Her Mortal Mate

Chapter Twenty Seven: Reassurance

Jadea

“Think fast!” Lance shot throwing a set of keys at my head. Adam had gotten side tracked by the other pack mates in the kitchen. I’d left with a quick explanation, saying I would get the car started and pulled around to the front. As much as my pack kept it under wraps, Adam was family and they were all relieved he was safe.

I caught the keys without even flinching. “What are these for?”

“Just because y’all are doing a double date doesn’t mean you have to be in the same car.” He winked. “Besides, I know you like to go vroom vroom.”

I chuckled at his terminology. “Vroom vroom?”

“Yes, you Speedy Gonzalez. And I know that SUV your men got won’t cut it.”

“I’m pretty sure you and I haven’t seen each other since we were stuck in the demon stronghold all those years ago. How do you know I like fast cars?” I quizzed.

He shrugged. “A little birdie told me so.”

“Why are you trying to be a bad influence?” I blurted teasingly. “I thought I was bringing Derrick and Briar as back up because it’s the right and safe thing to do. Yet you’re now telling me I should ditch them by driving a faster vehicle?”

“Now don’t you dare go putting words in my mouth Jadea Knight!” He scolded teasingly. “You’re all going to the same place, right? So what if you get there just a little faster?” He sounded so innocent, but that smirk said otherwise. “Just go and look at the damn car, Jadea. I have a feeling you’ll fall in love.”

“And if I do, do I get to keep it?” I purred.

His eyes got really round. “You wouldn’t dare!”

“Hmm… Might be tempting…”

“On second thought—

“No take backs!” I shot taking off in the other direction like a mad man as I raced through the house towards the garage. I burst through the door and jumped down the few steps that led into the garage and came to a stop before a beautiful lime green Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 with black racing stripes and a black spoiler. “Does it—

“It’s got twin turbos.”

“Oh my goodness, I think I’m in love—

“Damn it woman! She is mine—

“I didn’t know cars had genders!”

“Her names Melinda!”

I busted out laughing. “You named your car!”

“It’s not that uncommon!” He grumbled, crossing his arms and pouting.

“And how’d you come up with Melinda?”

Our rapid fire banter was fun. “It’s a long story!”

“And you think she is safe just because you named her?”

“Why did I even offer?”

“I don’t know, but I’m definitely taking her now!”

“I’m regretting my decisions already,” he groaned, but it was all in jest.

“I’ll have her back at a decent hour!” I called out, hopping into the driver’s seat and inhaling the beautiful smell of leather. The interior was spotless and just as gorgeous as the outside. And the best part, it was only a two seater. “How could you call this car a woman!” I scolded, sticking my head out the window as Lance hit the button for the garage door. “It’s a stick shift!”

He started laughing.

“Or are you trying to imply something?”

“Get out of here with that negativity!” He shot.

I revved her up and, for fun, spun out a little as I backed her on out.

Lance threw his hands up in the air in exasperation as I grinned evilly and waved.

When I pulled around to the front where the others were expectantly waiting for me I saw all of their confused gazes. I left her running and popped out just enough to throw the SUV keys at Derrick. “We’ll see you in town. You know where you’re going, right?”

“I thought we were going together?”

“While we are in town, walking around yes. Driving, no.” My gaze turned to Adam’s and I cast a wicked smile his way. “Get your vanilla ass in here,” I teased. With his own twinkle in his eye, he hopped on into the passenger seat.

The instant the doors were closed, I took off.

“Lance let you borrow his car?” Adam asked after the first few minuets went by. He was tense and gripping the ‘oh s**t’ bars for dear life as I raced a little too fast down the windy road.

“Yes,” I smiled over at him and let off the throttle a little. At the rate I was going, we would get there far too quickly. I’d had my fun, now it was time to cruise and talk. I knew there was something on his mind, but I was confident he would tell me when he was ready to.

“Have you ever driven a stick before?” I asked him, genuinely curious and hoping to put him back in some ease.

“No, I haven’t.”

“I’ll have to teach you sometime.”

“Hey, Jadea?”

And there we were! Good. I was glad he was opening up unprompted. “Yes Adam?” I asked as I was put on edge by his tone.

“Did I do something wrong back at Lance’s? When we were all in the kitchen,” he clarified.

“When you realized we were all talking telepathically, and demanded we communicate in a way you could participate too?”

“That’s part of it.”

“No. You did nothing wrong in asking for that. Again, it wasn’t intentional. Sometimes, for us wolves, it’s easier to shift from verbal to telepathic communication because more… can be shared that way. It is hard to describe without being a wolf yourself.” He seemed to accept my answer. “What else?”

He fidgeted a little which was the only indication he was nervous. Taking a deep breath, I said gently, “Are you worried you stepped on toes or out of line, somehow?”

He nodded, those devastating baby blues meeting mine. “I understand there’s a hierarchy, in a sense. You’re the alpha of a wolf pack. And I’m just… just…”

“A mortal?” I offered.

“Yes,” he deflated.

Oh my vanilla. My heart fairly melted in my chest. As much as he had grown a backbone and had started regaining that dominant personality of his I always knew he had, he was still so very insecure. “Well, here’s the thing. You aren’t just a mortal. You are my mortal, and that already sets a precedent within not only my pack, but with others as well.

“By being my mate, you already out rank the others in my pack, and other alphas and packs understand your opinion and voice matter to me. In the long run, you can become a co-alpha—which happens more often than most believe—or you basically sideline yourself when it comes to important matters within the pack dynamic. In both cases, it is expected that you have a voice and say in what we do. You weren’t overstepping in the slightest. You took initiative, Adam and I’m proud of that.”

“But they made fun of you, didn’t they?”

Once again, I was surprised by his intuition. “They were teasing me, but that’s because I’m not normally in a position to be dominated.”

“I didn’t…

My smirk instantly shut him up and told a different tale. “Yeah. You did. And I’m perfectly okay with that.”

“You are?” He sounded so surprised.

“Why wouldn’t I be, Adam? You are my mate after all. I’m supposed to be able to be at my most vulnerable and comfortable with you. And visa versa.”

“I guess it is still just a hard concept to grasp,” he stated weakly.

“Adam. I don’t expect this to be easy. And I don’t expect you to be able to just move on from everything your ex did to you. Even though you have spent a year in therapy, the kind of abuse you experienced doesn’t just leave you. It never will. I expect us to put a lot of work into our relationship. I don’t expect everything to be a smooth walk in the park. I’m not that unrealistic,” I explained to him. I gave him a few minutes to work through some of his emotions and thoughts before I continued. “You do know what I am, though? I’m proud of you for feeling comfortable enough to call us out like you did and to give me your opinion on the matter. Your voice and your thoughts and ideas are valuable and important, Adam. Never forget that.”