Page 3 of The Alpha’s Chosen Mate

He tosses a fifth blackberry into the sky. I track its journey up and back down into his mouth, impressed by his flawless catches.

An idea flares to life. I set the basket down and pluck several berries from the vine, backing away from him. “Think fast!”

I toss the berry towards him. He whips around, spins in a full circle, and catches it in his mouth in one fluid motion. I throw three more, and with each berry, his tactics grow sillier. On the last one, he bends over backwards so his head is completely upside down, and closes his mouth in triumph.

“Your turn!” he declares.

“Oh no, I couldn’t possibly—”

The berry is already out of his hand, arcing through the air towards me. I dart backwards, mouth open, but the blackberry lands right on my forehead.

He claps his hand over his mouth. The entire forest stands still with him, waiting for my reaction.

A giggle spills out of me. It morphs into a loud, cackling laugh, one that’s impossible to contain. One I’d usually be embarrassed by, but I’m not. Not with him.

I can’t help it. He feels safe. He feels like someone I can trust, someone I’ve known forever even though we’ve just met.

His shoulders slump in relief, and he smiles at me as I continue laughing. “Here.” He plucks another berry. “Try again.”

I still don’t catch it, but this time, my reflexes are on my side, and I snatch the berry with my hand before it hits my nose.

“You have to keep your eyes open,” he instructs. “Follow the path of the berry, and don’t take your eyes off it.”

I nod, determined to succeed. He tosses a third berry at me. This time, it bounces off my top lip. I adjust my chin, lifting it higher, and the berry lands in my mouth, right on my tongue.

“I did it!” I bounce on my toes and throw my hands in the air. Warmth like nothing I’ve ever felt floods through my veins. “I did it! I did it!”

“I knew you could do it.” He grins smugly at me. “Now, let’s get this basket filled and get back across the bridge before the troll wakes up.”

We start at opposite ends of the brambles. Working our way towards the middle, we pick as quickly as we can, racing against the impending end of the troll’s nap.

I glance down at the almost full basket. “That should be enough.”

We could add more, but I don’t want any berries to fall out if we need to run across the bridge because the troll is awake.

“I’ve got it.” He extends his other hand to me again, bearing the weight of the basket as we reverse our journey through the forest. When we reach the bridge, I hop onto his back without hesitation, and he carries both the berry basket and me to the other side as if we weigh nothing at all.

I slide to the ground once we’re across. “Thank you.”

“Emily! Where are those berries?”

The cook’s shout overlaps my expression of gratitude. My eyebrows fly up to my hairline in fear. I yank the basket away from my friend, sprinting towards the omega house before my name is called a second time. Being hollered at to return once is bad enough. If she has to call for me twice?

I can’t let that happen.

But as I’m running away from him, I realize something. Something important. I skid to a halt and whirl around, my long braids smacking me in the face with the force of the motion. “I didn’t get your name…”

I scan every inch of the riverbank, but the boy is nowhere to be seen, leaving me to wonder if I imagined my savior and our entire day together in the forest.