Riven's POV
The girl fell right in front of me.
One second she was stumbling through my territory, and the next she was face-down in the dirt. Her body hit the ground with a soft thud that made my wolf whine inside my chest.
I had been watching her for the past hour, following her scent trail through the bush. She smelled like fear and tears and something else - something that made my heart race in a way I didn't understand.
Now she wasn't moving.
I rushed to her side and gently turned her over. Her face was pale as moonlight. Dark rings shadowed her eyes. Her lips were cracked and dry.
"Hey," I said softly, patting her face. "Can you hear me?"
No answer.
I pressed my ear to her chest. Her heartbeat was weak but steady. She was living, but barely.
That's when I caught the other smell. The one that changed everything.
She was pregnant.
My wolf went completely still inside me. This wasn't just some runaway girl. This was a pregnant woman who had been running through dangerous woods all night. She could have been killed by any number of animals.
What kind of monster lets a pregnant woman walk alone in the wilderness?
I scooped her up in my arms. She was so light it scared me. When was the last time she had eaten? When was the last time anyone had taken care of her?
"I've got you," I whispered, even though she couldn't hear me. "You're safe now."
I carried her toward my cabin, moving as fast as I could without shaking her too much. My home was hidden deep in the forest, surrounded by magical barriers that kept unwanted guests away. No one had found it in the five years I'd been living here.
It was the best place to hide.
The girl stirred in my arms as I pushed through the cabin door. Her eyes fluttered open - beautiful green eyes that reminded me of spring leaves.
"Where..." she started to say, then tried to sit up.
"Easy," I said, setting her down gently on my couch. "You fainted. You need to rest."
She looked around my cabin with wide, scared eyes. I knew what she was seeing - a strange man's home, far from society. She probably thought I was going to hurt her.
"Please don't be afraid," I said, backing away to give her room. "I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to help."
"Who are you?" Her voice was barely a whisper.
"My name is Riven. This is my home. You fell in the woods near here."
She wrapped her arms around herself protectively. "I need to keep going. They're looking for me."
"Who's looking for you?"
Tears filled her eyes. "People who want to hurt me and my baby."
My wolf snarled at the thought of anyone wanting to hurt this girl and her unborn child. "They won't find you here," I promised. "My area is protected by magic. As long as you're with me, you're safe."
She studied my face like she was trying to decide if she could trust me. I didn't blame her for being suspicious. She was probably used to guys who lied to her and hurt her.
"Why would you help me?" she asked. "You don't even know me."
I sat down in the chair across from her, keeping my distance. "Because it's the right thing to do. And because..." I paused, not sure how to explain the weird pull I felt toward her. "Because I think we might have more in common than you realize."
"What do you mean?"
Before I could answer, a howl echoed through the trees. Then another. And another.
The girl went rigid with fear. "They found me."
I stood up and moved to the window. Through the woods, I could see lights moving in the distance. A search party was going our way.
"How many people are after you?" I asked.
"I don't know. Maybe twenty? They have dogs."
Twenty trained shooters with tracking dogs. That was a lot, even for me.
But I had faced worse odds before.
"Stay here," I told her, headed for the door.
"Wait!" She grabbed my arm. "Don't leave me. Please."
The despair in her voice made my chest ache. This girl had been abandoned by everyone who was meant to protect her. She was afraid of being alone again.
"I'm not leaving you," I said gently. "But I need to make sure they don't get close enough to threaten you or your baby. Can you trust me to handle this?"
She searched my eyes for a long moment. Then she nodded.
"Good. Lock the door behind me and don't open it for anyone except me. If something goes wrong, there's a back exit through the kitchen. It leads to a cave that comes out by the creek. Follow the water downstream and it will take you to safety."
"What if something happens to you?"
The concern in her words surprised me. She barely knew me, but she was worried about my safety.
"Nothing's going to happen to me," I told her. "I've been taking care of myself for a long time."
I started to leave, but she called out again.
"Riven?"
I turned back.
"Thank you. For everything."
Something warm bloomed in my chest. When was the last time someone had thanked me for helping them? When was the last time anyone had looked at me like I mattered?
"You don't need to thank me," I said. "Just stay safe."
I stepped outside and shifted into my wolf form. The change happened quickly - one moment I was a man, the next I was a massive black wolf with silver-tipped fur.
The hunting party was getting closer. I could smell them now - sweat, fear, and the metallic scent of guns.
I bounded through the trees toward them, ready for a fight.
But as I got closer, I caught a familiar smell that made my blood run cold.
Kaelen Duskhowl. The Alpha of the Moonveil Pack.
I had hoped never to meet him again. Our past was complicated and bloody. If he was here personally to hunt this girl, it meant she was important to him.
Very important.
But that also meant she was in more danger than I had realized.
I crouched behind a tree and watched as Kaelen led his hunters through the bush. His face was twisted with rage and something that looked like crazy. His eyes were wild, desperate.
This wasn't just a search party. This was a man obsessed.
"Find her!" Kaelen roared. "I don't care if you have to tear apart every tree in this forest. Bring her back to me!"
One of his men approached carefully. "Alpha, what if she doesn't want to come back?"
Kaelen grabbed the man by the throat and lifted him off the ground. "She belongs to me," he growled. "She's carrying my child. Nothing and no one will keep her from me."
My wolf went deadly still.
The girl in my cabin was carrying Kaelen's baby. The Alpha who had once tried to destroy me was the father of her child.
This changed everything.
Because Kaelen didn't just want her back - he was ready to kill anyone who stood in his way.
Including me.