Chapter two;

Evander Pov:

The night air was sharp,filled with the musk of prey. I crouched at the ridge,my golden eyes glowing beneath the moonlight. Behind me was my Beta,Tia and my Gamma Larry. They waited silently,their muscles coiled and ready.

As we walked down the path quietly,targeting a nice prey,I heard a noise,a growling noise. Not a deer noise nor an antelope. We followed the path where the noise was coming from and as we get closer,I smelled an intoxicating scotch scent,it was heaven.

I became anxious as I tried to find the source of the scent. Then my eyes landed on the most beautiful eyes I had ever seen - one golden - one moonlight.

The cold bite of metal tore through her leg as the trap snapped shut. Pain seared up her body,stealing her breath and leaving her trembling in the lonely stretch of forest. She fought against the iron jaws,but every movement only drew more blood.

"You're safe now," he murmured, his voice deep and steady. With one arm,he lifted her against his chest,cradling her as though she weighed nothing. Heat radiated from his body,driving away the icy sting of pain. She clung to him instinctively,her cheek brushing against the steady thrum of his heartbeat.

In that moment,she wasn't just rescued. She was claimed - protected by a force of nature that was both wild and achingly tender.

I yelled at my Beta Tia and my Gamma Larry and demanded them to help me get the bear trap as I lift her.

We don't know anything about her, said Larry. She could have been banished, cursed or a spy,making me feel the mate bond.

They have been challenged to a fight by a rival pack,the Ironclaw pack,ruled by a brutal Alpha named Aldric Roar,had challenged them to war over a boundary. They have been preparing for the war,looking out for spies. Tia and Larry were afraid that she might be sent by Alpha Aldric to spy on them.

I roared in agitation,knowing they could be right. But with the growl,I got another scent,one that made my c**k harden instantly. It was the scent of her arousal. F**k,I wanted her.

"Find out who she is? And where she's from and where she's headed"?

Alpha Evander said to Tia.

Her scent was intoxicating my senses and in that moment,I would risk anything just to hold her damn hand! But then she collapsed in my arms.

I rushed her into the pack house thought the back door,because I didn't want to create a scene or suspense within the pack. Laid her down on the couch. I turned her to her side,lifting up her leggings to the wound. I could hear Tia and Larry protesting,but I ignored them. All I could feel was panic.

I heard the front door open and more voices. I covered my mate up. I could hear the healer's voice approaching. I had never been more grateful as she was the pack healer. I never would have been able to handle any male touching her.

"Alpha Evander" the healer greeted,coming straight to the couch.

I reluctantly moved away,giving her space to treat her.

It felt like eternity. The healer treated her and said she was resting. And now I was waiting patiently for her to wake up. I needed to see she was okay for myself.

"Alpha Evander", now what? Larry sighed as he pulled up a seat next to me. What do you mean? "Now what? Alpha Evander slammed at Larry.

I have done some research about her, said Larry. She is a born Luna named Betty. She was born by a lone she-wolf. At nine years her parents went into rogue and had never been seen or heard from since. She was taken in to the pack house by Alpha Ray and his wife Ria. She was mated to their only child Arthur,who rejected her and now she left the pack because of that.

This woman was my mate, and by some twist of fate,she had been abandoned by her previous mate and was now on the market, just waiting for someone to claim her.

'She is mine,and I would do everything in my power to take care of her. The Alpha said as he slammed the door and left the room.

******

BETTY

I had been entangled in a sweet dream filled with comfort and love. A foreign but wonderful sensation kept invading my mind making me want to hold onto the feeling. Unfortunately,I felt myself being pulled back to consciousness.

I let my eyes flutter open.

My chest tightened at the memory of two nights, when our bond( Arthur and I) had revealed itself the night he came back.

Arthur had returned from three long years of training at the prestigious Alpha School, his strength and leadership sharpened, his future assured. Yet all of that faded to the background the moment our eyes met across the crowded room.

I would never forget that instant - the moment our mate bond snapped into place. It was as if the world had gone quiet,leaving only the two of us, drawn together by a force older than time itself. I remembered the rush of heat in veins, the spark of recognition that shot through my soul, and the overwhelming certainty that I belonged to him and him to me.

His presence stole the very air from my lungs the moment he entered. I couldn’t tear my gaze away—my Alpha, my mate. The way his shirt clung to the hard ridges of his chest made my fingers ache to trace every line of muscle. His arms, thick and powerful, looked as though they could crush mountains, yet I knew they could cradle me with the gentlest touch. My heart skipped as his sharp jaw flexed, shadowed with stubble that made him look wild, untamed—exactly as an Alpha should be.

It was more than happiness- it was destiny unfolding before my very eyes.

Now he rejected me, as if he didn't feel a thing for me.

My body gets too heavy for me to be able to process my own weight,my own mind and my own thoughts. I was in an unfamiliar room lit with natural light from the sun.

The healer was seated across the couch I was laid on.

Immediately the door was flagged open. A tall figure emerged from the shadows,his presence impossible to ignore. My head whipped to the side as the man approached. My heart rate quickened.

My skin pricked with awareness. There was an aura about him that made it difficult to keep staring at him without being overwhelmed by his presence.

Even my wolf was reacting to him and that was unusual. I gently calmed my wolf and offered quick reassurances. I had no clue if we were safe,but I wanted to know who the enigmatic man was.

I watched him from my peripheral aware that he was the most dominant shifter in the pack.

"Alpha Evander"!

Said the healer,as he stood up and walked towards him, 'she lost a lot of blood. Her body is extremely weak and I'm surprised she survived. But give her some hours and she will be fine and fully awake, as he walked out of the room and the door closed behind him.

"Alpha Evander Solan! of the Shadow fang pack"! I exclaimed quietly.

No...no...it can't be. Still feeling pains,but I struggled to make my visions clearer and move my body.

The Alpha golden eyes locked on her,fierce yet softened with concern.

"Slowly my Luna!" he said softly.

"Luna"! I whispered.

And I held my breath as I heard his sweetest voice and you can feel the tenderness in it. His voice wasn't as cruel as they have described him back in my pack.