Baby girl.

The words of the young man were unexpected, prompting Claudia to lift her head to see the person who had just called her his mate.

Behold, it was a familiar face.

‘Where do I know this person from?’ Claudia thought within herself, but she couldn’t find a suitable answer before the men who had just transformed into wolves came lunging forward.

Swiftly, the mysterious man who had addressed Claudia as his mate suddenly transformed before her eyes. His bones cracked and reshaped, fur spread across his body, and a deep growl escaped his throat as his fangs lengthened.

In a flash, he lunged at Claudia’s attackers with feral strength, his claws tearing through the air as he tackled the first wolf to the ground.

During the fight, Claudia held her breath for what felt like forever, her teeth clenched and her eyes wide open in horror.

‘Get up, Claudia. Fight for yourself,’ Nyx mused within herself, urging her trembling body to escape the premises or better still help the man who seems like a knight in shining armour.

Despite that, Claudia unfortunately found herself growing weaker with each passing second. She forced herself to stand, clenching her fists and preparing to strike whoever posed a threat to her. But before she could summon the courage to do so, her eyes rolled upward, and she passed out.

***

The reflection of the morning sun fell across Claudia’s peaceful face, prompting her to squint in discomfort. She could feel the bumpy movement beneath her as her body swayed from side to side, a clear sign that she was most likely inside a moving car.

At first, she planned to ignore the discomfort since her entire body ached from the intense pain, but the more she felt the uneven motion, the more her face twisted into a frown.

“Sigh…”

Claudia let out a tired breath as she slowly forced her eyes open. She fluttered her eyelashes a few times and turned her gaze to the side, only to see the blurry figure of a young man beside her.

“Hmm, where am I?” Claudia questions out loud, using the back of her hand to wipe the remnants of sleep from her face as she turns her gaze toward the other side, which turns out to be a car window.

At first, the reflection of the sunlight makes her squint in discomfort, but after a few seconds, once her eyes adjust, Claudia becomes stunned to see cars moving outside the window.

“What!” she exclaims, shifting her gaze toward the blurry figure from earlier.

Now her vision is clear.

A handsome man sits at the far end of the car, resting his head against the rolled-up window. He seems peaceful as his brown, crew-cut hair falls messily across his forehead, shading parts of his face.

Despite that, Claudia can’t help but notice his well-defined chin and how the sunlight makes his skin glisten in a hypnotic way. He is dressed in a white, long-sleeved shirt with a few of the top buttons undone, and on the lower part of his body, he wears black trousers.

Claudia’s frown deepens. ‘Is he the one who saved me yesterday, or could it be that he was sent by Alpha Derrick to take me away? And where exactly is this man taking me? Why… why did he address me as his mate last night?’

Countless questions swirl through Claudia’s mind, but finding an answer to even one of them seems impossible.

She sniffles softly and turns her gaze forward. A young man with blonde hair is driving, his eyes fixed intently on the road ahead.

“Umm… good day?” Claudia begins carefully, choosing her words with caution since she still isn’t certain what situation she’s in.

The driver glances at her through the rearview mirror and smiles warmly. His bright smile makes him appear less dangerous.

“Luna, you’re awake,” he purrs in a delighted voice, making Claudia freeze in place. Her brows arch in confusion, but she remains silent, her heart pounding in uncertainty.

‘Did he just call me Luna? I thought… I thought I rejected Alpha Derrick last night,’ Claudia pondered, her brows furrowing in confusion.

The driver notices the uneasiness in her gaze and chuckles softly. “No need to be alarmed, Luna. I’m Theodore, but you can call me Theo for short,” he says in a gleeful tone. “I’m Alpha Lucian’s beta.”

Claudia lifts her hand in front of her, examining it carefully as she searches for the injury she sustained the previous night.

The wound is still clearly visible.

‘I don’t sense him as our mate, Claudia… and I can’t tell if we’re in danger. But he doesn’t feel dangerous,’ Nyx, Claudia’s wolf, mused within her.

‘Umm, Is this some kind of realistic dream?’ she questions herself as she grabs her cheek with her right hand and pinches it hard.

Instantly, Theodore steps on the brake, the car jerking to a sudden halt.

The handsome young man who had been sleeping in the backseat jolts awake, his eyes snapping open. He stares at Theodore, then turns his gaze toward Claudia, who is still fiercely pinching her cheek in disbelief.

“Sorry!” Theodore exclaims with an apologetic tone as he turns to face Alpha Lucian. “Alpha, I’m… I’m so sorry, but Luna just tried to hurt herself.”

Lucian scoots closer to Claudia and gently takes her hands, his fingers wrapping around hers with a firm but calming grip.

His touch was warm and soothing enough to make Claudia become still and slowly, she lifts her gaze as her eyes meet his.

And then… time stands still.

The man before her is devastatingly handsome. His emerald eyes glimmer under the sunlight, deep and captivating, while his nose is sharp and perfectly sculpted. His lips was pink, full, and impossibly alluring which was curve into a smile as he studies her, and Claudia swallows hard, the motion visible in her throat.

For a moment, everything else fades. With the sun’s reflection falling softly over his face, Lucian looks almost unreal. He seems like an angelic figure carved to perfection, so mesmerizing that Claudia can almost hear a melody play in her head just from looking at him.

“Hey, baby girl, how are you?” the young man murmurs, his voice smooth and deep, each word rolling off his tongue like warm silk.

It’s the most seductive sound Claudia has ever heard. His tone is calm yet intoxicating, a low vibration that seems to curl around her senses and make her chest tighten.

Claudia finds it hard to respond, her lips parting soundlessly.

Noticing her silence, he gives her fingers, still caught in his grasp, a gentle caress. “Baby girl, are you in pain?” he asks softly, his thumb brushing against Claudia’s skin in a slow, teasing motion that sends shivers down her spine.

She presses her lips together, forcing herself to speak. “Am I in hea… heaven? And are… are you an angel?”

He chuckles, his Adam’s apple moving with the motion, and even that small act feels hypnotic. Everything he does seems too perfect in Claudia’s eyes.

“I’m your mate, Claudia Kendal,” he purrs, his voice dropping to a velvety whisper that makes Claudia to suddenly scream out loud.

“Arrrghhhhh!!”