The Dark Alpha's Sweet Mate

2 He’s not here.

A month later…

Carrie woke up with a start. She touched her chest as her heart slammed against her ribs. It was a dream. It was only a dream, she told herself over and over again. He wasn’t there with her. She looked around her cabin just to make sure. Her cabin was dark, making it hard to see. And it felt like he was there, standing over her just like he did in that room. The room she was locked in, and he appeared out of nowhere. She felt his overwhelming presence all over again. Her wolf whimpered inside her. Hera was afraid of him as much as she was. Carrie felt her fear mingling with her own.

He’s not here, Carrie mumbled to herself. She sat up in bed, drawing her knees to her chest. She reached for the light and switched it on. The darkness receded, taking away his lingering presence with it. There was no one there. She breathed out a calming breath feeling the fear dissipate. She lay back down, and closed her eyes. She tried to go back to sleep. But as always, sleep refused to come. She sighed and got out of bed, knowing she wouldn’t go back to sleep any time soon. Ever since she was rescued from the lab she has been having a hard time sleeping. If she wasn’t dreaming about him, she was having nightmares about what happened to Jeremiah and the other beings who were kept in the lab. She couldn’t seem to be able to shut her mind, and just rest. And she knew why. It was all her fault.

She walked to her favourite chair and sat down. She stared into space as a heaviness settled on her and she remembered the mistake she made in that room. She gulped, knowing she couldn’t take it back.

He believed she was his mate. Even though she hesitated for a second, she let him claim her. Carrie touched the mating mark on her shoulder. It was like a reminder of what she had done. She wiped the tears that fell from her eyes.

What have I done? Carrie asked herself as a sop ripped from her throat.

She knew if he had a chance he would come for her. She’s been living with that fear for the past month. She didn’t want him to come. She didn’t want him as her mate. Hera didn’t recognise him as her mate. But even though she knew that she let him claim her, because she wanted to survive. She used him. She knew a mate like him would fight for her.

Now, that she has been rescued, she felt guilty for doing what she did. She used her wolf’s submissive nature to get what she wanted. It was the same with Marcus, she was willing to be with him because she loved him. Hera submitted to his wolf so beautifully. Carrie wished that things had worked out with Marcus. She wouldn’t be in this mess if they had.

She wiped her eyes. She knew she needed to get over that. Marcus was mated to the queen of witches. And she was happy for them. Her life with him was over and done with.

She had to look towards the future, even though it didn’t look particularly bright at the moment.

“We will be fine, Hera,” she told her wolf. If the alpha showed up, she will reject him. She didn’t want a mate like him. She didn’t know what it was, but there was something that didn’t feel right about him. Maybe that was why Hera was afraid of him. His wolf was…she couldn’t explain it. He just felt strange. And Carrie wanted nothing to do with him.

She closed her eyes, hoping that he would never show up. She will go on with her life as if nothing happened.

She sighed, as she went back to bed. She needed to get some sleep since she was thinking of going back to work tomorrow. It was time she went back to her normal life. She had been living like a zombie for the past month. It was time she went back to living. She couldn’t hide in her cabin forever.

Though it wasn’t the best way to live, for a while she was given a reprieve from hearing the bad things the females around her liked to say about her. She wondered what they were saying about her now. No one knew what happened to her at the lab. She didn’t even tell Sky or Mystic.

And she was going to keep it to herself. She didn’t want anyone to know.

Carrie got into bed, and pulled the covers to her chin. She closed her eyes as she slowly fell asleep.

In the morning, she woke up early, and got ready for work. She worked for a human law firm in town. If she wanted, she could live in town, but she loved living in a pack. But ever since everything ended with Marcus, living in the pack has been hard. She considered moving to another pack many times, but she couldn’t leave. The Bluemoon pack was her birth pack. Her mother and father belonged to the pack before they died. She couldn’t just leave. It would be like she was leaving them behind. Her memories of her parents were the only things she had in the world. And she was closer to them when she lived there.

Carrie moved around her cabin tidying up. She picked up her handbag, and was about to leave, when someone knocked on the door. She opened the door, to find Mystic standing there.

“Good morning. You’re awake today?” she said, walking into the cabin with a covered plate of food. “I didn’t expect to find you all dressed up and ready to get back to the living. This is good. Did you eat?”

“I was going to eat at work,” Carrie said, still standing at the door. Mystic turned and stared at her with concerned eyes. It was as if she didn’t believe her. Carrie bit into her bottom lip. She made her and Sky worry about her for the past month. It was understandable that she was still concerned about her. But Carrie hoped they would stop worrying about her now. “I am fine, Mystic. I swear.”

“No. You should eat first. You haven’t been eating as you should,” Mystic said, removing the cover on the plate. The scent of the food filled the cabin in an instant. Carrie slapped her hand over her mouth as a sudden need to vomit hit her. She dropped her handbag on the floor as her whole body trembled.

She scrunched her face as nausea made her feel dizzy. Her stomach roiled. She rushed to the bathroom, just as vomit pushed through her throat.

She opened the toilet and went to her knees. Her stomach emptied out the little food she ate last night.

“Carrie?” Mystic came into the bathroom.

“No. Don’t come any closer.” Carrie waved her hand to keep her at bay. She gasped for air as she blindly flushed the toilet. She got to her feet, and walked to the basin. She held on to it, as she waited for her dizziness to go away.

“What's wrong?” Mystic asked, coming to stand next to her. Carrie shook her head. She didn’t know what was going on. She splashed some water on her face. The cooling effect of the water made her feel a little better.

Carrie reached for the towel and wiped her face. She brushed her teeth, and then walked out of the bathroom, but the scent of the food still lingered in the air. And it was making her nauseous all over again.

“Can you cover that please?” Carrie said, walking to the chair. She sat down. Mystic moved to cover the plate. Carrie closed her eyes, willing her body to go back to normal. She was walking out of that cabin no matter what. She wasn’t going to wallow in her misery anymore.

Mystic came to stand next to the chair. Carrie could feel her eyes on her. “What?” she asked with a sigh.

“Your mate…” Carrie’s eyes popped open at the words. She stared at Mystic. And she could see that her eyes were focused on her shoulder even though she couldn’t see it. Carrie made sure that she covered the mating mark every time. No one knew that she was mated. Well, she thought that no one knew. But clearly Mystic saw it. “Did you two…?” she trailed off clearly unable to ask her what she wanted to.

Carrie took a deep breath as memories flooded her mind. She clenched her jaw and got to her feet.

“No, nothing happened,” she said vehemently. She walked to the door and opened it. She walked to her car, and got in. She took out her keys from her handbag and started the car. She looked up, and Mystic was standing at the door staring at her. Her eyes were narrowed on her.

“Your mate…did you two…?” her questions echoed in her mind. Carrie shook her head. She didn’t want to think about that. She didn’t want to think about him.

He was her greatest mistake.