Y/n moved through it all unnoticed. The dark hood of her cloak shadowed her face, and for the first time in as long as she could remember, no one was looking at her.

She stopped at a fruit stall near the center of the square. The merchant smiled at her as she picked up a peach, turning it over in her fingers.

A massive black horse had stopped in the middle of the street. On its back sat a man so large he seemed to block out the sun. Dark riding clothes. Broad shoulders. A jaw sharp enough to cut stone.

The Alpha King’s gray eyes were fixed on the fruit stall.

He did not move. His horse shifted beneath him, sensing the sudden tension in its rider. Behind him, his guards pulled to a halt, exchanging uneasy looks.

Xander Kingston inhaled slowly. The scent hit him again. Warm. Soft. Intoxicating. His wolf slammed against the inside of his skull with enough force to make his vision blur.

Mate.

His fingers tightened around the reins until his knuckles went white.

Y/n was still examining the peach. She had no idea that the most powerful Alpha in the kingdom was staring at her from only a few yards away. No idea that his wolf was snarling inside him with a possessiveness that bordered on violence.

No idea that everything was about to change.