The Alpha's Property

*** Eva ***

It took me less than three days to fall in love with him. And make no mistake about it, I am head over heels, tummy turning, don’t-want-to-picture-a-future-without-him in love! It has been an incredible night. We had a lovely meal and some wine and spent time just talking and getting to know each other.

Aiden is handsome and smart and he makes me feel like I am the only girl in the world. He has a fun, cheeky side that makes me melt inside. He makes me laugh. He makes me happy, really happy. I didn’t realise I could be this happy, especially with someone I met days ago.

We have a connection that is deeper than I have ever felt with anyone. I feel like he sees my soul, he sees who and what I am. My nerve endings dance when he touches me. I cannot believe how fast he brought me to an earth-shattering climax. I have never, ever felt anything like that before, not alone and certainly not with Ryan.

For the first time in my adult life, the thought of our next sexual encounter excites me. I find myself daydreaming about what delights Aiden is going to show me next and I feel a craving building up inside me for more of his touch, for more of him. It looks like I am not frigid after all.

I didn’t want him to leave, and he told me he never wanted to leave me, but he needed to look after Amber. So, after playing a bit more of our twenty questions game, it was time for Aiden to return to his pack.

“Would you consider moving in with me? Summer too, of course. I know it's fast for you but I can’t leave the territory since I am the Alpha.” It is fast but I honestly don’t want to be away from him either.

“I need time to think about what is best for us and for Summer too, I don’t want to confuse her. But I will be honest and tell you that I hate the thought of being apart from you. I miss you already.” Every word from my mouth is sincere and makes me feel like I am living in a parallel universe. Am I really considering moving myself and my toddler to live with a man I met a few days ago? And not just any man, but a werewolf Alpha, which I didn’t even know existed until I met one.

As I get into my bed alone after Aiden has gone home, I think about the way he touched me, the way he held me and the sweet words he whispered to me. He told me that he loved me and that he would keep me safe. My big bad wolf is a little softie at heart.

Sleep eludes me and I start to feel unsettled. Even Summer picks up on something because she cries out to me, needing me to comfort her back to sleep, and I end up placing her in my bed with me.

As I listen to her little breaths, I hear talking outside so I go to my bedroom window.

“There is no sign of him or his car. It's like he’s just vanished. Where could he be, Preston?”

“I don’t know but it's not like Aiden, he didn’t want to leave Eva so none of this makes any sense.”

From just those few words, I understand what my uneasiness means: Aiden is missing. He hasn’t arrived at his pack territory, and they are searching for him. I feel like my heart has dropped through the ground below me. I finally found the other half of my soul, the person who treats me right, the man who sets my heart alight and has awoken all the desires I had thought I would never feel, and now he is missing. My heart howls in pain.

I have to find him; I can’t lose him when we’ve only just begun.

*** Preston ***

I am sitting in the surveillance van taking my break and I’m researching human weddings. In our pack we sometimes have Mating Ceremonies but most people simply mate and mark. The thought of Amber up on the stage in front of all our packmates, saying her vows makes me laugh, she would tell me to go fuck myself.  I don’t think she would ever agree to a Mating Ceremony

However, a small, intimate human-style wedding which has nothing to do with the mate bond and everything to do with the love, devotion, and loyalty I want to pledge to Amber outside our bond, well, that could be perfect. I didn’t have to permanently mark her, she wouldn’t have to conform to the draconian customs of our kind, we could simply show our friends and family that we love one another and want to spend eternity together.

Little doubts niggle in my mind: what if Amber still wouldn’t accept or give that level of commitment? What would I do then? I am here planning public declarations of love and Amber has never once said those words to me. Have I got this all wrong? Am I trapped in the rabbit hole of wishful thinking yet again? Goddess, I hope not. Seeing Amber so broken today ripped me apart. I need to show her that my feelings for her are not just mate bond deep. I love her, every single perfectly flawed millimetre of her. Even if the mate bond hadn’t tied us together there is no other woman I would want to be by my side for the rest of my days. It's always been Amber, and it always will.

Humans propose marriage with a ring, usually a diamond or another precious gemstone. I want a ruby like her hair, or an emerald like her eyes. Human marriage is legally binding and, in some cases, a religious affair. So, I need to get a ring for Amber so I could ask her to marry me.

After looking online at rings, I give up: they all look the same and I don’t even know what her ring size is, what a stupid notion! I need Aiden’s help and advice so when we meet tomorrow, I will try to get a moment alone with him to ask for his help. That’s when my phone starts ringing.

As Amber’s name flashes on my screen, I feel guilty, like she had caught me doing something wrong. I have never been able to keep anything from her.  Will she know what I am thinking of doing?

“Yes.” It is all I can manage without making her suspicious. However, I know straight away that something is wrong. Aiden should have been home within twenty minutes, tops, and now it’s almost two hours later and there is no sign of him or his car, and his phone continues to ring out unanswered.

When Amber arrives to take over my watch, I can see the panic in her eyes and her body looks frail. She’s lost weight and appears younger and more fragile than I have ever seen her. I get the shock of my life when Eva opens the front door.

“What do you mean he’s missing? How can he be missing; he should be with his pack?” I had hoped the human would have slept through all this upset, but the tiny thing stands there with her hands on her hips, demanding to know where her mate is and instructing me to take her to find him.

“Please, Luna, I promise I am going to locate him now, but he will de-throat me if anything happens to you so, please stay here and let Amber protect you.”

“Amber you’ll have to come inside. I am never going to get back to sleep now. Hurry up, Preston, he might be hurt, and I will de-throat you if you don’t find him soon.” In spite of the circumstances, her firmness makes me smile. Finding her mate is making Eva stronger. I even giggle when I overhear her asking Amber what on earth de-throating means.

***

I take a team of six with me, guys who are mostly of Beta blood, but Delta Billy has sent two Delta Warriors too. My first job is to track Aiden’s phone. We get the coordinates and I am perplexed when I realise he is in the territory of our ally, The Silver Shore Pack.

Well, that just doesn’t make sense. I key the coordinates into my GPS and lead my team on the mission to find our Alpha.

When we arrive at our destination, it is dense woodland with overgrown shrubs. It's dark and deserted and something feels sinister and off-kilter. I channel Zack’s wolf senses and follow the trail to a bush set back from the road, mostly following Aiden’s scent. When we get to the bush we immediately find this was used as a means of disguising Alpha Aiden’s car. As my team quickly removes the foliage, I notice that all four car tyres have been punctured. It looks like someone has used a Stinger Spike System on Aiden. I ring his phone again and let out a growl of frustration when I see it illuminate through the passenger window.

Why has Silver Shore kidnapped our Alpha? They are supposed to be our allies. I need to pay Alpha Martin a visit. I need answers and I need them now!

As we approach the Silver Shore packhouse, several of their warriors run out in a protective stance. The voice of Alpha Martin rings out although I cannot see him.

“What is the meaning of this, Beta Preston? Why are you attacking us?” I hold my hands up in surrender, I am not attacking him for fucks sake, I only have five other warriors with me!

“I come here in search of my Alpha; I am not here to attack you. Alpha Aiden is missing and we have just located his car on your land with four burst tyres and his phone still inside. Do you have any information about his whereabouts?”

“No, he doesn’t. But I do!”

I know that voice. What is he doing here?