The school was buzzing by the time I got there. I wasn't late by like two seconds. But those two seconds counted and once more I survived by the skin of my teeth.

"You're not always going to be able to get away with that," my best friend Kale scolded me. One of these days, you're going to lose that race."

I shrugged. "Doesn't matter if it didn't happen today. I pushed through the wall of students. "Hey, where's our future Alpha and Beta? Aren't they coming back today? They're the ones late."

"They at least have a reason. You decided to train all night again, didn't you? I tried to call you to wish you happy birthday last night and you wouldn't even pick up the damn phone. Let me guess, you forgot it again."

I followed Kale to the cafeteria, and we joined the line for breakfast. A piece of toast was far from cutting it for what I needed. I bumped Kale's hip, pushing him to the side so I could grab a particularly fat sausage. He glared at me and I smirked at him, taking the chance to take a giant bite of it. "So good," I crooned.

A couple of guys behind us cracked up. "Hey, look at Chloe. She sure knows how to handle her meat, huh?"

I rolled my eyes and glanced back at them. "At least I know what to do with it, boys, unlike you all. I better see you get some protein, too. Our drills have been way too lackluster. With Alpha Andy and Beta Jahmal returning, it's up to us to show them we can handle our warriors."

"You can handle me all right," one of the guys, Sean, grinned, grabbing himself and thrusting.

I grinned at him. "Oh, yeah?" I asked with my sultriest voice. Jade already knew what I was up to, and she cackled in my head. I took the sausage and licked along the length of it. Sean watched my tongue and licked his lips, a whimper escaping him. I opened my mouth wide, sliding the tip of the meat inside and thrust it in and out a couple of times and moaned before biting down hard.

Sean yelped and grabbed himself again, but this time he didn't thrust the thing at me. "I'm sorry, Chloe!"

His friends laughed at him and I joined in. Things were just easier with the guys. We trained together all the time.

One of the popular girls rolled her eyes at me. "Seriously, Chloe?" she snapped. "You're such a slut. I wouldn't be surprised if you're not sleeping with the entire damn pack the way you carry on."

"Hey!" Kale growled, stepping up. "Cut that out, Quinn. We don't need you causing problems. What she did was teasing, you're just being a bitch."

Quinn tossed her long blond wavy locks over her shoulder. "I just know the truth of that skank. Someone who wants to be sweaty with the other warriors all the time? Puhlease. There's no other explanation."

"Quinn!" squealed one of Quinn's little posse. "They're here!"

Quinn whirled away from her. Her power bar and extra smooth smoothie forgotten. "I'm not letting him get away from me this time. Watch this, girls. I told you that before he left, he had eyes for me, and I'm going to prove it." She smirked at me. "Have fun playing in the gutter, Chloe. A gutter whore is all you'll ever be."

Kale stepped forward, but I grabbed him by the arm, and he relaxed. "You going to let her talk to you like that?"

"She can say whatever she wants, Kale. I don't need to waste any brainpower on her. I'm more worried about us being able to have a perfect training session in front of the Alpha and Beta after they've been gone so long." I grabbed another sausage and gnawed on it. "Protein," I told him, pointing to another much smaller sausage. "Get on it."

"Have you heard?" chirped one of the normal classmates nearby. She must have been talking to her friend, but her voice carried. "There's a huge party welcoming Alpha Andy and Beta Jahmal back tonight. They're inviting the entire pack. It's going to be a huge deal."

"With everyone there, maybe we'll find our mate!" the other one replied with a giggle.

I wanted to gag, but Jade would lecture me for an hour straight if I did that. She was way more concerned with finding our mate than I was. I was content being just the way I was. I was happy with my lot in life and I didn't need anything else mucking that up.

"Maybe we'll find our mate, Chloe. We are of age," Jade suggested.

"Are you going?" Kale asked, saving me from having to tell my wolf yet again I didn't want a mate. Besides, I was no Quinn. Who would want me in the first place? "I mean, of course you're going. You don't really have a choice. You're an integral part of the pack."

Oh, how I wished I could tell him the truth. "Wouldn't miss it," I agreed. The juicy sausage I had been snacking on had lost a lot of its flavor. Instead of the smokey taste from the grill, it was more like burned ashy meat dissolving in my mouth. I swallowed the dry, nasty bite and forced a smile. "We should hurry. If we take too long to eat, we'll just get in trouble for missing class."

"You're right. I'll try to talk to Alpha Andy at the party." He grinned at me. "Maybe I can get an autograph."

I rolled my eyes hard. "You're pathetic sometimes, Kale. We're going to be working with him. Why in the world would you need his autograph?"

Kale grinned back. "Do you know how many women in our class would give me a kidney for that? Believe me, it'll be worth it."

For once in my life, I hoped that school would never end. The last thing I wanted to do was have to endure a party I didn't care about. It was time that could be spent training instead. This was just going to be a waste of time.

I stared at myself in the mirror. Jade approved, but I couldn't bring myself to like it. How would I fight in something like this?

"Calm down, Chloe. It looks fine. If there was a fight, don't you think the entire pack gathered together would be able to handle it?"

I tried to ignore the little wolf voice in my head. No, this wasn't me. I tugged at the pink skirt in a vain attempt to cover my long legs, but the fabric had absolutely no give.

I would kill for a pair of shorts and a tank top. It might not be the fanciest, but it was perfect for my needs.

"Chloe," Jade lectured me again. "If you don't want to wear the blouse and a skirt, at least wear a nice dress. We might find our mate tonight."

The mate talk again. I groaned. Maybe the skirt would do. I wasn't completely comfortable in it, but it was way better than trying to wear one of those slinky monstrosities of a dress. Those damn things always were trying to force all the air out of my body.

"Chloe!" My mother's cheerful voice called from downstairs. "Your friend Kale is here!"

"We should probably not be around him tonight," Jade offered. "If our mate thinks that we're taken by another, maybe he will get upset."

I couldn't handle this mate-obsessed wolf for too much longer. We'd only been nineteen for a few hours at this point, not even a full twenty-four, and all she could think about was finding a mate to tie us down to and lock us away forever.

Seriously, who wanted that? I didn't. "Jade, drop it. We're not going to this party to find our mate. We're going to support our Alpha and Beta and to welcome them home. That's it. We just turned nineteen. I'm positive we'll have plenty of time to find a mate and settle down and be bored to death for the rest of our lives."

"Chloe, that's not what having a mate means. It's not the end of your life." Jade sighed heavily and I could feel her frowning at me. "It's the beginning of our story together. Besides, it'll be nice to have someone care about us."

"I've got Kale," I snapped back. "My best friend will always be there for me. What more could I need?"

"You'll understand eventually, Jewel." Jade huffed, then plopped down.

Maybe I'd won that one.

"Chloe!" Kale opened the door and grinned at me. He paused and scrunched his nose. "You look... pink?" he offered with a shudder.

I glared back at him. "This wasn't my idea. But Jade was throwing a damned fit if I didn't wear something with at least a skirt." I adjusted the black blouse. It clung far more than I liked, but still better than a stupid dress. At least I hadn't had to wear that frilly nightmare my dad had wanted me to.

"Yeah, I'm on your side about this one, Chloe. You look awful. But don't worry, I'm sure we'll be ignored, anyway. Well, you probably won't. You're always the life of the party."

"Whatever." I rolled my eyes at him but couldn't help but smile. "Come on, let's hurry up and get going. Jade will die if I'm late for this thing."

"What's crawled up her butt today? She's usually pretty chill." Kale offered me his arm, and I took it. "We can talk while we walk. Come on."

I couldn't argue against his logic and grabbing my stuff off the table, I dashed after him. "It's just since this morning, honestly. She thinks we're going to find our mate and be whisked away to some fairytale ending or something. It's gag-worthy."

Kale laughed. "I'm lucky Spina isn't like that. He hasn't cared about our mate yet. We'll find them when the time is right."

"You're not nineteen yet," I pointed out while sticking my tongue out at him. I frowned. The pathways were crowded. I wished we could have just taken a shortcut through the woods. None of these people would have bothered going through there. "This really is the entire damned pack."

"Yeah, they are going to be our Alpha and our Beta." Kale shrugged. "Don't know why you're so shocked.

I pushed forward and we finally squeezed into the house. I took a deep breath but the air was polluted with at least a dozen different heavy perfumes that the other women had spritzed themselves with in an attempt to get attention. Quinn was probably in one of those packs. I choked on the air and dragging Kale behind me I searched through the rooms until I found a small room with some workout equipment scattered around.

But at least there was no giggling moronic women in here. How could anyone be attracted to someone like Quinn? I sniffed the surrounding air. Something was off. I couldn't really explain it. "Hey Kale, do you smell that?"

Kale glanced around the cramped space. "The smell of sweaty males? Sure, I wouldn't really expect anything different in here."

I rolled my eyes and sniffed again. I smelled that too, but beneath it was the strangest combinations of scents. The sweet summery scent of watermelon and the spice of cinnamon.

"Mate!" Jade jerked to attention and pressed forward. If I hadn't been on my guard against her, she would have wrenched control away from me.

Instead of the joy she felt as my wolf bounded in my head, the only thing I could focus on was dread. No! I couldn't meet my mate like this! I should have worn that dress. I was going to be rejected at first sight. I wasn't mate material!

"Chloe? What's wrong?" Kale reached for me, but I slipped out of his grip.

"I'm sorry, Kale, I can't stay here. Something came up. Good luck!" I blurted before turning and pushing my way through the group still streaming into the big house. It was hard to work against the crowd, but I kept pushing and squeezing until I got through and into the fresh air.

But I didn't stop there. I ran with every drop of strength in my body for the woods and didn't stop until I was surrounded by the trees, and then only long enough for me to shift. I took control of Jade who only wanted to go back and search for our mate but I would never allow that.

With full control I ran. I didn't know where I'd end up, but I'd at least not have to face him and be rejected.

Not yet.

Andy

My head pounded from the loud music and all the giggling of the women around me. They pushed against me but I had little interest. There was really only one in this crowd that could draw my attention. She was in the center of the group and currently ignoring me as she tended to all the males clustered around her like she was the queen bee.

Quinn Lotzel

The most beautiful woman in the school and since I had stepped foot back, the only one I couldn't get my mind off of. I retreated to the balcony to watch her. She ran a hand through her flawless golden hair and laughed at something Jahmal said to her. Her voice was like twinkling bells.

Ugh. How could a woman have me thinking such sappy things? I turned my back on the crowd and leaned against the bannister. She was pretty and sexy as fuck. I didn't need to be some weak sap. I was an Alpha for God's sake. If I wanted her, all I had to do was take her.

"Andy," Zed jerked to attention. "Do you smell that?"

I wasn't close enough to Quinn to get a good whiff of her. "No."

"Not her," Zed snorted. "No, from our room. It's faint, but you have to smell it."

I groaned. I didn't want to leave my place. I wanted to go down there and corner Quinn. But I knew Zed. If I didn't go check this out, he'd never leave me alone about it. I met Jahmal's eyes and glared at him. I needed him to keep his paws off the woman I'd decided was going to be mine. The perfectly sweet and innocent woman that had saved herself for me for years. Jahmal scowled at me, but he nodded in acknowledgement.

Now I'd go inspect what had Zed so worked up.

I walked to my room and sniffed. My window was cracked open to let a breeze in. I froze in place. Zed was right. It was faint, but there was an intense sweetness calling to me. It was a mix of vanilla and peony.

"Mate!" Zed screamed.

My mate? But the scent was fading. I whirled. I had to find who it was.

The stairs were packed with the party-goers going up and down. If I tried to go down that way, I'd lose precious time. I vaulted over the balcony and landed in a clearing not too far off from Quinn and her throng of followers. For once, though, my attention wasn't on her. I wanted to find my mate. I needed to see her.

I let my nose guide me and I turned this way and that until I detected the faint scent leading me into one of the little-used rooms on the first floor. My gym. Her scent was stronger here, but she was missing. My fist clenched and my stomach tightened. Whoever she was, she couldn't have gotten too far from me. I had to know who she was, and she had run.

"Andy?"

I looked up as the door to the gym closed and it clicked as it was locked. Quinn tossed her hair and smiled at me. She leaned her head back and exposed her long slim throat to me. The familiar urge to grab her and kiss her washed over me, but Zed's calls for us to hurry overrode the usual hormones. "Sorry, Quinn, I can't stay."

I reached to set her aside so I could reach the door, but she grabbed my forearms and leaned against my chest. Her perfume that I had always thought was the sweetest scent out there stung my nose. She rubbed against me. "Please, Andy, I've got something I want to tell you. Something I've wanted to tell you for years."

I looked at the top of her head as she snuggled against my chest, then back to the door. The scent was so faint now. Would I even be able to find her? "Quinn," I resisted her advances. "This is important."

Quinn slipped her hand up my shirt and traced her fingers upward. Our skin made contact, and I groaned. With the scent of my mate so faint, it was easy to focus on this sensation. She chuckled and leaned close, nuzzling beneath my chin. "Andy, I want to be with you. I saved myself for you. While all those other sluts were giving their bodies away, I waited. I didn't want to be like that whore Chloe and throw my body at the entire pack of warriors. I've only wanted you."

I groaned. I was losing any will to follow after my mate. Maybe I could run into her again or maybe I'd never cross her again. Quinn, the woman I'd longed for and had so many wet dreams about was in my arms. "Quinn," I whispered. "Are you telling me the truth?"

She glanced up at me through her full eyelashes and reached into my pants and squeezed my semi-hard erection. "You'll find out when you take me, Andy. I've never let anyone touch me, or even see this." She pulled away to shimmy her expensive blouse up and her pale creamy skin and rosy nipples were exposed to me. "Touch them," she whispered to me.

"Andy!" Zed complained. "Our mate!"

I couldn't help myself and I grabbed both of Quinn's breasts in my hands and squeezed them. Her soft voice filled my ears as she moaned my name and writhed against me. "Andy," she panted.

"Andy!" Zed snapped again. "Now!" Reluctantly, I helped Quinn lower her shirt. "Quinn, don't take this as a rejection. But I have to go find someone before I can spend time with you." I grabbed her hands, and she looked up at me with tears brimming in her eyes. "Wait for me," I begged her.

I would give Zed his hunt. We'd follow that bewitching scent and try to find who it belonged to, but if we couldn't find her. I'd made my choice. I'd wanted Quinn for far too long to just turn this opportunity down.