In a small town, Mia, a rebellious young werewolf, finds herself trapped in a dead-end job and a life she never wanted. Running away from her pack and an arranged mating, she crosses paths with Asher, a wealthy and wounded billionaire. Despite their rocky start, Asher becomes captivated by Mia's fierce spirit and the unspoken connection between them. As the world conspires to keep them apart, Mia's past comes knocking at the door, threatening to expose her secrets. In a desperate bid to protect Asher, Mia makes a heart-wrenching decision, fleeing the city and leaving him behind. Haunted by his love for Mia, Asher embarks on a relentless search, uncovering clues and enlisting help along the way. But danger lurks in the shadows. Can Mia and Asher rewrite their destinies and forge a path to happiness, or will they succumb to the forces that threaten to tear them apart forever?
View MoreUncontrollable drunken chatter and laughter rented the air in the overcrowded, foul smelling little building. Mia stared at the watch on the wall and groaned. It was only nine in the night and one of the bar’s regulars was already too drunk to control.
The old man, Jim, usually held his alcohol for at least another two hours before he reached this level. She could only guess that he had skipped out on his lunch again. Probably on his breakfast as well. Unless it had been a liquid one of similar properties as the glasses of liquor he had been consuming for hours, Mia thought. Damn, this was going to make the next four hours before closing time hellish, she grumbled silently to herself.
Mia grabbed a rug and wiped down the counter even as another patron shouted an order from the other end of the bar. From the slur in the voice, she could tell the person didn’t need another drop, just like Jim.
Mai had been working at Red Eyes bar for the last six months. It wasn’t a job she would have chosen or recommended to any sane person. One didn’t need thick skin to work in a little bar in the middle of a tiny shitty town. They needed a fucking brain transplant for even considering the job in the first place. That said a lot about her for not only having taken the job, but staying for six entire months.
A bunch of courageous, bored young men seated in the corner of the bar chose that moment to entertain the entire bar with their Bluetooth speaker. Mia heard the tunes of Nick Jonas and Nicki Minaj bom bidi bom cut through the stale air. The corner of her lips twitched even as she fought a smile. These guys were definitely trying to irritate the older regular folks in the bar. And for their trouble, the entire bar turned and glared at them, but amazingly no one said a word or demanded the music turned off immediately.
Mia focused her attention back on pouring another drink for a woman who clearly looked like she didn’t need it, but hey, who was she to judge? She placed the glass of whisky with a tiny ice cube floating in it on the counter in front of the woman and moved away to attend to another customer.
The routine was always the same. She knew all the regulars, knew all their stories too. It was true what they said. A bartender was also a therapist. People came into the bar loaded with their problems and they all expected her to listen to them without judgement. Most of the time, she did. After all, it offered some form of entertainment.
The only problem was, Mia was also a werewolf, but of course, nobody knew that. So, that meant she could tell when someone was just spinning a story to get some sympathy or get into her pants. In short, it was hard to hide anything from her. Mia thought of the woman she had just served, offered the perfect example. She could smell the arousal from the woman all the way from where she now stood attending to another drunk client. Mia knew for a fact that the woman’s husband was currently seated three tables away and not only looked bored, but smelled like it, too. Shooting the woman a glance from the corner of her eye, Mia realized the woman’s state had nothing to do with her husband and everything to do with the young men playing music in the corner.
“Unbelievable,” she muttered under her breath. The woman looked old enough to be one of the boy’s mothers, but neither she nor the boys seemed to care about that tiny detail. Mia watched as one guy jerked his head inconspicuously towards the restrooms. Barely ten seconds later, the woman placed her glass back on the counter and started walking in the direction.
Mia shot a look at the poor husband nursing his fifth or sixth bottle of beer. He looked just like all the ordinary folks in there every night. Over fifty years old, with a grim expression on his face that told of long hours of work and little pay. He looked like life had slapped him around one too many times.
Mia looked away. It was none of her business. Her job was to serve drinks. She did her job, and she got paid, simple. Besides, she had her own problems. Ones that made cheating wives look like a joke for kids. Her problems kept her awake most nights and gave her nightmares on the nights when she actually managed to shut her eyes.
The music faded from the bluetooth speaker before another started, filling the bar with bass loud enough to vibrate the glasses on the tables and counter. Mia cringed and bit her tongue. At least no one would be able to talk with all that noise, she thought. But it still hurt her ears.
After a moment, however, she managed to tune out the noise and her thoughts wandered back to her problems. She was a runaway. And two wolf packs were looking under every rock, searching for her, and things wouldn’t be pretty if they found her.
Nope, cheating wives and ignorant husbands were not her problem. She continued to serve and looked the other way.
An hour before closing time, the front door opened. Mia immediately looked up. She had worked here for six months; she knew the routine and no one ever came in an hour before closing. Her heart froze with fear that they had found her despite all the effort she had put into staying off the radar. Her feet were already moving towards the back when the person who had entered came into view.
It took her a few seconds to confirm the man that had entered was not a werewolf. Her heart resumed its normal beat with relief. She moved back to the counter and began to wipe the surface as she watched the stranger make his way through the tables and drunk patrons.
Her wolf within her purred. Well, her human side could also appreciate that the man was indeed good to look at. That was a rare commodity in these parts. Mia was sure if the man had been in the bar half an hour earlier, the married woman would have picked him over the boy she had taken to the restrooms in the back.
For a human, the man was quite a specimen. Even in the lowlights of the bar, she could make out the muscled body under the black leather jacket the man wore. His blue jeans fit him like a glove and the man actually had gloves on, which he removed as he approached the counter where she stood, trying not to stare.
He was easily six feet tall. His dark brown hair was plastered to his scalp from sweat, which she could smell clearly above all the foul odors in the place. He smelled like fresh air, spice and motor oil. Quite some combination.
He reached the counter, and his chocolate brown eyes smiled at her.
“Hi there,” he said easily and took the stool that was vacant. He had a firm voice, one that managed to be heard above the music and chatter.
Mia snapped out of her appraisal and gave the man a nod. “What can I get you?”
Without warning, the man’s eyes lowered to her chest for a second before he quickly lifted his eyes back to her face.
Red fiery anger began a slow flow through her veins. The pervert. He had looked at her as though she had just offered herself as part of the menu. Her hand tightened on the rag she used to wipe the counter and glared at him.
Asher cleared his throat. He had no idea what had just gotten into him. And unfortunately for him, the woman had noticed his slip. Maybe this resulted from months without sex; he was now checking out the bartender in the shitty bar in the middle of nowhere. Not that she wasn’t good enough to look at. Gosh, how had someone like her ended up in such a dump? He wondered.
She was a beautiful young lady. Her beauty was further emphasized by the long black hair she left loose over her shoulders. The tips of her hair were dyed red; it made her look hot and just a little bit wild. Of their own volition, his eyes traveled her body again for a quick second. She had a lean build, but her breasts, which he hadn’t been able to resist a peek at, were generous enough to make a man have dirty thoughts. Her caramel colored eyes, which now glared at him, were mesmerizing. Asher had to give himself a mental slap to get his mouth to form words.
“Just a coke, please,” he ordered.
Five seconds later, she placed a bottle in front of him with just a little more force than was necessary. Then she walked away and went to fill some orders on the other end of the counter.
Asher took the opportunity to draw in some air and clear his head. He took a drink from his bottle and watched the bartender, while trying not to be too obvious about it, and he was probably failing miserably.
Actually, he knew he was failing when a drunk old man next to him poked his shoulder with a finger and leaned in to whisper, not so quietly, something in his ear.
“Don’t hold your breath over that one, sonny. She doesn’t give it to anyone… I should know… I have tried several times to get it, but she just says ‘no’.” The man shook his head and drank the last of the brown liquor in his glass.
To Asher’s horror, not only had the man said it loud enough for the woman and half the bar to hear, the old man went a step further and raised his hand to get her attention and shouted at top of his voice. “Isn’t that right, Mia? Your legs are slammed shut tighter than the nuts on a heavy duty tractor.”
Asher took a large gulp of his coke and wished the floor would open and swallow him whole. Mia; at least he knew her name. She glared at him and walked back very slowly.
“Why are you discussing my legs?” she asked.
“I wasn’t,” Asher immediately said with a placating raised hand.
The old drunk man either didn’t realize how pissed she was, or simply didn’t care. He carried on as though whatever he was saying was completely normal and deserved everyone’s undivided attention. Which he, unfortunately, already had.
“Mia, dear, don’t bite the young man’s head off,” he slurred. “He was just appreciating your beauty, and I was just offering him a little advice.”
The old man then placed a hand on Asher’s shoulder and leaned in close to his ear. Why the old man bothered to get closer, Asher wondered, because he still didn’t lower his voice. “I bet you are hard as a rock in your pants right now… have you seen those tits?” He shook his head. “Wait till you see the ass she got… you will blow a load in your pants.”
“Okay!” Asher exclaimed and abruptly stood from the stool and stepped away from the counter. He moved so fast, he nearly caused the drunk old man to lose balance and fall off his own stool. As far as Asher was concerned, that would have been a small price to pay for the man’s inappropriate words.
The woman in question looked at him as though she wished they were somewhere in the woods alone, so she could kill him and bury his body. He was only slightly consoled when he saw she shot the same look at the old man. Who was now laughing and demanding another drink.
“I think you have had enough, Jim,” she said through her teeth.
Mia looked at the watch on the wall, half an hour to closing time. She took a deep breath. She only had to make it through another thirty minutes than she was done for the day. Her eyes landed on the handsome human who still stood away from the counter and seemed unsure of what to do.
Mia glared at him. He wasn’t so innocent. He may have not said a word, but she could smell his interest in her in his scent. Arousal. It was thick and screamed from all his pores. It was obvious he found her attractive, and he wanted her.
Asher sat on a fallen tree, comfortably leaning against a rock. Mia watched him from a distance.He wore a black top that showed off his muscles and tattoos, just like she enjoyed. A black leather jacket sat next to him on the fallen tree trunk. It was part of his bike gear, but the bike was nowhere in sight because they had left it in a clearing almost a mile away.Mia completed her shift and stood up. She smiled as she watched her mate bounce their son on his knees and pointed out the trees and rocks. She couldn’t believe this was her life now. Not only did she have a mate, but she had a beautiful son as well, and she adored them both.They were in the woods because Mia needed to ‘stretch her legs’, as Asher liked to put it. And since the house they had bought wasn’t too far, Asher liked to ride them all on his bike to this secluded area.Since Ren wasn’t yet old enough to run with his mother, he stay
Asher watched the rather busy happenings of people passing by the window as he took a last sip of his coffee, then placed the empty mug back on the table. He hadn’t thought pack life was such a hive of activities.His thoughts, however, were not truly on thecoming and going of man and beast outside his window. No, his thoughts were bombarded with what he had discussed with Chris and James. If Levi would not fold, then they had to take drastic action and run.It was the same plan Asher had entertained the first time he was in the pack lands, chained to a wall. But unlike that time when death would have fallen on him swiftly in a blink of an eye. This time, the plan had potential to succeed. Chris and James were there to give Asher and Mia a fighting chance.Chris and James had already left the house to plot out the best route of escape. Asher was waiting for Mia to show up as she usually did, just as the sun touched the horizon.
Before he realized it, Asher had already spent an entire week with the pack. The days had flown by in an interesting mix of frustration and relief. The relief was, he had spent every waking hour in Mia’s company. Although under the very watchful eye of one of the pack enforcers. Asher imagined it was like having a chaperon in the nineteen hundreds. Making sure the virtue of a woman was kept intact while in the company of a man. It was a little late for that, of course, but it didn’t seem to deter their devotion to the task. Although it really pissed him off to high heaven and beyond, Asher managed to bite back his anger and tolerate it. At least he was grateful they hadn’t thrown him out, which would have made Levi extremely thrilled, he had no doubt. Something else that would have made Alpha Levi happy was James and Chris leaving the pack lands. But the duo had stuck around like an awful skin rash. The two made up Asher’s night c
Asher and Mia left the alpha’s house in a deep, thoughtful silence. It was like words failed them both at that moment. Or it was a matter of where to begin. It was actually the first occasion they were getting to talk ever since Connor and Sam had stormed into Asher’s house in the middle of the night. It was also their first time talking ever since Asher discovered what Mia was. Everything was now out in the open. There were no more secrets hidden in omissions, half truths, or lies. Mia bit her tongue and avoided Asher’s scrutinising gaze, which she felt like a burning flame on her skin. Her own thoughts caused a different fire within her. He had come back for her, yes, but she wasn’t still certain what he felt about the whole matter of werewolves. Not to mention her father’s frosty behaviour and the whole Dylan story. James’ words flashed through her mind. ‘What you see there is nature’s perfected killing machine. That is
Levi’s words filled the air and hung there like a toxic smell, ready to suffocate everyone present in the room. Or at least five out of the seven people present in the room. Everything and everyone seemed to first freeze in place, including the air, before things suddenly blew like a time bomb running out of time. Mia jumped off the couch, a deep growl erupting from her chest vibrating the walls when she faced her father. Her eyes glowed with her wolf, so close to the surface. She clenched and curled her hands, feeling her claws dig into her palm. Any second blood would sip out of the minor cuts and find its way to the floor next to her feet. Asher didn’t stand, but he moved to the edge of the couch, leaned his elbows on his knees and steepled his fingers before placing his chin on them. He closed his eyes for a moment and mentally counted to ten, very slowly, trying to calm himself before he did something stupid. When he
With the remaining injured, but lucky to be alive, members of Ice Lake leaving with literally their tails between their legs, Levi led the rest of his pack back to the houses. Despite the victory, Levi was not in a pretty state. The wounds on his body had stopped bleeding but still looked terrible. It probably didn’t help that he was also covered in dirt and Dylan’s blood as well. But Asher had to admire the man, even though he shuddered in disgust on his behalf. Levi did not so much as wince or show any sign he was in pain as he walked back with the pack. Asher, on the other hand, had unfortunately realized just how many injuries were all over his body and was not enjoying it one bit. His thoughts went back to Mia’s father and his confident steps. Asher was impressed, that was until James drew closer to him and whispered, “Don’t be fooled, these dogs heal in a matter of hours. By tomorrow that old goat will barely have a scratch on him
Her strong paws crushed leaves and twigs as they hit the ground in haste. Mia could now hear the obvious sounds of wolves fighting in the distance. It carried to her on the cool breeze that blew her way. She was almost there. The telling scent of blood was enough to churn her insides and confirm it. She didn’t exactly think she would single-handedly fight for her pack and spare them from certain death at the hand of the Ice Lake pack. Her ego was not that inflated. She rather just believed her presence would count. No sounds of a wolf running behind her floated her way. That only meant Sam hadn’t come after her. That was excellent. It would have been a struggle she neither had the time nor energy for. Despite her troubled thoughts, Mia had enough sense to come to an abrupt stop when she reached the fight and just quickly analyzed the situation. Almost immediately, the first thing she noticed amongst all the gruesome fighti
Mia sat up with a jerk when she heard her father’s howl cut through the air outside the house. Even though she was in a closed room, the sound had penetrated the walls and reached her as though the alpha had howled right there in the room with her. The Alpha’s call vibrated through her, calling to her wolf, calling to the pack. Calling to the bond that connected them all. It was a call to warn of intruders, a call to warn of serious trouble in their land. And a call to all pack members to fight for their pack. Mia recognized it all. Her feet hit the ground fast as she made her way to the closed window, desperate to find out what had provoked such a call. Nothing but calm trees met her eyes. She couldn’t see and anyone running in panic or otherwise. Her bedroom window didn’t have a view of the center of the pack homes, so it was pointless. Suddenly, behind her, the bedroom door opened. Mia turned to find her mother’s panicked face. In th
For a moment, it looked as though Alpha Levi didn’t know what to do with the human. He actually seemed to be speechless. Had it been a less tense moment, someone would have actually dared to laugh. Asher finally saw what Chris had meant by shocking the old alpha and surviving longer than five seconds. He didn’t dare to look away from Levi. The older man’s angry glare was almost too much to bear, but Asher refused to give in and look away. If he was going to get Mai, he knew he had to go through her father. Just as the tension seemed to reach breaking point, the Alpha’s attention snapped to the trees above them. He snarled. “You brought a rogue wolf and a blood sucker as your backup to steal my daughter?” Levi asked in an accusing but mocking tone. Asher chanced an indifferent shrug. “In desperate times, you can’t be too picky about who your friends are.” “You must be pretty desperate,” som
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