"Alright, mama. I'll see you in a few weeks. Be safe."

I could hear her sigh on the other end, "I wish you and Alrik would just–"

"Sorry mama, I have to end the call. Love you."

I stabbed the end-call button on the steering wheel before she could reply and furrowed my eyebrows. My mother always tried to bring him up every time she flew over to visit his pack, and the conversation always ended awkwardly. She had to understand that I was not going to speak to or of him until he made the first move.

A dull ache filled my chest at the thought of how long that would take.

Moving to Russia was the best thing I could do for our relationship, and I had no regrets. I was making a name for myself as the Alpha of the Silver-Claw Shadows here. (A/N: I know the pack names are weird, but blame the brothers, not me 😂.)

I glanced at the clock and listened to my stomach growl like a wild animal in the silence of my car. It was only noon, and I had breakfast an hour ago, but my stomach was rumbling like I hadn't eaten in days.

With an annoyed grunt, I pulled off the main road and drove down the side street to find some place to eat, which did not take long at all. The first place that caught my eye was an orange building with bright cursive letters and a pie and a cupcake hung above the door on either side of the name.

For Goodness' Bakes.

My lips twitched into a smile at the little pun, and I hurried into the bakery with an odd sensation in my stomach – probably another sign of how hungry I was.

The moment I flung the door open, a bell chimed to announce my entrance, and a tall blonde she-wolf rushed from the kitchen to greet me at the counter.

"Hello there," her eyes widened as she looked me up and down, "You're new."

I recognized the glint of lust in her eyes and cringed internally. She was far too young for me to even consider entertaining.

"Alpha Aleksei of the Silver-Claw Shadows," I introduced myself politely, holding my hand out and staring her down so she would take the hint.

Her mouth formed an 'O', and her cheeks turned a light shade of pink as she shook my hand, "Pardon, Alpha Aleksei. Welcome to our pack. My name is Yasmine, and it is an honor to be able to serve you today. What would you like to order?"

"What do you recommend?"

"Everything. My brother and mother are wonderful bakers. We haven't heard a single complaint about any of our desserts. Our bundt cakes–"

As she continued her advertisement, my eyes were drawn to the door behind her that swung open as an enormous man hunched over his tray to fit through the frame. I could only see the top of his head that was bent over the fresh eclairs he had begun placing in the glass display.

My eyes traced his broad shoulders and muscled chest that strained against his shirt and apron as he moved. His arms were covered with black tattoos that each seemed to tell their own story.

"So what would you like to try?"

I blinked and returned my attention to the eager she-wolf in front of me. She started at me expectantly as if she thought I had really listened to her ramble about the different desserts they had to offer when the only dessert I wanted was kneeling behind her, "I would like two eclairs please."

"Oo, Yerik," Yasmine called to the mysterious man, "Can you pack two eclairs for Alpha Aleksei? I'm going to go get one of mama's cinnamon buns."

His head popped up, and a small smirk formed on my lips as his moss-green eyes met mine.

Found you, my mate.

Contrary to my confident appearance on the outside, I was swamped with emotion on the inside. My heart was thumping against my rib cage a million miles per minute, and my stomach was not just roaring with hunger anymore.

Yerik was beyond the looks of any man I had ever seen before. He had curly brown hair that was the color of the chocolate frosting on his precious eclairs and sharp features that were softened just a bit by the sweetness in his green eyes.

"It's on the house by the way," Yasmine said to me as she whirled around into the kitchen, leaving me and my mate, who seemed very nervous all of a sudden.

Maybe he didn't expect to be mated to a male.

I ignored the sting of that thought and stared at him as he handled the eclairs gingerly, imagining what it would be like to be held in his large hands.

And now I'm jealous of a dessert.

"Yerik, right?" I said, leaning my forearms on the display case.

His shoulders tightened as if he was surprised by my question, "Yes, Alpha."

"Call me Aleksei. You are my mate."

I guess my blunt statement caught him off guard because he straightened and rushed back to the kitchen, nearly knocking his head on his door frame in his hurry.

I blinked, taken aback by his exit, and frowned as Yasmine returned with a confused look on her face.

"Here's your order, Alpha," she said, bagging the cinnamon bun and handing it to me.

I slapped a twenty on the counter, "Where did Yerik go?"

"He went to take the trash out, Alpha. Is something wrong?"

I shook my head at her terrified expression, "No, don't worry about it. I'll be back tomorrow."

"Of course, Alpha. It will be a pleasure to have you back."

I smiled and nodded at her, glancing at the door to the kitchen one last time before making my exit.

If my mate thought I was going to leave him alone after his cold shoulder, he was wrong.

I was going to give this all or muffin.

***

Five days later, I found myself in an awful mood and chopping wood to try to release my frustration.

The only issue was that I had no idea what I was doing, and the wood was being cut up into uneven pieces.

There was a reason why I let Alrik deal with the wood.

I huffed and tossed the logs into the pile of other skewed chunks.

My frustration had grown with every failed visit to the bakery where I made no progress with Yerik.

For such an enormous man, he sure knew how to stay out of sight.

Every time I had gone in, he was either throwing out the trash or out on an "emergency ingredient run". Yasmine, who I discovered was his sister, was not a good liar, and I knew the moment she stammered out some ridiculous excuse for the third time, that Yerik had a deeper issue than just being afraid of being mated to a man.

If only I knew what was keeping him from me.

I raised the ax above my head again only to freeze when a twig snapped behind me. The sweet smell of baked goods overwhelmed my senses, and I put the ax down slowly, waiting for him to approach me even though I didn't look back.

The dead leaves crunched under his feet as he walked closer.

"Your technique could use some work," he said softly, the deep timbre of his voice sending shivers down my spine.

I bit back a smile, "What do you suggest?"

"Spread your legs. Arms above your head."

"Yes, sir. Should I get on my knees, sir?"

He ignored me, but I could hear his sharp intake of breath.

"Distribute your weight evenly."

I wanted to make another smart remark, but I decided to stay quiet and not scare him off when he had said more in the last thirty seconds than he had to me since we met.

So with a smirk playing on my lips, I did as he said and brought the ax down swiftly and created a clean cut in the log.

"That was good. You pick up quick," he stated.

I dropped the ax and ripped my gloves off, finally turning around to face him, "Yeah, I can pick up a lot of things, but apparently, I can't pick up my mate."

Immediately, his eyes darted over my shirtless torso and down to the ground, and his hands were shoved into the pockets of his sweats.

"You've been avoiding me. Why?" I asked, trying not to admire his physique.

"I wasn't sure what to make of you. You didn't seem disgusted by me and–"

"Who would be disgusted by you?"

He cleared his throat, "My first mate."

A growl escaped my lips at the hurt in his voice, "Then he or she is a blind idiot."

To think that someone could have the audacity to make someone so large feel so small.

"He," Yerik muttered, "It was a he, and he didn't want to be mated to a man. "

"Well, I'll thank my lucky stars that he was a fucktard. I always had a feeling I would have an Alpha by my side instead of a Luna, even if I don't mind either."

Yerik's lips curved into a beautiful smile that made his eyes glow with hope, "So?"

I shrugged and raised my hands in surrender, "Hey, I'm yours if you'll have me. My balls are in your court now. Take them or toss them."

He rolled his eyes at the insinuation and stepped forward, gripping my chin with one hand.

My stomach tightened, "Does this mean you're not tossing my balls out? Because I need verbal confirmation bef–"

"For heaven's sake, be silent. You are mine now," he muttered and leaned over, pressing his warm lips against mine.