1 Chapter one

'Damn, so you're 25 and haven't chosen a mate yet?' A man outside the main marquee said with a hint of sympathy in his voice. 'That means this is the last chance for you.'

'Do you think I don't want to choose?' A bitter smile formed on the other man's lips. 'None of the girls have been good enough for me.'

'Why should you be so choosy? You're just a lower grade werewolf from the Eastern pack, not some Beta Stride!' The first man looked at the second man in disdain. 'The only thing good about you is your face. Have some shame!'

I heard the conversation and pursed my lips, walking inside with a few females I didn't know. At the entrance, there was a tall man blocking the path. His cold gaze swept past all of the ladies as he picked up a writing pad. 'Everyone, please give your introduction.'

'I'm Louise Grant, belonging to the Northern werewolf society.' A woman standing in the front spoke with pride. There were four werewolf packs on the outskirts of the town, and the Northern pack was apparently the most famous and wealthy of all! When other girls saw a woman with this attitude, they let out a scoff and started scolding her in a low voice.

But I stayed silent. This was the first time I had arrived at the mating camp that would be held every year at one of the werewolf packs. This time, it was the western pack. But I wasn't aware of any of the pack details. I didn't even know the names of the Alphas. The reason was simple—I resided in the middle of the town, where werewolves lived amongst humans, and the latter didn't even know a thing about this. But the reputation of the ones who lived inside the town wasn't really great. I feared that I would end up suffering from the scoldings and disdainful gazes of the girls around me. Just as I thought of this, I ducked my head lower to hide my sense of presence.

If it weren't for my mother, I wouldn't have come here. I didn't like this mating ritual at all! The ritual would just force the werewolf females who would be chosen by the males from four major packs around the town, and they couldn't reject at all! It was just like a forced arranged marriage, but I couldn't do anything about it.

That was when I heard the girls talking behind me.

'Do you know who's participating this time?'

'No, who!' The other girl's voice was filled with excitement. She wanted to hear some gossip!

'Alpha Aiden Davis!'

When the second girl heard this name, she froze. Even I was stunned for a moment. Who doesn't know this person? Alpha Aiden Davis was the leader of the Southern werewolf pack, pretty famous for his ruthless and cold attitude. But this wasn't why I was stunned.

'Are you serious?!' The second girl suddenly yelled in a loud voice attracting the attention of others. She suddenly realized that she had just said that in a very loud voice and a trace of blush appeared on her face. Laughing awkwardly, she just waved her hand and told everyone, 'Just talking about some friendly matters.'

Of course, the girls beside me just snorted at that. Clearly, they had heard the conversation and just disdained the second girl for lying.

Just then, the second girl lowered her voice and said, 'Are you serious? That murderer?' Yes, Alpha Aiden Davis was famous across the werewolves as a murderer who had killed his own mother as a teenager. No one knew the real reason behind it, and no one dared to dive deeper since Aiden would always get angry whenever someone talked about this.

'Pretty much the truth.' The first girl shrugged. 'My father had attended the Alpha meeting and heard the entire thing.'

'Your father actually saw Alpha Aiden Davis?!' This time, the second girl was even more shocked.

'Why are you so shocked? He's a Beta stride of Western Pack. Of course, he had to attend.'

The two of them continued to discuss, but I ignored them. The reason was, I was afraid of Aiden. I had heard enough stories about his ruthlessness to make me shiver throughout the night! Even thinking about it made me sweat profusely.

Just why did he have to come this year when I had arrived? What if I come across this guy? I couldn't help but tremble at such a thought and quickly brushed it off and took a few deep breaths to calm myself. How could it happen? There were so many girls here. He surely wouldn't choose me. Still, I was reluctant to go inside.

Pursing my lips, I turned back and walked over to the end of the line, twirling a strand of my blonde straight hair in my finger. But who would've thought that I would get to enter this place so easily without suffering from humiliation? Somehow, I was shoved forward by many females, and before even I could open my mouth to say something, it was already my turn.

For a while, I was stunned. How did this happen? I was just standing at the end of the line! I glanced at the back as the ladies behind me pretended that they hadn't done a thing. I pressed my lips in a thin line and stood forward. 'I'm Bella Roberts, just turned eighteen. So this is my first time here.'

The tall man coldly glanced at me and nodded before jotting down something and looking at me again. 'Where do you live?'

Can he not ask me this?

I pursed my lips and parted my lips. 'From the town.' As soon as I said this, almost all the ladies gasped. Even the tall man raised his brows.

Seeing such an intense reaction, I couldn't help but want to dig a hole in the ground and hide myself! I didn't want to be the centre of such intense and disdainful gazes!

But before anyone could say anything, I lowered my head and walked past the tall man, almost as if I was running for my life! I ran and ran until I was out of breath and leaned against the wall. That was when I noticed I had entered a wrong place. It was a men's bathroom! And a few men were already staring at me as if I was a mad person!

I bowed my head instantly. 'I'm sorry!' And I instantly headed out only to crash into someone's sturdy chest. I backed up immediately and rubbed my forehead. 'I'm sorry!'

After apologising, I was just about to move away when that person caught my wrist and forcefully turned me around. That was when I noticed who it was.

His blue eyes squinted when he stared at me. Shoulder long brown hair fell on his face as his free hand caressed his beard beneath his chin. This was so tall that I could reach his shoulders! There was a smile on his lips almost as if he had seen something interesting.

My face went pale after seeing his face. With my widened eyes, I opened my mouth wide. This was too shocking! Who didn't know who this person was?! This guy's pictures were all over the werewolf magazine, making him famous as a cold bachelor of this year! It was Aiden!