Matthew Pov

　　"She is the one. Our mate!" Fenrir growls inside me with growing euphoria, almost unbearable. I freeze in place for a few seconds, staring at Emma with wide, fixed eyes, as if I can't believe what I'm feeling and seeing.

　　How is it possible she remains so beautiful, so perfect even after she left? Her hair, still damp, shines like it's reflecting the sunlight around us, and a few strands cling to her neck, outlining her now bronzed skin. I want to reach out and brush those strands away from her neck and pull her into a kiss, to hold her in my arms again and never let her go. She is my mate. Mine. Her scent, a delicious aroma of pine and fine herbs, fills my nostrils like an intoxicating, delicious drug I will never want to rid myself of.

　　Our eyes are locked on each other, and a silent, deep connection establishes itself within me. I feel the world around us slowly disappear, as if all time and space cease to exist, reduced to the present moment, to the invisible bond that unites us. I feel our bond strengthen in my body, rooting even deeper in my heart and soul, like an ancient tree whose roots intertwine with the earth, going deeper and deeper, impossible to uproot.

　　Emma Smith is not just the woman I feel an intense sexual desire for, not just a woman I defended and began to fall in love with without any pretense or expectation. She is my mate, my other half, the perfect echo of my existence.

　　"Big brother! Big brother!" Charlotte shouts excitedly, pulling me out of the trance I was orbiting towards the most beautiful and brightest sun, Emma. I blink, still catatonic and surprised, a wide smile spreading across my face as I automatically open my arms to receive Charlotte running towards me.

　　"Thank the Goddess you're okay!" I grab Charlotte tightly in my embrace and declare it with a relieved sigh.

　　It's been almost four days since my entire wolf pack and I started searching for Charlotte. My heart ached and almost died of worry for her from the moment I found the note on her bed saying: went to meet Emma.

　　There was nothing else in the note, no address, no clue. Despair settled into my bones, and I had all my warriors scour the area. Charlotte's scent was still fresh outside our borders, but as the days passed, it mixed with other scents in the forest and roads.

　　"Charlotte, why did you do this? Do you know how worried we were? Something could have happened to you," I reprimand her seriously, my voice laden with concern and frustration.

　　"Well, actually something did happen, right?" a young woman with slanted eyes and short bleached hair says nonchalantly.

　　I look up at her with a furrowed brow, then see the serious look Emma gives the woman, who appears to be my age.

　　"What happened here?" I ask seriously, detaching my arms from Charlotte's body and standing up.

　　I observe the small group of werewolves before me more closely. Is this the wolf pack Emma decided to join? A small and too isolated group.

　　"Where is your alpha, Emma?" I ask curiously. I notice everyone turning their faces to Emma, and she blushes for a few seconds.

　　"I am the alpha." Emma declares, determined and proud.

　　It hits me like an arrow. She left to become an alpha? Shock and admiration mix within me as I try to process the strength and determination that this revelation implies and signifies. The woman I am intertwined within a mate bond, whom I desire faithfully, madly, and desperately, not only survived outside our wolf pack despite being only a guest but also indeed broke the bond with the Moonshadow Pack to thrive to the point of leading her own wolf pack. All this within forty-five days.

　　"You really counted the days she's been gone, didn't you?" Fenrir points out provocatively.

　　"I would have counted the seconds if I could," I confess to my wolf.

　　"Our mate is an alpha. Do you know what that means?" Fenrir asks, and I struggle to shake my head.

　　Two alphas as mates, has that ever happened in history?

　　"Why didn't you contact our wolf pack to inform us that Charlotte was here?" Mrs. Dawson questions from behind me, pulling me back to the current situation.

　　"Mrs. Dawson, show more respect to Emma. She's an alpha now," I declare authoritatively, casting a lupine glance in her direction, commanding obedience.

　　Seemingly remembering her own alpha title, Emma squares her shoulders, adjusting her posture and making her face more serious. Her hands go behind her back; every movement she makes fascinates and enchants me. My mate, how beautiful she is!

　　"Alpha Matthew, we were planning to bring Charlotte back to you this afternoon. She insisted on staying with us for a few hours," Emma reports formally, surprising me.

　　"Matt. You can go back to calling me Matt, Alpha Emma," I interrupt her softly, offering a brief smile in her direction.

　　Emma returns the smile, causing waves of desire in me. Her soft, delicious lips, the longing to kiss them aches.

　　"Just Emma is fine, too, Matt," she announces, making me smile even more. "But you need to know there was an attack when we found Charlotte this morning."

　　I feel my whole body tense with the news. I look down at Charlotte, who stands beside me, curious and excited. I wrap my arm around my little sister's shoulders, protecting her from a danger that clearly has passed.