THE ALPHA'S RESURRECTED MATE

That Damn Puppy

Cassandra clutched her purse to her body as she walked down the lobby, gazing at the interior designs of the magnificent building. Things had changed a lot and the company looked like an entirely different place, completely different from what she had expected. If she hadn't seen the inscription on the building, she wouldn't have known it was the same King's food company she had always known, the one she had run around as a little girl. 

As she examined the building, she could feel a lump form in her throat as memories flooded into her head. Times when she had been truly happy and carefree, times when she would walk hand in hand with Mr. King as they made their way to his office. 

Cassandra found herself feeling nostalgia as she envisioned herself as a chubby ten-year-old girl racing down the lobby with a doll in her hand. Those days were peaceful indeed and Cassandra wondered why it all turned to this.  

She found herself thinking if her mother would have remained as a maid if they didn't have to move, or if Hunter would have warmed up to her and become her friend. 

Shaking her head vehemently, Cassandra turned to go, reminding herself not to get swayed by her emotions. Things had changed and she was now a stranger to Mr. King. She was sure he wouldn't recognize her when he saw her. 

As she stepped out of the mighty building, she immediately boarded a cab to the hotel she had booked. She had left Alabama after her college graduation and had decided to take her mission seriously. She needed to know what transpired between her mother and Mr. King and why Mr. King had been so furious day, why he had almost choked her mother to death and why her mother decided to quit a job she had for many years.

It was all too strange and Cassandra was determined to unravel the mystery behind the story. She needed to know why an accident had decided to occur just when her mother wanted to move. She didn't want to believe it but all arrows were pointing at Mr. King and she was confident he knew something about her mother's death. 

It was to unravel this mystery and avenge her mother's death that Cassandra left her new family and friends to return to New York where she had always lived with her mother. She had made Ginger make her a new identification card with a new name: Olivia, and she was sure she would be offered a job in the prestigious King's company. That way, she would be close to Mr. King. That was the first step. 

It had been difficult to leave Alabama which she had now become so attached to, but she knew she would never truly be at rest if she didn't do something about her mother's death. Ginger had offered to help but Cassandra was not ready to drag the girl into this. Things could get messier and she wouldn't want to risk the girl's life. She was ready to risk her own life but Ginger was too precious to get exposed like that.

It had been easier to convince Uncle Jordan and Aunt Annie, she had simply told them she wanted to move back to where she had spent her early childhood and they had been truly understanding. But Ginger had been the opposite. She had thrown a fit, refusing to let go. 

Cassandra sighed heavily as she walked into the hotel building, heading straight to her room to freshen up and relax. One way she had always relaxed was to go clubbing and as she dried her hair with her dryer after cleaning herself up, Cassandra contemplated on what dress to wear.

Settling for a red mini dress, Cassandra slipped into her black heels and with a final look at her mirror, she nodded in satisfaction. She looked just ready to club.

In no time, she had arrived at the club and as she walked, she could feel eyes boring holes into her skin. She knew she was attractive, she had been called that a whole lot and she knew she had just the right body to make a man lose it. With a sultry smile on her lips, she swayed her hips as she walked, winking and blowing kisses to whomever she pleased.

She finally settled on the stool by the counter and the bartender winked at her. 

"What can I offer you?" He asked after throwing so many compliments at her.

"A bottle of vodka, please." She smiled at him and he winked again, backing away to get her drink ready.  

Cassandra knew what could go wrong if she got drunk for she had almost destroyed her dorm room back in college after drinking. She was more aggressive and powerful; it wasn't a sight to see but she couldn't help herself that night. She honestly wanted to get drunk.

Cassandra's eyes roamed about the crowded hall, watching as people jumped and moved their bodies to the sound of the beat. She could sight some couples standing by the corner of the rectangular hall, making out with the least care in the world and Cassandra scrunched her face up in disgust. Relationship and all that it involved weren't really her thing and she had never been in any serious relationship before. She only hooked up and moved on. 

Her drink arrived and she shut her eyes to savor the intoxicating taste of her vodka. It always calmed her down and after the stress, she had been through that day, Cassandra was sure a bottle of vodka was all she needed. 

"Hi pretty!" She heard a deep voice say and her eyes fluttered open as she stared into the face of a man sitting beside her. He was dressed in a nice suit and his hair was gelled properly to the back, exposing more of his face. He was good looking and Cassandra felt he would be fun so she crossed her legs, a sultry smirk on her face as she replied to him.

"Hi, handsome!"

The man laughed a loud boisterous laughter, throwing his head to the back as he did and Cassandra watched him, her glass of vodka in her hand.

"I wasn't expecting that." He finally said, wiping his eyes and Cassandra raised a perfect brow at him.

"And why was that?"

"Because pretty ladies like you always say thank you when they receive such compliments. But you're different and I like different," he whispered with a wink and she chuckled. 

"Can I buy you a drink?" He offered and Cassandra nodded.

"Sure." Her bottle was almost empty anyway. 

With another smile tossed at her, the man turned to the bartender but before he could speak, someone was already smacking him by the side of his head and a gasp escaped Cassandra's lips as she stared at the huge frame of this new man who had his back turned to her as he spoke to the other man.

"So here you are." He yelled. "We've been waiting for you and here you are, huh?"

Cassandra watched in surprise and amusement as embarrassment crept onto the face of the first guy and he slowly stood from the stool, his eyes dodging hers as he walked away immediately. The new guy sighed heavily, before turning to go but Cassandra found herself holding him back by the wrist.

"That was rude!" She said, and the man slowly turned to look at her, a deep frown on his face.

"Sorry, but - " he began to say but soon stopped when their eyes met. His jaw dropped and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Homeless wolf?"

"Nick?" 

They spoke together and Cassandra's brows furrowed at his question while Nick's face broke into a big grin.

"Oh my!" He laughed, lowering himself to the stool the other guy has occupied. "Look who's here."

Cassandra rolled her eyes, trying to frown but failing. 

"I thought your voice sounded familiar. What's a wolf looking for in a club?" She whispered, trying to tease him but he only threw his head back in laughter. 

"I should be asking you. Come on, I never thought I'd see you here. What are you doing here? You just went AWOL on me."

"Well," she shrugged, reaching out to grab her glass. "Probably the same reason you're here."

It had been two years since that night and she had gone ahead to live her life like nothing had happened. It was still unbelievable that she had somehow transformed into a werewolf but she was determined to keep that a secret and live as human as she could and one way she felt she could do that was to stay away from Nick and everything that had to do with wolves. She had devoted some part of her time to learn about werewolves since she had never really been interested and with the little knowledge she had acquired, she was sure she would survive. She had successfully done that for two years and she was confident she could continue. She just had to avoid the full moon.

"And why do you think I'm here?" Nick's deep voice cut through her thoughts and she looked up at him. 

"You tell me. Why are you in a club and not with your almighty pack? Why are you even dressed in that suit? Shouldn't you be in something casual, you know, like a sweatpant and shirt?" She eyed him and he chuckled.

"I would have gotten angry if this wasn't coming from a wolf herself," he whispered and she frowned. 

"I'm not a wolf."

"Of course, you aren't." He rolled his eyes, reaching out to grab her drink but she slapped his arm away with a glare. He raised his arm in surrender and leaned back in.

"Why are you here?"

"I came here with my colleagues to discuss some confidential issues. I just left the room upstairs to come find that asshole." Nick explained. "I wonder why he is mesmerized by you, though. There's nothing to look at." He screwed his face at her and she scoffed.

"Oh really? I guess you're blind." 

Nick laughed at that, flipping his hair to the back. 

"I'm surprised you work." She said after a while.

"Yeah. I know it is hard to believe but I," he looked sideways before gesturing for her to come closer and she leaned in, turning her head to the side so he could whisper into her ears.

"I work as the managing director of King's wine company." He whispered and her eyes widened as she stared at him.

"So you know Mr. King?" She asked and he nodded proudly. 

"Actually, I'm holding this post for Alpha Hunter. Hunter left his father when he turned eighteen to lead the pack and has refused to return since then. Instead, he keeps sending me to his father. I just wish they settle this dispute between them and act like father and son for once. I'm tired of being the mediator." Nick sighed heavily and Cassandra's eyes remained wide in shock. Everything was too much for her to take in. Hunter was the alpha Nick talked about so that could only mean that Hunter and Mr. King were . . .

So she had been right about him. That damn puppy! 

"You seem to know a lot about your alpha." She eyed him and he nodded.

"I'm his beta. I should know."

"I want to join your pack!" She found herself saying all of a sudden. "I hope your alpha is still the same sweetheart who can't say no to a homeless wolf."

A splitting smile filled Nick's lips as he beamed at her.

"It took you long enough but you're lucky he still doesn't say no to homeless wolves." He smirked and Cassandra rolled her eyes.  

"When do we leave?" She asked instead and he stood to his feet, wiping his bangs from his eyes and adjusting his gray suits.

"Now."

"Now?"

"Yes, now. That's my next destination."

"But it's late."

"So?" Nick smirked. Nothing scares a werewolf," he whispered and she almost groaned. 

"You can choose to wait till next week when I'll come back here." Nick shrugged but she shook her head vehemently. She had nothing to do anyway so she could go that night.

"I need to pack my things. Give me some minutes."

"You honestly don't need those. All you need is - "

"I have important stuff back in my room. Let's go pack them and get moving." She told him and he nodded after a while. 

She couldn't understand why she was suddenly making this decision when it was totally out of her plan. The plan was to get a job in Mr. King's company so she could gather as much information as she could to take down the culprit behind the accident, but here she was, doing the opposite. 

But being close to the son was just as good as being close to the father, wasn't it? 

She found herself suddenly wanting to see Hunter, to see how he looked. She felt she would die of curiosity if she didn't leave now.