THE ALPHA'S FORBIDDEN MATE

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Chapter One: A New Beginning

The bus groaned to a stop with a loud hiss, and Aria Gray blinked awake, her head jerking slightly from the windowpane. Outside, fog clung to the trees like fingers, wrapping the small town of Crescent Ridge in a soft, ghostly shroud. It wasn’t exactly welcoming, but that was the point. She wanted quiet. She wanted hidden.

Dragging her suitcase off the bus, she adjusted her leather jacket against the cold bite in the air. Her boots crunched on gravel as the vehicle pulled away, leaving her standing in front of an old wooden sign with faded white paint: Welcome to Crescent Ridge. It felt more like a warning than a greeting.

She rolled her suitcase along the narrow path leading to the cabin she’d rented online. Her landlord, a woman named Mrs. Briar, had told her it was “private and peaceful”—just what Aria had wanted. A place to escape the city, her old life, and the ex who shattered her trust.

Aria’s life had been spiraling for the last year. Her job gone, her friends scattered, her trust in people hanging by a thread. She didn’t believe in fate, or destiny, or any of that supernatural crap people clung to when life got hard. She believed in disappearing—starting over, quietly.

The cabin appeared at the edge of the woods, a two-story structure with ivy crawling along one side and a chimney puffing lazy smoke into the gray sky. It looked like something out of a fairytale—one of the dark ones. Still, it was beautiful. Remote. Perfect.

She stepped inside and exhaled in relief at the warmth. A fire crackled in the stone hearth, casting orange light across wooden walls and rustic furniture. It smelled of pine, old books, and something faintly earthy—like moss after rain.

Setting her suitcase down, she walked to the back window and peered out.

The forest behind the cabin was vast and thick, trees towering into the mist like ancient sentinels. She pressed a hand against the glass, feeling that same strange pull she’d felt during the drive up. As if something… or someone… was calling to her.

She shook her head and turned away. Just nerves. Or exhaustion.

After unpacking a few essentials and tossing her coat on a chair, she walked outside with a mug of tea. The air was sharp, tinged with the crispness of late autumn. Her breath fogged in front of her as she stepped down the wooden porch and wandered toward the edge of the forest.

Every step closer to the tree line made her chest tighten—but not in fear. It was… anticipation. Like she was about to meet someone she hadn’t seen in years.

Her phone buzzed in her back pocket. She pulled it out to see a message from Mrs. Briar:

“Welcome again, dear. Please don’t wander into the forest after dark. The locals say it’s not safe.”

Aria arched an eyebrow. Not safe? In what way?

She glanced toward the forest again. It looked peaceful now, almost asleep in the mist.

Still… her gut twisted, just a little.

She turned back toward the cabin—but paused.

The hairs on the back of her neck rose.

She wasn’t alone.

The sensation was sudden, electric. Her heartbeat quickened, her pulse fluttering under her skin like wings. She spun around, eyes searching the trees, but the mist had thickened, swallowing the forest whole.

She heard it then.

A low rustle, almost like breathing. And footsteps—slow, heavy, but controlled.

“Hello?” she called out, voice firmer than she felt.

No answer.

The silence was absolute.

Until she saw them.

Two golden eyes in the mist—shining, watching her. They didn’t belong to a deer or a bear. They were too intelligent. Too focused.

Aria froze.

She couldn’t look away.

The eyes stared at her with raw intensity, and in that one locked gaze, her body reacted. Her chest tightened. Her breath caught. Heat surged low in her belly, unexpected and overwhelming. Who—no, what—was that?

She blinked—and the eyes were gone.

Her heart thundered.

She backed toward the cabin, one slow step at a time, never turning her back until she reached the porch. Slamming the door behind her, she leaned against it, pressing a pal

m to her chest.

What the hell was that?

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Ready for Chapter Two?