Fated to the Alpha: A Forbidden Desire

Akira's POV

The forest felt different today. The shadows hung thicker beneath the trees, and the usual rustling of leaves seemed muted, as if something held the world in an expectant pause.

I’d ventured deeper than usual into the woods, further than common sense should have allowed, but I needed the rare herbs that only grew in the shade of the ancient oak grove.

​​As I crouched to pluck a handful of rosemary from the base of an old stump, a prickling sensation crawled up my spine. Someone—or something—was watching me.

​​I froze, hand still outstretched, fingers brushing the soft leaves. “A little far from home, aren’t we?” The voice was like gravel wrapped in silk, low and rumbling, and it came from directly behind me.

​I stood slowly, my pulse racing, heart thundering so loudly that it seemed the whole forest could hear it. I turned, and my breath caught in my throat.

​​There, leaning against a tree with an ease that could only come from raw power and command, stood a man with piercing eyes the color of storm clouds.

His gaze swept over me, assessing, as though I were an intruder in his domain—and maybe I was. I knew enough about these woods to understand that I was on forbidden ground.

​​This wasn’t just any man; he radiated an otherworldly danger that told me exactly who he was without a single introduction. This was Jaxon Darkmoon, Alpha of the Shadowmoon Pack.

​​My father’s stories about the werewolves of Shadowmoon had always been filled with warnings, dark prophecies, and tales of unimaginable strength.

And yet none of those stories had prepared me for him. He was taller than I expected, his dark hair tousled, his jawline sharp enough to cut glass, his frame exuding both power and restraint.

But it was his eyes that held me captive, eyes that seemed to pierce through every defense I’d ever put up. For a moment, we just stared at each other, his gaze steady and unyielding, mine a mixture of defiance and wariness.

I knew I should say something, offer some explanation for why I was here, but the words tangled up in my throat. “What’s a human girl doing this deep in werewolf territory?” His tone was curious, but there was an edge to it—a warning that this was no place for me.

​I swallowed, forcing myself to meet his gaze. “I could ask the same of you. Aren’t there better places for the Alpha of Shadowmoon to be than lurking in the woods?” A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth, and I caught the flash of something dangerous in his eyes. “Lurking? Hardly.

You’re the one trespassing, little human. The real question is… why?” I lifted my chin, refusing to let him intimidate me. “I’m here for herbs.

They grow best under the shadow of these trees.” “Herbs,” he echoed, his smirk deepening. He took a single step forward, and the air between us grew charged, thick with an undercurrent of something I didn’t want to name.

His eyes narrowed as he continued, “And what’s stopping me from making sure you don’t come back?” A chill raced down my spine, but I refused to back down.

“Is that what your pack does? Scare off anyone who dares to wander too close?” He moved again, his approach slow and deliberate, until he stood close enough that I could feel his breath against my skin.

My heart hammered against my ribs, but I forced myself to hold my ground, meeting his gaze with as much defiance as I could muster. “I don’t need to scare you, Akira,” he said softly, my name rolling off his tongue like a dark promise.

“I only need to warn you.” “How do you know my name?” The words escaped before I could think them through. His smirk faded, replaced by something else—a flicker of recognition, perhaps. “I know a lot more than your name.”

​​My breath caught again, and I hated how aware I was of him, of the intensity in his gaze and the way his nearness seemed to spark something volatile in the air around us. “If you know who I am, then you should know I’m not here to cause trouble.”

“Oh, but trouble has a way of following those who don’t belong.” I clenched my fists, refusing to be intimidated by his words. “I may not belong to your world, but I’m not afraid of it.” His brows lifted, and for a moment, a look of surprise crossed his face.

“Not afraid, hm? That’s brave for a human girl standing alone before an Alpha.” “Brave,” I countered, stepping forward until I closed the remaining distance between us, “or just too stubborn to know when to be afraid?” Our eyes locked, and I felt a strange heat stirring in my chest.

I didn’t want to admit it, but there was something about him that drew me in, something that made it hard to look away.

A reckless thought flickered through my mind, a thought I knew I shouldn’t entertain. But the forest was quiet around us, and for a heartbeat, it was just the two of us, wrapped in the kind of silence that felt more like anticipation than peace.

“Tell me,” I murmured, “if you’re here to chase me off, then why haven’t you?” Jaxon’s gaze darkened, and his hand reached up to graze my cheek, his touch feather-light yet leaving a trail of heat in its wake.

“I haven’t decided yet.” A shiver raced through me, and I felt my pulse quicken beneath his fingertips. “What’s there to decide?” He leaned in, his lips barely a whisper away from my ear.

“Whether to let you walk away… or to make sure you never come back.” The words sent a thrill down my spine, both frightening and thrilling in a way I couldn’t quite describe.

​​His hand slipped away, but the sensation lingered, and I found myself leaning slightly forward, as though unwilling to let him pull away completely.

“Do you enjoy playing with fire, Akira?” he murmured, his voice low and taunting. “Maybe,” I whispered, barely recognizing my own voice. “Or maybe I’m just not as easy to intimidate as you’d like.”

A spark of something—surprise, maybe even admiration—flickered in his eyes. “Careful, little human. You have no idea what you’re risking.” “And what exactly am I risking, Alpha?” I asked, my voice steady despite the racing of my heart.

He let out a soft laugh, but there was no humor in it, only a dark promise that seemed to pull me in further. “You’re risking far more than you realize.

​​Step too close, and you might find yourself caught in something you can’t escape.” I swallowed, feeling the weight of his words settle over me like a shadow. “Maybe I’m willing to take that risk.”

His eyes searched mine, as if he were looking for some hidden truth within me. And then, slowly, his smirk returned, this time sharper, edged with something dangerous.

“If you think you can handle it,” he murmured, stepping back just slightly. But his gaze never left mine, and in that moment, I knew this encounter was far from over.

Just as I thought he was about to let me go, his expression changed, hardening into something resolute. “Remember this, Akira,” he said, his voice dropping to a low growl. “If you step foot in these woods again, I won’t be as lenient.”

​​I could feel my heart pounding as I watched him turn away, his silhouette melding into the shadows as if he were a part of them.

​​But just before he disappeared entirely, he glanced over his shoulder, his gaze piercing as ever, as if etching his final words into my memory. “Because next time,” he said, voice echoing in the stillness, “I may not let you go so easily.”

Akira's POV

The memory of Jaxon haunted me, lingering in the back of my mind like a storm cloud refusing to drift away. I hadn’t returned to the forest in days, though every fiber of my being itched to go back.

​​Each night, as I lay in bed, the weight of his gaze haunted me, his voice echoing in my ears. But I couldn’t go back. Not after everything I’d seen and felt.

He was dangerous, and that forest wasn’t meant for me. Still, I found myself walking towards it now, against all reason.

The weight of curiosity and something I couldn’t quite name pulled me forward, one step at a time, until I reached the clearing.

​I paused, feeling a strange sense of déjà vu as I stepped into the open space. The forest seemed quieter than usual, as if holding its breath.

I took a shaky step forward, looking around cautiously, half-expecting Jaxon to appear from the shadows. I told myself it was ridiculous, that he wouldn’t be here again. But I was wrong.

​A