Page 40 of The Alpha Wolf's Pregnant Bride

The trepidation that gnawed on my being these past few days is soothed now, calmed by the presence of Cassandra’s wolf. I didn’t realize how much I was losing my mind ever since I decided to stay away from her after that slap.

To my surprise, it wasn’t because I was angry. In hindsight, I’m glad she knocked some sense into me. I had it coming, anyway. I’d been running my mouth on some foolishaccusations, and I needed something to put my suspicions to rest.

Behind me, Cassandra treads quietly. She’s probably waiting for the ball to drop and her impending punishment for slapping the Alpha of the Moon Shine Pack.

Somehow, it doesn’t matter in the stillness of the night as we make our way toward the mountain. I know she’s cautious, maintaining her distance in fear that terror lurks behind my silence, my wrath ready to burst forth.

I pause and glance behind me, Cassandra stopping dead in her tracks.

“This won’t do, Cassie. You’re gonna have to at least pretend that you’re looking forward to this hunt.”

“R-right…”her mental voice is as hesitant as her cautious step forward. “I’m not that hungry, I guess.”

“Is there a reason for your lack of appetite?”I quip as she briskly walks past me. As soon as the soft wind carries her scent over, the sweetness erupts in my airways, and the heightened sense of smell in wolf form adds to the intensity of the scent that’s so distinctly her.

“N-no,”she hesitates, prompting me to open my eyes when they’d drifted closed of their own accord.

Huffing through my wolf nostrils, I shake my head. “Like I said, this won’t do. You’re taking the lead on the hunt.”I take a step forward, rising to my full height in the powerful form of the Alpha to show her that this is a command. “You’re gonna have to show me that you’re worth being called a Moon Shine wolf.”

Cassandra’s eyes widen, realization flashing in the light specks of brown. She’d been adamant about proving herself worthy of being back in the pack by joining patrols.

Now, she has to prove it to me, the Alpha.

“Y-yes, Alpha,”she bows, her voice tentative as I take another step forward.

The little power I can hold onto without being distracted by her scent allows me to nudge her shoulder in the direction of the mountain.

“Go!”

The single-worded command kicks her wolf into gear as she spins around and bolts toward the base of the mountain. Chuckling in my mind, a growl leaves my wolf lips as I give chase.

With one glance tossed over her shoulder, Cassandra realizes that I’m hot on her heels, and she runs faster. Meandering through the rocks, leaping over the ravine, and landing effortlessly, she’s quick and agile in wolf form.

Chasing close behind, I can’t help but be in awe of the wolf running ahead of me, nimbly avoiding obstacles and gracefully floating on paws that appear as light as feathers. With her ivory fur swaying with every movement, her wolf is timeless and marvelous as she begins the upward climb.

I can barely keep up with her energetic pace because I’m too caught up in my appreciation of her extraordinary beauty. I’ve been a wolf for twelve years now, and I’ve never truly appreciated the impressive nature of my species.

As Cassandra’s wolf reaches the top of the cliff, she lifts her grand head and howls toward the skies.

Spellbound by the magnificent she-wolf, I can barely form a thought coherent enough to remind me that we’re supposed to hunt. The task feels futile right now, and all I can concentrate on is her.

“Alpha Cyrus…?”she whimpers when she turns and notices me stalking forward with seemingly calculated steps. They’re far from deliberate since I can barely think straight. All I’m fixated on is the she-wolf in front of me, no longer a geeky young girl but a woman now.

A grown woman in wolf form who drops her gaze and appears demure. If she was in human form, I know it would be rosy cheeks I’d be seeing.

As I stalk forward, my wolf retreats and gives way to my human with a pounding heart and adrenaline coursing through my veins and spurring every step on strong human feet. Cassandra’s ears perk up, and an unspoken command compels her to follow my lead and shift into her human form.

Our eyes meet beneath the soft glow of the crescent moon, the golden flecks in her eyes twinkling like a constellation of stars in the earthly depths. Mesmerized as if she’d just placed a spell on me, I find myself walking the short distance toward us until I feel the radiance of her body heat warm the air in front of me.

There’s something so soothing about the warmer air I breathe now, the sweet scent mellowing to my senses while adrenaline still pulses in my bloodstream and sets my heart into a rapid beat that magnifies Cassandra’s presence in my line of vision, her smooth skin glowing as if touched by the moon’s grace itself.

“Cassandra…” I breathe fluidly, as if her name is as natural on my tongue as the oxygen that flows down my throat.

“Alpha Cyrus…” she replies breathlessly as if it’s a cry for help.

A command that pulls me forward, drawing me so close that our auras amalgamate in the air, unified and filling mewith a sense of wholeness. Yet, at the same time, it’s not nearly enough. Something is missing, and my fingers tingle with the need to feel it all.

Without thinking, I close the distance between us. If I do think, I’m afraid I’ll second-guess myself and not go ahead with what comes next naturally. What happens next is unthinkable when I crush my lips to hers. It’s a good thing that I’m not thinking, only feeling the soft, plush pillows of her lips that finally tie up the loose ends I’d been feeling, and now I feel whole.

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