Chasms of Copper

Chapter 4

[Edited]

Chase

There was something off about the girl he met, yesterday. From the minute that Chase walked into 'The Reader's Nook', he noticed an unusual smell. It was very complex and confusing, however. The scent seemed to largely be feminine; vanilla, the smell of books, and something else that reminded him of forest streams. But there was also an underlying smell--like a second tone, or something. This one was masculine. He instantly recognized the scents of coffee, leather, and rain. The combination of the scents puzzled him and made him curious. He couldn't remember where he'd smelt that distinct second scent, before. It seemed both familiar and new, at the same time.

It had taken him by such surprise that blond man pursed it. It was almost an instinct. He had followed the scent to the young woman behind the counter, still puzzled. When he saw her, he was disappointed, to be honest. Because she smelled so familiar, he thought she might have been someone that he knew. 

Chase felt his mind wander to the events of the previous day, when he'd met the girl. She'd been standing at the bookstore's front desk when he'd met her.

What was her name? Chase tried to recall. Mergan? Megan? Something like that, anyway.

At first, Chase thought she was his mate. It was common werewolf knowledge that when one found their mate, they reported that they smelled amazing scents that came from their destined lover. But this situation couldn't have been what that was. Sure, the scents were nice, but Chase wasn't attracted to them. It was more along the lines that he was perplexed by them and wanted to know what was so familiar about it. 

After a few more moments, he was confident that the brunette girl wasn't his mate. Not that Chase would mind having her as his mate. He was a guy, after all. Just because he was oblivious and a jokester didn't mean that he didn't notice when a member of the female race looked good. 

She was obviously a human. She didn't have the constant scent of fur that all werewolves did. Nor could he sense her wolf. The girl was fair skinned with an eased hourglass figure. She was short, compared to the Beta. He guessed that she was probably 5'5" or so. The woman had shoulder-length light brown hair and big green eyes. Her button nose scrunched, slightly, when she smiled. The brunette had been wearing a slim-fitting pink shirt and light blue shorts. Chase was far from an expert on women's fashion, but he judged by her outfit that she was a 'cutesy' kind of girl.

Chase remembered scanning over her face; trying to figure out if he'd seen her before. She had a pretty face, but wasn't drop-dead-gorgeous in his opinion. He was certain that he'd never seen her, before, but he did have his doubts. She seemed to be the kind of girl that he'd easily miss in a crowd.

Finally, he swallowed his pride and asked the woman. As he predicted, she'd confirmed that we'd never met. It was clear that she really wasn't his mate.