My Fake Mate, Hockey Captain, Is My Real Mate

2

Everyone in the cafeteria went dead silent.

Brian took a step back as Conrad’s powerful aura suffocated him.

"Your... your female?" Brian managed to stammer out, slurring his words. "And I'm supposed to believe you? She’s a wolf-less Omega. She can’t be the mate of a pureblood Alpha."

Conrad turned to me and dug his hands into my waist, sliding underneath my soaked apron to give my ass a firm smack that made me jump in surprise.

"I don't need to explain s**t to you, Gamma! So you better get the f**k out of here with your female right now!" Conrad roared with a ferocity that made my cheeks flush red.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Conrad’s dominant aura force him to step back and bow his head, before grabbing Anastasia by the arm and fleeing the cafeteria.

As soon as the cafeteria door slammed shut, I pulled away from Conrad, shoving him backward.

But when I looked at him, I noticed his breathing was completely ragged.

Having no wolf, I couldn't distinguish wolf pheromones, but it was obvious that something had shaken him to his core.

I slid out from behind the counter in a hurry and quickly wiped my lip with the back of my hand, holding my breath.

*s**t. Not again.*

Conrad turned to me, his features tight with rage, but as soon as his gray eyes landed on my face, he froze in sheer utter shock.

He blinked several times, freezing mid-step.

"Your... your lip," Conrad stammered, dropping his arrogant Alpha facade for the very first time. "It was split. You were bleeding."

"It's nothing, just from the hit," I said hurriedly, covering my mouth with my hand and nervously looking away.

"Don't move," he ordered, closing the distance with a swift pull. He grabbed my wrist and roughly pulled my hand away from my face. "Riley... How? You have nothing! The wound is gone!"

I stared at the ground, feeling cold sweat run down the back of my neck.

The deep cut caused by Anastasia’s hit had completely closed up in less than five seconds, without leaving so much as a mark.

It was my hidden secret.

A wolf-less Omega shouldn't heal like a Purebred Alpha.

"I have tough skin, that's all," I lied clumsily, yanking my arm to free myself from his grip. "Why did you tell that asshole I'm your female? We don't even know each other!"

Conrad released me slowly, but his eyes scanned me up and down, as if he were looking at a completely different creature.

Conrad blinked, shaking his head as if trying to regain control over his own body while taking a step toward the counter.

"I got a f*****g i***t off your back, Omega," he chimed in, crossing his arms. "You should be thanking me instead of growling."

"I don't need an egocentric Alpha playing with my status just for fun," I spat, feeling the weight of shame. "Take your damn coffee and get out."

He let out a strange laugh, touching his neck with trembling hands. Then he just let out a mocking chuckle, adjusting his varsity jacket as if nothing had happened.

He grabbed the cup, gave me one last look that made my skin prickle, and left the cafe.

*What the hell just happened?*

The rest of the shift was pure torture.

At twelve noon, when my shift finally ended, I took off my apron and headed straight to campus.

I was walking at a fast pace when my phone vibrated in my pants pocket.

A new notification from the Medical Consortium flashed on the screen in red letters:

*"Eviction Notice. A 30-day deadline to settle the pending balance, or patient Arthur Megg will be expelled from the pack's medical sanctuary and the Lunar Nutrition chamber will be turned off."*

I clenched my teeth.

I decided to head to the academy’s administration building to look for the dean; I needed to apply for an emergency fund for helpless Omegas.

But as soon as I entered the administrative hallway, I froze in my tracks.

At the end of the corridor, I spotted a man standing by the double doors of the rectorate.

It was the Supreme Alpha. The absolute leader of the ruling pack and owner of the clinics.

He was wearing an impeccable gray suit, radiating lethal danger as he spoke on the phone.

I pressed myself against the wall, trying to hold my breath so his wolf wouldn't detect me.

However, I saw Conrad walking down the side hallway, stopping just a meter away from the Supreme Alpha, completely immune to the man’s dangerous presence.

"Father," Conrad spoke in a bored voice. "What are you doing here? Isn't watching my every move at the Alpha manor enough for you?"

"I came to make sure you're not wasting your time, Conrad," the man snapped at him. "Your only priority is to demonstrate the strength of our bloodline and lead the team in the upcoming pack hockey tournament, not wander around the academy."

I covered my mouth to suppress a gasp.

I knew Conrad was a royal Alpha, but the son of the Supreme Alpha? This had to be a f*****g joke!

That man was the reason the clinic was restricting my father's medicine! Everything I was going through was his fault.

I quickly hid further down the hallway, pressing my body into the shadows of the wall.

"Riley!" a sudden voice shattered the silence beside me.

I jumped, meeting the eyes of my best friend, Chloe. She didn't wait for anything; she grabbed my arm firmly, pulling me back.

"What are you doing standing here?" Chloe scolded me in a rushed whisper. "Pack Tactics class started five minutes ago. Move."

I shook my head, trying to shake off the suffocating pressure the Supreme Alpha's aura had left on my chest…

"Yeah, let's go," I said, letting her drag me down the academy corridor.

We entered the tiered classroom, trying not to make a sound, and slid into the seats in the third row.

The head instructor, a veteran Beta covered in noticeable scars, was already writing border lines on the chalkboard. I sat down and opened my notebook, but my mind was still trapped in that hallway.

Conrad.

The Consortium.

My father.

Everything was connected in the most dangerous way possible.

Ten minutes later, the classroom door burst open.

The instructor froze his chalk mid-air, turning around with clear annoyance. Conrad crossed the threshold, his arrogant aura making the female wolves in the room purr shamelessly.

"Mr. Volkov, what are you doing here?" the instructor asked severely. "If I'm not mistaken, you belong to the advanced warrior pavilion."

Conrad walked toward the main desk. He leaned in slightly and whispered something to the instructor while handing him a sealed parchment.

The instructor read the document, nodded, and put the sheet away in his folder.

"Very well," the Beta declared, pointing toward the bleachers. "Take a seat."

Conrad turned around. His gaze swept over the rows of seats until it locked directly onto me.

With a strange smirk, he walked down the center aisle, climbed the steps, and sat directly in the seat behind mine.

I could feel the scorching heat of his Alpha presence pressing against my back.

I froze completely.

*What is he doing here? There were dozens of empty seats, why did he sit right behind me?*

I was at this level thanks to an intellectual merit scholarship, but he was the Alpha Heir; it made no sense for us to share a classroom.

I tried to focus, but the sound of his fingers tapping against the desk was driving me crazy.

The hour and a half of class was absolute torture.

When the whistle announced the end of the session, I hurried to pack my things.

"I'll see you outside by the lockers, I'm going to freshen up," Chloe told me, leaving the room alongside the rest of the students.

I threw my backpack over my shoulder and turned to leave, but before I could take two steps toward the hallway, a muscular arm blocked my path.

Conrad was standing right in front of me.

"You're Riley, right?" he asked, looking down at me from his towering height with his eyes narrowed.

"Yeah, I am. What do you want, Volkov?" I replied defensively, crossing my arms over my chest.

Conrad let out a low chuckle.

"Oh. Is that how you talk to the Alpha who claimed you in the cafeteria?" he mocked.

My cheeks burned as I recalled the massive lie he told in the cafeteria. I tried to step to the side to dodge him.

"That was a mistake. Now let me pass, I'm in a hurry," I ordered.

Conrad shot his hand forward, catching my wrist firmly.

"Wait," he said, his tone losing all its mockery. "I heard you have two jobs, plus a scholarship at the academy."

"And what do you care?" I shot back, feeling the subtle electric current of his grip. "Get out of my way."

"I care because you're exactly the Omega I need," he whispered, leaning in so close that his breath brushed against my face.