Mates: Prequel (Claws Clause 0)

Like a bull stampeding forward, he burst through the bushes. He didn’t slow down. He didn’t pause, then leisurely find a way around the greenery that separated him from his mate. No, Maddox forced his way through it as if they weren’t even there.

Branches tore at his skin. His body responded by growing fur along his arms, protecting him from the scratches, the brambles, the wood. He could feel his fangs lengthening, his eyes glowing a vibrant golden color as his head swiveled, searching for the woman who owned that delectable scent.

And there she was.

A blanket was spread out beneath her. She had a pink plastic water bottle beside her, a book clamped loosely in her hand. Before he showed up, she had obviously been leaning back, enjoying her book as she read alone in the early afternoon sunlight.

No one else was there.

Just him.

Just her.

He stared. Shocked and caught unaware, she stared back.

Alpha, she was gorgeous.

Maddox zeroed in on her, gobbling her up with his hungry gaze. Her long legs were stretched out in front of her, her toes pointed. She was a slender woman, probably a few years younger than he was, with dark, wavy hair cascading down her shoulders. He picked up on a smattering of freckles lying across the slope of her nose, a pair of tiny studs in her ears winking in the light.

No ring on her finger, he realized next to an overwhelming relief. No male scent clinging to her skin, either.

Good. One look and he was already smitten. He would’ve taken out any threat, any competition, and he’d do it with a smile.

His mate. No doubt about it. The punch of attraction, the sweet yet rich scent coming from her… she was his.

And, he was almost positive, she was a human.

Her eyes—green, the loveliest shade of forest green—went wide. Her mouth dropped just enough, forming the most adorable little “o”. Slowly, as if she didn’t want to spook him, she pulled her legs into her as if she was preparing to get up and dash away.

He sure as hell hoped not. Nothing would excite his wolf more than a run and a chase. And when he took down this prey, the warmth of her body instead of the rush of blood.

At that temptation, Maddox’s heart thumped wildly, all of his blood continuing to pump south. He felt his cock pulse, bulging against the confines of his jeans.

She was there. She was real.

She was his.

He took a hulking step forward. Another.

She screamed.

He froze.

His entire body locked down, the beginning of a growl caught in his throat. His instinct was to protect his mate, shield her, keep her safe. But that flash of fear on her face a split second before she let loose a shriek that nearly deafened him? He never wanted to see her afraid.

Because, if something was causing her worry, it could only be—

Gritting his teeth, tilting his head back, Maddox pulled her scent in toward him, snuffling as it changed in an instant.

And then he whimpered.

He fucking whimpered.

His protective instincts immediately went into overdrive. She was afraid of him, wasn’t she?

And why wouldn’t she be? He was the out of control moron engaged in a partial shift who crashed through the trees, then stood there, staring at her. Of course she was afraid!

And there was nothing else he could do but protect her from him.