Bound to the Cold Billionaire Alpha

The forest was too quiet. No wind. No insects. No movement. Just silence… the kind that presses against your skin and warns you to turn back. But I didn’t. I couldn’t. My breath puffed out in white clouds as I ran deeper into the woods, branches slapping my arms, mud splashing under my shoes. My heart hammered against my ribs, but I kept going — anything was better than staying in that house one more second. I didn’t even realize I’d crossed the boundary line… not until the air changed. It became heavier. Thicker. Charged with something that prickled over my skin like electricity. Then I heard it. A growl. Low… deep… too powerful to belong to anything human. I froze. The shadows shifted, and a massive black wolf stepped out — eyes glowing silver, fur bristling, muscles rolling under its body like it was carved from darkness itself. I stumbled back. “No… no, no, no…” The wolf stalked toward me slowly, as if savoring my fear. My hands trembled violently, and my legs threatened to give out beneath me. Then — in a blink — it disappeared. “What—” A strong arm wrapped around my waist from behind. Warm breath brushed my ear. “You shouldn’t be here, little trespasser.” His voice was low, dark, smooth enough to melt ice… but dangerous enough to stop my heart. I gasped and tried to twist away, but he only pulled me tighter against his chest. His scent hit me hard — cold pine, smoke, and something intoxicating I couldn’t name. I felt dizzy. “Let me go,” I whispered, though my voice shook. He chuckled softly, and it vibrated through my spine. “You crossed into my territory. And nobody enters my territory without consequences.” I swallowed hard. “My name is Aurora. I didn’t mean to—” “I know exactly who you are.” I stiffened. “H-how?” Finally, he turned me around to face him. And I forgot how to breathe. Tall. Broad shoulders. Jaw sharp enough to cut glass. Black hair that fell slightly over stormy eyes that seemed to see straight into me. But it wasn’t his beauty that terrified me. It was the way he looked at me… As if he already owned me. “I’ve been waiting for you,” he murmured. My lips parted. “What?” He leaned down, his lips dangerously close to mine, his fingers brushing my jaw with a gentleness that didn’t match the wild power radiating from him. “Because you…” His eyes flared silver. “Are my fated mate.” The world spun. I stumbled back, shaking. “That’s impossible— I’m human—” He stepped closer, trapping me against a tree without even touching me. “You belong to me now, Aurora.” His voice dropped, dark and possessive. “And I don’t let what’s mine run away.”