Chapter 1

Rhett

"This fucking ASSHOLE!"

I startled, almost stumbling over a particularly big cedar root crossing my path.

I'd expected to hear the usual sounds of nature during my patrol. Birds, rabbits, mice—yes. Wind—yes. Rustling in the thick underbrush—yes.

But someone swearing? Definitely not. We were miles and miles away from anything so much as resembling civilization. In fact, the closest town was our pack town, and that's where I was coming from to patrol our territory. It was late October and there were no hikers foolish enough to hike out here at this time of the year.

" AAAAAARGHHHH !"

Another scream, this time filled with so much anger and desperation, it made the fur on my neck stand up and sent a shiver down my spine, right to the tip of my tail.

It didn't sound like the human was hurt. And, as unlikely as it seemed, it had to be a human. Our barrier might've been weakened after almost a century without magical upkeep, but it was still intact and let us know whenever a paranormal of any kind crossed the border to our packlands.

I stopped, turning my head to find out the exact location the screams were coming from. Yes, the human didn't sound hurt, but he sounded pissed off as fuck, and that alone could mean trouble. Hell, the fact he was here in the first place likely meant trouble.

Raising my snout, I scented the air. There were all the usual scents: the animals living here, wet, decaying leaves, a couple of very persistent flowers, the tint of salt coming from the Pacific Ocean and… My mind came to a screeching halt. Petrichor and apples . Neither of which I should be able to smell right now.

My wolf perked up, urging me to follow the scent to its source. Now.

That's what I've been planning to do anyway , I told him, but the beast inside of me was relentless. It felt like it was pawing at my insides, his need to find the source of the scent so tangible I shivered, my fur raising as if my whole body was covered in goosebumps, like it would have been if I was in my human form.

What's going on? I asked myself, even though I had the nagging feeling I already knew the answer. I just couldn't believe it. Not here. Not now. Not a human, but…

Mate , my wolf told me excitedly, my tail wagging without my consent. Mate, mate, mate.

I shivered. That's what I'd been… afraid of? No, ‘afraid' was the wrong word.

Scenting the air again, I shivered. The salt got stronger, as did the scent of apple and petrichor, a mixture that should not go together, but created a tantalizing, heady mixture. A mixture just for me to enjoy.

A mate. I'd found my mate . After thirty years on this planet, I'd found my mate. And, for some reason, he was in our territory right this moment and angry as fuck.

Why?

The question was more pressing now than it'd been a couple of minutes ago.

Run, my wolf howled inside my chest.

I sped up, jumping over roots, bushes tugging at my fur as I took corners way too close, just to get closer and closer to that scent. To the human. My human.

The sound of waves crashing against the beach got louder and louder, the air thick with a fine, salty mist, but I barely registered the smell of the Pacific. My mate's scent was so clear now, overpowering everything else.

"I fucking HATE YOU, Alistair. You're FIRED!"

I managed to stop dead in my tracks just before crashing through the edge of the woods and running straight onto the beach.

Mate. Now.

My wolf was not happy, but I took a deep breath and tried to calm him down, to make him understand.

I can't go out there right now , I told him. Talking to my wolf always felt kind of weird, at least when I was thinking about it. He was a part of me, not a separate being. But then again, he was a part of me that often, wanted vastly different things than I, the human part, wanted. Right now, for example. My wolf just wanted to head over to the human and cover him in our scent, while I… okay. I basically wanted to do the same.

However, the rational part of my brain knew that my mate probably wouldn't handle it well if a huge-ass wolf started rubbing against him. And I was a huge-ass wolf, bigger than a normal wolf by far. If my mate had a gun or a rifle, it'd be a really bad idea to casually run up to him. I wouldn't die from a single gunshot wound, but that'd probably freak him out even more. And if he didn't have a weapon… I didn't want to scare him to death.

Nooo , my wolf yowled, agreeing with me on that part.

No, before I even tried approaching him, I needed to find out what he was doing here.

Carefully walking up to the last bush that was hiding me from view—and ? my mate from my view—I felt my heart rate picking up, shivers racking my body as anticipation rose inside of me. My mate. I'd see my mate for the first time in about three seconds. Two. One.

I hesitated just before my nose touched the leaves of the berry bush, sudden anxiety spiking through me. Two inches and I'd see the love of my life. Such a short distance that would forever change the path of my life. It felt big. Monumental.

Mate! my wolf demanded, trashing inside my chest, making me cross the last barrier.

Even more fine mist hit my face, dampening my fur, but I barely felt it. My eyes were busy searching the beach for the man that was my gift from fate. The other half of my soul. The person who was meant to be my companion for as long as we might live.

I didn't have eyes for the scenery that usually made me pause for a couple of seconds, stunning me into awe time and time again. No, my eyes fixated on a slender figure sitting on a huge piece of driftwood maybe thirty feet away.

Light brown hair blew in the sea breeze, the wind carrying his scent right into my nose. Petrichor, apples, home . But beneath his tantalizing, unique scent, there was a sour note. Desperation. The anger seemed to have faded, replaced by bitter fear and sour desperation. My heart felt like someone had stabbed me; every part of me, wolf and man, wanted to go out there and promise everything would be okay.

I had no idea what was wrong, but I'd fix it. Somehow, I'd find a way.

A shiver racked his body, and I noticed he wasn't wearing a jacket, just a thin sweater. It wasn't even one made from wool, just regular cotton. That single look at him told me he was wholly unprepared to be out here, even for an hour.

How had he gotten here, anyway? There was no way he'd hiked all the way. We were in the middle of nowhere. He'd have had to be hiking for days, if not weeks, to get here—and frankly, he didn't look like much of a hiker at all. His sweater alone was a dead giveaway that he was no fan of the outdoors.

By boat? That was always an option. Occasionally, people wanting to fish landed here, but there was no boat as far as I could see.

Cocking my head, I studied my mate, trying to memorize each of his features, even though I couldn't see much. His shoulders weren't wide, his arms not muscular. He was rather slim, a lot different from most of my fellow wolves. His hair was shaggy, falling in loose waves, the tips reaching his shoulders. And that was all I could see. It was enough for my heart to hammer in my chest, but not enough to satisfy me or my wolf.

There was so much more to see, so much more to find out about him, so much more…

"Uhm… hi. I guess."

I stopped, pulling my head back out of reflex as I heard his uncertain voice.

Fuck . Had he seen me? How? And was that the way he greeted a fucking wolf that probably reached his shoulder?

But he continued speaking while I was still having my mini freak out, so maybe not.

"I really don't know what to tell you guys, besides… I'm not at home." He let out a bitter laugh. "Not at all."

Pushing my snout back through the bush, I see him holding something in his hand, arm extended, pointing it at his face. It was a small, black box and even though it seemed too small to be a camera, I was pretty sure that was exactly what it was.

"Look at the scenery—it's beautiful, right? I mean, I love the view. It's fucking cold and wet, but when I thought we were here for a quick photoshoot, I really, really liked it." His voice was melodic, a pure delight but tinted with sadness. "I told you guys about the photoshoot, didn't I? The one my manager organized for that fashion start-up?" He shook his head. "Remember when I told you it sounded too good to be true? Well, it was. I guess. Kinda." I heard him swallowing heavily, almost as if he was fighting against tears.

Mate , my wolf whined again, wanting to soothe him, to chase away the sadness and the pain.

I wanted the same damn thing. I wanted it so much, I'd accidentally pushed my head a little farther through the bush than I'd wanted to, so I pulled it back a little. If that thing really was a camera, I didn't want to be seen. I didn't want him to look at it and get spooked.

Also, I wanted to hear what he had to say.

"The shooting itself was real, but the photographer was a douche, and I hated the whole thing. I was so glad when it was over because I had to wear shirts and shorts, and it's so fucking cold here." He shivered again. "So… you might wonder why I'm filming out here if it's so cold, instead of on the boat or back in my hotel room. Trust me, I've been wondering the same thing for the past hour, contemplating every decision I've made in the past couple of months that led me here, because the gist of it is: I'm stuck. Abandoned. My fucking asshole of a manager thought it'd be a great idea to abandon me here. For a week ."

I heard him laugh, but his laugh was laced with tears and turned into a sob.

Rage filled my chest upon hearing the story he was telling… some other people. Probably not live, though, as there was no cell reception out here. The device he was using didn't look like a cell phone, anyway. But he was telling his story to someone, to people who usually… watched him?

Was this some kind of TikTok , Instagram , or YouTube thing?

My attention was caught by him angrily swiping at his face, sniffling a little.

"You heard that correctly. When I needed to use the bathroom, my manager told me to head into the forest and when I came back, he was gone. He left a backpack." He gestured at something in front of him, "and a walkie-talkie on top of it. He then used the latter one to tell me about his great plan of filming a survival show—with me as the main character. Me . You guys get how utterly ridiculous this is, right? I mean… me? The guy telling you about his life in the city. The guy applying make-up, albeit clumsily, on camera? Yeah. He thought it'd be an amazing opportunity for me to get a whole new audience. Spoiler alert: I don't want an audience that wants an outdoor YouTuber. There are plenty of people doing that already."

I saw him shaking his head, then he turned around, showed the camera all the beach behind him, giving me a first glimpse at his stunningly beautiful face. Fuck. He was so… beautiful.

My wolf huffed, unimpressed by my ability to express myself.

But it was the truth. He was beautiful. To me, and objectively. Even though his eyes were puffy, his cheeks splotched, he was still stunning. High cheekbones, red, plush lips, a pointed face with a narrow, straight nose, and big eyes. A light stubble covered his jaw and chin.

He looked young. Like, really, really young, but he had to be legal, right?

No one, not even people with a death wish like his manager—because I would tear him apart should I ever come across him—would send a minor out here.

What kind of stupid idea was that, anyway? Sending someone out here in this weather wasn't just reckless, it was outright dangerous. Walkie-talkies didn't have a large range. What he desperately needed was a satellite phone; a chance to actually get help. There were storms coming, winter was fast approaching… what and how was he supposed to eat? The salal berries were long picked, and the guy didn't sound like he knew how to fish—besides, he'd have to find a good place to fish first.

My mind was spinning, my wolf edging me on to avenge my mate—and to get him out of here.

Which was definitely where I should start. Getting him to safety first, tearing his fucking manager apart second.

"Soo… here I am, with a backpack full of… mainly clothes, rope, tarp… and I think a fishing pole, a suitcase full of camera batteries and memory cards, and no idea how to survive for a week." He sniffled, his free hand rubbing at his eyes again. "If I survive this—and that's a big if—let me tell you what I'll do. I'll fire him and sue his ass for… reckless endangerment? Kidnapping? I swear, I'll find something to sue him for. If I actually die out here, I really hope it's not him finding this camera. Kind stranger, whoever you are, please get these tapes to the authorities. I was murdered . If you see this, Alistair: FUCK YOU!"

He dropped his arm, apparently turning the camera off, then started sobbing again. His whole body shook as he sat there in the icy wind, getting hit with sea spray.

Seeing him like that physically hurt me. It shredded my heart to pieces, made my wolf howl in desperation, and urged me to make everything better, to make things okay for him, all the while leaving me utterly desperate because I didn't know HOW .

I didn't know how to make things okay. How to tell him everything would be fine. How to help him.

I was currently a fucking huge, two-hundred-forty pound wolf, and I had no clothes with me to change back into my human form. Fuck, I needed clothes, right? I couldn't very well walk out of the woods stark naked and introduce myself as his mate. He'd think I was a serial killer or a madman or… no idea. I just knew that, if I was in his place, I'd fucking run as fast and as far as I could if I saw a naked giant coming out of the woods in ten degree weather miles away from civilization—and rightly so.

But running all the way back to town, our packhouse, or my house to get clothes, then running all the way back here? I'd never make it back before nightfall.

Approaching him in the darkness, even as a clothed human, didn't seem like the best idea either. Besides, he didn't know the woods. He wasn't an experienced hiker, and he only had human vision. We'd never make it back without him breaking at least one bone. That was if he would even consider following a random stranger into the woods, of course. Which I wasn't sure he'd do.

But… I needed to do something. He couldn't stay here.

Granted, there weren't that many real predators left on our packlands—mainly bears; the real wolves had left a long time ago, but it was still dangerous. The tides were about to change, and I knew for a fact that in a couple hours' time, there wouldn't be much of this beach left.

Mate, safety , my wolf agreed, trying to force me forwards, but I shut that motion down quickly.

I need to think this through , I told my counterpart, then searched for my mate again.

He was still sitting on that piece of driftwood, but his loud sobbing had turned into quiet sniffles, and he seemed to have come to some kind of conclusion about what to do; at least, he was now meticulously unpacking the big, red backpack he'd placed next to him.

Out came a sweater—again, no wool—a coat, two empty bottles, rope, more rope, even more rope.

"Of course, I only get fucking useless empty water bottles," he muttered quietly. "What do I get in abundance? Rope. Earth to Alistair. I'm not about to give some kind of shibari workshop out here." He snickered, but it sounded hollow, desperate.

And I got it. I had no idea what kind of workshop he was talking about, but I did know that empty water bottles were useless to him.

Please, let him at least have some kind of filter. Or the means to make a fire , I prayed to the gods and stars above. The gods knew he desperately needed both.

The unpacking continued and my heart sank with every piece he pulled out that wasn't fire steel or a gas cooker or even a damn lighter. This was going from bad to worse to worst-case scenario fast.

I needed to do something.

Go , my wolf told me, rolling his eyes at me. To him, the solution was obvious. Head over to our mate and protect him.

Which was exactly what I wanted to do. It just wasn't as easy as that, was it? Going out there as a human was out of the question, and going out there in my wolf form was equally crazy, wasn't it?

I paused, cocking my head, watching as my mate finally put on the coat he'd pulled out of the backpack.

If I was in his shoes… would I be more frightened by a wolf or a naked man? Definitely the naked man. I'd consider him either crazy or dangerous. So… a hundred percent a threat.

But a wolf? Any person who lived out here knew to be wary of predators, but if he really was a city boy… maybe he was one of those ‘ wolves are so cute ' guys? What if I tried behaving like an overgrown puppy? Make myself look as friendly as possible?

My wolf didn't like the idea.

However, our chances as a friendly appearing wolf were at least a bit better than our chances as a naked man—simply because they couldn't be any worse.

Just… what would I do then? I needed to get him away from the beach and somewhere safe… at least until tomorrow. Somewhere he wouldn't freeze to death, somewhere he'd be able to stay dry. Somewhere… the old cabins!

Internally, I gloated at my bright idea. They weren't that close, but not that far away, either. Long abandoned, kind of in ruins, but better than the bare forest floor.

Decision made, I carefully pulled my snout away, taking a couple of steps back. It'd probably be better if he could see me coming from afar, right? And I'd need to grab his attention, without being too frightening. No howling. Maybe just being loud would help. Stepping on twigs and shit like that.

Go , my wolf said, his excitement spiking. Mate, go.

I snorted, but felt the same wave of excitement rushing through me.

Yeah, I thought. It's go-time.