“And we’re one hundred percent sure that all the bombs have been found and disabled?” Christina Lennox asked.

“Yes,” Petros Thalassa replied as he reached over and switched off the projector that flashed a map of Blackstone on the screen behind him. The conference room went dark for a second before the lights flickered back on. “We used the tech your father brought over from Lykos to sweep the entire town. All the detonation devices have also been destroyed, so there’s no chance of anyone setting them off.”

“All right.” Christina turned toward her team. “Just to let you know, The Chief and everyone we rounded up in the attack are now in the custody of the federal government. The attorney general himself has assured us that they will prosecute to the full extent of the law. Our own attorneys will be working with them to ensure they face the harshest punishment possible. That is why anything solid we can offer them will be of the utmost importance.”

Petros nodded. “We have already begun cataloging the evidence.”

“Good job everyone.” Christina gathered her things. “Let’s finish up our reports and have them sent back to Lykos by end of day. Dismissed.”

All the people in the meeting stood up from their chairs and began to gather their things. The conference room began to empty, but as Petros was about to leave, he stopped when he heard Christina call his name.

“Petros, one moment please,” she said as she walked over to his end of the conference table. She sat in one of the empty chairs and motioned for him to take the one in front of her. “I need to speak with you.”

“Of course Miss—I mean, Christina.” The name felt strange on his tongue; she’d been Miss Stavros to him all his life. There was pack hierarchy after all, even on Lykos, and it was not proper for someone like him to call the Alpha’s adopted daughter by her given name. Even when they worked together as agents, he called her that. But once he arrived in Blackstone, she insisted he call her by her given name. “What can I do for you?” he said as he sat down.

“Well, I just wanted to see how you were doing.” She shifted in her seat. “I mean, adjusting to life here in Blackstone.”

“It’s very different,” he said. “Everything is different. Even the landscape. It’s all green and lush.”

“I know,” she replied, a wistful look on her face. “I miss the sea sometimes.”

“I would expect that.” His jaw hardened as he ground his teeth together.

She turned her light blue eyes at him, giving him a knowing gaze. Christina Stavros—Lennox, he corrected—was much smarter than people gave her credit for. It was not a surprise her father, Ari Stavros, Head of The Shifter Protection Agency, gave her the assignment to lead this branch. “I was very surprised when Father said he was sending you here to be my lieutenant. And that you had volunteered to come here.”

“You were?”

“You hardly leave Lykos, except for missions,” Christina pointed out. “Have you ever gone on vacation anywhere? Or even traveled to the mainland?”

“What for?” he asked. “We had everything we needed on Lykos.”

“So, why come here?” she asked. “Was it because of what happened in Cyprus?”

Petros’s body went involuntarily still, and the tension in the room became thick as syrup. The memory was still so clear in his mind, and he thought of it every day. About what he could have done differently. If he wasn’t so good at compartmentalizing, he would have gone truly mad months ago.

Christina leaned forward and placed her hands on the conference table. “You know, no one blames you for—”

“It’s not about that,” he interrupted, trying to drive the memories away. They were still too fresh, even after all these months, that he could relive it if he ever let his thoughts stray toward that dark path. He clenched his jaw.

“So, if it’s not that, what made you want to leave Lykos now?”

The question caught him off guard, and he remained silent for a few seconds. “Those reasons are my own. It will not affect the way I do my job, I assure you.”

Blue eyes widened in surprise, but Christina regained her composure. “Of course. I didn’t mean to pry. You are allowed your privacy and reasons.”

“Thank you.” He stood up, despite it being rude to not wait until she did. But the conference room felt stuffy and constricted at the moment. “If there’s nothing else, I would like to head back to my hotel.”

“Yes. I mean, wait. There is.” She stood up and walked over to him. “She’ll be at The Den tonight.”

“Pardon me?”

She gave him a smirk. “Kate. She’ll be at this bar called The Den. Just at the edge of town.”

He thought about playing dumb, but no, Christina Lennox was smart, and he did not want to insult her. He gave her a grateful nod. “Thank you for the information.”

“Kate is … special,” Christina said.

“I know.”

“Not just because she’s your mate,” she added. “I mean, you may need some special handling in her case.” She gave a little laugh. “Frankly, I’m surprised, but then again, not. I like to think that fate brings us to the person who needs us most.”

“My mate does not seem needy,” he pointed out.

Christina patted him on the shoulder. “I wasn’t talking about her. Good night, Petros.”

“Good night, Christina.”

Petros closed up the conference room and shut the door behind him. As he walked out of the Lennox Corp. building, he looked around. Christina was right, about Blackstone being so different from Lykos. And that was a good thing.

Even though he wasn’t born there, Lykos was all Petros ever knew. He knew every person, every rock, every tree, and every grain of sand. But there was one thing he was sure of, something that had been on his mind for the last few years: his mate was not there. The woman the universe intended him to be with forever was somewhere out there, and if he stayed on the island, he might never meet her.

Besides, there was nothing left there. Sure, despite his background, he had risen up the ranks. Who could have guessed that someone like him would someday become the right-hand man to the Alpha’s daughter? Not the people of Lykos, not even the couple who raised him, that was for sure.

As Petros slipped into the driver’s seat of his rented pickup truck, he paused, placing his hands on the wheel. He thought being out in the world might give him a better chance of finding his mate, of finally having a family, and finding a home—a real one—his heart had yearned for all these years.

But, he never expected her.

Sure, his wolf, wild and feral that it was, had recognized her instantly. And she was more beautiful than he could have ever imagined, than he could ever deserve. Green eyes like emeralds that shifted shades when she was amused or angry. Dark blonde hair that cascaded down her back like a waterfall, with dyed pink ends that suited her. Even the tiny, sparkling jewel on her nose added to her exotic beauty. And that body—lithe and graceful. He longed to have her underneath him or over him as they made love, and then see her belly ripe with their pup. No, he didn’t expect Kate Caldwell at all.

Or her reluctance.

His wolf growled at him angrily. Like it was his fault. The wolf wanted her badly, to mate with her and be with her. The funny thing was his animal was aware it was damaged, but it so desperately wanted to be fixed. Petros knew his lonely heart and broken wolf needed a mate. And perhaps, just maybe, he’d finally find some peace and forgiveness for his transgressions.

But why she acted that way, he did not know. He had very little experience with women, and none at all with romantic relationships. She said she needed space, and he gave it to her, but he was done waiting like some fool. They were mates, and he would make her see reason.

Reaching over to the GPS unit on the dash, he typed in “The Den.” After a few seconds of calculating, the screen lit up with the map and the way to the bar. To his destiny.

The Den was not too far out from the center of town. Petros parked the truck in the one remaining slot at the end of the lot, cut off the engine, and made his way inside.

It was a Friday night, which explained why it was so crowded. His wolf bristled at all the people. It hated crowds, and all the shifters in here didn’t make it any better. He’d been surrounded by wolves all his life and being around so many different animals was unnerving. A few of them gave him strange looks as he passed by, probably sensing his agitated animal.

Calm down, he urged the wolf. No one is here to harm you.

He walked around, his eyes searching for his mate. Although this seemed like a decent establishment, he did not like how there were so many males in here. Bears, wolves, tigers, stags, even a flight shifter or two … he didn’t care for so many unattached shifters congregating in a place his mate apparently frequented.

“What can I get ya, honey?” The blonde bartender asked as he approached the bar.

“I don’t suppose you have any grappa?” he asked.

She frowned at him. “What’s that? A fancy cocktail or somethin’?”

“Never mind. A beer, please.”

“Coming right up.” She grabbed a glass from the shelf, filled it up from the tap, and slid it toward him. He took it with a grateful nod and dropped a bill on the table. “Keep the change.”

She did a double-take when she saw the bill’s denomination. “Oh. You sure? Thanks!”

He took a sip of the cold brew, then looked back across the bar. Where could she be?

“And then I told him to go fuck a trumpet!”

Ah, there she was. He would recognize her anywhere, as the sound of her beautiful voice was unmistakable. It called to him, even with the din in the room. He followed the foul-mouthed diatribe until it led him to a table in the corner occupied by three females.

“You didn’t really say that, did you Kate?” one of the girls asked.

“Of course I did,” she said smugly. “I’m Kate motherfucking Caldwell.”

“Ladies,” he greeted them.

Kate’s back was to him, but he could see her body tense. She turned slowly, her brows drawn together. He longed to kiss away that wrinkle between them. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“I was told you would be here, and so I thought I’d come.”

“Why?”

“Why?” he asked, his voice raising. “To see you. Because you’re my m—”

She slapped her hand over his mouth. “Shush!”

“You know half the town already knows, right?” The dark-haired girl sitting on the stool rolled her eyes. Petros recognized her as Sybil Lennox, youngest of the Lennox dragons. “You know, after he threw you over his shoulder, caveman style, and took you behind the book shop for a make-out session?”

“I have Googled this ‘caveman’ you talk about,” Petros said. “I know what you mean now. But from my research, it seems more appropriate if I dragged you by your hair.” He frowned. “Which I would never do.”

“Yeah, but you’ve manhandled me, right?” Kate asked.

“You didn’t seem to mind me ‘handling’ you. You are my ma—”

“I said shush!” She looked around. “People are going to hear.”

“And why shouldn’t they hear?” Petros said. “Everyone needs to know you are spoken for.” Petros knew half the men in the room had been eyeing the three lone females. Oh, they could stare all they want at the two other women, but Kate was his. His wolf gnashed its teeth in agreement.

“Oh my,” the other female, a petite redhead, fanned her face. “It’s getting way too hot in here. Shall we go for some air, Sybil?”

“Great idea, Dutchy,” the female dragon said, slipping off the stool. “You two have fun.” She winked at Kate as they left.

“I was trying to have a nice girls’ night with my friends.” She took the bottle of tequila on the table, filled up a shot glass, then knocked it back. “And now you’ve driven them away. Who am I supposed to talk to about my problems?”

“Me, of course,” he said matter-of-factly. Yes, from now on, they would tell each other their thoughts and lean on each other in times of need. “Now, tell me: what is troubling you?”

She shot him a suspicious look but seemed to relent. “I just lost a client. A big one.”

“Oh.” He realized that aside from her name, he knew very little about his mate. “So, you are lacking funds, then?” If she needed money, she could have all of his. He would never let anything happen to her, of course.

“What?” She looked at him like he had grown a second head on his shoulder. “No. I mean, I still have Lennox as a main client, plus I can always take on more projects to pay the bills. This client … one of the managers has been on my ass for months, trying to get me fired. And they finally did it when I couldn’t deliver some changes on time.”

“They have not been treating you well, then. So it’s not such a loss, maybe?”

She took another shot of tequila. “That’s not the point, Petros.”

“I’m confused.”

“Barkley Industries was my first client,”she explained. “The one I got all by myself, without any help from my family.”

“You are vexed because your family has been helping you?” Now he was really confused. His mate had a family, and yet she spurns their help?

“Yes!” she said. “Finally, you understand.”

“Actually, I do not.” Never mind. His mate was in distress. She needed a solution. “Well, it sounds as if you are upset with losing this client of yours. I suggest you go and search for other clients, send your CV to—”

“Argh!” She grabbed the bottle and drank straight from it. “Are you seriously giving me advice?”

“Is that not the point of this?” he asked, gently taking the bottle away from her. “To talk and find a solution?”

“Oh my God. You are such a man!” She tried to swipe the bottle back, but he held it high above her. “No. The point of this, of having a girls’ night, is so I can vent about Douchenozzle McDickbag and get drunk!”

Women were confusing. Normally, had it been any other person, he would have walked away. But this was his mate, and thus he needed to comfort her. Besides, she looked absolutely adorable as she jumped up and down, trying to grab the bottle of liquor from his outstretched arm. He placed the bottle down on the tray of a passing waitress and then turned to her, placing his hands on her arms to calm her. “Tell me what I need to do then, Kate-mine.”

“First off, you need to stop calling me that,” she hissed.

“But you are Kate,” he leaned down and whispered in her ear. “And you are definitely mine.” He felt her shiver at his words and her guard lowering. Feeling bold, he pressed his lips to the spot where her neck met her shoulder. This time, she let out a soft gasp. He pressed his nose against the pulse under her ear. Her scent was incredible—like pine trees and earth and fresh mountain air. So different and wild, just like her.

“Shit,” she cursed, and then pulled away before he could move his lips up to hers. “We can’t—” She pushed him away. “Look, it’s not you, it’s me, okay?” She took a deep breath. “I’m just not mate material. Hell, I’m not even relationship material.” She took the purse hanging from the back of one of the chairs and slung it over her shoulder.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“Home.” She pointed a finger at him. “And don’t even think of following me, or I’m going to call the cops and have you arrested for stalking.”

His mate sounded serious. “I will never harm you, Kate-mine.”

“I told you to—never mind!” She pivoted and walked away.

Petros watched his mate as she made her way across the room and out the door. Why did she keep resisting the pull of their animals?

He realized he did not know anything about mates. His “parents,” after all, had never taught him about mates before they died. Or any other life lessons, for that matter. But he tried not to be bitter because the past was past.

Perhaps mating was not as easy as he thought it was, and he needed to put in more effort instead of expecting her to fall at his feet. Hmm … his mate wanted to be chased, huh? Well, he always knew nothing worth having came easy, and his Kate was worth more than anything in the world.