You belong in my bed.

“Wait, before I run - how do I know that you won't cheat? Let's be real - my chances here are pretty low; you're a wolf, someone who's designed for hunting down their prey.” Seth crossed her arms in front of her chest, refusing to follow Luciano's commands.

She didn't like how he explained rules, especially when the Alpha demanded that she had to be submissive.

“For all I care, you can make my task easier by standing here, kitten. I won't have to run around like a hungry animal, chasing you down. Instead, I will throw you over my shoulder and bring you home - please, be my guest, hand me the victory so easily,” Luciano grinned, feeling like a winner.

He was quite excited about the opportunity to chase her down; however, he didn't mind getting out using the easier way as well. Of course, he wouldn't admit that Seth had nowhere to hide - it didn't matter where or how far she ran; he would catch her anyway.

Luciano expected that she might try to keep on arguing, fighting back like the firecracker she was. But, she surprised him with the sly grin on her face, bolting away the next moment.

Seth didn't head towards the Council territory, she ran towards the town. How could Luciano cheat when she was the one who tried to be sneaky and avoid any rules?

Seth thought that all she had to do was run out of the forest, and the town was closer, but she never asked him where the line was to cross for victory. Technically, she already lost by running in the wrong direction.

Perhaps Seth's behavior would piss off any other Alpha wolf, but her rebellious nature and constant need to prove something excited Luciano. He scanned the surroundings, mentally planning the route she might choose for her escape.

The Alpha could take all the time he needed - it was dark, and she had no idea where she was. Seth wasn't familiar with her surroundings, barely recalling the direction she came from in the first place.

Luciano smiled, took a glance at the sky, and howled at the full moon. “Such a great night to be alive,” he thought to himself, taking a deep breath. Seth was right about one thing - Luciano, same as any other wolf, was naturally designed for hunting, and Seth was his prey.

He could hear her in the distance, falling over tree branches and cursing each time when her body collided with the forest soil. Even though Seth was getting hurt, the thought amused him - Luciano would have a chance to look after her when he took her home.

It nearly felt as if she was fighting for survival while he casually walked around the forest, enjoying the fresh air and the atmosphere surrounding him. If Luciano were right, she would have to run for about half an hour to get out of the forest, and for some reason, he thought that making her sweat would be worth it.

While she ran - Seth would feel many different emotions. At first, she might be scared, confused as to why he didn't follow her until she finally would feel comfortable enough to announce early victory.

When she did - that's when Luciano would surprise her. Even though Demon kept acting like an excited pup, eager to run and catch her - Luciano was the cruel one, toying with Seth.

He smiled, thinking of all the things he would make her do. She definitely wouldn't expect Luciano to treat her as a maid, but Lord would he - all for that skin-tight uniform she would wear.

Luciano was ready to spend the rest of his life on the living room sofa if only he could watch Seth in that tiny piece of clothing, bending over and cleaning. He chuckled to himself, dismissing comments his wolf kept throwing at him.

“Isn't it time to run? What do you think?” Demon ran back and forth, ready to take over the body if Luciano would keep on hesitating. Unlike his human side, the wolf was all in for winning the little chase they decided to play.

The more time Luciano wasted, the more frustrated Demon grew, refusing to lose his chance to hunt down the prey.

“Be patient; let's give her a head start. Don't you think it's more interesting - to let her believe that she won and surprise our little kitten when she expects less?” Luciano chuckled, trying to ignore his wolf and catch on any sound that might let him know how far she had gotten.

As it seemed, Seth was a way faster runner than expected, and unlike his predictions - she didn't let her emotions guide her. By now, she should have slowed down and silently celebrated the victory she might reach within five minutes, but instead, she forced herself to run even faster.

“Told you. Run,” Demon made fun out of his human side, repeating the same word that Luciano had told Seth.

Luciano didn't waste more time - he wouldn't let her win the race even if he'd reach his death before reaching Seth. He didn't see any obstacles in his way - jumping over any fallen tree on his way, cutting in everywhere possible to take the shortcuts.

Luciano caught on her scent, growling out loud in excitement. He nearly laughed when he overheard a yelp of surprise - his growl obviously startled Seth. Her feet hit the soil faster, with more force, as if she tried to catch on someone while running the last stage of a marathon.

A joyful giggle left her lips when Seth noticed the dim lights of the city nearing - she almost reached the goal. “Breakfast in bed here I come,” she thought to herself, making the biggest mistake she could. Just as the Alpha expected, she unknowingly celebrated the victory she hadn't reached yet.

Instead of running out of the forest area, Seth ran into a rock wall at full speed, her body flying back. She landed on her ass, crying out in pain from the impact. Seth let her body collide with the soil, losing any hope to win and giving up. In a matter of seconds, Luciano was in front of her, hovering over her tired form.

She glanced at the Alpha, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion. It was clear that they had a great time together; Luciano had pointed out that multiple times, but the concern written all over his face confused Seth.

“Kitten, are you alright? Where does it hurt?” Luciano didn't touch her. If anything - he kept a distance between their bodies to avoid hurting her even more.

Luciano knew that standing in front of her and letting Seth run into him was quite stupid, yet better than jumping at her and pinning her body down. With his body weight, it might lead to major injuries taking in the difference between both size and weight of their bodies.

“I'm alright, just ran into a damn wall at full speed, no biggie,” Seth snarled, replying with the most sarcastic words that came to her mind.

She suspected that she might lose, but it didn't mean that she wouldn't try again next week. Each time she lost - she would learn from her mistakes until she had enough information to use it against him.

“Sorry, this was the least painful way I could think of to stop you,” Luciano smiled, his eyes glued on her face. If it was possible, Seth suddenly became even more beautiful than she ever was.

The moonlight illuminating the forest made her skin shine and red hair stand out even more. Seth was one of a kind, the type of woman who was nearly impossible to find both for her looks and personality.

Since the first time when Luciano met her - the Alpha was sure that the woman was unique, no other woman could compare to her, and she would change his life.

The only thing he didn't know was if the change would come for worse or better, but he was more than ready to take the risk.

Seth was way too tired to think of some smartass remarks or fight back. Just as expected, Luciano won, and her Alpha cat blood wouldn't help her anyway, mostly since she lacked even the most basic training skills.

The last time Seth ran was in New York City when she was late for a job interview, and even then, she gave up halfway there. Anton tried to talk her into living a more healthy lifestyle and exercising together, but Seth preferred eating ice cream and watching movies.

Now, she regretted her decision; perhaps she would be capable of escaping if only she weren't as lazy in the first place.

“You cheated,” she breathed out, attempting to push him off of her. Seth expected for him to smile at her smugly, same as he did whenever he was right about something or won an argument, but the smile didn't appear.

He grabbed her wrists in one hand and pinned them above her head, making it hard to move.

Luciano had a known habit of trapping her whenever he had a chance, but she didn't attempt to fight back this time. “If anything, I don't cheat, kitten. I am an Alpha, not your everyday nobody who would use dirty tricks to get whatever he wants. I chased you down fair and square; even gave you an impressive head start, yet you still complain. I'll even be kind enough to offer you another chance to beat me if that's so important. Two out of three?” Luciano wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, a mischievous spark dancing in his eyes.

At this point, in this position, she wasn't sure if she wanted to move. The way he eyed her could only be described as a predator watching their prey.

His eyes held nothing but raw lust and need, giving out the inner battle he had with himself. Seth didn't notice how her teeth trapped her bottom lip.

“Stop!” Luciano growled, his eyes turning a shade darker. Seth gasped as he leaned closer, their lips nearly touching.

“I'm not doing anything,” she whispered, trying to look away.

“But I am about to do something if you won't stop tempting me. Woman, wait till we get back home; I'm not about to create a whole scene from pornography movie to those creatures out here.” The look of surprise on her face couldn't stop amusing Luciano even after years.

The Alpha admired Seth for her nature - she was a true succubus in the bedroom and nearly the most innocent creature outside it. Of course, only if he ignored her smart mouth and times she managed to curse like a sailor.

Finally, when Seth decided to stay quiet and close her eyes - Luciano leaned down a little more, brushing his lips against hers. Seth let out a shaking breath, but she didn't resist or try to move away from the Alpha.

Their lips collided a second later, his free hand traveling down her side, holding her pressed against the soil. He nibbled on her bottom lip, asking for entrance. Seth didn't hesitate to part her lips, allowing Luciano to deepen their kiss.

Luciano would lie if he tried to say that he wasn't savoring her taste, acting as if this was their first and last kiss. He let go of her wrists, placing a hand next to her head, holding most of his body weight off of her.

A deep growl formed in his chest before he finally broke their kiss, leaving Seth panting for breath, desperately wanting more than just a mere kiss. She tried to wrap her hands around his neck and pull him in, but he stood up and grinned, watching how she attempted to follow his lead.

“I told you that we're not doing porn in the middle of the forest, baby. You're one hell of a naughty kitten; leave it for later when we get back home.” Luciano winked and stretched his body, feeling a little sore from hovering over her.

Seth brought her fists up to her eyes and rubbed them, yawning as she did. She was ready to fall asleep in the middle of the forest - her day had been quite eventful, and the chase took a lot of her energy.

However, Luciano looked like he had more than enough energy as he leaned down, snuck his arm under her knees, and thew her over his shoulder.

“I can walk, you know,” Seth banged her fists against his back, which was as rock-hard as his chest was. She hated his attitude at times, especially when Luciano threw her over his shoulder as if she was a sack of potatoes.

“I know, but this is part of the chase. Stop struggling - you lost, kitten. I chased you down, and you didn't manage to escape me; therefore, I have all rights to bring you home.” Luciano didn't explain all of the reasons why it was more common for men to carry their women over the shoulder.

It was a unique way of showing off their power and victory - having a trophy over a shoulder. Besides, if any other Alpha saw them - whoever did would instantly back off Seth.

The Alphas would see his action as a claim over the woman. She didn't yet know that the chase was quite an important part of claiming someone as their fated partner, but Luciano would come clean in time. One day he would.

“You could have offered to carry me there and at least hold me as a man is supposed to hold a woman. What is it with you and the caveman behavior?” Seth tried to reason with him.

“Keep that smart mouth running, I'll enjoy shutting it. When I think of it - listening to you, yelling out my name seems much better than this. Keep my words in mind because this is a promise, kitten. I will make you scream my name.” Images of Seth, naked beneath his body, instantly flooded his mind. Luciano had a hard time walking even after stealing the kiss from her; these thoughts didn't help much.

“You can't have sex. Don't you remember the main reason why I was assigned to look after you?” Seth laughed, unaware of how far he would go to get what he wanted. The Council was important, but it didn't mean that the elderly men might have actual power over Alphas.

“Correction: I can't have women come over to my house. The Council said nothing about sleeping with you.” Luciano chuckled, enjoying her hopeless attempts to resist him.

The things Seth did amuse him more than anything ever did, especially when she tried to hide the attraction she had for him. For the first time, Luciano was near a woman who rekt of arousal while pushing him away.

“Well, the Council is sure that you have no idea about my gender either, remember?” If Seth stood face to face with him now, she would cross her arms in front of her chest and grin like a maniac. She was sure that she won the argument.

“In that case, I will make sure to let them know. Pretty sure they will understand that I know as soon as they see you next week.” His words confused her. His voice's tone was low and a bit dangerous, but his words were laced in amusement.

“What do you mean? Are you going to throw me over your sofa and spank me till I can't sit?”

“Quite the opposite. I might have many plans for you, but none includes the sofa unless it's a thing you've been dreaming of. I would love to say I wouldn't involve spanking, yet that would be another lie. I can't resist those moans and how wet you get after getting spanked - that's fucking hot. Other than that, you belong in my bed, kitten.”