XVIII

Mateo leads me through the house, and soon enough, we're down the front steps and making our way to the forest.

He remains a few paces ahead of me, moving so swiftly that it takes some effort on my part to keep up. It's also pitch black out here, which isn't helping me in any way. The moon is the only source of light, and it's being obstructed by the tree tops.

"Are we going to meet up with the others?" I ask Mateo, stepping carefully over some tree roots.

"By now they've shifted and are scattered around the territory. We'll probably come across them eventually," he informs me.

I follow behind him for about ten more minutes before I start to get irritated. I've almost fallen several times, and I've tripped over multiple things that I can't even see scattered on the forest floor.

"Um... how much farther?" I ask. My attention is on the ground, trying to keep myself from tripping again. Taking a few more steps, I suddenly come into contact with something really hard. I look up to see that that something is Mateo's back.

I rub my aching nose which took the brunt of the impact. "Guess not that much farther," I mutter.

Mateo doesn't say anything in response but instead turns around and begins removing his clothing. He starts with his shirt, grabbing it by the collar and lifting it up over his head. His hands then grab on to his belt and he unbuckles it before unzipping his pants and dropping them to the forest floor.

He does all this while maintaining eye contact with me, and, of course, me being me, I don't give him the satisfaction of appearing uncomfortable by looking away. It's weirdly intimate, but I find myself enjoying it.

When every item of his clothing—except for his boxers—has been stripped away, he stands there in all his glory, staring me down with a smirk, silently challenging me to do the same.

Challenge accepted.

I begin with my shirt, same as him, and a few moments later I'm standing in front of him with just a bra and panties on. We stare at each other, eye contact unwavering, our gazes never drifting to other places.

The corner of my lips tilts upward as I break eye contact and look him up and down before swiftly yet gracefully shifting into my wolf. Mateo chuckles and shakes his head at me before he follows suit.

We circle each other, similar to what our kind do when they're about to fight, but in this case it's clear we're doing quite the opposite. We examine each other's wolf forms, and I take in the beautiful, massive, and formidable structure that is Mateo's wolf. He's gigantic, almost twice the size of my wolf, and his fur is a deep, near black shade of brown. I watch in awe as his muscles ripple underneath his coat with every step he takes. He absolutely radiates power and strength.

His eyes roam over my much smaller and much less astonishing figure. As he takes me in, I can see the reflection of my off-white colored fur in his eyes.

This is the first time I've shifted in a while, and I'm itching to stretch my legs, so, with one last look at Mateo, I take off sprinting in the other direction.

I zip through the woods, slicing through the air as I leap over fallen branches and tree roots. Now in my wolf form, I'm able to clearly see everything around me.

Goddess, how I've missed this.

It's not long before I hear the pounding of feet on the forest floor behind me. Smiling to myself, my adrenaline spikes, and I pick up the pace, enjoying the surge of excitement from being chased. Mateo might be bigger, but then that means I'm faster.

Or so I thought.

I'm proven wrong a few moments later when I'm suddenly tackled to the ground. We tumble and roll for several feet, both of us shifting back to our human forms in the process. When we come to a stop, I've ended up on top of Mateo.

Laughter consumes me as the thrill of being able to run free still overcomes me. I don't even pay any my mind to the fact that we're both stark naked, but when I glance down at Mateo he looks livid.

I jump to my feet, my joy persisting despite Mateo's obvious displeasure. "Oh my Goddess, that was so fun!"

"What was that about?" Mateo asks furiously.

"What do you mean? I was playing around!"

He huffs, shaking his head. "I thought you were trying to escape."

"Oh, come on, Mateo. If I wanted to escape, my attempt at it would've been much better," I deadpan.

A "hmph" is all I get in response.

"Besides, I happen to like it here," I admit, leaning my back against a nearby tree. "Escaping is not on my to-do list."

"You like it here, huh?"

"Yeah. I know it's only been a few days, but I feel more at home here than I have for the past five years at Saint Ives."

I'm not sure what it is, but something flickers in Mateo's eyes at my words. I didn't even mean to divulge those thoughts; they sort of just slipped out.

I'm caught off guard as Mateo slowly approaches me, trapping me between him and the tree. I watch him as he leans down so close that his breath fans across my cheeks, and our eyes engage in yet another showdown. His dark brown orbs shine with an evident fierce need and diminishing self-restraint.

"You don't know what it does to me, hearing you say that," he breathes. Our mouths are now a hair's breadth apart. With any movement, they would connect.

"Mateo," I whisper, my voice barely audible. "What are we doing?"

"I don't know, Savannah. All I know is that you make me do things I would never do otherwise and feel things I've gone thirty years without ever experiencing."

I'm left speechless. Little old me is making the big bad Alpha feel things he's never felt before? It's unbelievable. It's absurd. It's not right.

Then why does the idea fill me with overwhelming joy?

I don't know how to answer him. What can I say to such a sudden and unexpected admission?

Instead of a response, I poke his chest with my index finger making him take a few steps back and whisper, "you're it," before shifting into my wolf form and sprinting away.

I'm not going to let him catch me this time.