Awakening the Alpha Read Online Free PDF Page A

her name and address in his hand. Now he planned to drop Sol off at Fara’s farm. He was sure she wouldn’t mind if, under the circumstances, he skipped painting her house and went to find his mate instead.
    The smile on his face was so wide it hurt. Almost as much as his heart hurt not having Natalie near to him.
     

Chapter Six - Natalie
    The croissants were burnt on the bottom. She had never burnt anything in her life; well, except for that time when she was six years old and she had made her mom breakfast on Mother’s Day. But her mom had eaten the toast anyway, telling her how delicious it was and the black bits were a special touch.
    Her mom had given her a love of baking, and when she left Wolf Valley, needing to find a career, she had known it was the one thing that could ease her loneliness. She loved creating things, adding new flavours, trying new creations. One day her dream was to have a bakery of her own, but until then she would have to work for her boss, Trudy, who at least let her indulge her creative skills. She was also the closest thing Natalie had to a best friend.
    Hastily making a second batch, she put them in the oven and began getting the other cakes and pastries ready for display. The shop would soon begin getting busy, and the chatter of friendly customers would filter back to her. She always felt a sense of pride and accomplishment when she heard so many compliments on her baking. But today was most likely going to lead to the first complaints.
    “You OK, Nat? You seem a little off your game today,” Trudy asked, coming in to wrinkle her nose at the smell of burnt pastry.
    “Feeling a little under the weather, that’s all,” Natalie lied.
    “You look tired. Sleepless night?” Trudy had a shocking thought and then added, “You haven’t found yourself a man, have you? A roll in the hay, was it?”
    “Nope. It was not,” Natalie said. Well, not in real life, but if her alarm hadn’t woken her she would have had an imaginary roll in the hay, or on the ground anyway .
    Trudy returned to the front of the store, leaving Natalie to her chores. Straightening up, she placed her hand over her stomach, feeling the same queasy sensation she had experienced when she ran away from her mate. Would it ever get any better, or would this be her constant feeling? One thing, it might mean she lost a few pounds, because if she was going to live the rest of her life feeling lovesick, then she would shed a few pounds off her curvy body. Although she had always enjoyed having a voluptuous figure.
    However, today nothing could tempt her to eat. The lack of food made her feel light-headed, or at least that’s what she thought was making her feel light-headed. Until the sensation got stronger and she realised with a shock that it wasn’t lack of food, it was the very close proximity of her mate that was making her feel faint.
    She heard his voice, a moment of recognition hitting her smack-bang between the eyes before an excited-looking Trudy came out to whisper, “There’s a man asking for you.”
    “Tell him I’m not here.” Natalie shook her head, leaving Trudy in no doubt that she wanted to avoid the man.
    “I can’t. He said he knew you were here. I can’t lie to him. Not a bare-faced lie like that,” Trudy said innocently.
    “Lying to men doesn’t usually bother you, Trudy,” Natalie said, looking over her shoulder to catch a glimpse of him.
    Trudy laughed. “That’s different; I like to use them then lose them. But this one, well, I might hang on to him if he were mine. In fact, if you really aren’t interested, then maybe I could give him my number and ask him to call me. Waste not, want not,” Trudy said with a wink.
    That thought horrified Natalie. What if he did go off with another woman? Her mind was drawn back to the story of the beta of Wolf Valley. Would her mate cheat on her? If he thought she was playing hard to get, might he need some other woman to satisfy his urges?
    No.