault over my desk and pin her against the wall and have my wicked way with her. The mate bond that had been tormenting me for the past two weeks came alive, like an amber with petrol thrown over it. She's here. Her crystalline blue eyes wide with wonder, her short hair framing her face delicately. She swayed slightly from side to side, her gaze taking in
RUNEA week passed. A cursed week at best. Against my better judgement, I returned to my apartment. I told myself that maybe if I just pretended nothing happened in my living room, I can go back to life as usual. So I cooped up in my bedroom, watched funny cat videos from sun up to sundown, and ignored every attempt at conversation from the outside world. From Lorenzo, Marcella, Anslem, even Xavier. Especial Xavier. I have no idea how he got my number, but I ignored him too. Thankfully, Marcella knew of my tendency to vanish at random points in life. If not, I fear she would have come tearing down my doors. I also didn't want to see her. So many times, I came close to just blurting out everything to her. "Hey, so I made out with your dad! Twice!" "Ah!" I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut as I cringed. "No. No way in hell."I kept my lips sealed, tucked myself under my blankets, and ignored life. Deep down I knew that I wasn't acting like a mature adult. It was my sad nature to
RUNEHe nodded. "You must be tired."The walk back to my hotel room was quiet. I was hyper aware of him beside me, of how close his hand was to mine, of how badly part of me wanted to grab it. The other part, the part that had been trained to be good and responsible and moral, was screaming at me to run.We stopped outside my door. I fumbled with the key card, my hands shaking slightly."Would you like to..." I started, then stopped. Was I really about to invite him in? To my room? Where there was a bed? "Nevermind."His phone rang. The sound was jarring in the quiet hallway. He pulled it out, and I saw the name on the screen before he could hide it.Marcella.My best friend. The woman who'd been there for me through everything. Who held me while I cried over my breakup. Who convinced me to come on this trip in the first place.The guilt hit me like a physical blow."I shouldn't have kissed you," I blurted out. "I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking. That's not like me. I'm not
RUNEI fell into the pool, the warm water forming a wave of warmth around me. Barely seconds later, before my body could sink, a loud splash was heard and strong arms grabbed my waist. "What the hell are you doing?" Xavier asked as he pulled me up, his eyes searching my face. Gosh, he looked so good. His white shirt turned sheer, showing off his corded muscles. My eyes followed a drop of water on its path from his forehead to his chin and down his neck. I wanted to taste it. Follow its path with the tip of my tongue. I swallowed, hard. The warmth of his hands sliding up my waist burned, and I leaned into him, seeking more of that warmth. "You caught me," I whispered, reaching out and pushing strands of hair from his eyes. He chuckled, the blue of the water reflecting in his eyes. His grip on my waist tightened, making me gasp. Slowly, he guided me till my legs wrapped around his waist. "How couldn't I?" He said. I put my arms around his neck, holding him as physically close as
RUNEAlpha. When Anslem said that word, he looked like he had seen a ghost. Or an eldritch horror. I know Xavier can be terrifying ...but to that extent?Unless there was something else. Before he could reply, I gasped. "No way! Were you in a frat?!"He glanced at me from the corner of his eye, trying to focus still on the road. "A fraternity?""Yes. You're a founding father? Or something of the sort right?"He faced the road. I may have been imagining it, but his grip on the steering tightened. "Something of that sort, yes." He replied."Sick." I said with a grin. "What kind of frat boy were you? How many years ago was it since you graduated college? Twenty? Thirty, maybe?""I am not that old," he said with a deadpan expression. I laughed to myself. "Of course you're not! I'm just messing with you."The ghost of a smile appeared on his face. "My college days aren't anything of fun. There's no need recounting the experience.""Ah, I see. Mine were fun as hell! Marcella and I....may
XAVIERI am a level headed man. An alpha who lets emotions take control of him has a lot of introspective work to do. It's easy to tell myself that Rune will be safe and fine. Afterall, she's with family. That should soothe my wolf. Or so I believed. "Mr Creighton?"There she is. My human mate, safe, not a hair out of place. With her family. Did I fly across the country on a whim for nothing?I turned my attention away from the sniveling wolf staring at me with a horrified face. "You're Marcella's dad," The man who opened the door, who I guess must be the brother Marcella talked about, said. "Yes," I replied, unable to take my eyes off Rune. My Rune. "Marcella was worried about you,"A bold, shameless lie. I'm here because I wanted to, not because Marcella asked me to. Rune nodded frantically, her stunning eyes wide with shock. "I...I should have called her once I landed. I-I'm really sorry,"Why is she apologising? I should be the one apologising for following her like a chea







