The Alpha’s Other Woman
15 Anticipation

Carrie

I had come full circle, again secretly living among the humans where I had begun to build a life. It was as if I had never even met my mate. I went to work, I went home, and repeated my familiar routines, like I was on autopilot.

It wasn’t that I missed my mate. I didn’t know him. Our time together had been brief and fractious.

But something was missing.

I helped a red-haired customer with getting a large box down from a shelf. I was pretty sure he was a fae from his scent, which was unusual in the store, but I didn’t say anything, and he didn’t give any indication that he knew I was a werewolf. It was a bit of a weird moment, two supernaturals in a mundane setting surrounded by a sea of humans who didn’t know our nature.

He thanked me, and went on his way. I went to the back to clock out.

My gregarious red-headed human co-worker, Amanda, caught me as soon as I walked in the door. I pasted on a smile for her benefit.

“So, do you feel like coming out tonight?” she asked. She had her own issues, but she was spunky and outgoing and had refused not to be my friend, no matter how hard I tried to avoid it.

It wasn’t the first time she’d tried to get me to come out, and I wasn’t feeling it, now more than ever with my wolf so depressed. I didn’t want to be surrounded by sweaty drunk humans. “Sorry, can’t tonight?”

I felt a bit bad refusing, because I was pretty sure she was trying to do me a favour inviting me. It would be so much easier if I could just tell her the truth about everything like I would have told Samantha if she had been here.

“Oh? Boyfriend again?” she asked with a knowing smirk.

I smiled back conspiratorially, although the question knifed me in the chest. I invented Greg to get another guy who had been hitting on me off my back, but Greg turned out to be a great excuse to get out of any number of things. He wasn’t that exciting, but he did travel a lot for work so he couldn’t come to any social engagements. Over time, Greg had developed a number of likes and dislikes and I had to be careful he did not contradict himself.

For all I knew, my nameless mate might actually be called Greg, I thought with irritation. My wolf whimpered in my head. She wanted me to go back to him. “Yeah, he wants to see me tonight.” If only that was true about my true mate.

She looked at me curiously, and I hoped she didn’t catch the drop in my mood. I forced a smile.

She returned it. “You’re so cute. I’d love to meet him.”

“Yeah, maybe one day,” I agreed vaguely. I pulled off my work shirt and put it in my locker. I was glad the day was over because my wolf was making me more and more edgy.

I went to my car as quickly as I could manage without drawing much human attention. Through observation, trial, and error I had learned how to be fairly inconspicuous, and I used those skills to keep my head down and remain unnoticed until I got home.

I enjoyed three more days of my renewed freedom.

If one could call living with a depressed wolf half enjoyable.

My wolf was increasingly a miserable mess, and I could not stop myself from thinking about the stubborn brick wall fate had tried to stick me with. She was bringing me down and making dealing with the human customers excruciatingly difficult. I had no appetite and ate only to ward off the pangs of hunger.

Even though I did not care about that stranger who was my mate in the slightest, she was well and truly fixated on him.

It was actually worse than when that jerk alpha discarded me, because back then I had my wolf’s steady strength to fall back on. She had been upset, but it had stemmed from her territorial pride and her love of pack, not like this.

Besides, I had had my family and friends in Greenwoods. Here I had only one friendly co-worker I kept at arm’s length who knew nothing about the truth of my nature.

This time, it was like the ground was crumbling beneath, me and it was up to me to cling on alone with my paltry human strength.

I managed another four days of my delightful reclaimed liberty. A week was an accomplishment.

The thought that I would need to endure fifty-one more of these to get through a year did not make me feel better.

But I would endure. I had gotten through worse, hadn’t I?

I was almost ready to give up—whether to go back and reject him properly or to beg him to accept me I wasn’t sure—when there was a knock at my door. My senses went on high alert, but as I approached the door I had a fairly good idea of who it was intruding on my home. My wolf had gone from melancholy to pure excitement in mere seconds. Pathetic wolf.

Heart pounding, I wondered what he wanted as I opened the door.

I was hit first by how good he looked and how nice he smelled, just as devastatingly handsome as the first night I had met him, although he looked a little frustrated, too. I fought the urge to wrap myself around him and make it better, as if there was something between us that was greater than some random instinctive bond. His eyes swept over me in return.

“How did you replace me?”

He shrugged. “Max was picking up supplies and caught your scent. He followed you here.”

It made sense he’d found me so easily. I hadn’t really been hiding out. Honestly, if I had really wanted to escape him, I should have packed up and gotten far away.

I sighed. I could have done that. Clearly, my resistance did not run as deeply as would be safe for my heart.

He stepped back, his frown deepening. “I’ll leave.”

“No, don’t,” I said, lurching forward and grabbing him by the wrist. I realized what I had done, under influence of my wolf, and I released him, startled at my own behavior. “You could come in? If you want?”

He nodded, and I let him into my home.

He glanced around. “It’s a lot cleaner than I would have guessed.”

I couldn’t help but smirk a bit. “Well, I wasn’t trying to piss you off here,” I admitted.

He looked even more vexed by my words, but then he returned a smile. “I was wondering how I could have been mated to a tornado.”

I understood he was joking, but a part of me didn’t like the mild criticism. I didn’t know why he was here, but the joke reminded me of when I had been acting luna and my behavior had been constantly on trial. How hard would I have to work for grudging acceptance if I stayed with him? The thought of trying to live up to another standard made me sick. No matter how much my wolf wanted him, I didn’t want that.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, furrowing his brow.

“Nothing. I’m fine,” I lied, smiling.

“I was joking, Carrie.”

“I know.” But I didn’t need more pain and rejection. Even if my wolf faded away into nothing, I could simply continue to live among the humans. They seemed to manage to be happy enough.

“Hey, I didn’t mean whatever you’re thinking,” he said.

“Don’t you think this whole thing is unfair, Stranger?” I asked. “Neither of us were looking for a mate, yet this ridiculous bond compels us to be together. I don’t even know you, but you’ve been constantly in my head.” I had to get away from him. I regretted inviting him in.

“Maybe, but it is what it is.”

I frowned. “I still don’t even know your name.”

“I still don’t know your family name. Or your former pack, for that matter.”

I scowled. What did I care if he found out about my terrible past choices? I’d be long gone before he found out the truth. “Fine. I’m Carrie Thomas, and I was from Greenwoods.”

“That’s fairly far from here.”

I shrugged and waited.

“I’m Jason Bronson and my pack doesn’t have a name yet. We’re just starting out,” he said.

I nodded. I’d figured that out.

“Well, I don’t think there’s any more reason to drag this out. I, Carrie Thomas, reject—”

He moved so fast that I barely saw him close the gap between us and slap his hand over my mouth. My wolf howled her displeasure in my mind at my attempt to sever our bond, and the skin on my face tingled where his hand touched me.

“What the hell are you doing?” he growled. His eyes flashed from his normal near black to almost gold.

“Mmmmmphmmannnnnnmmmmph.” I scowled into his irritatingly dreamy face. I was not about to admit it, but I was glad he stopped me.

“I’m going to release you, but don’t try that again.” He did, and it was lucky for him because I was one second away from biting him, and not in the sexy mate sort of way.

“Why not?” I asked. I took a step away from him and tried to collect myself. “It would solve the problem.”

He growled at me and narrowed his eyes. I forced my back to stay straight under his attempt at intimidation.

“Just because I wasn’t looking doesn’t mean I want you to ruin it.”

I fluttered my eyelashes mockingly. “Aw, you’re making my heart pound with such sweet sentiments.”

His face was a mask of seriousness. “I’m trying to build a pack, Carrie. Things aren’t going to be easy or safe for a long time, if ever. Of course I wasn’t looking to drag a female into it. Who would choose this life? Besides, at my age, I assumed there was probably a reason I hadn’t found you yet, and it was most likely that you were dead. I didn’t expect to replace you, ever. This world is a shit place.”

I nodded. Before Asshole Dane and I had given up on replaceing our mates, I had often wondered if something terrible had happened to the male who had been chosen for me, if one had been chosen at all.

“Why did you try to reject me?” he asked.

I did not want to tell him about the mess my life had become before I was banished. “I thought you were going to do it and I wanted to get it over with.”

He did not look pleased with my answer. “I had you confined for two days while you messed up and ruined my stuff. Did that seem like I was going to reject you?”

I raised an eyebrow. He was right, but it didn’t make me happy to admit it. “You’re not planning to lock me up again, are you?

“No, I’d lose my mind if I did that. But I would like you to come back where I can at least try to protect you.”

“I have a job and a place,” I said, waving my arm to indicate my small apartment.

He frowned a bit. “You don’t need to work. You’d be safer with the pack.”

I was tempted to refuse out of pure stubbornness, but I had missed pack life so much the idea of returning to it was incredibly tempting. “Maybe not, but I should at least give them and my landlord my notices. They all gave me a chance and it’s the least I can do.”

He didn’t look happy with my decision, but he nodded. “Will you at least come stay with me, when you’re not working? Please.”

It was ridiculous, because my heart was going to become even more vulnerable, but I wanted to. “Yes.”

He smiled at that, but it turned a bit wicked, and a sudden shudder of anticipation rushed through me. I imagined he could tell, because without a further word he stepped forward. “No rush to get back, though, is it?”

And then his lips were on mine, and his tongue swept into my mouth. I felt like I couldn’t breathe and every sensation flooded straight down to the place where we were meant to be joined. My heart pounded frantically and I wrapped myself around him.

I was in no condition to compare him to Asshole Dane, but if I had any idea that this male with this talented mouth was out there waiting for me, I would have laughed in that jerk’s face when he had first suggested I be his chosen mate and immediately gone rogue to replace Jason.

Hell, I would have willingly gone rogue to hunt him down the moment I turned eighteen.

But I wasn’t thinking about any of that. I was caught up in the throbbing passion and would have let him take me, would have taken him, there on the floor in the centre of my kitchen. His excitement pressed against me, and I rubbed myself against the hardness of him.

I wanted this male I didn’t even really know so bad, and my wolf was in complete agreement. What good was protecting my heart if it meant I was going to miss out on this?

My mind was so clouded by the contact between us I was completely at his mercy.