Ryder's POV
The council of elders could chew on their own pride for all I cared. I wasn't going to let the pack's youths use their wolf speed and stamina to humiliate humans in petty competitions.
It was stupid. Dangerous. And exactly the kind of thing that drew unwanted attention.
But of course, they didn't see it that way.
They called me overcautious.
Weak.
Too concerned with human opinions.
They didn't understand that being Alpha wasn't about flexing power—it was about knowing when not to.
The image of Kian, one of the more arrogant young wolves, smirking at me as he promised to "show the mortals their place" burned in my skull. I'd nearly shifted right there in the meeting. Nearly reminded him who exactly held his leash.
My grip on the handlebars tightened. The bike growled, and I twisted the throttle harder. The speed bled some of the anger out of me, but not enough.
A streak of movement appeared in the road ahead.
I almost didn't see her in time.
I slammed the brakes, the tires screaming, the back wheel fishtailing dangerously before I regained control. My heart kicked against my ribs as the bike skidded to a stop, the smell of burnt rubber sharp in the air.
She froze mid-step, halfway across the road, a backpack slung over one shoulder. A human girl no, not human. There was something about her scent, faint but wild, like forest air after a storm. Her hair was a mess, her cheeks flushed, and her eyes… God, those eyes.
And right now they were wide with something between fear and outrage.
"You trying to kill me?!" she snapped, her voice cutting through the roar still in my ears.
I swung my leg over the bike, boots hitting the asphalt. "You walked into the middle of the road without looking."
"I did look! I just didn't expect some maniac on a death machine to come flying out of nowhere!"
"Maniac?" My jaw tightened. "If I were going at full speed, you wouldn't be standing here yelling right now. You'd be a smear on the pavement."
She took a step toward me, fire flashing in her eyes. "Wow. Great way to comfort someone you almost killed. Maybe next time lead with an apology?"
"I don't apologize for other people's stupidity."
Her mouth fell open, and for a second she looked ready to launch herself at me. "Oh, you arrogant—" She stopped, scanning me like she was cataloging every possible insult. "Let me guess, you're one of those guys who thinks the road belongs to him because he's faster than everyone else? I remember you from the university."
I smirked despite myself. "Faster, stronger, smarter. Pick one. I've got all three. And yes your annoying ass isn't easy to forget."
She let out a sharp laugh. "You must be a blast at parties. Do you also carry a mirror around so you can stare at yourself?"
Something about her defiance—it should've annoyed me. Instead, it hooked something in my chest I didn't want to name. She didn't smell like fear. Just fury.
I folded my arms. "You lost? Or do you make a habit of storming down the middle of nowhere with no plan?"
Her grip on her backpack strap tightened. "Not that it's any of your business, but I'm going somewhere far away from people who treat me like crap. So unless you're planning to run me over again, get out of my way."
Her voice wavered at the edges, just slightly. There was pain there, but buried deep under a layer of razor wire.
I stepped aside, but my gaze didn't leave her. "Running away solves nothing."
She snorted. "Says the guy running away from whatever has you riding like a demon."
That hit harder than I expected. My lips pressed into a thin line. "I'm not running."
She tilted her head, eyes narrowing. "Then what are you doing out here? Scaring strangers for fun?"
I should've just gotten back on the bike. Let her walk away. She was clearly trouble, and I had enough of that in my life.
But something about the way she stood there chin high, refusing to back down even though she was barely half my size kept me rooted.
"Where are you headed?" I asked.
She shot me a look that could have stripped paint. "Again, not your business."
"If you keep walking this road, you'll hit the forest. Then my territory. Wolves aren't friendly to trespassers."
Her eyes flickered for just a second, as if she knew exactly what I meant by wolves. Then her shoulders squared. "Good thing I'm not scared of fairy tales."
I almost laughed. Almost. "You should be."
We stood there, the wind pushing at us, the silence between words heavy with something unspoken. I could've sworn the air shifted, a subtle recognition in the way her scent tangled with the night.
She broke it first, muttering, "You're wasting my time," before brushing past me.
I let her go. But my eyes followed her until she was just a small figure swallowed by the curve of the road.
Something told me that wouldn't be the las
t time we crossed paths.
And I wasn't sure if that was good… or very, very bad.