Chapter 3

King's POV.

I didn't move at first when the person bumped into me, and as I slowly realized the person was a woman, I found myself smirking.

I had held her from falling with reflex action, and now she was steady. I took a little time to study her features well.

Instinct kicked in and I steadied the ‘stranger’, my hands grasping for her arms. But as our eyes met, my wolf surged forward, recognizing the impossible.

This was my mate.

Shock froze me in place, my gaze drinking in the sight of her. My mate, the one who had stumbled into me, was... breathtaking. Her bright eyes sparkled like the stars on a clear summer night, and her hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall.

My wolf howled in excitement, urging me to claim her, but I stood frozen, unsure of what to do.

“I–I…” She was about to say.

Under the moonlight, I saw her cheeks flush pink as she apologized, her voice barely above a whisper. I couldn't respond, my vocal cords paralyzed by the revelation. My mate. Here. Now. It was unthinkable.

She was looking around, her eyes darted around like a car's headlight and it landed on someone I knew. The look in her eyes emitted that of fear.

As I continued to stare, my eyes narrowed, a hint of recognition in my eyes. I knew her! Not personally though. Chloe. She was the woman Raven had tirelessly vilified. But the woman before me was a far cry from the manipulative seductress Raven had described.

My wolf, ever the loyal sentinel, growled in disbelief, as if protesting the disparity between the Chloe of Raven's tales and the Chloe who stood before me. I said Raven's name and she was ready to leave.

“I have to go.” She hurriedly said and was about to flee but I held her back.

The rest happened fast with questions and soon enough, I had my hands out of my pocket and I was fixated on her. “Do you feel it too?” I asked first and then continued, “The mate bond, I mean.” She said nothing and I concluded she didn't hear me. “Do you?”

And that was when I made a move. I kissed her. Softly at first until she began to respond and I began to drink from her mouth. She was full of taste and she was ready to give it all. I wanted her now and then but it wasn't going to work. She was aware of her surroundings because I saw her eyes open. It was then I knew I couldn't compel her.

And just immediately, she pulled away. “I'm sorry, I can't do this. Not right now.” And she was already running off.

I knew I would see her again. Surely I would.

I did see her, after that night, walking alone till I was sure she frequented that path, but I wasn't ready to approach her so I made it a chore to wait for her by the pathway.

****

"Fuck this," I cursed, getting up from the rock in the woods.

For two days I had waited for her on her frequenting road, I was left disappointed as there were no signs of her.

There were a lot of things about this woman I couldn't find myself forgetting. From her scent to her smiles right down to everything else that mattered, as it turned out it was difficult for me to erase any part of her from my memory. And we have only been on this ‘seeing’ for only a few days.

By the third day, I could no longer ignore that burning need to see her again and hold her in my arms.

Soon enough, I headed downtown in my cart as I made my way to her cottage after making due findings about where she lived.

That brief moment of standing outside her cottage with my horse rearing created a spark in my soul, I took in the view of the entire apartment.

My mind was crazed at the fact that she was behind those doors and in fact I would be seeing her yet again.

I let go of the reins and made my way to the front door taking a deep breath as I knocked.

"Who is there?" A voice answered and the door opened, I found myself staring at a woman, not Chloe, but Raven.

"King?" Raven gasped as she opened the door.

I forced a smile. "Hello, Raven. Is Chloe in?"

She was speechless, and I could immediately see that charm I had always boasted about spark to life.

"Chloe?" She asked, acting surprised. "Did she get into any trouble?"

She looked at me without blinking as she pursed her lips like it was an annoying thing that I was asking about Chloe.

"Forgive my manners, come in."

I found her irresistible, there was something about her that gave away an aura of trouble but that manly ego filled me up again as I let myself Into the room.

I looked around the room taking in the entire setting before settling my eyes on her again and taking in her appearance. She was incredibly beautiful I must say and dressed in a thin cloth that left enough to my imagination.

Her long dark hair fell in smooth waves behind her and her face looked as though she spent an entity trying to get ready for the day each morning, she caught a staring— her eyes narrowing on me like I was trying to sweep her off.

"What would you like to have?" Raven asked. She sensed that I might refuse and was quick to add. " The thing is that Chloe left for the stall and trust me with how slow she is, she would take an eternity."

She drew on the word long, and I tried to imagine if she was trying to pass a message.

"Whiskey would be fine if you have any."

"Yeah, there should be one around."

She walked away and left me to think, I didn’t know if time slowed, or if this moment was from my heart pausing and restarting but I felt the need to get away from here. Before I could make up my mind, she walked back bearing a bottle.

Soon, we were chattering while drinking. Aside from her beauty, I had to say I found her pretty more interesting than her cousin.

"When will she be back?" I asked again after a while.

"Are you bored already?" She pouted her lips.

"Not that, I am just concerned."

"Well, like I said she would take a while… Are you not hot? "

Like I was experiencing life in slow motion, she pulled her gown over her head and the sound of fabric hitting the ground filled the room.

I listened as her racing breaths filled the room and a slight breeze made its way through the space between us, making me aware of how hot I was too.

My gaze found her bare bosom, each of her breasts rising and falling like a soft tide with each thud from her heart.

I blamed the alcohol or the fact I didn't get to mate at the last moon dance.

She pressed closer against me, her naked torso pushing hard into me as a gasp escaped my lips.

When I opened my mouth to speak, she trapped me with her lips. At that moment I didn’t know what I wanted but the only thing I could understand was the fact that I didn’t want out.

Once I touched her bare skin, her gaze hardened, before sparking off with a warmth that filled my soul with pure lucid lust.

I could feel that ache between my legs as my erection hardened, I parted my thighs and she stepped in between.

This felt wrong… Yet I couldn't stop myself from wanting to be consumed by her.

"Shouldn't I stop?" I asked the question out loud.

"If you want to," She muttered in an extremely sexy manner that kept me glued to my seat.

Diverse thoughts ran through my mind about how unfair and unjustified this was but I was driven to the extreme by my lust.

My hands roamed her half-naked body as it cupped her bosom. I suckled on one of her hardened nipples and she threw her head back in a deep moan that echoed through the four walls of the room alongside each gasp that came from her.

Her hands slid downward, ripping my shirt away and sending its buttons flying in all directions.

"That is quite an expensive shirt." I said amidst moans.

I could sense my chest tightening under her touch, as she roamed her hands even lower, tracing my buckle.

"Chloe might be… "

The rest of my words were drowned in another kiss, it was a kiss that unleashed the last strand of my self-control.

The next minute, I saw the door fling open, it all felt hazy at first but there she was; the last person I was expecting standing at the doorway.

Her bag dropped on the floor in shock and in that instant, she turned and ran.

"Chloe!" I screamed.