Dahlia ran through the woods, her heart thundering hard, wild and fast against her rib cage. Her thighs were sore and the sole of her foot was aching from running from her pursuers.

All she wanted to do was drop on the floor, curl into herself and go to sleep but that would be the same as signing her death warrant. She could heart the heavy sounds of approaching footsteps, they were so close, she needed to move faster

That's exactly what she did. Dahlia pressed the bundle in her arms closer to her chest as she pushed herself to go harder.

The wind blew, scattering her hair and causing it to tangle around her face but Dehlia ignored it as she kept pushing forward because her pursuers were closing in on her. She would be a dead person if she was caught and this bundle in her arms would be ripped off and separated from her forever.

She wondered how they found her again. Why couldn't he just let her be? He had no use for her and he did not know that she was his mate, so why was he after her even to the extent of using all his resources and effort to find her.

Dahlia did not want to believe that he began to miss her or his heart only softened towards her after she ran away from his pack. That would be cliche. Stuffs like that only ever happened in movies and novels and she was not a fool to think that it would happen in the real world and that too, to her.

She had been running from him for over a year now and she was tired already but she was not ready to give up. He would kill her if he caught her. She needed no one to tell her this because she had lived with him for months and knew just how cruel he was.

A man who was looking for his fated mate to sacrifice her to the gods to rid himself of the curse a dark witch placed on him could do just anything to anyone without blinking.

Just thinking about it alone was enough to cause goosebumps to erupt all over her skin and it was mostly because she was the mate he was looking for. The bastard has been looking for her while she was right under his nose but up till now, she could not understand why he never found out that she was his mate. It must be the moon goddess protecting her from him.

Dahlia had to make sure to keep running because she was not sure for how long the moon goddess would continue to grant her her blessings and protect her. He had a witch with him, who knows how long it would take before his witch who was equally as cruel as he was detects or fishes her out as the alpha's mate?

Why can't he stay with the other women? So what if he bought her with his money? She was not important to him so why does he keep sending his men after her?

He must be angry because she ran away from him. She was his slave at first and just when she thought that his heart was softening towards her, he would leave his other women to be with her, she caught him in bed with her archenemy.

Dahlia could still remember the scene like it was yesterday, it was still fresh in her mind and thinking about it brought tears to her eyes. She had just found out that she was pregnant with his child. He had always wanted an heir and that was the only reason why he bought her from her stepfather; to become his breeder.

Dahlia had been so glad, she couldn't keep the smile off her face and she just couldn't wait to see him to deliver the news. He would be overjoyed and he would want only her as none of his other women has been able to give him a child.

Her footsteps have been light and bouncy, her eyes alight with a deep glow that she's never had before and her heart warm as she bounded off to his room. Dahlia had never gone to him except for when he called her or after she sent her maids and received permission from him but she knew that once she delivered the news of her pregnancy, he would overlook the fact that she came to him without permission.

Oh, the horror when she found him grunting as he thrusted into her arch enemy. The bastard had turned her a hundred times in different positions on the bed just the night before as he fucked her hard so how come he still had the stamina to have sex with another woman the next day?

He saw her, her archenemy saw her too and she expected him to immediately pull away but who was she deceiving? He kept his dark gaze pinned on her as his hips continued to gyrate as he pumped faster and harder. Her archenemy also kept her eyes on her, smirking as she also moved her hips to meet his, moaning loudly and screaming his sweet name which made her ears bleed now.

Dahlia was stuck, she stood there with all her blood drained from her face for God knows how long before she finally turned to walk away with heavy steps.

She remained locked inside her room for three days as she soaked her pillow with hot tears. Her heart was heavy and her wolf which was already so weak completely separated from her and died because of the heartbreak.

It would have been a different case if she was just in love with him but they were mates. Fated mates ordained by the moon goddess so just imagine the pain she went through as she felt her heart being ripped out and the mating bond that has been growing stronger each time they met each other completely breaking and it was all a one sided thing?

No way was she going to let him catch her and drag her back to that hell he calls his palace.

Dahlia forged ahead with determination. So what if they were already closing in on her? She had a boat waiting for her with all the necessary things she would be needing to keep running away from him. She would paddle hard throughout the night until she was sure she had his soldiers off her back.

Dahlia could already hear the sound of the waters and it brought joy and peace to her heart. Just a little more and she could be there.

“Stop!”

Never!

The joy that came with the knowledge that she had escaped from the clutches of his soldiers once again was just about to overwhelm her when someone jumped down from a tall tree in front of her, completely obscuring her path.

She couldn't help it. A loud scream tore out from Dahlia's throat as she tried to stop in her tracks and not bump into whoever it was that just appeared before her but it was hard as she had been running with speed.

A deep groan of pain left her mouth as she and the bundle in her arms knocked into the person's broad chest. Dahlia froze as the person's scent wrapped around her, it was a familiar one.

She had gotten used to it and anticipated perceiving it all the time. She loved this scent so much but it was one she had been dreading for a long time.

It was him.

“Going somewhere princess?"

How did they even get here?