Unwanted Mate (The Alpha Shifter Collection)

She’d also gotten a job at a small law firm, working to help crime victims. The pay was okay, but her newfound freedom was everything to her.

So many years wasted and now she could finally be free. She had never slept so well or breathed so easily.

Her life was finally her own.

A few times over the years, she’d woken up under attack. The pack had broken into the place where she slept to hurt her. She had never been safe, and now, she was.

Once she’d put the brown bag of groceries on the counter, she removed each item, feeling the happiness glow inside her.

Food tasted better. Sleeping was enjoyable. Her life was better than it had ever been, but again, she thought of Caspian. The mad man who had finally given her freedom.

He constantly filled her head.

Even late at night, she would imagine him close by. There were moments where she’d be walking the streets, and she was so sure she could hear him or sense him. Each time she spun around thinking about facing him, he’d be gone.

With her groceries packed into the fridge, she stepped out of the kitchen, going to her small bathroom.

The scents of the city were a little overwhelming. Stripping out of her clothes, she stepped into the lukewarm water of the shower. She tilted her head back and sighed as the smells washed off her.

The full moon was fast approaching.

Her first one away from the pack, and excitement filled her. She had plans to escape to the mountains for the weekend. She didn’t have to work, and going hiking was the perfect excuse.

Her room was already booked. She intended to stay there for a few days after, just so she had plenty of time to gain her bearings.

Without the pack, wolves were prone to … consequences. She had always been told that a rogue wolf was a danger to everyone.

When the water got too cold, she turned it off, wrapped a towel around her body, and stepped out, using a second to dry her hair. She only owned two towels. The money she had saved up only afforded her a few things.

She left the bathroom, feeling her stomach rumble, and she went to the kitchen, going to the small pot of lasagna, she’d made the previous night. Turning on the stove to heat it up, she removed the plastic wrap and waited for the oven to preheat.

As she did, heat traveled up her spine, along with the scent of someone else.

She wasn’t alone in her apartment.

She reached for the knife, spinning around as she came face to face with her savior. The mad man. Caspian.

Sofia still held the knife. Her heart raced as she looked at him.

Nothing was different about him, apart from his shoulder-length hair pulled back into a ponytail.

“Would you really stab the man who saved your life?”

She glanced at the knife and quickly put it down on the counter. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to see if you were okay.”

“You’ve been following me?”

“Follow sounds like such a stalking kind of word.”

“That is exactly what it is.”

Caspian stepped close to her, trapping her between the counter and his hard body. “Then I guess I have been stalking you.” He groaned as he pressed his face against her body. “And you smell even better than last time. So intoxicating. Freedom is good for you.”

“Why are you here?”

Was he going to take her back? There was no way she’d ever go back there. Not now. Not after she’d tasted the safety of freedom. She would have to fight for it first. Would she be able to kill?

“I came to see you, Sofia. Didn’t you miss me?” he asked. “Haven’t you thought about me once?”

She wanted to deny it, but being a liar wasn’t part of who she was. She wouldn’t do it.

Sofia stayed quiet.

He chuckled. “That’s okay. You don’t have to say the words.” He pressed his body against hers. “Your body does all the talking.”

“How did you get in here?” she asked.

“Your security is no match for a wolf. Also, I learned to pick locks a long time ago. I’m a wolf of many talents.”

“And you learned to invade others’ privacy. I should have known. Why?”

He chuckled. “Don’t pretend you don’t know, Sofia. It’s why your pussy got wet the moment you saw me. Even as you think you should hate me, you cannot deny what you crave.”

“I don’t crave anything but a good book, this lasagna, and a good night’s sleep.”

He tutted. His hand went to her ass, squeezing the flesh. The moan that escaped her lips was not one filled with mortification but one filled with need.

How could she feel this way about this man? It was … wrong.

She didn’t stop him.

The hardness of his cock pressed against her core, and she whimpered. What kind of woman did this?