Their Mate Between

CHAPTER 2.

“Ow!” Kade lamented.

“Oh, don’t be such a baby.” A smooth feminine voice cooed. “Maybe this will teach you to stay away from other people’s girlfriends.”

“She came on to me!”

“Right. I’m sure you were also minding your business when the second girl slapped you too.”

“Speaking of minding one’s business…” he frowned, trailing off.

His best friend gave him a look. He knew it was time to shut up, or she’d inflict more pain upon him. That was just the kind of girl Esther was. More brute force, than full of roses.

“When are you going to stop doing this?” she asked, dipping a towel into a bowl of water to clean his injuries. “This is a small town, people talk.”

“I don’t care!” He c****d his head to the side, escaping her grip. “I don’t know why you’re wasting your time doing this. We both know I’ll heal.”

Throwing her arms in the air, she ranted dramatically. “Well, sorry for trying to do something nice for you. I should have known you’d never appreciate it, being all lone wolf and what not.”

He sighed. “That’s not what I meant. You know I appreciate you. I’ve just got a lot on my mind.”

“What’s the matter?”

A question he didn’t know the answer to. What was the matter? Was it the fact that a girl had finally denied him, or that she’d muttered the word ‘mate’?

“I don’t know.”

“If this is about Timmy and Laura, I’ve straightened things out.” Esther said, fixing her hair. “Told Timmy it was all a big misunderstanding and you weren’t actually flirting with Laura. I heard they had a big fight after, their relationship might be on the rocks right now, but at least you’re in the clear.”

Kade turned to the only woman he’d ever loved and stuck with, full of gratitude. Granted, their relationship was only platonic, he still couldn’t imagine his life without her. Knowing she didn’t approve of his lifestyle, but still never hesitated to get him out of a tight spot—even when her morals were in question—made him adore her all the more.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you, Esther.”

“You’d probably get your ass handed to you in this town,” she retorted.

He grinned. “Lucky I have you then.”

She smiled sheepishly. “So, who was she?”

His brows almost met. “Who was who?”

“The girl who slapped you.”

He didn’t have the answer, because he’d foolishly told her names didn’t matter. Now, he was staring back at Esther, dumbfounded.

“Don’t tell me you tried to get her into your bed, and you don’t even know her name.”

Kade scratched his head. “Can you just let it go?”

“No.”

He should have known better than to think she’d give up. Sighing, he got to his feet. This was one conversation he wasn’t interested in having—for the umpteenth time. Esther always got her hopes up whenever a girl was involved.

She longed for him to have a stable relationship, but that was just not in the books for him. And it never would.

He still remembered the moment he’d felt it. There, standing in front of her, staring into her seemingly perfect eyes. Her presence was daunting, her eyes held a kind of fire. He’d never been so nervous to talk to a woman in his life.

Then she’d said the words he dreaded, and something in him snapped. He needed to drive her away, and so he did.

Nobody was going to claim him as theirs, and he sure as hell wasn’t about to give in to the bond.

***

Yes, she made a promise. That was the easy part. The hard part was keeping it. Twelve hours later, she was still thinking about the mate she could never have. The mate who insulted her by indirectly thinking she was some cheap slut who would lay with him for fun.

Ravyn was exhausted, frustrated with her thoughts, and it was starting to show on her face.

“Okay, what’s wrong?” Rion came up from behind, nestling right next to her, handing her a can of fruit drink.

“Nothing,” she lied, taking a sip.

“I know that face. Something’s bothering you.”

She waved him off with a light chuckle, one that didn’t sound joyful enough. “My wolf is just in a frenzy. I need to go for a run or something.”

“You know what I like most about Whisperden?” Her brother teased. “The fact that we have our own little jungle just behind our backyard.”

Ravyn smiled. “That is something, isn’t it?”

“The best.”

“Shouldn’t you be getting ready for work?”

“Night shift,” he replied, peering out the window. “Anything interesting?”

“See that dude over there?” she nodded outside, toward a guy in sweatpants and a blue shirt hanging over his shoulders, standing a couple blocks from their house. Rion nodded. “He just got back from his morning run.”

“So?” Her brother took a swing of his beer.

“He didn’t even wait till he got out of sight before stripping and shifting.”

“Specie?”

“Some kind of cat.”

Rion grimaced. “And you saw this feline naked?”

“Butt naked,” she clarified, spotting a sly grin.

Her brother got to his feet quickly, setting the can in his grasp to the side. “I should go out there and have a word with him.”

Ravyn stopped breathing for a second. She should have predicted this. While she was enjoying every moment of this revelation, Rion was not. As usual, he was too busy thinking of protecting her to engage in anything remotely fun.

She jumped up and caught his wrist before he could march toward the door. “Rion, don’t. Seriously.”

He looked down at her. “You think I’m going to let some stranger shift naked where my sister can see him?”

“Yes,” she deadpanned, tugging him back. “Incase you forgot, this is Whisperden. Things are different here.”

Rion’s gaze fell back on the shirtless hunk just outside their window, then back at her.

“We’re not in Bloodpine anymore. People here don’t care about stuff like that. They aren’t hiding in fear twenty-four-seven.”

He hesitated, still glaring out the window.

“Please,” she added softly. “Just… loosen up a little. We can’t keep acting like fugitives forever, or people will start to notice.”

Rion finally exhaled, his shoulders dropping a fraction. “Fine. But if he so much as looks at you funny—”

“You’ll defend my honor, I know.” She smirked, releasing his arm. Rion was the only one she let treat her like a delicate flower. He needed it. He needed to feel like she still needed him, and in a way, she did.

To her, he was the only one that truly mattered.

He muttered something under his breath but returned to his chair, cracking open another can. After a long moment, he glanced at her. “So… the club. How was it? Did you have fun?”

Ravyn forced a bright smile and nodded. “Yeah. It was… great. Loud music, fancy lights, horny people—totally normal night out.”

“You had fun?”

“Sure.” She sipped her fruit drink to hide the flicker of guilt. No way was she telling him about Kade—or that her wolf wouldn’t stop thinking about the arrogant playboy. Or about the conversation she had with Calvin.

Rion studied her for a moment, then grunted in approval. “Good. Maybe next time I’ll come with you. See if I can…loosen up.”

“Yeah… maybe.” She rose from her seat and stretched, her skin itching from the many details she omitted.

The best solution would be to leave his presence. If they were apart, she wouldn’t need to hide more things from him.

“Anyway, I think I’ll go for that run now. See if it gets my wolf back in order.”

Rion chuckled, shaking his head. “Please go, you’ve been edgy all day. Don’t stay out too long.”

“I won’t.”

She slipped out the back door, the cool evening air brushing against her skin as she made her way into the forest behind their home. All the houses in Whisperden were built the same. Free of human eyes, free to be yourself. The downside was the lingering stench of piss clouding the air, stuck to the grass and trees, made by different varieties of shifters.

For some reason, they’d decided it was a good idea to constantly mark their territory.

To an unsuspecting non-shifter, it’d be almost undetectable. But with enhanced senses, she caught every whiff.

The run started out great. Cool breeze slapping at her cheeks as she jogged deeper into the tree line, where the city sounds faded and her breathing blended with the rustle of leaves and distant birdsongs.

There was just one problem.

She felt the air on her arm stand, the same tingling sensation she’d felt at the club overtaking her once more. However, It wasn’t Kade. The scent was different. A hint of cedar and citrus, masculine and earthy in a way that made her wolf rear up inside her with rapt attention.

“Someone else is out here,” she whispered, inhaling once more.

Following the smell, curving onto a thinned-out pathway by the brush, she finally arrived at a clearing. In the middle, shirtless, arms behind his head, stretching, stood a man she might have mistaken for a god. He was taller than Kade, bigger.

The morning mist swirled around him like something out of a fairytale movie, clinging to hard-cut abs and broad shoulders dusted with brown hair.

At that moment, he lifted his head and caught sight of her. Their eyes locked, and she froze. Her wolf panted in ecstasy.

Her legs threatened to give out. What. The. Hell.