I was shocked—frozen in disbelief—when his wolf had declared that I was his mate. That single word echoed inside me, vibrating through my bones like electricity. Mate.
This was exactly why I had tried so hard to keep my distance from Alpha Dwight. I didn’t want him to find out. Not yet. Not ever. I wasn’t ready for this, and I wasn’t sure I could handle the consequences of his knowing.
And now… I had lost control of the moment. Lost in the shock of his declaration, I had let my guard down, and it had happened.
Careless. Reckless. Foolish.
Now he knew.
Well… at least he was speaking only about Diane and not my human existence. I was still human, with my independent mind, and that meant he couldn’t force me to accept this mating bond. Not yet.
For now, I had to convince him—convince hi
