He moved through the trees effortlessly, his steps quiet, precise. He was miles away now from that damn she-wolf, but his pulse hadn’t settled. His own wolf was restless, furious at him for leaving. His wolf never cared about anyone or anything, selfish bastard. Now he wanted to get involved after the decision had already been made.

He had left. He had walked away

So why the hell couldn’t he stop seeing her? He exhaled and watched his breath curl away in the cold night air. He should be thinking about something else…anything else, like where he was going to go next, but instead his mind was stuck on her.

…fuck, she was everything he wanted.

They way she had been stubborn and unafraid of him made him want to take her. Even covered in dirt and dried blood she had been breathtaking, waves of dark hair, captivating eyes, and gods, that body.

He had traced the smooth slope of her collarbone, the graceful line of her neck leading to her full, tempting breasts, their soft curves still etched into his memory. Lower, her waist dipped into a perfect hourglass, and despite the scars she’d been left with he saw no imperfection there, only stories he wanted to know more about.

He swallowed hard, shaking his head. He shouldn’t be thinking about any of this. But his mind betrayed him, dragging his focus lower, down the length of her long, toned legs, powerful enough to wrap around him and nearly take him down when they fought. And those thighs…smooth, strong, the kind that could squeeze the breath right out of you, and her ass…firm, round…he imagined gripping onto it.

His wolf rumbled with satisfaction at the memory of her under him, writhing and moaning. He cleared his throat and tried to burn the image of her out of his head. No woman had ever haunted him like this. Not that he’d had a lot of trouble since being banished. No…she couldn’t belong to him, he needed to move on.

And then…

A twig snapped loudly behind him. His irritation flared. He could sense her lurking, attempting to shadow him. He sighed, of course she would follow him.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

For a while, he let her, and she was terrible at it. She moved too quickly, and it seemed like she was intentionally finding ways to be noisy. As if it weren’t bad enough that she stepped on every twig and leaf, the other animals ran away screeching like sirens going off. He kept walking, pretending he didn’t know, wondering if she was intentionally trying to be this bad, until he couldn’t take it any more.

"You’re the worst damn wolf I’ve ever seen."

The sound of her halting was almost comical. He didn’t even turn around before adding, “Are you even trying?”

Silence. Then a low, frustrated growl

He smirked.

She lunged, and he dodged to the side watching her stumble forward into a bush. She might be fast but she had no training, and was completely out of her element. Recovering quickly, she came at him again, but this time, he let her hit him. They tumbled, rolling through the dirt, snapping at each other, and he pinned her in seconds, using her own momentum against her, slamming her onto her back. Perhaps she just likes this position, he thought amused.

She snarled at him and tried to twist free.

“That all you got?” he rumbled.

She struggled harder, snapping at his muzzle, Gods she was stubborn. He found himself wanting to teach her a lesson, and started contemplating on the best way to do so. Then suddenly, she shifted, and made a desperate attempt to shove him off with her legs. He rolled to the side and twisted to face her, only to find her standing there with her arms crossed glaring at him, furious and naked, the body he’d just been obsessing over on full display in front of him.

For a moment, they just stared at each other, then…

“What am I supposed to even call you?” she demanded.

His brows furrowed. “What?” He was still thinking about the view.

“Your name.

He studied her a moment longer before answering, “Kael.”

Her eyes flickered at the sound of it, like she was testing it in her mind, deciding whether or not to believe him.

“Nova,” she said, pointing to herself, “the worst wolf you’ve ever seen.”

He rolled his eyes and tried to not be amused by her antics. "You should go back, Nova."

She scoffed. "Not happening."

He shrugged, stepping around her and continued walking through the trees.

He heard her shift behind him, her feet padding as she followed,

He sighed, shaking his head.

Stubborn. Impossible.

But, damn it if he wasn’t glad she didn’t listen.