1. TALIA

I noticed him the moment he entered the bar. It was hard not to.

The man was a stranger, and that was a rarity in our small town when it wasn’t tourist season. Usually, we only dealt with tourists passing through during the holiday seasons.

But the man didn’t look like a tourist.

“I got it.”

My eyes followed him through the crowd to the darkest corner where he took a seat. Exchanging the dry glass for a wet one, I watched my mate as he made his way towards him.

The man muttered something without looking up.

Seth lingered by the table for a second more before he spun around and walked away, frowning.

Fingers brushed down my arm as my second mate joined me. “Are you going to make us fight tonight, sweetheart?”

I glared at him. “I never make you fight. You decide to do that all on your own.”

He smirked.

“Hell,” Seth hissed. “Hadn’t taken a bath in weeks by the smell of him.”

Knox scoffed. “Most of our customers don’t do that bathing thing.”

“What did he order?” I asked before they could start arguing again.

“Water.”

I frowned but moved to grab a clean glass and fill it with filtered water. He didn’t specify whether the man wanted ice, so I added some ice cubes to an extra cup and carried the order to the man’s table while my mates were still distracted.

Seth was right, the man stank, but it could also be the other scents blocking out his scent. The place was full of drunks and a group of teenagers using fake IDs, and those were my least favourite smells. Sweaty, old men that stank of beer and whatever greasy burger they ate. The teens smelled of vodka, sweat, sexual tension, and other scents I didn’t want to focus on.

“Would you like something else?” I asked after placing the glass down on the table.

The man shifted slightly, but it was enough for me to catch another scent. One that was unmistakable. Something that could be very dangerous for my other mate who was somewhere in the bar, watching from the shadows.

Swallowing, I took a small step closer, making him tense.

His eyes darted up, and for a moment I froze, the air locked in my throat and everything around me disappeared. All I could focus on was the man in front of me and his bright blue eyes.

And suddenly a voice broke through the haze, snapping me out of my trance.

“Oh hell, not another one, bumblebee.”

I turned only to find Seth glaring at the stranger. His eyes snapped to mine and narrowed, but I couldn’t make out what he was thinking.

“Sorry,” I croaked under my breath. “I…” Words deserted me as my eyes locked with the stranger’s again.

Seth moved closer, arm slipping around my waist to tug me against his body. I leaned into him, trying to discern his scent among the others, but my nostrils were filled with one scent only, and it sent a wave of hunger washing through me.

“You’re bleeding.”

The stranger shifted, hand reaching down to press to his side. When he pulled his hand back, his fingers were covered with bright red crimson. The man shrugged his broad shoulders, sending me an apologetic look.

“It’s just a scratch,” he said softly.

“That scratch is going to start fights,” Seth growled. “Make it stop bleeding or get the hell out.”

Arm tightening around my waist, he led me back to the bar and through the door marked ‘Employees Only’.

“You looked like you were ready to jump him.”

I swallowed, feeling the tip of my fangs brushing against my lower lip. Thankfully, he didn’t ask any questions. Seth led me to the office, where he pushed me down on the couch and crouched in front of me. His eyes darted over my face. “Do you need to feed, bumblebee?”

“I’m fine,” I managed to get out. “It just caught me off guard.”

Seth didn’t believe me; I could tell by the way his lips twitched, but his eyes narrowed. After all, it wasn’t our first rodeo.

“Is he…?” He left the sentence hanging in the air between us.

I shrugged because what was there to say? Something about the man pulled me towards him, and it wasn’t just the sweet scent of his blood.

“I’ll ask him to leave.”

“Don’t be rude!” I snapped.

“Talia, bar fights are one thing and a bleeding wound is another.” Seth placed his hands on my knees and squeezed. “Vesper is still learning to control his thirst, and I know he’s lingering around. We don’t want him to kill the man, do we?”

My shoulders slumped. The best option would be to ask the man to leave immediately because if Vesper went after him, it might end in bloodshed and then he’d feel guilty for killing someone, even if it was by accident.

“I’ll get him the first-aid kit,” he said softly.

“Make sure he won’t pass out somewhere.”

Leaning forward, he pressed a kiss to my cheek and then walked away. I stared at the door as the image of the man flashed through my mind.

He was in pain.

It was a deep kind of pain that pulled at my heart and made me want to fix him.

The man looked like he wanted to give up on everything all together, and I wasn’t sure whether that was the reason why I felt the pull towards him. I’d been in that dark place before Knox had found me.

Every time I had met a mate, it was different.

With Knox, it started off as friendship that later changed into more. Seth was like a wild bird that needed taming. Wilder, his scent was what caught my attention first. I’d followed it through the library until I located the huge man hiding in a dark corner. Vesper was my newest mate to join the pack, and I’d stumbled upon him by accident one night after taking out the trash.

With every one of them, our bonds just slipped into place.

But with the stranger, it felt…different.

“Do I need to invite the man to dinner?”

My eyes snapped up and locked on Knox leaning back against the door with his arms crossed over his chest. Pale blue eyes silently studied me, waiting for my answer.

I parted my lips, allowing him to see the tips of my fangs.

Knox instantly straightened, eyes narrowing. “Didn’t you feed enough on Friday?”

“I did,” I told him. “He’s bleeding.”

Tilting his head to the side, he silently studied me and waited for me to continue. Knox was good at a lot of things, but reading people was his specialty. It was why our pack worked even if it consisted of different shifters.

“He’s like me,” I whispered. “When we first met.”

Understanding flashed through his eyes. “We can’t help everyone, sweetheart.”

“I know.”

My head lowered as tears burned my eyes. I had learned long ago that not many people liked being helped. Especially if it meant pointing out their faults to help them heal and become someone stronger.

“Why don’t you call it a night?” he asked softly, hand stroking over my hair.

Denial hovered on the tip of my tongue, but I swallowed the words because I knew that I needed to step back. Heading upstairs to our apartment was the best thing I could do otherwise, I might end up starting trouble.

His hand moved down, fingertips brushing over my cheek until he reached my chin. With gentle force, he made me tilt my head back to look at me.

“I’ll see what I can find out about him,” Knox said softly. “But I’m not going to push or force the man to talk if he doesn’t want to.”

“Thank you.”

Leaning down, he pressed a kiss to the corner of my mouth, lips lingering for a few seconds before he straightened and left. I sucked in a deep breath, allowing his scent to wash over me and calm the nerves that suddenly left me uneasy.

After another few minutes, I got up and headed towards the apartment. It was quite but well lit, just like it always was when we were working late on weekends. The bar wasn’t our main source of income, but it was what brought in the most money, especially on weekends.

Some invisible force drew me closer to the window.

Pushing the curtains aside, I glanced around the well-lit parking lot until my eyes locked on a hunched figure walking towards the bike parked near the tree line. When he reached it, he glanced around and then pulled out a saddle bag from a hidden compartment underneath the seat.

It didn’t take me long to realize that it was the stranger from the bar.

He pulled out bandages and a small bottle that he set aside on the seat. After another glance around, he tugged his shirt up and started tending to his own wound. It didn’t take him long to bandage the scratch and pack everything away.

My heart dropped to my stomach when he straddled the big machine.

But he didn’t drive away.

I blew out a breath, pressing my forehead against the cool glass.

Where did he come from? How did he get injured? Does he have a place to stay? The nights could get cold sometimes, even if the days were hot.

The man didn’t even have a jacket.

Leaning forward, he lowered his head to rest on his folded arms. Minutes passed without him moving. People came and went, and the man remained seated in the same position.

Just as I was about to storm out there, he slowly straightened.

“Spying on unsuspecting strangers, are we, Talia?” Vesper appeared at my side in a cloud of black mist. “He’s the one that smells sweet.”

My eyes snapped to his.

“Don’t worry, I am in control.” He spoke words that sounded true, but his crimson eyes betrayed him.

Reaching out, I slipped a trembling hand into his and then turned my focus back to the man, only to find him gone. Disappointment flooded me, and so did the urge to go out there and search for him.

I didn’t want him to leave.

He needed help.

He needed me.