Alpha's Pregnant Mate

4 - The Cabin

Lila didn’t remember when or how she fell asleep. But she woke up to the sound of someone hacking wood. Her heart did a double take when she realized she was a) no longer on the couch but in some stranger’s bed and b) someone was here. She was no longer alone.

She wasn’t sure what to do. Hide in here? Pretend to be asleep? The person living here didn’t just come home, realizing some strange woman was sleeping on his couch, and be like “oh well, let’s make sure she’s more comfortable in my bed.” Who would do that?

A psychopath! That’s who!

Of course, he was. Did she really think she would get away from one crazy man and not stumble upon the next? Not in this life! She was cursed to be with madmen. Not that she was with this person living here, but he moved her to his bed. That felt kind of… weird. Also, she noticed that she wasn’t that afraid of him. She was more annoyed with her situation than she was terrified of it.

One way or another she had to face this. She had to do something to either stay here or get as far away from him as she could. She rather takes it up with her wolf friend than another man.

Carefully she slid out of bed and tried to tame her hair. Three days without a shower and a brush would leave its marks. Knots and tangles everywhere. She must look like a bird tried to nest on her head. But there was very little she could do about it now. And maybe looking like a scarecrow wasn’t so bad in the presence of a psychopath.

She spotted the dark red pickup truck first. Parked right in front of the cabin. She didn’t see anyone out here, she just heard someone grunting as he split wood with an axe. Was it smart to follow the sound of someone hacking things into pieces? Probably not, but she did it anyway.

Ethan knew the second she was awake. He could hear her footsteps inside, he could hear her hesitance, but he was patient. He waited until she came to him. And she did. It was her scent that hit him first. The kind that send a shiver down his spine and caused him to rest his axe, just for a moment to gather his wits.

She was human. She didn’t know crap about his kind. She didn’t know that she was his fate. So he waited until she cleared her throat and she would turn to face her. She stood by his truck, one hand resting on the hood as she watched him from a safe distance.

Wary but curious. She expected to find some old, creepy dude out here. She sure as hell didn’t expect to find a man made from every naughty thought she ever had. A fantasy to become real. He was tall and muscular. His flannel hid his frame, but as he turned around to face her, she could tell he was massive.

His eyes gleamed with a golden hue as he focus on her. Everything else seemed to become unimportant and even if they weren’t all alone in the woods, everything else would have turned into distant background noises.

She swallowed hard, glad she was holding on to something to keep on her feet. “Hello?” she started lamely, lifting one hand to wave at him.

It was just one word, but to him, her voice sounded like freedom. It sounded like a kind of peace he never knew and craved desperately.

“I… I assume this is your place,” she continued, “I’m sorry for trace passing. I swear I didn’t mean to stake anything. I will be out of your hair right this second. If… if you could point me in the right direction is all-,”

“What’s your name?” he interrupted her rambling and his voice -oh god, his voice. He was indeed something else. Deep and husky. Masculine and oh-so yummy. Just by listening to him, she could feel her body react in the strangest ways.

“Uhm… Lila. I’m Lila.”

“Lila,” he repeats her name, not out of curiosity, but as a prayer.

“That’s me,” she now leaned against the truck for support, “do… you have a name? So, I know who I am apologizing to?”

“Ethan,” he states matter-of-factly. Almost like he doesn’t care as much about his name as he does about hers. He puts down his axe and collects the logs he chucked up in his arms. He needed to occupy his hands in order not to go to her and inappropriately touch her.

He flexed his muscles as he passed her, his eyes fixed on anything but her. Should she follow him? Probably not. She should just grab her stuff and leave. But her legs have different plans.

“So,” she watched him stack the wood he just chopped into a pile next to the fireplace, “I guess I will be… on my way?”

“Where to?” he asked, without looking at her, “where will you go?”

“I don’t know yet. To be honest, I have no idea where I am right now. I got lost,” she admitted when he finally turned to face her.

“When was the last time you slept?”

“Five minutes ago,” she pointed at the door to his bedroom, “thanks for letting me, by the way.”

“When was the last time you ate?”

“Oh,” she lowered her gaze at his intense stare, “I’m not sure.”

“Stay then,” he said as if she didn’t have much of a choice, “it’s getting dark soon and you don’t want to be out there at night. These woods aren’t safe.”

“I know,” she chuckles, remembering her close encounter with the wolf, “I’m a very likable person though. I think I will be fine. I made it this far, haven’t I?”

“Barely,” he mutters ad gives her a pointed look. She still looked like hell. She needed food and she needed to rest. He needed a reason to keep her here. With him.

“Where are you from, Lila?” he asked, shrugging out of his flannel. She was distracted by the way the black t-shirt he wore stretched over his muscles, leaving very little to the imagination.

“Lila?” he can’t help but smirk at her lost stare as she checked him out. Even though she was human, she was not immune to the bond. He knew it. She didn’t, which made this a little fun for him. Why not turn it into a game of making his mate squirm until she couldn’t stay away anymore?

“Hm?”

“Where are you from?” he repeated his question.

“Right,” she shook her head at herself. She needed to remember that she had no idea who this man was and whether his intentions were good or not. She didn’t know him at all! “Does it matter? I am not going back, so-,” she shrugged. “Do you live out here? Alone?”

“Sometimes,” he answered, wondering why she wouldn’t want him to know anything about her.

“Isn’t that lonely?”

“Maybe that’s what I want.” She wasn’t sure she liked that answer. If he was a loner it meant the she had no place being here and for some reason, she didn’t like that thought. Naturally, he wouldn’t want someone he never met to live here with him, but for a brief moment, she was hoping he would make an exception for her. It was so much better to be here than out there alone.

“I see,” she hesitated, “I guess I will leave first thing in the morning then. If you don’t mind. I promise I won’t bother you. I can be very quiet.”

“I don’t need you to be quiet,” he stated taking a step closer. She stood there frozen, not sure how to react to his burning stare. His eyes were locked on hers. She was all alone with a stranger. A hot, handsome, irresistible stranger and he was looking at her like she was the first human being he has seen in a long time. Hungry and ready to devour her.

She’d be gone in the morning. Would it matter if she gave in to him? Would it matter at all? Her body was telling her to go for it. It was tingling in all the right places, begging her to let him eat her alive.

“May I?” he ripped her from her train of thought, his voice deeper than before, but he gestured for her to step aside and let him pass.

She nodded, her cheeks burning with embarrassment as he passed her. She could have sworn she saw him smirk as he headed into his tiny kitchen. “Fair warning-“ he started, “-I am not the best cook, but you should eat something. Do you eat meat, Lila?”

“Sure,” her voice was higher than usual, so she cleared her throat and tried again, “sure!”

“You can take a shower if you like,” he pointed to a door to his right, “there should be everything in there you need. You’ll have about ten minutes of hot water. Somewhere in the cabinet should be a fresh set of toothbrushes. Everything else is self-explanatory, I guess.”

“Are you sure?” she wasn’t sure she felt comfortable showering while he was right there. Then again, she was ready to get naked with him seconds ago. To hell with it. He seemed to be kind, why would he want to hurt her? And if he did, well, she’s probably been through worse.

“Thank you,” but I didn’t move. “Why would you do this for me? You don’t even know me. I could be a psychopath. Hell, for all I know you could be a serial killer hiding out here in the woods.”

He hummed amused by her assumptions. He was many things, but he was not limited to her human beliefs. Did he kill someone? Yes, he did. Was it worth it? Probably. Would he hurt her? Never.