Luke Cates was not a very patient guy. Growing up as the son of the alpha had always given him a sense of entitlement, he got whatever he wanted, whenever and however, no questions asked. He didn't like to wait for anything and he made sure he never had to. Damn to hell the consequences.

Of course, begrudgingly, he had to do just that when it came to Caroline Forbes. Be patient, that is. Since she had absolutely no idea what and who she really was. And it wasn't just some bitchy blonde cheerleader with jealousy issues.

Heck, Forbes wasn't even her real last name. But her uncle would've hunted her and her father down had Tyler Creed found out his older brother was still alive and dared to actually have offspring. Okay, maybe he could understand why Aaron Creed decided to try and forget who he was and hide his identity to his daughter. But in the process, he'd also made her ignorant to her true natures.

Luke could sense it the moment he saw her. Could feel the wolf lurking underneath her delicate skin just waiting to break out and run free. He remembered feeling the same when he was younger and how eager he'd been to change, not taking into account just how painful it would be. Still, it had been worth it.

And Caroline would see that too.

He watched from the pool table as Caroline entered the Grill, ever perky smile in place and made her way quickly to where Matt Donovan, the bastard of all bastards, was on busboy duty.

"Hey Matt!" She greeted him with exuberance that the stupid human did not deserve and he smiled at her before pulling her close and pecking her on the lips. Luke's hand tightened on the pool stick and he had to fight the urge from breaking it into a million tiny splinters.

Just as soon as she was done mooning over that ingrate boyfriend of hers and driving him insane, she would see.

Caroline Forbes did not like Luke Cates. The moment he'd arrived in town in his red sports car with that arrogant swagger and knowing smirk, she'd known he'd be trouble. He was like some bizarre mix of Tyler Lockwood and Damon Salvatore and she didn't like that. He acted like he was better than everyone else and stalked her around like some stray dog.

Okay, not really stalking per say but he was just there all the time by coincidence or not, it was just creepy. She could not concentrate on anything else when those dark green eyes were on her and watching her every move. There was something almost possessive about the way he looked at her, as if he thought he owned her or something. And that freaked her out more than anything else.

He had no hold over her, he was just as stranger in town who thought himself too important and had aspirations of adding more notches on his bedpost. And you know what, she had no intention of being next. She had a loving boyfriend who she loved and that was that. No stupid boy with cocky smirk was gonna change that.

"Why is Luke Cates glaring at us?" Matt asked, eyes confused and looking over where Luke was probably playing pool. What was it with cocky boys and pool?

"He's a jerk. Don't mind him."

"Really? Cause he's coming over here."

"What?" She straightened in alarmed and turned around in her seat to see Luke arrogantly swagger towards them, determination in his green eyes. Her automatic response would be to run but for some reason, something told her that would encourage him to come after her more.

When he reached their table, he didn't give any greeting, didn't even acknowledge Matt's presence, just stared at her complete seriousness and said, "We need to talk."

Luke had had to drag Caroline out of the Grill and into his car. Her ungulate of a boyfriend had tried to stop him but Luke took care of him with a socking in the nose and used the commotion as a distraction while he pulled Caroline along to the door. And there they were, in his car, him casually glancing at her every few seconds as she pouted and stared outside the window. He found her stubbornness adorable if not maddening.

Life with her around was never going to be boring.

"Where are you even taking me?" She asked, still refusing to look at him.

"The forest near the falls."

"Why?"

"You'll see."

She huffed at not getting the answer she wanted and the silence returned.

"Why are we here?" Caroline moaned in discomfort. Frolicking through the woods just wasn't her idea of a good time. She'd rather be at home watching some reality show on TV than spending her Saturday afternoon trekking through the woods with Luke Cates.

"I'm going to show you something. " Luke replied before stopping at a clearing, just near enough to give them a view of the falls. No matter what time of the year, the falls always looked beautiful and the two of them stood there in awe of the sight in complete silence.

When that was over, Luke turned to her, a strange gleam in his eyes.

"What?" She uttered out apprehensively. That look was making her uncomfortable.

He cocked his head to the side before smirking and started taking his clothes off.

She yelped and backed away in surprise. "Whoa! What are you doing?"

He was going to rape her in the woods, where nobody could see or find her body. No, no, no, this wasn't how she planned on losing her virginity. This wasn't fair! Somebody help!

He rolled his eyes but didn't stop removing his clothes. His leather jacket was off now, along with his shirt, next were his belt and pants. She shut her eyes from seeing anymore and willed herself to move and run.

"Relax, Caroline." He drawled. "I didn't bring you here for that."

She cautiously opened her eyes and turned away when he started pulling down his boxers. "Then what am I here for?"

"Caroline."

The way he said her name made her turn and look at him again. Resolutely, she stared him in the eye and refused all curious nerve in her body not to make her look down. She had a boyfriend, she had no freedom to check other boys out.

He continued. "There's something you need to know about me, about your dad and about yourself."

Her dad? What did he know about her dad? He never even met her dad! "What are you talking about?"

He smiled at her, all bright green eyes and charm. It was almost sheepish. "Just don't run, okay?"

Then he turned his back on her and she watched with wide eyes as he transformed into a wolf.

She screamed.

"Calm down, Caroline." Luke tiredly said for nth time that day as he tried to comfort a hysterical Caroline. She'd majorly freaked out when she found out he was a werewolf, even more when he explained about her father and how she was technically one too.

"I can't be a werewolf," She denied, shaking her head and the tears in her eyes spilling down her cheeks. The crying had started after he told her that he came to town to take her with him and back to Wolf Lake.

"Look, I know it's hard to accept that," He sighed. "But the moment I saw you, I knew."

She shook her head, still refusing to believe his words. "No, you're wrong. I can't be a werewolf. I can't be."

He sighed again and leaned back on the driver's seat of his car, pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried to fight of an upcoming headache. This was going worse than he thought.

Another round of sobs started and he silently prayed.

"How come my dad didn't tell me?" Caroline asked him days later. They were in the clearing again, the two of them sitting on the hood of his car as she drilled him for answer. She was a lot calmer now than the last time they were there. She'd spent the last few days just thinking about all he'd told her and realized with some horror that he was right. The strange coincidences around her had been too close to what he said that it she needed to find out more about this situation.

"He was probably trying to protect you," He answered. "Your uncle, Tyler Creed, total asshole. Would've had you guys killed within seconds."

That was a hard piece of info to swallow. She had an uncle out there, one that wanted her dead. She didn't know how to feel about that.

"Is he in Wolf Lake?" At Luke's nod she asked. "Then why do you want to take me back to Wolf Lake with you?"

He looked at her apprehensively for a moment, seemingly tongue-tied about what to say. And she glared at him in annoyance before he answered slowly. "Because…."

"Because?" She parroted impatiently.

He smirked at her. "You're my mate."

She gaped at him, eyes wide in disbelief. "No."

"Yes."

"You're kidding."

This was insane. She couldn't be –

"No, I'm not."

She felt like she might just start hyperventilating at any moment now. This was totally unbelievable.

"I'm not your mate."

He just rolled his eyes and jumped off the car, walking away from her and into the trees.

"Luke?" She called out apprehensively after a moment. He had the car keys and she didn't plan on walking from there to town on foot. He was her only ride and he couldn't just leave her. If she really was his mate, he wouldn't leave her all alone in the woods, would he?

She was vaguely wondering about what plan of action to take next when all of a sudden a grey wolf burst from the trees and came running towards the car. She barely had time to yelp in shock before the wolf was beside her on the car and giving her the wolf version of a smile.

She blinked for a moment before seeing dark green eyes. "Luke."

The wolf's only response was to lie down on the car with his head propped on her lap.

She rolled her eyes.

"Cute." She said sarcastically but her hand started playing with the fur on his back.

They were outside his apartment building, the sun beating down on them while they wished his car. Every so often he'd glance at her in her tank top and shorts and stopped himself from growling at the sight. This girl was too beautiful for her own good.

"How come I haven't…flipped yet?" She asked, rubbing on a particularly stubborn spot on the windshield. "You said you did at thirteen, how come I haven't?"

"That's probably because you're only half-Wolf. You're different."

She stopped what she was doing, her blue eyes glinting with some kind of false hope. "Does that mean…that there's a possibility that…that I won't flip?"

He stared back and felt bad for crushing that hope in her eyes but she couldn't live hoping for something impossible. She was about as much wolf as he was. She was born to be one and she would become one. "Caroline, don't lie to yourself. It only makes things harder."

Sadness washed over her and he felt a pang at his chest for causing it.

They went back to washing the car in silence.

"Have you ever had sex?" He asked and she blushed redder than he'd ever seen her.

"Why is that relevant–"

He interrupted her. "Just answer the question, Caroline."

She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself and stop her cheeks from blushing so much. And she answered very quietly, just barely above a whisper. "No."

"I-I have a boyfriend." She stammered as his lips trailed kisses down her long neck, his hand sneaking under her shirt to touch the smooth flesh of her stomach. Her half-hearted protests stopped when he captured her lips again, his teeth biting on her lower lip as she moaned into the kiss.

His hand under her shirt moved higher until she was panting from need and he growled, low in his throat.

Yes, he thought. Finally.

She let out a cry as muscles and bones rearranged themselves for her new form. She grabbed his hand never let go.

He stared adoringly at the white wolf in front of him and reached up to touch the fur of her neck. She instantly melted against him and whined appreciatively as he stroked the fur behind her ears.

He was right. She was beautiful.

Two wolves ran through the first, one white and one grey.

The first one to reach the car was Caroline who let out a happy cry as she changed back to her human wolf, grinning smugly at Luke who rolled his eyes at her.

"I won," She bragged, happy to have beaten him at something.

"Only because I let you."

"Right," She just smirked at him and pulled him down for a kiss. His hands quickly pulled her closer and caged her to him, his palms feeling for the soft flesh of her naked back.

"Why?" Matt asked her, eyes sad and hurt.

She just shook her head. "I have my reasons."

And with that, she turned and left the Grill and headed straight for the cocky werewolf in the red sports car waiting for her outside.

Welcome to Wolf Lake she read the welcoming sign of the town and stared at Luke questioningly.

He just smiled at her warmly. "Welcome home, Caroline."

Written for Day #9 of The Month of Caroline challenge with the pairing Luke/Caroline.