Page 94 of The Alpha's Fated Choice

I may not be strong enough or wolf enough for Alex and his pack, but Noah doesn’t seem to share that sentiment. At least, not yet.

“What were you doing out this way in the first place?” he asks as we start heading back toward town. Noah has his arms wrapped around my shoulders now, holding his coat securely around me to protect me from the chilly wind that is blowing.

“I came to drop off some groceries for Rita,” I tell him. “She has a hard time getting into town because of her leg, so I like to help her out when I can.”

Noah gives me a warm smile. “It doesn’t bother you, being an errand girl?”

My lips curve at his question. “I don’t mind helping others. Besides, Rita is a pack elder, and she’s very kind to me. We often have a cup of coffee together.”

“Speaking of coffee,” Noah says before pressing his lips to my temple, “how about we go grab a cup right now? I ruined our last date, so I owe you at least that much.”

The spot his lips touched feels uncomfortable. My wolf is deeply unhappy about the physical contact, but I hide it well.

“Sure.” Anything to keep me away from the apartment with Alex in it. In truth, though, I would prefer to be alone. I still have to figure out who that mystery fighter was from last night. She was a female, and I’m sure she was a shifter. She not only matched me blow for blow, but she was also faster than me—and quite vicious. I couldn’t keep up with her.

As Noah and I walk along the pathway in the forest, I see movement in my peripheral vision. My head instantly turns, and for a moment, I see a familiar face staring back at me from deep in the trees. When I blink, she is gone.

Eve? What is she doing out here? From what I know, my coworker doesn’t really interact with many of the other shifters in Oakrest. She doesn’t even take part in the pack runs. She’s relatively new in town, having transferred here only a few months ago. It’s strange to see her in the woods like this, because I distinctly remember her telling one of the servers who works with us that she’s scared to go into the forest by herself.

I found her words strange because, even to me, a latent wolf, the woods feel like home.

“What is it?” Noah follows my gaze, coming to a stop.

I stare at the spot where I saw Eve. “I thought I saw someone I know.”

“I didn’t hear anything. If someone had been there, I would’ve heard them.”

He’s right. Perhaps I imagined it. Lately, my imagination has been running a little wild. “Let’s just go.”

As we walk, I keep glancing over my shoulder. There’s no sign of the female shifter anymore.

Maybe I was wrong. But I can’t shake off the feeling that I saw her.

*** **

We go to a small café in the business center of the town. Halloween decorations are set up everywhere, and I can imagine how colorful the streets will be tonight with the human children coming out to trick-or-treat. Even the wolf pups enjoy taking part in this festival, but it’s not really my thing.

Noah insists on ordering for me, and I hope he doesn’t get me something like a pumpkin latte, which is trendy these days. I hate pumpkin anything. I wait idly at our table as he places the order. My eyes are momentarily distracted by the window next to me. Noah hasn’t commented on my black eye, and I can see why. My reflection is showing clear skin. Whatever that healing potion was that Rita had, it was extremely effective. Even my insides feel much better. But there is a strange energy brewing within me.

My fingers are tapping restlessly on the wooden table as I watch Noah pick up our drinks. My stomach is churning. I hope this is just nerves and not a side effect of consuming too many healing potions.

The scent of pumpkin reaches my nose as Noah sets down two to-go cups on the table in front of me.

I try not to gag at the smell.

“Halloween-themed drinks!” He beams, a childlike excitement in his eyes. “I’ve had at least two whole pumpkin pies this week alone. And there’s a small street stall in the residential area that sells wolf-themed cookies. I didn’t know Oakrest celebrated this holiday with such gusto.”

I glance around the interior of the café, noting the decorations, and then out the window at the street. Nearly every store, restaurant, bar, and café is decked out for Halloween. I never really pay too much attention to it, but I guess he has a point. I tend to stay indoors during Halloween. Although shifters don’t believe in this festival, I always feel very strange when the night in question rolls around.

The witches are really the ones who consider this night sacred. Something to do with the moon and their powers—I don’t really know. But I’ve always felt a little off during Halloween. I prefer to curl up under a blanket and sleep.

“I think the town just likes an opportunity to go a little crazy,” I murmur, recalling the children clamoring all over the streets last Halloween. I could see them from my apartment window.

“You have a point.” Noah sips his drink and sighs happily. “There’s not a lot else to do around here, is there? And considering the location, it’s not easy to travel to other towns. There’s only one road leading out of here, and even that is quite damaged.”

“It’s almost as if the exits have been deliberately sealed,” I comment absentmindedly, stirring my coffee with a spoon.

When he doesn’t say anything, I look up and see him watching me with interest. “Why do you say that?”

---