Chapter one

The feeling of his alpha hood pulsated deep inside my flesh.

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 Veins as rough as his face, his hand wrapped around my neck.

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‎My legs spread apart as my belly touched the wet forest grass.

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‎ He didn't know my name.

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‎ His alpha hood filled me like it owned me, pulsating till I could barely breathe as he thrust deep into me.

‎In our wolf state, his fangs dug into my flesh, and my eyes rolled back as the moon bathed our flesh.

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‎ He was getting married tomorrow; his wife was a couple of doors away within the mansion.

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‎ Yet here he was, in heat, uncontrollably wild for me.

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‎ My wolf was owned by him. I knew my mate. He couldn't marry her.

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‎He had to marry me... He was making a mistake, I thought, as he cupped my breasts between his large palms and his claws dug into my flesh.

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‎ I cried out. It felt so good; my body was shaking, wanting more of him.

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‎"God, I love you!" he suddenly breathed in my ear. His breath was hot, and my heart was pounding.

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‎ He licked my face, and his mouth claimed mine. His fangs scratched my lips. My blood and his mixed perfectly.

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‎ I was breathing hard. He loves me?

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‎Me?

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‎ He doesn't even know my name.

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‎"You are so beautiful," he breathed, and my heart drummed in my chest.

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‎ We were just two strangers, controlled by heat and led to one another.

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‎ The more he thrust into me, the more I was convinced this was mine and mine alone.

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‎ And then suddenly it was over, and we were wrapped up in each other, bare and wicked. He had me wrapped around him: hands intertwined, bodies fused, sweat against sweat, skin against skin, lips fused into one.

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‎ His tongue was deep inside my mouth. What are the odds that two strangers would be so connected to one another? I thought this as pleasure filled me till I choked, my nails digging into his flesh, his muscles bunched against my skin.

‎ He fell limp on top of me. We had been doing this all night, yet the urge hadn't left me. I flipped us over, straddling him.

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‎ What was this uncontrollable urge? I thought as I slipped the thick length of his alpha hood back into me. I felt completely ecstatic.

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‎ I moved my hips back and forth till my eyes rolled. That's it. It was hitting me exactly where I wanted it.

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‎ My nails moved through his hair, my lips on his neck, his flesh between my teeth. I was high on ecstasy. I didn't want it to ever end, as the moon was the only thing I saw.

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‎"So damn good!" I heard him groan under me as he wrapped his arms around me, in our most primal animal state.

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‎ His heart beat in sync with mine. "I wish I had found you earlier," he whispered. "I should have waited longer. I needed to fulfill my duty to my people, to my pack... but they won't accept you as you are," he whispered.

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‎ I felt the raw pain in his voice. "I should have waited till eternity, if I had to, to find you... I should have turned my back on my people... if I truly loved you... How will you forgive me when I don't deserve your forgiveness?" I felt a tear fall down his cheek.

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‎ I licked it with my tongue. Salt and water, what an exquisite taste. "What are you talking about?" I kissed him, but he suddenly, gently, pushed me off him to the side.

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‎ It hurt so much, and I didn't know why. It was like he was rejecting me... He was rejecting us?

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‎ I stood up, and he stood up with me. His eyes trailed over my skin with clear, hungry lust, and yet he looked conflicted. "What's wrong?" I asked, my voice heavy with the painful lump in my throat. "Didn't you like it?"

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‎ He was in front of me so suddenly that I gasped. My body slammed against his, and his arm wrapped possessively around my waist. His mouth claimed mine, consuming me in his kiss until I was dizzy.

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He was sucking the life out of me... I couldn't breathe, and it felt wonderful. So why?

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‎ Why did my wolf feel this awful pain? He was hugging me, and yet I felt utterly abandoned. "What are you doing to me?" I was confused by the emotions in my body.

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‎ How does someone I just met raise such feelings deep inside me?

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‎Will this burning need to consume him eat me alive?

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‎I want more... I yearn for more. He was making me wild... If he kept pulling away, I would literally lose my mind.

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‎ So I cupped his flesh in my palm, and he shivered at my touch. "Tell me you want me." I bit his bottom lip. "Answer me."

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‎ His smirk was so wide. Damn, he was handsome. "I want you, little stranger."

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‎I smirked. "Good," I whispered against his lips, feeling his pulsating flesh as I rubbed against his length. I caught his little nipples between my fingertips and tugged at them. "Do you like it when I touch you like this?"

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‎ His little shivers and deep sounds turned me on. I wanted to make him absolutely nuts. "You are crazy," he chuckled.

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‎"This is why you don't play with strangers." We were teasing each other, the moonlight seducing both of us in our heat.

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‎ He grinned, lifting me into his arms, my legs around his waist. "It's hot... let's swim." I clung to him as he ran through the forest; I would have fallen due to his speed if I hadn't.

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‎ The cold water hit my flesh as we plunged into the river, his lips hungrily on mine again.

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‎ I could kiss him a million times, and it would always be better than the last time. As we came up to the surface for air, I shivered in the night air. "It's cooler now."

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‎"You are so breathtakingly stunning," he said, staring into the depths of my eyes. I blushed, looking away... I was not about to give my soul away to a stranger who was getting married.

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‎ How did I know he was getting married?

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‎ Because I was invited to the wedding.

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‎"Please look at me." His pleading hypnotized me.

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‎"I don't want to marry her," he said to me, not a hint of a lie in his eyes. I knew, because my mate told me the truth. "But I have to."

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‎"So what?" I asked, trying to hide my unsettled emotions, trying to hide that I wasn't okay.

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‎ There was pain in his eyes as he said, "But I have to... I found you too late."

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‎ I was no longer in the mood. I tried to pull away.

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‎"Oh, come on..." He was begging in the most unreasonable way for the rumored wicked alpha he was.

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‎"Just for tonight, can we pretend we belong together?" he said.

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‎ My heart wanted to split into pieces. I wanted to scream at him, to tell him I hated him. "Fine."

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‎ I woke up to the rising sun and blue skies, alone on the grass, naked. His robe was behind me, his scent clinging to the fabric, a reminder of what had happened last night.

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‎Today is the wedding... I thought as I picked up the robe and wrapped myself in it, heading toward the mansion in a daze.

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‎ Will he really marry her?

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‎ I thought to myself as I soaked in the bathtub, the warm water caressing the bruises from the grass.

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‎ As I put on my dress, I observed the bright, glaring hickeys on my skin. With a sigh, I changed into a lace turtleneck dress and willed myself to attend the wedding of my mate.

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‎ I smiled at my reflection in the mirror and pushed myself out of the room.

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‎The sound of the howls was not helping. I sat in the crowd of she-wolves, all saying how handsome Alpha Reuben looked.

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‎The thick black hair I had run my fingers through gleamed in the sunlight, and his dead, steel-grey eyes focused on his bride-to-be.

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‎She stepped down the aisle dressed in the finest wedding dress. She was beautiful, unlike me; perfect, not someone to be screwed in secret.

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‎As she stood opposite my mate at the altar with a bright smile, my heart and my wolf broke. They said their vows, and as he leaned in and kissed her, our eyes met.

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‎My wolf howled in agony within me. My whole world shattered as everyone clapped but me. I gripped the seat until my knuckles turned white.

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‎The reception was a blur of congratulations. I couldn't even bring myself to go anywhere near the couple. I drowned myself in glasses of champagne until I was wobbling slightly. I felt sick and wobbled all the way out to the dark balcony.

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‎I felt his presence, his scent, as I talked to myself. "You are a fool, Leah. Did you think he would leave his forever bride just because you are his mate, whom he found yesterday?" I laughed to myself as tears burned my cheeks.

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‎"It's too late." My lips trembled and my heart ached when I suddenly felt arms around me, strong, muscled arms, and his lips kissed my neck.

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‎I whirled around and slapped him across the cheek. The sound echoed in the night, along with the heaving of my chest and the flaring of my nostrils, my anger rising like a volcano about to erupt.

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‎He pulled me to him, our wolves more in control than our senses. "F*CK, I missed you... I want more," he said roughly as his lips claimed mine in a kiss that broke all my walls and fueled my need.

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‎I was shamelessly obsessed with him. I pushed him off me, turned, and jumped off the balcony, hot tears burning my cheeks. I could hear him screaming my name. "Leah! Leah!"

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‎Bright lights flashed, blinding me for a moment. All I heard was the sound of blaring horns, and my body ached in pain like my bones were crushed. I couldn't fathom what was happening. All I knew was that I heard his wolf scream...

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‎I gasped, my heart beating frantically in my chest. My alarm going off nearly damaged my eardrums. My head was pounding as my eyes teared up. I reached for the alarm, turning it off. I groaned to see the Kiss Wolf werewolf series novels surrounding me like a ritual.

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‎I sighed, annoyed with my addiction. "God, I've gotta stop reading this shit." I tossed it in the trash.

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‎Checking my watch, I screamed, "Oh my God, I'm gonna be late for school!"

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