Chapter 18
It was the first month Tessa had spent aboard the cruise ship. She gazed at the endless flow of exciting “news” on her phone, feeling an unexpected sense of happiness.
Most importantly, she was no longer affected by the irrelevant matters that once weighed her
down.
Leaving the pack meant no one could contact her.
The ship had everything she could need, but sometimes she still felt a pang of loneliness.
Her wolf, Clara, was sluggish every day, mourning the loss of her mate.
“I miss our mate,” Clara said.
“We no longer have a mate,” Tessa replied nonchalantly. “That kind of mate isn’t worth having.”
“Do you think we’ll meet a new mate?” Clara asked with a hint of hope.
Tessa fell silent.
Compared to the failed relationship she had endured or the thought of facing another mate who might betray her, she would rather embrace the solitude.
The ship arrived in Naples early this morning.
Buildings unlike any she had ever seen appeared before her, just as she had imagined.
It was 6 a.m., and everything was calm and perfect.
Seagulls flew overhead, their calls sweet to the ears.
Tessa smiled, but when she turned, she locked eyes with a man standing on the deck of the ship next to hers.
“Mate,” Clara whispered, her voice filled with disbelief.
Tessa and the man both froze.
“We’ve found our new mate!” Clara exclaimed, excitement in her voice.
Tessa was just as stunned.
She had met her fated mate again, and even more coincidentally, they owned the same cruise.
Tessa blinked, recalling that when she bought the cruise, the salesperson had mentioned that there were only two ships like this in the world.
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The vastness of the world had led them to meet.
It was fate.
Tessa studied the man in front of her. He seemed mature and composed, and he stared at her for a long time when their eyes met.
Tessa offered him a small smile, but before either of them could say anything, the ships started to drift apart, heading in different directions.
By the time the sun rose, the other ship had caught up with hers. Tessa saw the man standing outside again, unsure if he was admiring the breathtaking view or waiting for someone.
He held a bottle of red wine in his hand, dressed in casual clothes, but there was something about his strong, confident stature that set him apart from ordinary werewolves.
He called out to her politely, offering an invitation.
“Would you like to try some wine?” he asked, gesturing to the bottle in his hand.
Tessa had been approached many times on her travels, but none of those encounters had left an impression. She had rejected the advances of many strangers in different countries, believing that fate couldn’t be forced.
But meeting a mate abroad on the same cruise ship? That was different.
The moment Tessa laid eyes on him, she knew he was her mate, and Clara shared her excitement.
As the wind blew through her hair, Tessa met his deep gaze and nodded slightly.
“Sure,” she replied softly.
For safety reasons, her mate came aboard her ship, accompanied by a group of warriors.
At first, Tessa found it strange, but she didn’t dwell on it.
The first dinner they shared aboard the ship felt awkward for Tessa.
Since boarding the cruise, she had eaten alone every day, but this time, the man’s engaging conversation eased her nervousness.
They found they shared many interests and topics to discuss. She learned his name was Aaron Brooks.
“Wait a minute, you’re Aaron Brooks?” she asked, incredulous. “The Alpha King Aaron Brooks?”
“You’re not joking, are you?”
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“Is that so surprising?” Aaron said with a gentle laugh, watching her surprise.
They talked well into the night, and as they parted, Aaron looked back reluctantly, still smiling
warmly.
“Will we meet again tomorrow?” he asked softly.
He didn’t know that Naples was Tessa’s destination, and he feared the ship would disappear when he woke up.
Tessa blinked in surprise. “What? Is this how you treat all the girls before your mate shows up?”
she teased.
Aaron chuckled and waved it off.
“Not really.”
After they parted, she lay in bed, replaying the events in her mind.
She kept thinking about Aaron’s face–it seemed so familiar, like she had seen him before, but she couldn’t place where.
Today had been one of the happiest days since her trip started, and the source of that joy was the unfamiliar Alpha King who was her mate.
She wasn’t one to force fate, and she accepted the idea that things happened as they were meant to.
Still, his face kept appearing in her thoughts, and she couldn’t shake the feeling that she had met him somewhere before.
Would he betray her like Ryan did?
Chapter 18
