*Aryina*

Who ever said waking up in a bed of roses was romantic? It was the reality of waking up in a bed with filth was reality.

When I opened my eyes that's all I saw, filth, grime, dirty sheets, everything dirty. I winced as I moved slightly trying to adjust my body. My back felt like it was burning and really bad at that.

"Hello?" I called out. The sounds of bubbling, boiling water rolling in an old rusted pot over a gas stove and the smell of musk, woodsy musk filled my nostrils even though I tried pushing it away.

I had no choice but to sit there. The fire feeling rising up and down my back was hurting me so much that I was brought to tears, at least I could still speak and what looked like a dusty old dress covered my body, someone had been taking care of me.

The door pushed open. The rugged wood around the door made an unpleasant pop as it rode on the hinges completely revealing who was standing in it.

"You're awake?" he held the metal beaten up looking pot in his hand with an half burnt oven mitten and a wooden spoon in the other.

"I—….where am I?" I asked him blinking back the tears of one…his beauty and two of the fire that took home in my flesh.

"Um….my home," he licked his lips as if seeing something he liked or wanted, certainly not me in this condition.

"You were in an accident…the camp a month ago burned down. I found you and drug you here for safety." He shrugged placing the pot on what looked to be some counter used for grooming.

"A——— month ago?" I felt the tears really rolling now. I had been out that long? My father would be devastated.

"I'm Caleb…Caleb Monti. My L….I mean Alpha said it was fine to let you stay until you regained your strength." He smiled taking a seat next to me.

"Your….Alpha, um what sort of shifter are you?" I asked looking into his heavy grey eyes. They were beautiful, crystal grey, so much that they looked like the white sands of the Virgin Islands.

"Well, I'm Aryina so…..thanks for helping me and all, I don't expect you to tell me your business….sorry for asking. I'm just thankful to be alive and I really must be going." I stated. Despite of my pain I tried to stand and took a really hard tumble forward.

He stood immediately in an awkward way but it was to catch me from hitting face forward making my entire condition worse.

"Please, you are too weak to do anything. I've been caring for you the whole time, let me help you." He lifted me in his arms. His eyes burned of something I wasn't sure how to explain it had no words to it what—so—ever.

I bit my lip thinking of what to say next. "My father's a Beta of a major pack in the area, he'd be very upset and I need to get to him. We have wonderful doctors in our pack so…..I'm sure you don't want the burden of taking care of a damaged girl."

"Right, see…the problem is, I'm not allowed to take you back." He confessed releasing a booming chuckle from his muscular chest.

I blinked back a few times and something other than the pain in my skin hit me, fear.

"Why not?" I asked but it came out as a whisper.

"See….my Alpha, he started the fire and your pack was the one he wanted to destroy. I wasn't supposed to grab you but because you were m…..my, well because you and I have something in common, I wasn't going to let you burn to death with the others." He shrugged.

I glared and then came the gasp from the shock that I got hearing him say……burn to death with the others.

"Your…not in a pack are you?" I swallowed the fear knot back asking. Every one of my words were riding on it, I was hoping but took a chance thinking….he took care of me this long, surely he didn't want to hurt me.

"Well….not really. We form our own but we call ourselves a pack." He laid me back down on the bed carefully. Bringing the dusty looking blanket over my body I gripped it with my hand rejecting the complete comfort of the dirty thing as he got closer to my face with it.

"Are you Rogues?" I asked.

He stared at me a minute and smiled. "Rogue is such an ugly word for lone wolves…..we don't call ourselves that, mainly we are renegades. Now Aryina, are you hungry?" he asked running his hand over my foot. I nodded fast as if my body spoke before my mouth did. I was starved but I needed my energy up to run….run as if my life depended on it.

I was taken, abducted

Kidnapped by my mate.