Chapter 1

NADINE. 

I closed my eyes as I relaxed my shoulders. I was just less than ten kilometers from the nearest border of the Dark Forest Pack, according to the taxi driver that was driving me there. 

I will see my mate soon. 

Two weeks ago, I met Xander at the Claiming Ball. But instead of claiming me, he decided to go ahead with the Claiming to help out his Alpha to claim a female, leaving me alone with the promise he would come back for me.

I left before he could. I didn’t even know if he really went looking for me. All I knew was that he chose his Alpha over me. He was loyal to him rather than our bond. 

But in the end, they went home empty-handed. I knew that they were not able to take the female that his Alpha wanted to claim. 

I should be upset, yet here I was, finding my way to his territory. But I had my reasons. 

One of them was because I would go into heat tonight at the peak of the full moon. Without my mate beside me, many things could go wrong. I was also hoping that my heat would be enough to entice him to claim me. 

I wanted him to claim me. 

My mate is Xander Trevino, Beta of the Dark Forest Pack. I heard a few things about him. They said he was a decent man, but a man of few words. 

But then I knew his Alpha, who was also his half-brother, had a reputation for being ruthless and abusive. So I had doubts about him, thinking that he might be like his brother, as they shared the same blood. But I hope I can melt his heart and he will accept me. After all, I was his fated mate.

After I paid the driver, he helped me unload my luggage and left. 

Once he was gone, the man looking at me from the border fence approached, and we exchanged information. He told me to wait, as it would take approximately thirty minutes for Xander to come from the packhouse.

Thirty minutes was nothing compared to how long I had waited for this moment. 

After a while,  a car came, and once the driver’s door opened, the scent of rich mahogany mixed with raspberries and sandalwood reached my nose.  It was exhilarating. I almost moaned in pleasure if I didn’t see the other door open, and his Alpha came out. 

I was told Beta Xander was coming.  But the man didn’t say Alpha Maddox would come with him.

I swallowed as I tried to calm the erratic thudding of my heart. I stood up straight and forced a smile out of my lips to mask the many emotions and questions in my head.

What if Alpha Maddox said no to having me as Xander’s mate? He, after all, was not able to take a Luna home. Would Xander agree with him?

I wanted my mate to stand up for me. 

“What are you doing here?” Xander’s voice came out cold as he walked toward me while his Alpha remained in front of their car, leaning his back on the front hood.

Xander’s forehead creased as his eyes drifted to the luggage beside me before returning to mine.

“I…” I paused. I was taken aback by his question. 

“Didn’t I say I would look for you?” He asked, and my heart was constricted by the anger in his voice. He surely didn’t want me here. 

“It’s been two weeks.”

“And? I said I would...”

“It’s a full moon tonight,” I mumbled. I wanted to snap back at him, but I didn’t. 

“I’ll drive you back home, and then we’ll talk.”

“I don’t have a home anymore. I... renounced my pack. They never wanted me anyway…”

“Fuck!” He muttered under his breath. His eyes dilated before he spoke, but then again, his voice and his words cut my heart. “Stay where you are, and don’t say anything.”

My jaw clenched. I didn’t nod or reply, but I did my best for my eyes not to tear up. I was expecting this. But I didn’t know it would still hurt.

We stared at each other for a few seconds, and when he realized he would not get a reply from me, he turned around and faced his Alpha.

“Alpha Maddox, permission to leave the territory...” He began, but the Alpha pushed himself off the car and walked toward us. His eyes were fixated on me, and I was not even sure if he heard what Xander was saying. 

My eyes shifted between him and Xander. My mate’s forehead creased as he followed his Alpha’s movement. 

“Welcome to my territory, Nadine. You are free to stay in the packhouse while waiting for my Beta to make up his mind.” Alpha Maddox spoke in an authoritative voice as he stood before me. 

“Alpha!” Xander exclaimed, and I was sure I saw fear flitting in his eyes, but it was gone in seconds. 

I turned my gaze away from my mate, and it landed on Alpha Maddox, who I didn’t notice extended his hand in front of me. “Did you hear me? Nadine, right?”

I bit my bottom lip and nodded my head before taking his hand. His grip on me was tight as we shook hands, and the way he was staring at me made me uncomfortable. He was looking at me as if he were undressing me.

“I’m sure Xander is having a hard time deciding if he’ll take you or his chosen.”

“His chosen?” I didn’t know I said it out loud. So, he had a chosen mate. No wonder he wanted me away from here.

“Maddox, enough.” I heard him tell the Alpha.

The Alpha just chuckled, still holding my hand. “I can be a good company while he thinks things over.”

I tried to slowly pull my hand away, but he didn’t let go. A smug grin tugged on his lips, and it looked wicked. I wanted to pull my hand back harshly, but I didn’t want to offend him. He was my only way into this territory, as my mate seemed to not want me.

“Alpha, my hand,” I said in a soft voice.

Before he could reply, I felt sparks explode from my elbow before my arm was tugged away. The Alpha let go, and his eyes went to Xander, who was already beside me. 

“Let’s go,” Xander said. I thought Alpha Maddox would be furious at what he did, but he just turned around and walked toward the car while Xander kept his hand on my arm while his other hand was clutching my two bags.

Sparks were exploding everywhere in my body, and his scent swirling around me made my knees weak, so I kept tripping. If not for his hold, I would be on the ground already. 

I wondered if I was affecting him because he was surely affecting every inch of my body and whole senses. This was not good. I always knew how a mate bond could make anyone weak, but I knew some who were able to fight it. But with Xander, I was not sure I could fight off the attraction I had for him, despite him being cold.  

Xander opened the door of the back seat and let me inside before going to the trunk and placing my luggage there. He was already in the driver seat when the door beside me opened, and the Alpha slid in.

My eyes widened as I met Xander’s gaze in the rearview mirror of his car.

“What are you waiting for? Drive away.” Alpha Maddox said as he inched closer, and I could feel his skin brushing against mine.

“I thought you wanted to sit in the passenger seat, so I let her sit at the back,” Xander told him. 

“I changed my mind.” The Alpha answered nonchalantly.

“Nadine, move and sit beside me,” Xander said coldly.

“Nah. She can sit here. I don’t mind.” Maddox licked his lips, and I felt every part of my face burning. 

I met Xander’s eyes again. His eyes were dilating, and his jaw was tightening. 

My hand reached for the handle of the door, and I pulled it, opening it. “I would like to sit beside my mate, Alpha,” I said politely before I hurried out of the car and moved to the front seat. 

As soon as I closed the door, Xander drove away, but I saw him glancing at me from time to time as I buckled my seatbelt. 

I had no idea how long we sat in silence before Alpha Maddox spoke. “Have we met before?”

My heart thundered, but before I could answer, he was already speaking. “Maybe not. Or I would never forget such a beautiful face as yours.”

“Alpha!” Xander was almost growling, and I saw his hands tightening on the steering wheels. 

The Alpha scoffed. “What are you complaining about?”

“Stop flirting with my mate.”

“You asked the same thing of Mindy. How unfair can life be? You have two females, and I have nothing.

Mindy? Was she his girlfriend? The chosen mate Alpha Maddox mentioned earlier? 

My gaze was drawn to Xander, waiting for him to rebuke what Alpha Maddox said, but he didn’t say anything. 

I wanted to ask many things, but I shut my mouth. My teeth clenched as I drew my attention to the forest we passed by. 

Even without asking any questions, I already had some answers. 

Firstly, my mate didn’t want me because of Mindy. 

Secondly, Alpha Maddox was a bigger asshole in person.

And lastly, Xander was just a notch lower of an asshole than his Alpha.