The Alpha and the Dragon Princess

Chapter 4

Xander (POV)

My wolf was awake and excited. Our mate was here. Her smell was filling every one of my senses. I could feel it all around me. She was here. Her scent was like a beacon calling to me.

She was sitting in a chair in front of the fire. Her head was on the back of the chair and her eyes were closed. She looked like an angel. Her lips were soft and full. Her cheeks were flushed, probably from the heat coming from the fire. Her long brown hair hung down around her shoulders. She looked so peaceful sitting there. I could stand here watching her for hours.

I didn't want to draw attention to myself. I would look like a weirdo if I continued to just stand here staring at her. I went and sat down in the chair next to her. She jumped when she heard me.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." I said, looking into her bright blue eyes that were staring back at me. Her beauty was taking my breath away.

"It's my fault. I knew better than to fall asleep here. The fire was just so inviting," she said, rubbing her eyes.

"Well, please don't let me disturb you." I said with a smile.

"I should get going anyway." She said, sitting up.

Panic shot through me. She can't leave.

"Talk to her, you i***t. Make her stay." my wolf hissed in my head.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you off." I said, not sure what else to say. My heart was racing, and my body was covered in sweat again.

"You didn't," she said with a small smile.

"I'm sorry, I'm being rude. I'm Xander." I said, extending my hand out to her. "Xander Wilson."

She looked down at my hand for a second, deciding if she was going to take it or not. I held my breath while I waited for her to decide.

She gave me a small smile then took my hand. Warmth spread through my body at her touch. "It's nice to meet you Xander," she said in a soft voice. "I'm Jazmine Green."

"It's nice to meet you too, Jazmine." I said, lifting her hand to my lips and kissing the back of it. I can feel my wolf watching.

I sat there holding her hand, not sure what to say next. I don't want to let her go.

"Well it was nice meeting you," she said, sliding her hand out of mine and standing up. Panic shot through me. She was leaving.

"Do something you idiot." My wolf hissed at me.

"Are you staying at the hotel?" I asked. I know it was a stupid question, but I couldn't think of anything else to say.

"No, they don't have any available rooms. They are all booked for the convention," she answered, looking tired.

I looked at my watch, it was one in the morning. She would never find a hotel at this hour. I was pretty sure they were all booked anyway for the convention.

"Where will you stay tonight?" I asked, worried.

"I'm not sure. The woman at the front desk said all the hotels in a fifty-mile radius are booked for the convention."

"Are you here for the convention?"

"Oh no, I'm just passing through on my way home." she answered with a sad look. Why did going home make her look so sad?

"Is home far?" I asked, wanting to know as much information I could about my mate. It would be nice to know where her home was. I spent years searching for her.

"Just a few hours away. My mom lives in Willowsprings."

Willowsprings was only 20 miles from my pack. Was she that close this whole time? No, I would have found her sooner. She said she was on her way home.

"Willowsprings is not far from me," I said excitedly. "I'm from Silver Hill. It's about 20 miles up the mountain."

"I used to camp with my dad in Silver Hills when I was a kid. I have not been there in years. I used to love exploring the caves." she said, sitting back down.

"You explored the caves?" I asked, shocked.

"Oh yeah, my dad and I would spend hours in the caves. It used to drive my mom crazy. She was too scared from the stories she had heard about the caves to go with us. She would stay back at camp and worry about us the whole time and make a big fuss when we arrived back at camp." she said with a huge smile.

"Your mom was right to be worried," I said.

"Don't tell me you believe the stories of the cave's." she said, rolling her eyes.

I knew the stories about the caves were lies. Lies that our pack had spread to keep humans away. Not all the stories were made up.

"I believe the caves hold many secrets," I answered.

"Well, they may hold their secrets, but in all the time I spent in the caves I never saw any sign of the monsters the stories say live in the caves." she said, giving me a skeptical look.

"Maybe you didn't go far enough in the caves." I said, smiling.

"I have been as far as the springs." she said proudly.

"You saw the springs?" I asked, surprised. The springs were deep in the caves and not easy to get to. It would be hard for a human to get there.

"Saw them? I swam in them." she said, beaming. I stared at her in shock. "Not once did I see the dragon they say lives there. My dad did say he thought he saw something in the water once, but I think he was messing with me." she said with a laugh.

I didn't know what to say. I knew for a fact there was a dragon that lived in the springs. A very unhappy dragon named Matilda who didn't like intruders in her spring. I made a mental note to ask Matilda about it the next time I saw her. I'm curious why Matilda allowed Jazmine and her father to swim in her springs. Did she know Jazmine was my mate? Is that why she didn't kill her?

"Maybe we could go to the springs together sometime?" It would be interesting to see how she would react to seeing Matilda.

"I have not been to the springs in years," she said with a yawn. "Well it was nice meeting you," she said, getting to her feet again.

The panic washed through me. She was leaving. Where would she go? How will I find her again?

"Are you leaving?" I asked, panicked. "Where will you go?"

"I guess I'm going to sleep in my car for a few hours. I just need to get a few hours of sleep, then I can finish the drive home," she said, shrugging her shoulders. "It was nice meeting you." she said as she turned to walk away. My heart dropped.

"Wait!" I said, jumping up and grabbing her arm lightly. Sparks shot through my hand, sending a warming sensation through me. She looked at me confused.

"I'm sorry." I said, letting her arm go. "I have a suite here at the hotel. It has an extra room. You are welcome to use it."

She stood there staring at me for a second with a look of shock on her beautiful face.

"You want me to stay in your room?"

"Well, not in my bedroom or anything. You would have a room of your own, of course." I said, feeling nervous. I didn't want to scare her or have her think I was some kind of perv.

"That's very kind of you, but I can't put you out like that. I have taken up enough of your time already." She said, then started to walk away again. s**t.