GENERAL POV
Xaden just stared in disbelief at Jasmine, who stood before him.
She was the last person he had expected to see, and for a split second, he forgot that she was Jasmine.
The daughter of his enemy.
She was beautiful.
Her face was written with shock, and he gazed at her lovely and full breasts.
Her red hair wasn’t curly anymore, but slick from being in the water.
The moonlight was over her, and she stood like a goddess in the river.
Was this a dream?
Was this real?
He had heard stories that sometimes one could find other creatures that weren’t meant to be a distraction during the hunt.
If you weren’t careful, they would kill you.
Was this his distraction?
And then, when it occurred to her that she was standing naked in the lake before him, she yelled and tried to cover herself before diving into the water.
Hiding her breasts and nudity in the water and only revealing her head and shoulders.
She was scared and ashamed of herself.
What was he doing here?
How had he caught her here?
"Jasmine," he said.
She froze and swallowed.
"What are you doing here?" He demanded.
She felt her knees go wobbly under the water.
His eyes glistened with fire.
"I asked you a question, and I will not repeat myself." He said. "What are you doing here?"
She felt rapid shivers down her spine.
"I came for a swim." She stuttered.
He just looked at her.
Bewildered at what he was seeing.
"Get out of the water," he instructed.
Her heart wanted to jump right out of her chest.
She didn’t move.
She was naked.
He had seen her without clothes before, but she didn’t want this.
"Out of the water," he said.
She considered begging him.
But he was standing only a few inches from her, and she suspected that if she did, he would come in himself and drag her out.
She sighed and slowly swam to the bank of the lake where he stood, and then she built all the confidence to walk out naked.
Xaden watched, astonished, as she shook gracefully.
She was like a goddess.
For some odd reason, his heart was racing.
He couldn’t take his eyes off her, and he felt himself get hard.
He swore, snatched up her dress from the floor, and tossed it at her.
"Get dressed." He instructed, and he turned away.
She hurriedly wore the dress and stood when she was done.
"I’m done." She said it quietly.
The way he had turned away from her.
Probably disgust. He was disgusted with her; she knew and couldn’t even stand the sight of her.
She felt her self-esteem waver, but she suppressed it.
He finally turned back to look at her.
"What the devil are you doing here?" He asked her. "And I don’t want lies. You better don’t lie to me."
She swallows heavily. "I went strolling one day, and I found it. It seemed untouched. No one has been here, and I only came here to have some time alone."
"Swimming naked?" He asked with a mean tone.
She went blush red.
"I just like to swim." She said.
His eyes went dark, and he hovered over her.
"Or what?" He asked. "You’re waiting for a lover to come and join you?"
She stopped. "NO! Please. I met no one here. I just came here on my own. I swear it."
"You want me to believe that you do not undress yourself and wait for another man to join you." He said. "Is that it? And that you happen just to enjoy swimming naked?"
She wasn’t even sure how to respond.
Xaden was angry.
He didn’t know why, but he was angry.
She was only here to suffer under him, and if he were ruthless, he would have tossed her to the other men in his pack, as was the custom.
But the thought of her lying with anyone else other than him drove him crazy.
It made him upset beyond words.
Was it jealousy? Goddess no! It couldn’t be.
He was Alpha Xaden; he could have any wolf with the snap of his finger.
Including this one before him.
So why was he so upset that she might be meeting someone else?
"You’re bleeding." She said she was shaking him from his stream of thoughts.
She shocked him as she reached out to his shoulder and gently set her hand against it.
He looked down, and he saw that he was bleeding.
It hasn’t occurred to him that he had been injured by one of his fights.
He jerked free from her touch, and his eyes clouded with anger.
He didn’t want her fake pity.
She was just as bad as her father, and he didn’t want her to pretend.
"Keep your filthy hands away from me." He spat.
He saw her jerk as if she had been hurt by his words, and she gently withdrew her hand.
He felt a knot in his stomach.
An unusual feeling.
Like guilt.
He swore.
Her eyes were downcast, and he realised how tiny she was.
How fragile she looked.
He knew she was waiting for him to call out his punishment on her.
But he just watched her from her small head down to her tiny feet.
He felt a rush of emotions he did not understand, and he pushed them aside.
He couldn’t even tell her to leave; this was the hunt.
Most of the wolves here were wild due to the influence of the halo moon.
If he let her go on her own, then she would be attacked, and much worse things could happen.
Neither could he take her to safety.
He needed to find that elk before anyone else did.
If Alex or someone else mistakenly did, they could challenge him and take away his pack.
He looked back at her and realised that she was, in fact, stuck with him.