Chapter One - 12 Years Later in No Wolf's Land

Jake sniffed at the gentle breeze, following the sweet scent that had captured his attention and lured him from the depths of the woods. He knew it wasn’t safe to be this close to cottages in his wolf form, but the scent was undeniable. He had to find the source and he wouldn’t be able to locate it quite as well in his human form. The scent was too soft and there were too many other smells in the air. Humans, furniture, cars...all the strong harsh smells that came with human activity and covered over everything else. Under the harsh chemical smells there were the soft earthy smells and animal scents, which were muted now by the season of rest. December was a time of hibernation and rest for plants, the earth, and many wild creatures. Even though the snow was yet to arrive, nature was resting. He could have followed her through the bush without issues, but here, on the fringes, with all the human smells it was harder. Still easy enough for his wolf nose, not so much for the human one.

Unfortunately, his wolf nose was at risk here, so he had to be cautious. It felt like he’d waited an eternity to find his mate and now that he’d scented her he wasn’t going to let a few human cottages scare him off. All the men in his pack had mated before twenty five except him. As the alpha, he needed to find a mate soon or choose one of the unmated women to take as his Luna. Knowing the genes of the packs strongest members were being passed to the next generation provided calm and pride in the pack. His mother thought he should do a tour, travel the world to visit all the welcoming packs searching for his mate, but leaving his job and the pack for what could be years wasn’t really possible. It’s what he would have done at eighteen, if his father had still been the alpha. There were certainly plenty of pretty, available she wolves in his pack who would be more than willing to mate with him. Some from neighboring packs had willing, high ranking females that would make for a stronger alliance, which is what his beta was encouraging him to do. He didn’t want that though. He wanted his true, fated mate. He’d been to all the nearby packs trying to find her, but no female had caught his attention in any significant way. None of them called to his wolf. That is why this scent was so alluring. His wolf had perked up and demanded he shift and follow the scent. Having an unknown female nearby was...disconcerting. Had one of the packs put her here to hide her from him? But how would they have known she was his mate? Maybe his mate is rogue? A rogue female was rare, but life would definitely have made her strong. Strong enough to be his Luna, though rogues sometimes lacked the ability to follow rules to be diplomatic. Not that he had much credibility with insisting werewolves follow his rules at the moment, since he was breaking at least a dozen of them himself.

When the breeze died down little shafts of moonlight flitted in between the pine trees, moving him in the same direction as his nose lead him when he could follow the scent. He had heard some werewolves say they’d been guided to their mates by the moon goddess herself. He had always thought it was merely romantic dreaming, just a good story to tell the pups when they ask how mom and dad met, but that did appear to be what was happening to him now. When the breeze died away, the moonlight guided him. When the clouds or trees blocked the light of the moon the wind would carry her scent to him. The light died again and he stilled, smelling the breeze. Yes, there it was. The scent was much stronger here. He was nearly there.

He followed his nose, pausing when he could see a clearing through the trees. This was much too close to the human cottages. He was being reckless. If he caught a member of his pack here he would punish them. He knew needed to leave...but for once his wolf refused to listen. His mate was so close! They’d waited so long! A small shaft of moonlight stretched into the darkness of the forest, urging him nearer to the edge of the trees. He peered out into a clearing filled with planting areas that looked to be well tended and tucked up properly for winter. The home of a good gardener who tended to the flora properly could be a good neighbor for the pack. He’d have to check back in the spring to be sure there weren’t any invasive species being cultivated. A tiny log cabin at the end of the yard was just visible from where he stood. Movement near it caught his eyes and Jake stilled, hoping he hadn’t been spotted by a human. He remained frozen, just his nose sniffing to detect whatever it might have been. The smell of humans was here, but nothing close, just the remnants of their trails. Since there was no further noise he turned slightly as he stepped cautiously from the shadows to see if he could find anything moving. Maybe it had been a bat? It would be odd for one to be flying around in winter, but this winter was unusually warm. The clouds parted again and the trail of moonlight stretched across the lawn once more. The breeze blew, and he knew the source of the scent he’d been following was right in front of him. Maybe his mate was searching for him too, and that was the movement he’d seen. His heart thudded in anticipation. The trail of moonlight sparkled in the air and left a silvery strip on the frosty grass that lead to the back of a woman who was standing barefoot on the cold grass in the center of the lawn. The light shimmered in her long, white blond hair, making it seem to dance with silver. The cool night air swirled around her bare feet and lifted the ends of her hair, bringing her scent to him. Werewolf, not human. And his mate. Her legs were long and slender and a skirt swirled loosely around her knees as the breeze picked up. Her whole body seemed to be glowing with moonbeams. It was as though the moon goddess had finally taken pity on him, showing him exactly who he was meant to be mated to in no uncertain terms. A deep rumble of longing slipped softly from his chest and the woman started, spinning suddenly to face him. He heard her heart rate increase and the smell of fear tinged the rose and mint scent that had brought him this far.

She was afraid?

Jake turned to look behind himself. There was no sign of anything in the bush, he was alone. He turned back he saw that the woman had taken several steps backward, retreating from him towards the cottage. The warm, dark tracks on the nearly frozen lawn showed him that she had taken a dozen quick steps backward in the moment he‘d taken to scan the bush.

She really was afraid of him.

Jake sniffed the air again. She was a werewolf, not a human. He could smell it. Not the strong heady scent that most females gave off, but it was there. The scent of desire that pooled in other single female wolves in his presence wasn’t on her. His mate's scent was soft and intoxicating and called his wolf so strongly that he ached with it. But she was scared of him and not attracted to him, both of which were unexpected. He could scent that she was wolf, that she was unmated, and that she was his… but she was also afraid. The acid scent of it tore at his nose. His mate was afraid of him. How could this be? His mind raced for any possible explanation. Oh, yes of course, he reasoned. He must be right and she’s rogue. As a rogue she would either assume she had been caught trespassing and would be captured, or that he was also rogue and would force her to mate… but that option didn’t make sense as she would be able to smell him as her fated mate as well which should stop the fear. Perhaps the breeze was strong enough to keep his scent from her human nose. Jake took a step forward into the light, ducking his head in greeting, showing that he was not coming to attack her. She gasped and stepped backward again, almost tripping over the first stepping stone on the pathway to the cabin.

Jake lay down on the grass with his muzzle between his front paws and watched the girl as she watched him. Why would the moon goddess mate him to a woman who feared him like this? It did not smell as though she had taken a chosen mate and wouldn't accept him. She definitely smelled unmated. She seemed young for that anyways. Perhaps she was too young? She looked fully grown, but if she was not quite eighteen she would not be able to scent a mate yet. That could explain why he hadn’t been able to find her before, his mate was younger and lived near humans. Few werewolves lived here...actually none as far as he knew, but here was one for sure. Maybe she was half human. Or perhaps the other packs let their members spread into human lands. This space was a buffer area between three packs, maybe one of them was trying to expand unnoticed. He’d have to check on that soon. If this woman was part of one of the other packs she might not have been presented to him because of her age, but it could also be because she was living near his lands and they didn’t want him to recognize her scent during his runs. It would be strange for her to be so young though, mates were usually only a few years apart. Five seemed to be the most. If this woman was less than eighteen she would be at least seven years younger than him. The moon goddess may have been testing his patience to see if his belief was strong enough to trust her and wait for his mate to come of age. Now that she had been revealed, how much longer would he have to wait? Was she nearing eighteen? Or perhaps she was even younger than that and he’d still have a year or more to wait for her. He looked at her more closely, sniffing the air again.

She was still scared, but she wasn’t terrified. She wasn’t calling for help or running away, she was just cautiously backing up. Curious enough to watch him. Leary enough to put more distance between them. If he continued as he was, immobile and nonthreatening, would the girl come to meet him tonight? Was she herself a rogue? What kind of pack would banish a child? As an alpha, he knew he’d never do that. He’d even consider separating a pup from its parents if the adults needed to be banished. Had she been born to a rogue pair? If she’d been raised near humans did she know the ways of the werewolves or was she only comfortable around humans? The urge to approach her was becoming almost unbearable. His wolf wanted to rush right up and lick her… but given the way the woman was feeling that wasn’t likely to be well received. Why didn’t she shift to her wolf?

If he shifted back to human they could talk, but he’d be naked and that might be even more frightening since she didn’t seem to know who he was or what he was. Was it worth the risk? If she had been raised near humans that might not go over well, they were notoriously prudish about nudity. If she brought a blanket or coat or something he could shift back to his human form and be decently covered. Yes, he’d need something to cover with. If anyone else saw them he didn’t want to look like he’d been running around naked. But she didn’t seem to know he was a werewolf, or at least wasn’t offering him anything to cover with. He wasn’t sure of her age either. He couldn’t risk anyone thinking he was making advances on a minor. He’d need clothing. Getting his human self in jail was just as bad as getting his wolf caught, possibly worse once the wolf moon arrived.

How could she still not scent him?