For her, he'll become human.
For him, she must embrace the beast. Fleeing deep into the forest to escape her mother's boyfriend, Nat stumbles upon a terrifying creature: a giant wolf who shocks her with his gentle touch, leaving her longing to protect him. Caleb is captivated by the girl with soft eyes who insists on bringing him scraps of food. But when frustration pushes him to shift into human form, he discovers the most tender of feelings pulling him toward her - and a burning pain fighting to keep him away. Fate has other plans for Caleb. And they do not include following a human girl home, masquerading as her brother, making a kill list of her enemies, and torturing himself again and again with stolen kisses...until the wolf within rises up to demand release. But how can Nat accept him...as a beast? ◆ ◆ ◆ "...a highly original take on the fated mate trope. Talionis has a knack for crafting a suspenseful, atmospheric, and gratifyingly erotic love story, with much more beneath the surface than readers might initially expect." - Publishers Weekly BookLife Prize ◆ ◆ ◆ "Forget to mention something yesterday?" Caleb leaned against the locker beside Nat's, his eyes bright on hers, while she gathered her books for fourth period. She parted her lips and stared at him, holding her locker half open. "Uh...I got...distracted. I was going to talk to you about it..." "Well," he said, looking away for a moment and rubbing the bridge of his nose. "The whole school is talking about it now." Nat bit her lip. "You're upset..." He turned back to her, his eyes still bright. "Why would I be upset? My sister gets caught naked with my two favorite guys in the world, on the floor, in a f#@king manwich. Why should that upset me?" "That is not what happened!" she hissed, leaning in close. "Ethan was the one naked!" She groaned immediately at his look and closed her eyes. "You know what that means," she glared at him. "Yes," he hissed back, his eyes raging now. "That I'm going to break the promise I made our freshman year." ◆ ◆ ◆ Key themes: forbidden love, duality of human/animal nature, violating societal norms, moral conflict, secrecy, impotence, healing from abuse/trauma, and learning to believe one is worthy of love. Book 1 in the Unfated Mates series. Each book features a different couple but should be read in sequence for overall story progression and reveals.