Stealing the Alpha’s Heart

Never in a million years did I think I would go on a hike in the woods with a giant, sentient wolf that could transform into my ‘mate,’ and yet, that was exactly what had happened. And the craziest thing was that I had a brilliant time. I learned so much, asked questions I’d never thought to ask before, and had tons of fun.

And I felt so close to Mahlan. He let me see a side of him that so few people got to see. He even let me pet him, which had felt surprisingly intimate.

“What’s got you all cheery over there?” Emmaline asked as I smiled dopily down at a thick sweater. Hey, it wasn’t my fault that the rich brown of it reminded me of Mahlan’s chocolate eyes.

“Your brother took me on a wolf day,” I answered honestly. Because why hide why I was so happy? Honestly, it was a lovely change from all the stress and turmoil that had followed me getting bitten.

“A wolf day?”

“Yeah, he taught me a lot about your culture and even shifted in front of me. It was… nice.”

“That’s so wonderful. I’m so happy for you.”

“Thank you, thank you. And it wouldn’t have been possible if you hadn’t closed the shop.” I gave her a salacious look, complete with an eyebrow waggle. “How about you and Mr. Kaleb, huh?”

Emmaline turned a vibrant red, which was certainly interesting on her complexion.

“Nothing happened or will ever happen on that front,” she said with a long sigh. “I’ve had a crush on him since basically forever, but I’ve never done anything about it because he’s so much younger and part of my brother’s inner circle. Seems like crossing a boundary, ya know?”

“No, not at all,” I answered honestly. What could I say? I didn’t like needlessly sugarcoating things. “Sounds more like an excuse to me.”

“Maybe it is. But he’s never really noticed me anyway. It’s just a silly crush.”

“Emmaline, you’re one of the least silly people I know. If you like him, why not pursue it?”

“I… I dunno.”

“Would you think about it for me? The relative stranger who shoehorned her way into your life by robbing you nearly blind?”

“Fake-robbed me,” Emmaline laughed. “But yeah, okay. I’ll think about it.”

“That’s all I can ask.”

“But what about my brother?”

“What about him?”

“You don’t think he’d be upset about me pursuing one of the few members of his closest friends? We have a large pack; I have plenty of people I could court.”

“I knew… most of those words and what they meant, but no, I don’t think Mahlan would mind. I think he’d want you both to be happy.” The sappy, fond tone of my voice gave me pause. Since when was I so cheesy? I didn’t know, but I continued anyway. “Don’t you?”

“I guess so.”

Before I could press it, the door chimed, and we both went into professional mode. From there, it didn’t seem like we got a break for several hours, and it didn’t feel like the right time to bring it up by the time she dropped me off at home.

So instead, I wished her goodbye and headed in for another amazing meal by Mahlan. It was hard to be around him without thinking back to that first night we spent together. I’d been nervous, really nervous, but he’d put me at such ease. He’d put the power in my hands and made sure I knew that it didn’t go a step beyond what I wanted it to.

He didn’t mock me for my lack of experience or chide me for not knowing where to put my legs or how to hold myself. He was loving, supportive, and really good at making me o****m.

The thought had me clamping my legs tightly, sensations rolling through me like the loveliest echoes. I’d never had someone’s mouth between my legs, but wow, Mahlan clearly knew what he was doing. And the way he’d looked at me… goodness. It was enough to give a girl an ego.

“You okay?” Mahlan asked, turning to me with a full plate. “Your face is flushed.”

“I’m fine,” I answered quickly, taking the plate. “Just excited for the food.”

He looked suspicious, but I quickly shoveled a forkful into my mouth, which resulted in a happy g***n. Damn, my mate was good at cooking.

“All right then, keep your secrets.”

“Did you just meme at me?” I objected once I smiled. “You can’t just meme at me when my mouth is full.”

“Looks like I just did.”

I gasped indignantly, but my open mouth allowed him to stab some delicious roasted asparagus with my fork and then feed it to me.

“You win this round,” I admitted before happily returning to my meal.

The night ended how ours usually did, with watching TV together and then going to sleep. From there, the days started to pick up again, passing by without so much as a wave. Work was good, home was good, heck, my life was good — which wasn’t something I was used to.

And while Mahlan and I didn’t sleep together again, we spent several hours making out, and he went down on me about every other day. I was mildly worried about being a pillow princess, but whenever I tried to raise the concern, Mahlan would make me climax so hard that my eyes would cross.

I was easing into the domesticity of it happily, getting used to it pretty quickly. So naturally, I was surprised when I arrived home on Wednesday to find his place empty again.

Concerned, I pulled out my phone, ready to call him just like I had the first time. But to my surprise, he’d already texted me.

“Huh, I must have had my phone on Do Not Disturb.”

I usually put my phone into that mode during work, but I was pretty consistent at switching it off on my breaks and as soon as I clocked out.

Sorry, I’ll be home late. I had to look into something. Be safe and please snack.

I read the text three times, trying to discern his tone psychically. His text was both vague and not vague, which made my stomach twist.

“Get your head together, Lyssa, and make some food.”

I’d grown more confident with cooking since moving in. I still wasn’t a whiz like Mahlan, but I was comfortable with three or four dishes that I knew wouldn’t be nauseating. Getting the ingredients out, I allowed the process to distract me. The last time Mahlan was late, he’d shown up at the door covered in b***d. If he did that again, I would have to insist on a curfew.

I didn’t speed through my process and I tried to be patient, but by the time the tuna melts were done, the worry was growing sour in my belly.

Grabbing my phone yet again, I sent him a quick text.

Hey, you got an ETA?

My phone buzzed less than a moment later.

In the elevator now.

I heaved a sigh of relief and went to the door. Opening it for him, I was even happier to see that he wasn’t covered in crimson or other viscera. If that could never happen again, that’d be great.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“One second, I have to take a call.”

And with that, he walked right past me and into his office. I could vaguely hear him talking on the phone, but I couldn’t make anything out. My patience was being severely tested, and I ended up pacing the hall, the conversation fading in and out.

“…you sure?”

“Have Hannah get access… …number in the manifest… …reach?”

“Maybe… …someone into the shipping…”

I couldn’t wait any longer. I went into his office only to find him pacing, his cellphone pressed to his ear. It was clear that he was pretty worked up, and suddenly my relief about him not being covered in b***d began to ebb.

Mahlan kept listening to whoever was on the other end, giving out a chorus of “uh-huhs” and “yeahs.” It took him a solid minute to notice me, and when he did, he stopped short.

“Listen, we’ll talk about it tomorrow. Sleep on it.”

With that, he hung up, looking plenty disgruntled.

“Did something happen?”

He didn’t answer right away, but I hated how upset he looked, so I held my arms open for him. His alleviation was evident as he slumped into my arms, letting me tightly embrace him. I clung to him, squeezing as supportively as I could, one hand gently rubbing circles into his back.

“It’s not good news,” he murmured, resting his head on top of mine.

“I figured, but tell me anyway.”

“Two alphas disappeared today. They were supposed to meet to discuss a potential marriage between two of their pack members, but they never returned home.”

“Oh,” I murmured. “That doesn’t sound good.”

“That makes eight wolves missing in the last two months. It’s blatantly targeted at this point. Something is happening.” Mahlan’s voice wavered ever so slightly. “One of them was a ten-year-old kid.”

I couldn’t help the gasp that punched its way out of my throat. “They’re targeting kids?”

“They’re targeting everyone, it seems. Women, males, old, young, alphas, betas, and other designations. I’m worried about my pack.”

“It would be weird if you weren’t,” I assured. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“This is a lot,” Mahlan said, and I could feel his posture relaxing.

“I understand. And I’m happy to do it. I cooked dinner if you’re hungry.”

Mahlan pulled back, his expression shocked enough that I was trying to figure out if I was offended or not. “Really?”

“Yes, really. Don’t be so surprised about it.”

“Right, of course. Silly me. And thank you for the hug, that is.”

“You can thank me for my dinner too when you’re done. It’s not poisonous or anything.”

“If you say so.”

Sticking my tongue out, I led him to the kitchen and sat him down at the island. “So, you wanna tell me what you were talking about on the phone?”

“That company we infiltrated. Well, we found a secret staff list that Hannah, Jacobian, and Addison can’t get into. We’re aware it exists, but we can’t crack it for anything.”

“And that’s really bad?”

“We’re guessing. It’s not on the CEO’s server. And we still haven’t been able to source the guy that left the breadcrumbs to the company.”

“Can you get someone into their shipping department? Often that’s the least guarded, and they’re the ones who see everything coming in or out.”Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

“How do you know that?”

“Stuff I learned from watching people and figuring out the best way to get in and out of places unnoticed.”

“You continue to be full of surprises. But I’m worried about endangering any more of my wolves. Having two of our women in there is risky enough. As much as I hate to admit it, we men are relatively expendable, whereas women bring the next generation of pups into the world.”

“Well, I don’t know about expendable, but I get what you mean.” I pondered a moment as I loaded the sandwiches on two plates and sat next to Mahlan at the kitchen island. He had a whole dining room, but there was something more intimate about the smaller counter and stools. “Is there anyone who’s trained that could go in? Like a contracted magical shifter type?”

“A witch, potentially. The wolves there wouldn’t be able to sense her unless they had very specific training.”

“Wait, really?”

“Yeah. Shifters can usually tell other shifters, but it doesn’t work across species. We usually can’t tell a magic user just by their scent unless they’re quite powerful, or we’ve got a lot of experience with that subset of fey.”

“This is so complicated,” I said, rubbing my temple. “And I can’t even pick out other wolves.”

“Whatever’s locking in your wolf is probably affecting that as well. But once we take care of that, you’ll be more yourself than you’ve ever been.”

I tried not to shudder at that. It was a whole lot of pressure, that was for sure. What if I really wasn’t a wolf? Would Mahlan just kick me to the curb? It wouldn’t be the first time I was completely abandoned by people I trusted.

“Let’s change the subject, shall we?” Mahlan murmured, breaking me out of my spiral.

“Sure, what do you want to talk about?”

“You still need to set up a bank account, right? Or did you already do that?”

“No, I still need to do it. I can shoot for tomorrow during my lunch?”

“As long as that works for you. I do need someplace to deposit the first payment of your salary.”

“You mean the only payment for my salary, considering we finished the contract in a single day.”

“Not true. The contract isn’t done, and you’re technically on call, which means I’m paying you.”

I huffed, but technically he was right, so I didn’t argue. I was quickly learning to pick my battles. I finally believed that Mahlan wasn’t trying to outright control me and that he was just as eager to find a peaceable compromise as I was.

Instead, we just spent our night like it was normal — eating dinner, putting dishes in the dishwasher, watching TV then getting ready for bed. As usual, I was bone exhausted by the time I lay across the mattress, and I went under in just a few breaths.

Similarly, I woke up incredibly refreshed. It turned out that sleeping on an expensive mattress was much easier on my body than a hand-me-down, outdated air mattress a friend had given me. Who knew?

K!ssing Mahlan on the cheek, I went about my morning routine. As usual, by the time I came out of the shower, Mahlan was also up and had breakfast ready once I walked into the kitchen fully dressed and with my hair pulled back.

It was simple fare, blueberry pancakes and some sausages, but I wolfed them down with gusto before Mahlan drove me to work. Then it was his turn to k!ss my cheek before I got out of the car, and I waved goodbye as he drove off.

The morning did drag a little, as they usually did. I wasn’t quite sure why Emmaline didn’t have her boutique open from noon to six, but she liked having more traditional work hours, I guessed.

By lunch, I was anxious to take care of my banking business, so I told her where I was going and then headed out. It was just a few blocks down, and I figured it would be more convenient to have a bank close to where I worked rather than close to Mahlan’s place.

It was a nice walk, the wind flowing gently and the sun shining. But after a block or so, I got the feeling that I was being followed. It could have been nothing, but I had long since learned to follow my instincts. If I thought someone was following me, it was best to act as if they were.

Picking up my pace, I briskly walked through a crowd of people milling about the downtown area. Taking a couple of random turns, I managed to get to the bank by taking a completely different route, ducking inside and tucking myself into a corner so that I could watch from the windows.

But as much as I watched, I couldn’t see anyone suspicious or anyone who looked like they were hunting someone. Stomach twisting, I waited nearly fifteen minutes before I realized that I needed to get a move on.

Still nervous, I got in line and waited for a teller. While standing there, it was hard not to see all the easy targets walking around, just begging to be lifted from. But now that I had a steady job and a contracted job, I didn’t need to pickpocket for a living. Still, it was awfully tempting.

The teller was surprisingly efficient in helping me open an account, and once I presented all my proper IDs, I had my very first bank account. Thanking him, I headed out, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was still being watched.

I just needed to tuck my head down and get back to work. There I would be safe.