He Shouldn’t Be Here

For the rest of the day, I tried to convince myself I imagined him.

Maybe the sun hit the trees strangely.

Maybe my lack of sleep made me see things.

Maybe the Alpha of the entire Northern Pack did not step out of the forest just to talk to me.

But the more I tried to dismiss it, the more a quiet hum settled in my chest—warm, persistent, alive.

Like something inside me had been awakened.

I was still thinking about it when I reached home.

Our small cottage sat near the village’s edge, close enough to hear the wolves howling on cold nights. My aunt, Mila, sat by the window peeling apples, her brown eyes narrowing the moment she saw my face.

“You look pale,” she said. “Did something happen?”

I swallowed. Lie, Aria. Just lie.

She’d panic if she knew I’d spoken to an Alpha. Humans didn’t survive those kinds of stories.

“I’m fine,” I said instead.

“You’re a terrible liar.” She set the apples aside. “Is someone bothering you?”

I hesitated.

Only the most feared Alpha in the region. No big deal.

“No. I just… didn’t sleep well.”

She eyed me for another long moment, then sighed. “Get some rest. You’ve been wandering too close to the forest lately. Stay away from it, Aria.”

My stomach tightened.

Too late for that.

I nodded and went to my room, shutting the door quietly behind me. I leaned against it, exhaling shakily.

Justin’s voice echoed in my mind.

I won’t let anything happen to you.

Why?

Why me?

I rubbed my arms, trying to shake off the cold creeping under my skin.

A sudden knock at the front door made me jump.

I heard Aunt Mila answer it.

Then silence.

Then her voice, sharp, breathless. “What are you doing here?”

My heart stopped.

No.

No, he wouldn’t.

He couldn’t

Footsteps. Heavy, calm, unhurried. Not my aunt’s.

My door creaked open.

I froze.

Justin filled the doorway, tall and impossibly composed, his gaze sweeping over me like he’d memorized every detail and was checking if anything had changed in the last few hours.

He was here.

In my house.

In the human village.

Inside a place he shouldn’t even be allowed to enter.

My aunt appeared behind him looking absolutely terrified. “Aria,” she whispered, “he says he needs to speak with you.”

Justin didn’t look away from me when he spoke. “Now.”

My breath tangled in my throat. “You can’t just walk into my home.”

“You didn’t answer when I called.”

His tone was calm, but something dangerous flickered beneath it.

“I didn’t hear anything.”

He took one step closer. “Yes, you did.”

A shock rushed through me at his certainty—at the memory of that warm hum inside my chest earlier.

Oh God. I had heard him.

Not with my ears. With something else.

Something I didn’t understand.

My aunt swallowed hard. “Alpha Rowan… please, if she’s done anything—”

“She hasn’t.” His eyes sharpened. “But someone else has.”

Fear prickled down my spine. “What do you mean?”

Justin’s jaw tightened. “Two rogues crossed the southern border last night.”

My aunt gasped.

Rogues were wolves without packs—wild, unpredictable, desperate.

“They were tracking something,”Justin continued. “Something that led them dangerously close to this village.”

My blood went cold. “Tracking what?” Justin  looked at me with a gaze that stripped away every lie I could think of.

“You.”

The world fell silent.

“No,” I whispered, shaking my head. “Why would they why me?”

His voice softened, but it carried a heat that made my pulse stumble.

“You don’t sense it yet. But they do. So do I.”

“Sense what?”

“The bond.”

My knees nearly gave out. “Bond?” I echoed.

Justin  stepped close enough that I could feel the warmth radiating off him.

“Aria,” he said quietly, “you’re tied to me in a way neither of us can ignore.”

I stared at him, breath unsteady.

He lowered his head, his voice brushing my skin like a shiver.

“You’re my mate.”

The room spun.

My aunt let out a small cry, covering her mouth.

I stumbled back. “No I’m human.”

His eyes darkened like storm clouds. “Not fully.”

My heart slammed. “What are you talking about?”

Justin didn’t blink. “Someone has lied to you your whole life.”

He paused.

“And I intend to find out who.”