When he arrived, he parked his car a few blocks away and proceeded to the entrance. His heart pounded with excitement as he caught a whiff of sweetness in the air. It had a vanilla and honey fragrance to it. The scent of his mate had such an effect on him that he was unable to resist it. As he walked through the hallways, he kept his nose up and his senses alert in an effort to pinpoint the exact location of the scent's source.

He eventually found himself in front of a classroom. He knew that Maya was inside, but he didn't want to barge in unannounced. He approached one of the windows and peered inside. There she was, sitting and staring into blank space. She appeared to be even more stunning than he remembered. He wished he could run his fingers through her beautiful, blonde hair that fell down her back. He could feel his heart swell with love and admiration.

As he watched, he noticed a slight frown on her face. He wondered what was bothering her. He wished that he could read her mind to know what she was thinking about. He would be able to read her thoughts and feel all of her emotions as soon as he marked her. His wolf, Ray, was very excited and he purred.

"What's going on, buddy?" he asked silently in his mind.

"I can feel it, Ethan. She's our mate. Mark her right now," Ray replied.

"We can't mark her without her consent," Ethan reminded his wolf.

"I know, I know," Ray grumbled. "But it's so hard to resist the urge. She's everything we've been searching for."

Ethan took a deep breath, trying to calm his wolf's eagerness. "We have to be patient, Ray. Maya is our mate. We need to respect her boundaries."

Ethan tried to suppress his wolf's instincts, but it was becoming increasingly difficult. His wolf was relentless and he could feel the beast rising. Ethan knew that he couldn't let Ray take control, but it was getting harder to resist. His palms began to sweat, and his heart rate increased.

He stepped back from the window, trying to distance himself from Maya's tempting scent. Maya turned her head in his direction and her eyes met his. She had a shocked expression on her face and he could not help but notice her plump lips. He wanted to kiss her. Ray was howling in his head demanding him to claim their mate.

Ethan didn't want to run away from her, but he knew that he had to. The beast in him was getting stronger and he didn't want to hurt her. He quickly turned away from the window and ran as fast as he could. Ray was mad and he was growling.

As Ethan ran through the school's corridors, he could feel Ray's power growing inside him. He tried to focus on his breathing but his lungs were filled with Maya's scent. Finally, he made it outside the school and he quickly got inside his car.

Ray's growling subsided as Ethan tried to calm him down.

"What's wrong with us, Ray?" he whispered to him. "Why can't we control ourselves around Maya?"

"She's our mate," Ray replied, his voice barely a whisper. "Our instincts are taking over, and it's getting harder to resist."

Ethan started the car and drove away from the school. He was feeling as if he was leaving a part of his soul behind. His mind was permanently etched with images of her attractive face. He wanted her so much and he could not wait to make her his. He turned on the radio to try to distract himself but the music only seemed to make things worse. He couldn't get Maya out of his head. He knew that he had to approach her eventually, but he had to do it in a way that didn't scare her off. He couldn't let his wolf's eagerness ruin his chances with her. He had to find out how to keep the beast under control.

Finally, he pulled up to the pack house and parked the car. Just as he was about to head inside, he spotted Ivan walking towards him.

"Hey, man," Ivan greeted him with a nod. "I have the information you wanted."

"What did you find out?" Ethan asked.

Ivan took a deep breath. "Maya is the stepdaughter of the Lycan King. Her mother recently got married to the king. It seems that her father died in an accident while she was still a small child. She is their unique daughter. Her mother's name is Lisa. I did not find much about her father. Also, the Lycan King has three sons from his first wife who died long ago. According to the rumors, the late queen died of a terrible illness".

As Ethan listened to Ivan's update, he couldn't help but feel a sense of sadness for Maya. Losing her father at a young age must have been difficult. He could not imagine his life without his parents. He wondered what kind of impact Maya's mother's remarriage had on her. He knew that it couldn't have been easy for her to adjust to a new family and a new life.

"Thanks for the info, Ivan," Ethan said.

"I'll keep digging and see if I can find out anything else." Ivan replied with a grin.

Ethan cleared his throat. "By the way, Ivan, how are the reconstruction works for the warehouse going on?"

Ivan's grin faded, replaced by a look of concern. "The construction crew has been working on it, but it's going to take a while. The damage was pretty extensive."

Ethan sighed. "I was afraid of that. We can't afford to have the warehouse out of commission for too long. We need to get it back up and running as soon as possible."

"I agree," Ivan said. "I'll see if I can find out more about the progress of the repairs and if there's anything we can do to speed things up."

As the alpha, it was Ethan's job to ensure the safety and well-being of his pack. The damaged warehouse was just one of the many challenges that he faced every day. But lately, he was overwhelmed by his feelings for Maya. He had to stay focused and find a way to take care of both his pack and his mate.