Chapter 2: Cupid's Misguided Arrow

Skye's POV

Not twenty feet away stood a massive grizzly bear, its breath visible in the cold night air.

Its small, dark eyes fixed on me with unmistakable threat, lips pulling back to reveal yellowed teeth.

In the moonlight, I could see the silver tips of its brown fur, the massive paws that could tear me apart with a single swipe.

I had wandered far from the pack's hunting area, far from any help. And without my wolf, I was just a human girl facing one of nature's most dangerous predators.

"Oh God, no..."

The bear dropped to all fours and took a step toward me. My instincts screamed at me to run, even as I recalled all the warnings never to flee from a predator. But human logic crumbled beneath the weight of terror.

I turned and bolted, my boots slipping on the snow-covered ground. Behind me, I heard the bear's huffing breath, the sound of its massive body crashing through the underbrush.

My foot caught on an exposed root hidden beneath the snow, and I went down hard, the impact driving the air from my lungs.

The rifle—the gift from Alpha James that I'd nearly forgotten—tumbled into the snow beside me. As the bear's growl grew closer, my fingers closed around the cold metal of the gun.

Rolling onto my back, I raised the rifle with shaking hands.

I fired. Once. Twice. Three times.

The reports echoed through the silent forest, each shot jolting through my arms. The bear roared, but kept coming.

I squeezed my eyes shut, certain I was about to die.

Then came a sound I hadn't expected—the bear's pained bellow, followed by a heavy thud.

Had I actually hit it? Had I brought down a grizzly bear?

The relief lasted only seconds before another sound split the night—a wolf's howl, deep and powerful.

My eyes snapped open. In the silver moonlight, I saw not just the fallen bear, but the massive brown wolf standing over it, fangs bared in a silent snarl. Blood matted the fur around its muzzle, evidence of its attack on the bear.

I knew that wolf. The rich brown coat with subtle undertones of red. The proud stance. The ice-blue eyes that somehow retained their color even in wolf form.

"Leon," I whispered.

The wolf's head turned toward me, those blue eyes locking with mine. For a moment, neither of us moved. Then something shifted in his gaze—recognition, followed by something else I couldn't identify.

The bear beneath him groaned, not dead but badly wounded. Leon's attention snapped back to his prey, teeth baring once more as he prepared to finish what he'd started.

I should have felt relieved. Grateful.

Leon had saved my life.

"Thank you, Leon!" I called out, pushing through the snow toward him. My voice cracked with emotion. "If you hadn't shown up, I would have been dead for sure. You'll definitely be the champion of this Hunt Festival!"

Without my wolf, I couldn't establish a mind-link with Leon in his wolf form, so I received no verbal reply.

But as I approached, something in his ice-blue wolf eyes made me pause. There was no warmth there. Instead, his gaze was cold, almost... distant.

Before I could decipher his expression, Leon began to shift. The transformation was fluid and graceful—fur receding into skin, bones and muscles rearranging themselves under the pale moonlight.

I'd seen people shift before, of course, but something about watching Leon transform made heat rise to my cheeks.

Leon stood at least six-foot-two, his tall frame dominating the clearing. His golden hair, now tousled from the shift, caught the moonlight like spun silver. The defined muscles of his chest and abdomen rippled with each breath, testament to years of training and his Alpha bloodline.

No wonder Leon was the fantasy of nearly every girl in the pack. Even Maya, who knew perfectly well he wasn't her destined mate, still fluttered around him like a butterfly to a flame whenever she got the chance.

Looking at him now—powerful, beautiful, and completely naked—I finally lowered my gaze in embarrassment.

But it wasn't just my face burning—a strange fire ignited in my lower abdomen, a sensation I'd never experienced before. The intensity of it shocked me, this unfamiliar warmth spreading through me like wildfire. The area between my legs became warm and wet.

That's when the scent hit me again—stronger, more intoxicating than before. Pine and snow and wildness, but now with another note. Something metallic. Blood.

Could he really be my true mate?

I wondered, my heart racing as the scent enveloped me. Wait, something's different. This blood smell... it's not the bear's.

Slowly, I lifted my eyes back to Leon and froze in horror. There, on his left shoulder, was an unmistakable wound—a bullet hole that was slowly closing.

In my panic, I had shot wildly at the bear... and hit Leon instead.

"Leon, I... I didn't mean to," I stammered, taking a step toward him, hands outstretched in a helpless gesture. "I was so scared of the bear..."

He regarded me with those piercing blue eyes. His expression remained unreadable as he said flatly, "It's fine. We should head back."

Without another word, he gathered some nearby vines and wove them into a makeshift rope with practiced skill. I stepped forward, reaching out to help him.

"Let me—" I started, but Leon shook his head firmly.

"Don't," he said, his voice cool as he pushed my hands away. "Just take care of yourself. That's enough."

I stepped back, feeling the sting of his rejection. My cheeks burned with embarrassment as I watched him secure the rope around the grizzly's massive carcass and begin dragging the impressive trophy through the snow. The wound on his shoulder continued to heal at a remarkable rate, the skin knitting together before my eyes.

Guilt gnawed at my insides. Was he angry with me?

It had to be because I had shot him. I wanted to apologize again, but the words stuck in my throat as I watched his rigid back moving away from me.

That's the power of Alpha bloodline, I thought with a mixture of awe and envy.

I followed silently behind Leon, the only sounds in the wilderness being our footsteps and the soft scraping of the bear's body across the snow.

That unique scent continued to plague my senses.

Questions burned in my mind, threatening to consume me from within. Finally, I gathered my courage.

"You showing up here wasn't a coincidence, was it? Did you... did you sense me too? Are we... are we mates?"