Just tell her you like her,he ordered himself and pushed forward.
Then he froze.
Something shifted along the tree line. Heavy. Menacing. Boaz stilled in the water, nostrils flaring. A scent drifted toward him, faint at first, then it hit him.
The scent of pine buried beneath deep snow and cold mountain air. The scent that had haunted Boaz for years. The one he had dreaded smelling again.
He’s awake,he thought, staring into the darkness.
“Lyla?” Boaz said, already swimming toward her. He reached her in a few strokes and grabbed her hand, pulling her toward the shore. She stumbled out of the water, confusion etched across her face, but Boaz stepped in front of her, shielding her with his body as he kept his eyes fixed on the trees.
“What’s going on?” she whispered, following his gaze.
“The vampire is awake. Go call for help,” he said, shoving her clothes into her arms. Lyla barely moved, her eyes wide with shock.
“Go, Lyla,” Boaz said again, more urgently this time. He nudged her forward, needing her gone before the vampire decided to step out of the shadows.
Fuck.
He didn’t even know what state Alexander was in.
Boaz kept his gaze fixed on the dark forest, refusing to look away until Lyla disappeared down the path and her footsteps faded into the distance. Only then did he turn his full attention back to the looming darkness waiting for him among the trees.
Chapter 2
Alexander
The werewolf he’d tracked had led him deep into the forest, straight to a thriving pack hidden among the trees. Firelight flickered across the clearing where they had gathered, laughter ringing through the night air. They stood in small groups drinking, others danced near the flames. Alexander was about to step into the clearing, ready to confront the werewolf he had followed when he saw her.
His bride. The woman who had haunted his dreams.
Without thinking, he slipped deeper into the shadows, moving carefully downwind so the werewolves wouldn’t catch his scent. Hidden, he simply watched her. Mesmerized.
Firelight danced across her skin as she moved among her pack. She laughed at something someone said, the sound light and warm.
More than anything, he wanted to walk straight into that clearing, cross the distance between them, and pull her into his arms. To feel her warmth, breathe in her scent, claim what fate had promised him.
But he held himself back.
He needed to figure out exactly how he was going to approach a werewolf pack and claim his bride, especially after what he had done. The werewolves might not be happy to see him. He might actually have a problem claiming his bride. But none of that changed the truth.
He needed her.
Badly. And he would do whatever it took to have her. Even if it meant starting another war.
And judging by the way things were unfolding in that clearing, it seemed that war might arrive much sooner than he had anticipated. Just then she spoke to an overgrown werewolf and she was staring at him as if he hung the moon or something. And the brute sent her off with another bigger, rougher and annoyingly handsome one.
Alexander had no choice but to follow.
They led him to the lake, the very lake he’d seen in his dreams. It was breathtaking on its own, but with her slipping into the dark water, it was… magical. He moved closer, drawn by an instinct he couldn’t resist. With every step, his hunger intensified. Doubled. Tripled. Until it felt like claws were digging through his insides. Her scent saturated the air, drowning out everything else.
His fingers brushed the vial of blood hidden in his robes. He almost drank it right then, desperate to keep from losing his control. But he forced restraint. He couldn’t risk losing his mind.
He needed to speak to her. Needed to ask her to be his bride.
The thought alone made something tighten in his chest.
Would she say yes?