Finding His Mate... Ch. 02

"You're in love." Alexandra says with a smile. Instantly shaking his head, Dante can't deny that he has serious feelings for Madison, but it definitely isn't love. He doesn't even know her. How can it possibly be love already? Ignoring the flutter in his heart when he thinks of her, he quickly pushes those thoughts to the side. Changing the subject, he sits up in his chair.

"How is Luke handling his territory safety?" Not surprised by how Dante was trying to avoid the love topic, Alexandra makes a mental note to comment on it again later. Sitting straight in her seat, she crosses her legs and looks into his eyes.

"As far as we know, there has been a growing count of rogue attacks sweeping the west coast. Luke has contacted the Alphas of those territories, but nobody came forward with any hypothesis on what could be happening. In the beginning, many suspected that these attacks were just random attacks by an angry rogue, but they seemed to be planned. Whoever is doing this is not attacking random citizens. They are attacking the "heirs" of many of the packs." Leaning back in his chair, Dante digests what he just heard.

"So you are telling me that there could possibly be more than one angry rogue out there attacking people?" He watches as Alexandra nods and sighs. "This is worst than we thought?"

"We. Who do you mean 'we'?" Dante looks over at Gino, who is slowly putting down his head. He is definitely going to face his sister's wrath because of the name he is about to say.

"We as in meaning me and Carlo." Rolling her eyes, Alexandra looks over at Gino with a scowl.

"You guys can't possibly trust that man right? He is a drug lord for crying out loud!" Groaning, Dante places his head on top of his desk and sighs.

"He is not a drug lord sister. He is a pharmacist in the human world. A legal pharmacist." Picking up his head, he watches as disbelief flashes in his sister's eyes.

"Yeah that's what he tells us and you're the dumb Alpha that believes that shit. He is a drug lord and that's it! If you wish to believe that he is telling the truth, then you go ahead and believe that." Shaking his head, Dante looks over at Gino who is smiling brightly. "You two think this is funny and it's not." Alexandra says, suddenly angry. "You go right ahead and trust that bastard if you want to, but I'm not." Standing up, she quickly walks over to the door. "I'll see you next week brother. Bye" She says cheerfully before slamming out of the door.

Dante looks over at Gino and laughs. "There is definitely something wrong with her." Dante laughs. Looking at Gino he notices his expression became serious.

"Do you think it could be him?" Gino asks. Sighing, Dante leans back and runs his fingers through his hair.

"I don't know. Although he left, I don't think he turned rogue. I can feel him." Dante says, turning his chair around to face the window behind him. Although he hates to, he thinks about his brother Daniel. The main reason why his father had hated human mates to his grave was because of what happened to Daniel. Dante grimaces as the screams replays through his mind and pushes those thoughts to the back of his mind. He can't think of him at this moment when rogue attacks are sweeping across the nation and coming towards his territory. Turning back around, he looks at Gino and hides his expression.

"Call up Rich and tell him to get the men together. I want every man, even the Omegas, trained in protecting this pack. Although these attacks remain on the west coast, it is only a matter of time before they slowly move over and I want to be prepared. Also, gather the Betas together for a meeting. I want to plan as many evacuation plans as possible." Nodding his head, Gino gets up from his chair and walks out of the door.

Turning back around, Dante looks out the window and sighs. So many people in this world and so many problems, he thinks to himself. Sometimes he just wishes he didn't have the responsibility of caring for hundreds of people in the pack, but he knew he wouldn't change it for a thing. It is in his blood. He can't imagine a life without protecting those closest to him. Looking at his watch, he sighs when he realizes it was five in the morning. Standing up, he stretches his tight muscles and walks out the door. Turning, he walks to the elevator and pushes the button for his floor. When the elevator doors open he walks down the short hall to his house, unlocks his door, and walks to his bedroom. Taking off his shirt, he quickly throws it on the floor and plops face down on his bed.

Rolling onto his back, he places his hands behind his head and looks up at the ceiling, thinking of his delicious piece of chocolate. Just the thought of her makes him get butterflies in his stomach and what his sister said replayed in his mind. There is no way he could possibly be in love with her already, right? Although he knows next to nothing about mating, he certainly knows that there is no way you can possibly fall in love with your mate the first day you meet them...right? He starts to get frustrated at not knowing the answer to his questions and quickly pushes the thoughts out of his head. You just don't fall in love on the first day. End of discussion. 'But you did', the voice in the back of his mind says.

Groaning, he places a pillow on top of his head and closes his eyes, thinking of her.

**

Ring. Ring. Ring.

Groaning, Madison rolls over, pulling a pillow over her head in an attempt to block out the incessant noise that fills the room. Realizing that it is her phone, she rolls over and quickly grabs it off of the nightstand.

"Hello?" she answers groggily.

"Where are you?" Surprised to hear her boss' voice, Madison looks over at the digital clock on the nightstand.

"What do you mean 'where am I?' this is my day off." Rolling to her side, she looks over at Tiffany, who is snuggled deep under to covers. 'Swear this girl can sleep through anything', she thinks to herself. Focusing back on the conversation at hand, she gets up and swings her feet over the edge of the bed.

"Yeah well too bad. Be in here in twenty minutes or you lose your job." He says before he rudely hangs up on her. Looking at the phone as if it has grown legs, Madison angrily tosses it on the bed and quickly finds some of Tiffany's sweatpants. Putting them on, she ties her hair back and looks for a paper and pen. Writing Tiffany a quick note, telling her that she borrowed some of her clothes, Madison quickly places her clothes in one of Tiffany's bags and leaves the house. Groaning because she forgot to call a cab, Madison runs down to the subway and gets on.

After getting off at her stop, she runs to her apartment building and is practically out of breath by the time she makes it to the elevator. Cursing when she sees it is broken, she makes a dash for the stairs. Reaching her floor, she jogs down her hall and feels a shiver run up her spine when she passes Dylan's door. Shaking the feeling off, she quickly opens her door and throws her things on the couch. She runs into her bathroom and brushes her teeth while trying to unsuccessfully put her hair into a nice ponytail. She looks down at her watch and sees that she has little time left. By the time she is done getting dressed, she only has seven minutes left. Grabbing her keys, purse, and cell phone, she runs out and locks the door. She practically pisses her pants when she sees Dylan standing directly behind her.

"Shit Dylan! What the fuck?!" Placing her hand over her racing heart, she looks up and scowls. "What do you want?" Dylan looks down into Madison's flawless face and knew he had fucked up. Well technically it wasn't he who had fucked up. He had just been telling her not to act like some whore. Pushing those feelings aside, he sucks up his pride and looks into Madison's eyes.

"I'm sorry." He sees how she angry she still is and feels himself start to become angry. 'Spoiled brat. It's not his fault that she was acting like a whore, dry humping some guy on a wall. Dumb bitch. All that will certainly change once I have you', he thinks to himself. Taking in a deep breath, he focuses back on her eyes, "I didn't mean to come off so...blunt. I was only trying to help. Look. I didn't want to see you get hurt. I know it wasn't right for me to say what I said, but please just forgive me." He asks. He watches as her face turns soft and knows he has her.

Madison looks into Dylan's eyes and realizes he is being sincere. Smiling, she reaches up and gives him a hug. "You know I can't resist you when you make that face." She says into his chest.

Dylan smiles and breaths in her scent only to come into contact with the foul smell of wet dog. Stepping back, he looks into Madison's eyes. Madison notices the color of Dylan's eyes practically changing to silver and his face contorting as if he just smelled something sour.

"What?" Shaking his head, Dylan smells her again.

"You smell of wet dog." He says with a scowl. Smelling her arm, Madison shrugs her shoulders. The only thing that she smells is a faint wisp of Dante. That wasn't bad, was it?

"I only smell like that guy at the club. What's wrong? Does it stink?" Taking in this information, Dylan shrugs his shoulders.

"No. It just doesn't smell right on you. Maybe that's a sign." Smiling, Madison playfully slaps him on the shoulder and looks down at her watch.

"Shit. Dylan I have to go. I'll talk to you later when I get in ok?" Dylan watches as Madison runs down the steps and can't help his scowl. Going into his apartment, he puts his head on the back of his door. A dog? A fucking dog?! Of all things, why did his sweet Maddy have to meet a dog? Then on top of that, she comes in here reeking of him as if they had sex and she didn't even think to take a shower. Stupid whore. Hissing, he walks over to the couch and sits down. Leaning back, he looks at all the pictures of Madison that he has on his coffee table.

"Sweet Maddy. Although you believe this dog may be the one, I will show you different...even if I have to kill him..." Kill him. That's exactly what he will need to do if she sees him again. "But I will need some...help." Reaching for his phone, he quickly dialed a number. Waiting for the dial tone, he thinks of his plan. He smiles when he hears His voice on the other line.

"Hello?" A smooth voice answers.

"I need your help."

**

Madison quickly goes to the back door, hoping that her boss wouldn't see her. Running to the back room, she throws off her many layers of clothing while cursing New York. Looking for her apron, she quickly puts it on and reaches for her pad. About to go to her tables, she groans when her boss walks into the room.

"Well, well. That will be...five minutes late. Which will mean fifty dollars off of your check and you can close up today as a special treat." Rolling her eyes, Madison walks around him and curses under her breath. She reaches out for the door, but is stopped by him grabbing her wrist. Spinning her around, he quickly backs her up against the door and places his hands on the both sides of her head. Leaning down, he whispers in her ear.

"Is there a problem?" Madison feels like she is about to throw up. Although she knows her boss is attracted to her, the last thing she needs is what was happening right now. Swallowing down the bile that threatens to come up, she looks him in the eyes.

"No..." She says quietly. Moe looks down at Madison and feels his manhood rise. Tonight will be the night, he thinks to himself. He's been waiting all these years for a chance to get between her thighs...those toned, soft thighs. He looks down at her lips and can't wait to plunder them with his kisses. Stepping from in between her legs, he takes a step back and reaches for the door, pulling it open. He watches her ass as she walks out the room and moans. 'Yup...tonight is the night.'

The day for Madison went the same as any other day of the week. The good customers, the bad, the annoying. There was no change. She did, however, avoid Moe every chance she got. All throughout the day she could feel him watching, like a predator watching his prey. As closing time comes, she inwardly groans to herself. 'Just get through this and it will be all over', she couches herself to no avail.

As she is wiping off the tables, when she feels him come up behind her. 'Great. This is the last position he needs to catch me in', she thinks to herself. Moving around the table to push in the chairs, she feels him watching her every move as if he is waiting for the right time to pounce. Going over to another table, she quickly cleans it up. She is knocked out of her daze when she sees him go over to the window and pull down the blinds. Getting an unsettling feeling, she puts down the cleaner and reaches for her things over at the bar. 'Thank goodness I was smart enough to get my stuff from the back', she thinks to herself. As she is putting on her coat, she feels him slither up behind her.

"Where are you going Madison? You're not finished here." Swallowing, Madison turns around and comes face to face with his chest. Wringing out her hands, she looks up into his eyes.

"I'm going home. It's getting late and I don't want to be out all night." She says, proud that her voice didn't crack. She flinches when he reaches up and sweeps a lose strand of her behind her ear. Closing her eyes, she silently prays that what she believes is going to happen next, won't happen. She feels him lean down towards her face and quickly stretches her neck back as far as it will go.

"No, no, no Maddy." Grabbing the back of her neck, he forcefully grips her head and holds it in place as he leans down. Tightening her lips, she breaths a sigh of relief when the front door opens. She hears Moe growl and thanks God for the distraction. Expecting him to let her go, she is surprised when he doesn't.

"We're closed." Moe says without thinking or breaking his grip from Madison. Dante looks over to where Moe is standing and feels his anger boil. After his encounter with her at the club, Dante curses himself for not getting any information from her. Luckily he had Gino follow her home that night, so he knew her address. He went there to gather some information from her roommate and was surprised when he found out it was Tiffany. He was even more surprised that Madison didn't even live there. After getting all the information he needed, he came here to invite her to the dinner that he had promised, but he definitely wasn't expecting this. Why the fuck is that man standing so intimately against my mate? He asks Gino mentally. Trying to calm down, he clears his throat.

"I said we're clo-" Moe immediately stops when he sees his Alpha standing by the door and by the way he is looking at him, he is not happy. Taking a step back from Madison, he clears his throat. "S-sorry sir. I didn't see you there."

Although Madison is relieved to see Dante, she is also embarrassed. The last thing he needs to think is that she is some slut jumping from guy to guy. 'And to think I was actually interested in this guy', she thinks in defeat. Buttoning up her coat, she puts on her scarf as fast as she can. 'The quicker I get out of here, the quicker I can deal with this.' She curses when all of the contents fall out of her purse and leans down to pick all of it up.

"H-here. Let me help you" She watches as Moe is about to help her and is surprised when she hears a growl. Stopping in the middle of her task, she looks up and sees Dante standing right in front of her, glaring at Moe, who quickly backs away from her. In another situation, she would have laughed at how much of a little bitch he looked like right now. Looking back at Dante, she notices that he is looking down at her. Suddenly nervous, she goes back to stuffing everything into her purse. Getting up, she readjusts herself and looks at Dante.

"Hi..." she says breathlessly. Dante didn't know what had come over him, but seeing Moe want to help his mate set him off. He didn't mean to growl, but luckily Madison didn't seem to think it was so weird. He can tell that she is nervous about what he is going to think of what he saw and, for some reason, he likes it. He knows she doesn't want Moe, he could smell her fear as soon as he walked in. The thing was, why did Moe want her? Although she is an attractive woman, that he could admit, his scent is still on her. Any wolf can smell that. So why didn't Mo? So caught up in his thoughts, he doesn't even realize Madison has said something to him. He sees the hurt flash in her eyes and stops her attempt to walk around him. Pulling her close to his body, he reaches up and runs his thumb against the bottom of her lip.

"Hello love." He hears her sigh in relief and can't help but smile. Bending down, he places a chaste kiss on her lips. He feels her shiver and smiles. Feeling his wolf want to come out and not only rip Moe's head off, but also plunder their mate on the floor, he quickly calms himself and takes a step back. Lacing his fingers with hers, he looks over at Moe. "I'm sure you can close tonight, correct?" He watches as Moe nods his head and turns around. Walking towards the door, he opens it and lets Madison go out first.

'Make sure he doesn't treat Madison like that again', he mentally tells Gino. Watching Gino go back inside, he opens the passenger door for Madison, waiting for her to climb in and buckle up before shutting the door. Walking over to the driver's side, he gets in and sighs. Starting up the car, he pulls away from the curb and starts driving to their destination. He looks over at Madison and notices that she is biting her lip. He knows she is nervous, probably thinking he is about to blow her off. Reaching over, he laces their fingers together and kisses her hand.

"Don't worry so much." Madison looks over at Dante, who is focused on the road and sighs. 'Stop it. He doesn't think anything of it. Just let it be', she tries to tell herself. Biting on her lip, she is sure there will be a bruise on her neck by tomorrow. Relaxing back in her seat, Madison feels her exhaustion taking over and before she knows it, she is asleep.

Dante looks over at her sleeping form and smiles. She looks so at peace when she's asleep, he thinks to himself. Redirecting his route, he sets out towards the den. Letting go of her hand, he pulls out his phone and dials Gino.

"Hello?"

"What's going on?" He asks, not caring if he sounds abrupt. The last thing he needs is for one of his pack members to be a threat to his mate on top of her crazy friend.

"Well hello to you too and nothing really. After telling him that she is to take no more late shifts, he looked like a scared little pup. Other than that, he seems normal." Dante shakes his head. He didn't understand. There is no possible way that any wolf cannot smell the claim from another wolf on their mate. It is too distinct. There is something else going on. Realizing they are almost to their destination, Dante sighs.

"Alright. I'll see you back at the den." Pulling up to the curb, he turns off the engine and sighs. Looking over at Madison, he admires her beauty one more time, hating the fact that he has to wake her up. Reaching over, he lightly shakes her. He smiles when she pops up like she was just splashed with cold water and gets out of the car. Reaching her side, he opens the door and reaches for her hand.

"Where are we?" Madison asks, even though she is pretty sure that she already knows. She is surprised and slightly embarrassed that she had fallen asleep in the car. Reaching out for his hand, she steps down from the truck and nearly falls. Squeaking, she is glad that he is there to catch her or she would have fallen straight on her face.

"Careful there." Dante smiles when he sees her slight blush and gently grabs her hand. Walking them inside, he hands his keys to the valet, who is staring at Madison like a piece of meat. Pulling her closer to his body, he nuzzles her neck and sees him tense. 'That's right. Don't touch her.' Dante says mentally. Pulling her inside, he sees a few curious looks from his pack members, but ignores them. Turning towards the elevator, he escorts her inside and presses the button for the top level.