1| Talk About It

"This is ridiculous. Justin had better compensate me big time for this," Savannah muttered as she picked her way through the overgrown thorn bushes that rimmed the western edge of her pack border. "I could be finishing that report by now, but instead I'm chasing ghosts in this forsaken corner that nobody ever bothers about—Ow!"

A prickle snagged her shirt and nearly ripped it, but Savannah managed to extricate herself. With a huff, she bent the branch out of the way and stepped through the thicket. "Alright guys, fan out. Anything suspicious, you let me know, okay?"

"Yes, Alpha Savannah," they chorused, and moved off to inspect the area. So far, all she'd seen were harmless trees besides the prickly bushes. Maybe Justin had been hoping one would jump to life and tackle her.

"There is definitely something off," the male beside her spoke. "My wolf is feeling it too."

Savannah snorted. "What else is new? Your wolf thinks a rabbit hiding in a bush is a threat."

"It's not my fault a rabid bunny attacked me when I was a pup! Scarred me for life."

Savannah rolled her eyes. Her Gamma, Cale, had retold his traumatic childhood story every chance he got, followed by pulling down his shirt collar to show off the scar.

"See? Now tell me you wouldn't be scared of something that did this!" Cale pointed to his neck with one finger, while his other hand yanked his shirt away from his skin.

Predictable.

Ignoring him, the Alpha leaped over a fallen tree trunk and crouched behind some rocks, listening carefully while sniffing the air. "Well, if I find that Justin has pranked me, he's dead."

Savannah clenched her fists and glared at the darker trees up ahead. Her Beta, Justin, had always had a penchant for joking around and trying to scare her. Ever since hearing her scream as a little seven year old when she found a snake in her shoe, he'd made it his mission in life to elicit the same reaction every chance he got.

But revenge worked both ways. Savannah smiled as she remembered the look of revulsion on her Beta's face when he bit into the mud cake she'd made for his birthday. The icing was nice, but the dirty grit in the real mud had been a little hard to swallow.

Savannah had nearly died laughing, watching him run into the lake choking and gagging, coming up to wash his mouth out a dozen times. The pranks didn't stop there, and soon, all throughout their teens and young adulthood, the pack's members became either victims or accomplices in their outlandish practical jokes.

Everyone swore Savannah would never grow up and be the Alpha they needed, but despite her humorous side, the young Alpha was smart, brave, and dedicated to being the best leader for her pack. The Alpha of ForgedHearts had grown up learning the trade from both her parents, and upon receiving the title at age twenty, she was certain they were proud of her.

"Alpha, I found him!"

The shout drew her attention back to the present, and Savannah hurried through the trees to find one of her warriors standing in a clearing, looking down at a prone form on the ground.

"Justin!" Savannah called out, "The joke's over, buddy. We found you."

The afternoon sunlight filtered down through the pines and cedars, casting the earth in a yellow glow, but the branches remained silent in an absence of wind and twittering birds. A hushed quietness had descended over them, causing a shiver to run down the Alpha's spine. Justin had called them out here, with a report of rogues, but Savannah and her warriors had found nothing of the sort.

Going up to him, she kicked his foot. "There's no one here. Now stop playing and explain yourself."

But he didn't move. He just lay there, and when Cale felt his neck, she saw the worry grow on her Gamma's face.

"There's a pulse, but it's faint."

"You don't mean..." Savannah spun on the spot, scanning the trees with Alpha rapidity, but saw nothing out of place. Heard no leaf rustle, no twigs snapping underfoot. All was calm, so unless Justin had foolishly eaten some poisonous mushrooms for a snack, then someone had purposely harmed him. But he seemed in good condition, no scratches, no marks of strangulation, no—

"Look at you pack wolves. So pathetic."

Savannah was shocked into speechlessness as a dirty wolf calmly stepped from the trees. When his scent hit her nose, she screwed up her face and felt her stomach flip on itself.

So Justin wasn't pranking.

More wolves stepped from the trees, and Savannah stood protectively over her Beta's body while her own men surrounded her, facing the enemies with daring in their eyes and ferociousness in their stances. They'd trained for this. Every day of her life she'd prepared for rogue attacks.

"What have you done to my Beta?" she demanded in her strongest voice.

The rogue flinched, but he kept approaching, his brown eyes watching her from beneath a messy fringe. When he jumped towards her, shifting into wolf form, she ducked in plenty of time. His movements had been carefully tracked by her Alpha senses, and she saw his intention from a mile away.

It didn't take long to rip his throat out, her claws extended fully while she still stood over her Beta. Her warriors had likewise dispatched of the few rogues, but just when they were catching their breath, laughing at the easy fight, a new worry seeped into the Alpha's awareness and she straightened into a fighting stance.

More faces appeared through the trees, and their numbers were double the pack warriors around the Alpha. She instantly mindlinked for backup. The Alpha didn't want a fight, but if that's what these dirty mutts where here for, she'd fight back and show them just who was in charge around here.

"Sphoeroides spengleri."

The smooth voice instantly caught her attention, and she swivelled to face the speaker. "Excuse me?"

"A puffer fish native to the azure waters of the Caribbean. You've heard of it, no?" He strolled casually into the centre of the clearing. This wolf was tall, with shaggy brown hair that managed to sit in tantalising waves on his head, and hazel eyes with beautiful flecks of gold—

What was she thinking? This rogue was not beautiful or tantalising and just needed a good kick off her territory. She'd need to apply a rather large amount of force considering the perfectly sculpted muscles on his arms and broad chest...

Savannah forced her eyes away from his body when she realised she'd been staring.

"Uhhh..." was the only sound her throat could make, having forgotten his question. "What are you doing on my territory?" Yes, that was the only logical thing she should be thinking about. What on earth was he doing here?

"I was hoping to sneak past your border guards and infiltrate your pack residence, but someone got in our way."

The rogue's glib reply caught her off guard, and she followed his eyes to her feet, where Justin was still lying as comatose as sleeping beauty.

Suddenly the rage was back, and Savannah felt like ripping his head clean off his shoulders. "What did you do to him?" she demanded, brushing her short hair back from her eyes.

"Nothing he didn't deserve. He killed one of my friends. So I figured a little toxin would show the stupid mutt just how strong he really is."

Though the rogue's voice was smooth and enticing in an utterly unreasonable way, Savannah felt the anger it sparked. "You dare disrespect my Beta? You, a worthless rogue?"

The rogue wolf clucked his tongue and stepped closer, shaking his head as if admonishing a naughty child. He towered over her by a whole head, and his close proximity was intimidating.

There was almost something majestic in the way he held himself, and Savannah found herself drawn to his power and undeniable dominance. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she heard him saying, "Listen darling, I don't know who you are, and you obviously don't know me. So let's just cut to the chase—"

Before he could finish, Savannah launched herself at him, but was blocked by one his wolves and tackled to the ground. Her actions signaled to everyone that the fight was on, and soon the shouts and curses of fighting wolves filled the surrounding forest.

When her backup warriors arrived, the fight took a turn and soon all the rogues were either dead or restrained.

Savannah rose to her feet, panting hard and pushing a dead rogue off of her body after having slit his throat. With a victorious smirk, she faced the one who seemed to be their leader.

He was down on his knees in the dirt, two of her warriors holding him steady as silver chains bound his wrists and ankles firmly in place. To her surprise, there was barely a scratch on him, his body intact and only a slight smattering of blood across his shirt, almost as if he'd sat this fight out and watched from the sidelines. Almost as if he'd allowed himself to finally be restrained.

"Listen up, rogue," she drawled as she approached him, her eyes never leaving his smirking face. Though his gaze seemed to follow her every move, stripping her down and leaving her without intention, Savannah braced herself against it and asserted all her dominance. "I didn't want a fight, but it looks like you got one. Now tell me why you came here."

When he just looked at her silently, a faint smile tugging on his lips, she felt her claws come out.

"Out with it, before I kill you."

"Oh, you won't kill me," he finally broke his code of silence.

"Why not?" The staring match continued, and Savannah found herself more intrigued than frightened of this rogue. It wasn't like how she always imagined. Having heard numerous stories of how both her parents' and grandparents' packs had been savaged by rogues, she'd expected to feel at least a little frightened.

But this rogue acted like they were playing a game, and it was exciting her.

"Because only I hold the antivenom for your dear little friend over there," he nodded his head to Justin.

"I don't believe that. My Beta is strong, stronger than your worthless mutts. He can handle anything."

"How can you be so sure?" the rogue raised an eyebrow and tilted his head, regarding her intently

"Because I am Alpha!" Savannah yelled, her voice echoing over the otherwise silent clearing. There was no way she would put up with any more trash from this dirty, pathetic—

He chuckled, a sound that filled her mind and ceased all train of thought. "An Alpha, is that so? How delightful. I am charmed to make your acquaintance, of course." The rogue then lowered his head for a moment in mock subservience, but the gleam in his eyes when he once more looked at her made Savannah realise he was remaining utterly defiant.

After receiving a nod from their Alpha, Savannah's warriors clamped a hand on the rogue's shoulder and squeezed, forcing him to lean forward in proper respect.

"Charmed indeed. Too bad my charming patience has worn thin," Savannah extended her bloodied claws and came to stand in front of the undeniably handsome wolf. "So tell me, Rogue, how would you like to be killed? A slit to your throat, your heart ripped out, or how about a silver bullet to your brain?"

"How violent you are. Wouldn't you prefer to just snap my neck?"

Savannah hated the taunting tone that laced his words. He was underestimating her, and it rubbed against her wolf in a bad way. No one underestimated an Alpha's power and lived to boast about it. "Nope. Too clean. Why play nice when you're playing dirty?"

Narrowing his eyes, the rogue just stared at her, and Savannah's eyes were drawn to his strong jaw that clenched and unclenched in a distracting way. His bright eyes regarded her with such an intensity that her throat began going dry and she swallowed hard.

Just when she couldn't take it anymore and was about to click her fingers in his face, he said, "How about we make a deal?"

"A deal?" Savannah hated the way her voice squeaked.

"Kiss me first, Alpha. Then I'll let you do whatever you like to me."

His confidence made her heart skip a beat.

"You'd take my first kiss?"

"You'd take my only life?" he replied, his hazel eyes boring into hers.

He made a disgusting amount of sense. The way his words formed and slid off his tongue had her wolf whining to be let out and Savannah frowning in confusion. When a slight breeze stirred and shifted the air, a trace of his scent danced by her nostrils, making her dizzy.

"If this is my last moment on earth, I at least want a pleasant memory to hold close forever in the afterlife," he murmured, as if for her ears only.

The daring gleam in his hazel and golden eyes as she stared at them caused her to lose all common sense.

So when a wave of daring washed over her, the Alpha knelt in front of him and placed her lips on his.

What was there to lose? She'd kill him soon anyway.

What she hadn't been expecting, even in her deepest nightmares or sweetest daydreams, is precisely what she felt the moment her mouth touched his.

Sparks.