Soul Mates

Mate

Sunday August 25th, 2019

*Logan's POV*

I'm sitting at a table in my favorite diner, listening to Cindy go on and on about something. It sounds important but my wolf is restless and it's hard for me to concentrate. "Are you listening to me, Logan?" She asks, snapping her perfectly manicured fingers at me. "Yes," I answer, "you said you were going to order a salad."

She raises an eyebrow at me, "I was talking about your next project. You need to start writing new songs." I sigh. I already know that, which is part of the reason I came back to Starlight City. I thought coming back to my roots would be inspirational. So far, it's inspiring me to quit music altogether.

Back when I was 18, I thought I had it all planned out. I'd be an NBA star, I'd find my mate and lead the pack. I was young, so young and naive. As luck would have it, I got injured my first year of playing in the NCAA. It was an injury that a normal human would never be able to recover from. In order to hide my true nature, I had to pretend to be out for good, even though I healed in less than a week.

No basketball meant no scholarship. I had to find some other way to earn money. Singing and songwriting were the only other things I was good at. Cindy actually stepped up as my manager and helped me build a stellar career. The three Grammys in my studio are proof of how good a professional team we've made.

If I had become the Alpha of my pack at 21, like I was supposed to, I wouldn't have needed to earn money. The pack had more than enough and there are pack members in charge of investing that money and making it grow.  However, for some unknown reason, my uncle refused to step down as Alpha. It wasn't until his death two months ago that I became the pack leader. He was angry at me for many years, he said I was a disappointment, but he never said why. He took his reasons to the grave.

I'm pretending to listen to Cindy again when Raegor jumps up. He howls in my mind, 'Mate' he says. I get up immediately, looking around for the shewolf who'll finally complete me. After all these years, I had already lost all hope of finding her. Then I smell it, honey, vanilla and strawberries, mixing to create the most exquisite aroma I've ever smelled before. I ignore Cindy's voice calling me and follow the scent.

It leads me to the parking lot...to a young wolf I've never seen before. Rage and jealousy take over me as I grab the kid by the neck. He can't be more than 18 or 19, why does he smell like my mate? No sooner do I grab him than I hear her voice. The voice of my true mate; a voice I thought I'd never get to hear again. "Step away from my pup unless you want to lose your arm, Alpha."

I drop the kid and turn to see her. I must be dreaming because there, in all her werewolf glory, stood Carolina Cruz. She looks so different but it's her. She's lost quite a bit of weight, she's still curvy, curvier than any other shewolf I've seen, but she's mostly muscle. Her hair is still curly but it's now a vibrant red color with perfect curls that fall to her waist. And her eyes, goddess, her eyes are now the brightest emerald green I've ever seen. She looks confident and elegant as she stands there waiting for me to finish ogling her.  'Mate' both me and Raegor say at the same time.