Chapter 1 The scent of a predator

Selene ran.

The wind howled through the dense forest, carrying the scent of rain and something far more dangerous. Her heart pounded against her ribs, her breath coming in sharp gasps as she pushed forward, feet pounding against the damp earth. The darkness was thick, the moon shrouded behind storm clouds, but she didn't need light to know she wasn't alone.

Something was hunting her.

A presence-hot, unyielding-stalked her from the shadows. The air itself felt heavier, charged with something primal, something inescapable.

Run faster.

A branch snagged her arm, slicing through her skin, but she barely felt the sting. The sting was nothing compared to what she feared was behind her.

Then, it happened.

The snap of a twig. A shift in the wind. And suddenly-he was there.

A figure emerged from the darkness, stepping onto her path as if he had all the time in the world. The moment Selene saw him, her blood turned molten.

Tall. Unmovable. A predator in human form.

His golden eyes glowed like fire, locked onto her with the kind of hunger that sent a tremor through her bones. Black hair hung over his forehead, slightly tousled, as if he had been running through the forest after her, hunting her. And his scent...gods, his scent-was intoxicating. Dark spices, earth, and something that screamed dominance.

Selene stumbled back, her entire body trembling.

"Kieran," she whispered, fear and something more dangerous curling around her voice.

His lips curled into a slow, knowing smirk. "Little wolf," he drawled, voice deep, rich, dripping with amusement. "Did you really think you could run from me?"

Selene's hands curled into fists. "Stay away from me."

Kieran exhaled a dark chuckle. "You say that, but your body tells me otherwise."

She felt it-damn him, she felt it. The mate bond, burning through her veins, a call to something she had spent years rejecting. It wanted her to submit, to bare her throat, to give in to the Alpha who had claimed her before she even knew he existed.

She fought against it.

"You don't own me," she spat.

Kieran moved before she could blink. One moment, he was a few feet away. The next, he was there, a wall of heat pinning her against a tree. His scent invaded her senses, his chest pressing against hers in a way that made it impossible to think.

His fingers tilted her chin up, forcing her to meet his gaze.

"Say it again," he murmured, his breath warm against her lips. "Tell me I don't own you. Tell me you don't feel this."

Selene's breathing was ragged, her pulse a frantic drum against her throat. She could lie. She should lie. But when his fingers traced her jaw, when his lips hovered just over hers-so close, so damn close-her resolve cracked.

He felt it.

Kieran's smirk widened, his other hand pressing against the tree beside her head. "I will have you Selene" voice like a dark spell wrapping around her. "You were made for me and no matter how much you fight....." His lips brushed against her ear send a violent shiver through her body. "... you'll learn to beg for me"

Selene's heart slammed against her chest. Because the worst part?

Some part of her kind of wanted it.

Selene's breath hitched, her body betraying her even as her mind screamed to resist. Kieran was too close, too powerful, his presence a force she couldn't ignore. The space between them had vanished, and now, with his fingers against her skin, her resolve felt like a crumbling wall.

But she had spent too long fighting fate to surrender now.

Summoning every ounce of defiance, she forced herself to smirk, tilting her chin up despite the way her pulse roared in her ears. "I'd rather die than beg."

Kieran's eyes darkened, the amusement flickering away like a candle snuffed out by the wind. For a heartbeat, he was still-too still. Then, his grip on her jaw tightened, just enough to make her aware of how easily he could break her.

Selene refused to look away.

Then he laughed-low, deep, and laced with something dangerous. "Such a sharp tongue, little wolf. I wonder how long it will take before you use it to moan my name instead."

Heat coiled in her stomach, fierce and uninvited. Damn him.

She snarled and shoved at his chest, but Kieran didn't budge. His strength was effortless, his body unmoving like he was made of something harder than flesh.

"I don't want you," she hissed.

Kieran leaned in, his lips grazing the edge of her jaw, and a slow exhale left him-as if he could smell her lie.

"Liar," he murmured.

Selene trembled.

Her wolf stirred inside her, restless, drawn to his dominance. It was nature itself-unforgiving, relentless. He was her mate, and every fiber of her being wanted to submit.

But she wouldn't.

Desperation ignited her instincts. With a sudden twist, she stomped down on his foot and tried to break free. It was reckless, but she had no other choice.

Kieran barely flinched.

Instead, with a growl, he turned the tables on her, spinning her around and pressing her chest against the rough bark of the tree. His hands locked her wrists above her head, his body heat searing against her back.

Selene gasped. "Let me go!"

Kieran's lips brushed against the nape of her neck, a taunt, a warning. "You're making this so much more fun than it has to be."

Selene twisted, but he only pressed closer. She could feel every inch of his body behind her, his breath fanning against her skin.

"You think this is a game?" she spat.

Kieran chuckled darkly. "No, little wolf. This is a claim."

She froze.

That word. That damned word.

Every werewolf knew what it meant when an Alpha spoke it. A claim was sacred, irreversible. A vow of possession.

Rage and fear coiled inside her.

"Over my dead body," she hissed.

Kieran exhaled, his fingers flexing around her wrists before, finally, he stepped back, releasing her. The sudden loss of his heat made the night air feel too cold.

Selene spun to face him, expecting another smirk, another taunt.

Instead, his expression was unreadable. Calculating.

"You think you still have a choice," he murmured, as if the very idea amused him.

Selene's heart pounded.

Then, before she could react, he reached into his pocket and pulled something out. A silver cuff, its surface etched with ancient runes.

Her stomach dropped.

No.

She recognized what it was immediately. A restraint. A tool designed to suppress a wolf's strength, to keep them weak, vulnerable-helpless.

And it was meant for her.

Her breath came in sharp gasps as Kieran twirled the cuff between his fingers, watching her. Waiting.

Then, with a wicked grin, he spoke the words that sent ice through her veins.

"I told you, little wolf... you were made for me. And now?" His golden eyes burned with promise.

"You're coming home."