Chapter-3

Ivy

“Mate,” Silver, my wolf, mumbled, giving me goosebumps all over as I aimlessly stared at the man in front of me. “Oh my, that’s him again!”

He was tall, very tall, with dark eyes that seemed to pierce through my soul. His extremely sharp face was covered in a stubble paired with a shock of unruly, unkempt curly dark hair. And beneath his fitted white T-shirt, sticking to his body like glue, I could already see the fine line of muscles and abs and tattoos peeking out from the deep v-neck. He wore a diamond stud in his right ear and there was a piercing on his left eyebrow as well.

“Asher!” Alpha Noah called, strolling over to us while the two of us stared at each other like robots. Shock was an understatement for what I felt at the moment. Especially after knowing who this man was.

This was Alpha Asher Gray, the youngest Alpha of GrayCrest, one of the most powerful packs in the world.

This was…my mate.

And a man I met very briefly a long time ago. The more I focused on him, the clearer the memory from that night became, and anger immediately replaced the shock I felt. Yes, anger.

“You!” I hissed, scowling at him. Asher blinked and after a moment, realization dawned on his face. And it did surprise me a bit that he still remembered me. Just like I had remembered him all these years. 

“Uh, have you guys met before?” Noah demanded, looking a little lost, his gray eyes flitting between us.

“No,” Asher retorted instantly, still looking dazed.

“Yes,” I snapped.

“Er…where?” Noah frowned.

"Look, can we just talk first...?" Asher said to me, shooting a quick look at his brother. I was about to respond when a familiar feminine voice stopped me. 

"Why are you guys hanging around here?” Noah turned around, and we followed him to see Luna Coraline approaching, along with Alpha Logan and Luna Rose. Behind them were Asher, Logan and Noah's parents and the former Luna and Alpha of the pack, Joseph and Grace.

Oh great, the whole pack has arrived.

“What’s going on?” Alpha Logan demanded. He was the eldest brother. After him came Noah Gray, one of the sweetest and calmest people I have ever met, followed by this one…Asher.

“I don’t know,” Noah said. “Seems like Ivy and Asher know each other, isn’t it?”

“You guys do?” Coraline asked, glancing at me. She was Logan’s mate.

“No,” Asher repeated, his expression strained.

“Oh yes,” I scowled. “Funny, you don’t remember me, Alpha, given how fast you ran away that night,”

“Ran away?,” Luna Rose murmured, looking lost. She was Alpha Noah’s mate, very young; even younger than me and easily the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in my life.

“Look…whoever you are…” Asher grimaced.

“How about your mate, for starters?” I hissed. “The one you ran away from that night at the club two years ago?”

“Mate?” everyone exclaimed in unison, eyes going wide.

I realized that this revelation was a shocker for all the pack members present. As far as I knew, Alpha Asher, despite being twenty-six, didn't have a mate yet. It seemed he wasn't interested in having one. And now I understood why.

Because he was an asshole. Rose and Coraline told me once that they dearly hoped he would find someone during his training with the pack in Spain. But guess that didn't happen, otherwise he wouldn't be standing here looking like he broke his dick, his dark eyes fixed on me. 

“I…wait,” Logan interrupted, his eyes wide. “What exactly is going on? Ash…Ivy is your mate?” Asher shot me a look and gave a brief nod to his brother.

“At least that’s what Mac thinks.” he looked repulsed at the idea, which just infuriated me further.

“Ivy?” Logan asked, raising a brow.

“Unfortunately, yes,” I scowled.

“Unfortunately? Do you even know who I am? I am the damn Alpha of this pack!” he snapped.

“You are an asshole is all I know,” I snapped back. “A bloody coward…”

“How dare you!” Asher growled, taking a menacing step towards me. I stood my ground, challenging him with my eyes. If he thinks he can intimidate me just because he was the Alpha of this humongous pack, he was so very mistaken.

“Alright, calm down the two of you,” Logan interjected, gently pushing Ash away. “Ivy, what is going on?”

“And where did you meet him before?” Cora added.

“It’s been more than a year,” I said, shooting the douchebag a glare. “I went to a club for my friend’s bachelorette. We met there. He was sticking his tongue down some chick’s throat when we collided. And when my wolf claimed him as her mate, he ran away. He literally turned on his heels and ran away!”

“I didn’t run away! I…” Asher retorted, looking frustrated but of course, he had nothing reasonable to say.

“What?” Both Noah and Logan exclaimed, turning to his brother. “You what?”

“I didn’t run away!” he protested. “I had a lot to drink! A freaking lot. You know how much it takes for us to get drunk, right? I couldn’t understand. It all happened so suddenly and…and…I”

“Ran away,” I completed for him.

“I was drunk!” Asher snapped. “I tried to remember, but I couldn’t and Mac couldn’t because it was too damn dark. All I sensed was the…scent! And you had purple hair then. I tried to remember, and I did visit the club later again, but couldn’t find you. I thought I was…dreaming,”

“What is going on?” Grace muttered under her breath.

“And you didn’t feel we should know?” Logan said. “Ash…that’s a shitty thing to do,”

“I didn’t do it on purpose! I was shocked, my mind wasn’t working, and it was too dark! And all Mac caught was the scent…I tried finding someone with that scent to apologize, if anything, but I couldn’t," Asher repeated, his voice raising and I noticed how the veins on his neck popped.

“Well, now she is here,” Noah said. “Might as well go ahead and do that and sort out this mess. After all, you two are mates. You have a long life together.” Both Asher and I blinked at each other and immediately exclaimed in unison…

“No way!”