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he wanted to look for me. I followed him with my eyes as far as I could from the window, then went into my apartment, feeling somewhat relieved that I had gotten away unnoticed. However, my mind kept straying back to the stranger and comparing him in my mind to my mate, Alpha Silas. The knock on the door made my heart race, and I hesitated, wondering who it could be. I flung the door open and was met by a smirking Alpha Silas. My heart dropped. "Happy to see me?" he asked sarcastically. The urge to snort almost hit me, as I was still a bit off with the stranger. Silas was dull compared to him; he completely missed the something that made my heart hiccup. "What, you zoning out on me?" Silas growled, snapping me back to reality. I shook my head, trying to clear the cobwebs. "You were saying?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. Silas was really happy with my fear. But still, what couldn't leave my mind was how the stranger did; he just made me feel so acknowledged, listened to, and cared for. The difference between those two men was striking, leaving me in awe of what could have been if only I met the stranger under other conditions. It was still fresh, the memory of last night's rejection, which would have festered; and Alpha Silas now presented himself as very keen on ripping the flesh. "I take it that you are terribly hurt because of the way I rejected you last night," he mocked, his voice filled with disdain. I shivered down my spine, watching him start to circle around me with a look of wild hunger in his eyes. But I stood my ground, even as my mind, dazed from the stranger's warning, threatened to give way. "I may not be able to accept you as my mate due to your low status," Silas continued, his voice laced with disdai