I DON'T WANT YOU

ANDERS

Spending a night with Zara wasn't a privilege I thought I would experience so soon. Yes, I barely got any sleep that night but it wasn't because I was afraid of the lycans who had pitched their tents on the neutral grounds, no. If it came down to it, I would have killed them all just to protect her.

Having her so close, lying beside me was amazing. I don't know how I survived all these years without having her in my life. Like air, she was a need, one I couldn't do without.

With great difficulty, I was able to say goodbye to her that morning but I kept counting the minutes and the hours before we would meet again as I ran back to my pack. Whoever saw me could tell that I was very happy. I could not stop smiling as I kept replaying the conversations and intimate moments I had shared with Zara.

The smile on my face disappeared though when I got to my tent and saw Riley. It was still quite early and she wasn't a warrior, what was she doing outdoors?

I intended to ignore her, I hadn't given her the right to wait up for me or keep track of my movements. If anything, I hoped she would disappear from my life forever.

"You seem to be more busy lately," she said when she realized that I wasn't going to acknowledge her presence.

"Unlike most people, I have things that keep me busy. It's important to protect our boundary from the werewolves," I replied without bothering to look at her.

She was smiling nonetheless but the smile on her face disappeared when she caught a whiff of a scent, Zara's scent. Her eyes widened in surprise and she moved closer and smelled me to make certain that she wasn't imagining anything.

"I can smell a different scent on you," she said. "Who were you with, Anders? Was it a female lycan?"

I scoffed at how boldly she questioned me as though she had the right to do so. Turning my back to finally look at her, I asked, "if I said yes, would that make you leave?"

She shook her head, "never! Anders, no matter how many girls you spend your time with, nothing changes for me. I can just pretend to be your first and only."

"But it is different for me," I snapped. "Listen, Riley, I need you to understand that I don't love you, I don't want you and I never will. I will find my mate soon and when that happens, I will only be with her. Do you understand me?"

"But I love you, Anders," she insisted. "I will do anything for you."

I folded my hands together, "then do this for me, Riley; leave me the hell alone. Nothing will change by your constant disturbance."

My words seemed to have struck a nerve as she became teary-eyed and walked away, much to my relief. As l lay on my bed, I was happy to be alone because it gave me a chance to think about Zara once again.

My stomach grumbled and only then did I realize that I hadn't eaten in a long time. I picked up some apples and began to eat when an idea occurred to me. I needed to give Zara a gift. I hadn't given her any since we met which was not nice but what would someone like Zara like? I thought for a while and finally came up with an idea.

After eating, I was able to sleep for two hours before I was woken up by some warriors in my pack. The alpha wanted to see me. The lycans I saw last night, came to join my pack.

Theirs had been overtaken by werewolves. From what they said, the fight between them and the werewolves was going in their favor as they killed many of them but then two werewolf packs joined in the fight. It became a lopsided battle and they were defeated. They lost all their warriors and a few of them who could had to flee.

Four of the males offered to become warriors in my pack because they wanted to be trained, they wanted to be stronger and they wanted revenge on the werewolves. I couldn't help thinking about Zara again. If these lycans had seen her last night, they would have tried to take out their anger on her, not that they would have succeeded.

A small ceremony was held and they were officially absorbed into the pack. As the leader of the warriors, I had to assign trainers for the new recruits and see that they were given spaces to set up their tents.

The activity ended up taking much of my time and when I was finally able to escape, I was more than an hour late for my meeting with Zara. I still wanted to give her a gift so on my way to the neutral grounds, I took a detour to the most beautiful river we had in our territory.

After searching for a while, I was able to find a blue pearl that matched the color of her eyes. I got a black rope, thick enough to adorn her neck without making her feel uncomfortable, and made a choker for her with the blue pearl as the pendant.

I stared at it in satisfaction, it was beautiful. After that, I continued on my journey to the neutral grounds. I knew that Zara would be waiting for me but as I got closer, I felt that she was in anguish.

I didn't realize that we were telepathically connected. There were mates who could communicate through mind link but Zara and I didn't have that. Perhaps because we were different or our relationship was new, I wasn't sure but now, I could feel that she was in pain.

I increased my speed and hurried to the neutral grounds. When I got there, I was surprised to see her at the foot of the hill where we sat the previous day. Her face was streaked with tears and she seemed really sad.

She got up in surprise when she saw me and I quickly took her in my arms, "I'm so sorry, my love. What happened? Why are you in tears?"

She wiped her face and smiled, "I'm sorry, Anders. I'm usually not a crybaby. I've been here for more than two hours yet there was no sign of you. I thought you had changed your mind and given up on our relationship. I thought you didn't want me anymore."

I stared at her in surprise, "what? How can that ever be possible? I did not mean to keep you waiting. I am so sorry, Zara. I got held back by my duties because of the new lycans in my pack."

I noticed that her mood had improved but she seemed unusually dull. I knew I had to reassure her of my affection and devotion. I had no idea why she thought I would give up on us but I was going to make sure she never felt that way again.

First of all, I decided to get her all pumped up so I challenged, "race me to that mountain and let's see who gets to the top first."

"Deal," she replied excitedly and instantly began to run. I ran after her and turned to the other side of the mountain. We kept climbing on each side of the mountain until we finally got to the top.