Page 38 of The Denver Alpha

I came upon her clothing when I first set out, so I know she’s shifted to her wolf form. Trouble is, I’ve never actually seen her wolf before, meaning I’m just out here blindly searching. I’ve already mind-linked my guys on patrol tonight and asked them to keep an eye out for an unfamiliar wolf, warning them not to attack, but so far, they haven’t spotted her either.

She’s still out here somewhere, though. I can feel it.

A rabbit scampers away, the sound of its scurrying paws drawing my attention to my left, and that’s when another crack of lightning illuminates the sky and I catch a glimpse of white fur in the distance. I slink through the brush to get a closer look, and sure enough, I see a white wolf across the clearing. I know instantly that it’s Juliet- not only because something about the wolf resonates with mine on a deeper level, but also because the wolf is so damn stunning that I’d know for sure if I’d seen her before. You don’t just forget a creature that beautiful.

Her fur is thick, gleaming in the moonlight, white as snow except for the dark mud caking her paws and speckled up her legs. She’s lithe and lean, standing taller than many shifted wolves due to her alpha blood, yet not as large as I loom. And her eyes… they’re ice-blue, and paired with the pale white of her coat, the sheer beauty is enough to knock the air out of my lungs.

I’m so relieved to have finally found her that I don’t waste any time- I spring forward, bounding out into the clearing in pursuit. She whips her head in my direction, sees me coming, and then…

She runs.

I chase.

Through the thick foliage, over felled trees and around jagged limbs. The forest floor is slick with mud, causing both of us to slip and slide, threatening to take our paws out from under us. Juliet’s fast, but the light color of her coat makes her easy for me to track in the dark as I pursue her. She darts off course, trying to lose me, but I know these woods like the back of my hand. Each attempt at redirection only brings me closer until finally I’m within reach.

She must sense how close I am, because she suddenly darts to the side to avoid me heading her off. It works, but alarm bells sound in my head as I realize the new course she’s set for herself will bring her right to the edge of a drop-off into a ravine. She doesn’t know these woods; doesn’t know the danger. So I do the only thing I can think of to stop her.

I pounce.

Her paws slide in the mud as my body collides with hers, the inertia sending the two of us rolling. The world blurs around me as I try and fail to grasp onto something to stop our movement before we go over the edge. My breath stalls in my lungs, panic grips my chest.

Then, by some miracle, we slide to a stop, a mess of tangled limbs and muddy fur.

Juliet’s hind legs dart out, kicking me away as she struggles to right herself. Then the air shimmers around her as she shifts from her wolf form, bones snapping and rearranging until a naked, mud-covered, very pissed off human is crouching in her place.

“What the hell?” Juliet demands as soon as I’ve shifted back, too, crossing her arms over her chest and rising to her feet with a deep scowl.

I straighten, rubbing at a patch of raw skin on my elbow that must’ve torn open in our tussle. “Why’d you run?” I ask, chest heaving as I try to catch my breath.

“Oh, I don’t know,” she says sarcastically with the wave of a hand. “Maybe because a huge wolf came out of nowhere and started chasing me?”

Well shit. Fair point.

“I’ve been looking for you for almost an hour,” I grumble.

She narrows her eyes on me, raising a hand to push her mud-caked hair out of her face. “Wow, stalk much?”

There’s that trademark attitude of hers.

I frown. “You could be a little more fucking grateful.”

“For what?” she asks, eyes widening incredulously. “Scaring me? Tackling me to the ground and getting me covered in mud?”

“Finding you and making sure you were okay.”

Juliet barks a laugh. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You were about to go over the edge of that ravine,” I point out, gesturing past her to indicate. “You’re out in an unfamiliar forest, and the storm…”

“I was just out for a run,” she cuts in.

“In a storm?” I scoff.

“Yeah, why not?”

“Because it’s dangerous.”

Juliet rolls her eyes. “No it’s not, I’ve done it a hundred times. It’s my favorite time to run.”

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