Raven arrived at the cafe, he parks the car and walked over to the front entrance of the cafe and stood at the door. He could already feel his sense go high as a certain intoxicating scent graced his nostrils. He knew she was inside.

The overwhelming urge to go to her and take her and make her his surfaced. He could hear her heartbeat, it was as if she was the only one inside the cafe which he knew was not so. But the sound of her heartbeat was clear in his ears and the rhythm was soothing. The more time he spent out there just looking inside the cafe, the more her scent and the sound of her heartbeat grew stronger as if calling out to him.

He wanted to barge in there and take out and mark her but he knew that it would not be that easy as she was a human and not a shifter. She wouldn’t feel the pull of the mate bond between them immediately as he does and would require time. Time to fall in love and then the bond would start to manifest and act on her. If he just walks in like that he would look like a crazy man who had come to harm a woman.

This would probably be the hardest thing that he would have ever done, the best test of his patience and self-control and as funny as it may sound, he felt excited about it.

Pushing the door open, he let his senses guide him to her. He walked past the many tables on his way, walking his way only to the source of the scent that has invaded his nose and clouded his mind. He stopped when he came to face the back of a certain girl.

He felt his wolf leap forward fighting for control, wanting to be with their mate which he fought to make sure he does not lose and cause a scene in human territory. He continues to look at the back of the blonde woman whose hair was dyed pink at the tips. Her side profile was... Perfect. He tried to see the rest of her face without getting noticed but her hair was in the way not letting him see more than just a glimpse of her side.

"May I help you with anything, sir?" a waitress walked up to him and asked him after seeing him standing there for quite some time seeming bewitched and lost.

Raven whose eyes have been locked on his mate with one request in his mind, ’Turn around my love’ nearly growled at the waitress who had come to ask him a question that he failed to hear completely. A frown appeared on his face and the waitress repeated her swords thinking he did not hear her which was true but not the cause of his frown.

"Is there anything I can help you with?" She asked but Raven paid no attention and started walking to where his mate was sitting with slow and steady steps. As much as he would have loved to rush over, he knew it was better not to and to take things slow.

He walked over to where she was seated and stood in front of her across the table. She looked up at him wondering what he was doing at her table when there were many empty tables around the cafe.

Finally able to see her face, Raven could not help being mesmerized. She looked delicate, just like a newly bloomed flower. Her clear blue eyes reminded him of the vast ocean in which he could get lost. She had a small nose that complimented her face nicely. His eyes drank in her features as they trailed down to her lips which were heart-shaped and peachy making them very kissable.

"Hello!" The girl said trying to dispel the awkward and uncomfortable silence that had come to settle between them.

Hearing her voice that sounded nothing less than melody to his ears, his heart felt full. Pulling the chair that was closest to him out he asked, "May I join you?"

********

At the Blood moon pack,

Emily had come to visit Kora like she always does every other day where they would train together and play together after the training was over. Though Kora’d training was different from the others as she was versed in hand-to-hand combat and weaponry. She was trained to make the most of her skills in her human form as she hadn’t shifted yet, she was still one of the best fighters of her age and being best in human skin. She thought about how to best defend herself against a shifter both in human and beast form and the weak spots of a shifter in his beast skin.

Emily mostly trained with the others as she had already shifted and was old enough to learn a bit about self-defence.

Today after training, the two girls decided to take a walk towards the lake that was near the pack house.

They walked and chatted about many things on their way to the lake. Finally arriving at the lake they sat a few feet away from the water and watched crystal clear water as ripples form and disappear. The air around the lake was calm and the temperature cool giving a serene atmosphere that Kora liked very much.

"How does it feel to see the things that you do? It must be very exciting." Emily asked. Emily had just found out that beta Raven had gone to find his mate whom Kora had seen in a vision after she left the party early because her mother called her.

"It’s not as exciting as you think, Emily," Kora said. She picked some stones to throw into the water.

"I bet it is," Emily argued and watched as Kora threw a stone that skipped on the water’s surface before sinking into the lake.

Kora threw another stone into the water and listened to the sound of the water as the stone touched it. She heard the sound that soothed her but there was also a foreign sound that she caught in the surroundings which made her frown.

Seeing the change in Kora’s expression Emily looked around them but she could not see anything. "What is..."

"Shhh." Kora shushed her and placed her finger on Emily’s lips to silence her.

Listening closely she was able to pinpoint where the sound was coming from. It came from behind the trees, fifteen feet away from them. The sounds that she heard were very familiar and if they had not camouflaged themselves, even Emily would have recognised them.

Kora stood up putting her guard up and Emily followed her lead knowing that there was trouble lurking nearby.

Seeing them stand up guarded, the people who were hiding behind the trees stepped out of hiding and they could see three men walking towards them with predatory steps.