3
Adley
The weather turned the following day, so I headed into town to my favorite coffee shop to get out of the house. My plan was to snag the corner booth and spend the afternoon people watching, reading, and drinking delicious lattes. The owner would be more than happy to ignore me since I wasn’t an alpha male. Brea’s sights had been set on Havoc even though she knew they weren’t fated mates. I kind of got where her desperation for a mate came from since her position within the pack was similar to mine. Her mom was a human, but her dad was a shifter. I had always thought it royally sucked she didn’t get an inner wolf from her father. I didn’t understand why she wouldn’t leave the alpha alone when she darn well knew how shifter matings worked.
I could only assume she’d been fixated on him because of the power that came with being the alpha of a pack, which fit with the talk around town about how awful she was to her employees. It was a good thing fate hadn’t paired her with Havoc because I could only imagine the power trip she would’ve been on if she’d been claimed by him. Luckily, she’d finally been forced to see reason when Cora came to town and turned out to be Havoc’s mate, but only after she tried to cause trouble for them.
I was contemplating how my parents would’ve handled me if I’d acted the way Brea had—and cringing over how disappointed they would’ve been in me—but my thoughts came to a halt when I spotted a stranger in my favorite spot in the coffee shop. Grumbling to myself over the fact that I was going to have to sit somewhere else, I headed to the back of the line at the counter. Even though I knew the menu by heart, I stared up at the board above the register and tried to decide which baked good I wanted to have with my latte. By the time it was my turn, I’d decided I deserved a special treat if I would have to wait someone out for the booth I considered mine.
“Next in line,” Brea called without bothering to look up.
“Hey, Brea.” She met my gaze but didn’t bother to smile or greet me. I didn’t let that stop me from flashing her a grin before telling her what I wanted. I hadn’t forgotten the lessons from our childhood about being kind to fellow members of the pack. I wasn’t about to let her bitchiness make me do something that would disappoint my mom. “I’ll take a cherry Danish, chocolate chip muffin, and a latte with extra foam and an extra shot of espresso, please.”
Brea’s gaze raked down my curvy body, and her lip curled up in a sneer. “You don’t really need all the empty calories, but I’m more than happy to take your money if that’s what you want.”
My cheeks filled with heat, and I was grateful no one was behind me to listen to her crap. Any of the shifters in the shop would’ve caught her dig at me since she hadn’t bothered to lower her voice, and they had great hearing, and that was bad enough. Without saying another word, I shoved a twenty-dollar bill at her and waited for my change. None of it went into the tip jar in front of the register, earning me a little huff I ignored as I moved to the end of the counter to get as far away from Brea as possible. It didn’t do me much good because she hissed something at her employee making my latte before coming out from behind the counter to wander over to my favorite booth.
I shamelessly eavesdropped when she started talking to the sexy stranger who was sitting there, turning my body as I leaned an elbow against the counter so I could see them out of the corner of my eye. “Can I tempt you with a muffin or Danish? We’re famous for our baked goods.”
“Nah, I think I’ll pass.” His gaze darted in my direction, and he winked as he added, “I’d need an extra workout to burn all those empty calories, and I’m not sure how long I’ll be in town.”
My cheeks filled with heat again, and I ducked my head so he couldn’t see how embarrassed I was that he’d overheard her insult. Brea didn’t take the hint and kept trying to get the guy to talk, and I groaned when I realized the only open booth was right next to them. I kept my head down as I walked past her and set my stuff down on the table. I quickly slid into my seat and heaved a sigh of relief once the booth separated me from the guy she was trying to chat up. When she finally realized she wasn’t going to get anywhere with him, she huffed, “Whatever, I was just trying to do you a favor.”
I let my hair fall in front of my face to block my expression from Brea when she stomped past my table, biting my lip to keep myself from laughing. After she stormed into the back—after yelling at one of her employees not to fuck everything up while she was gone—the guy behind me grumbled, “What is it with small-town places to eat and pushy waitresses? She probably won’t even remember I wanted a refill on my coffee.”
I turned in my seat to peer over the back of my booth and whisper, “Sorry about that. Brea can sometimes be a pain in the butt, but she has good reason for being wary of newcomers. She ran into a bit of trouble with some newcomers a while back.”
“She wasn’t grilling me because she was scared. If I’d sensed any fear from her, I would’ve been a lot more understanding.” The guy lifted his head, and I felt the punch of his gaze when our eyes met. Then his nostrils flared, and heat filled his dark orbs. His reaction made my heart race, as I began to hope it meant I was his mate.
I would owe fate big time if I was paired with him. With his brown eyes, dark hair that was longer on the top and shorter on the sides, angular jaw, the slight dimple in his chin, full lips that were begging to be kissed, and lean but muscular build, he was the hottest guy I’d ever seen up close and in person. Brea’s interest in him suddenly made sense, even if it turned out he wasn’t an alpha visiting from another pack. He was handsome enough that even Brea wouldn’t care about how much power she’d gain by being his mate.
I would have been happy to stare at him all day, but I couldn’t think of an excuse to stay twisted around in my seat. It would have been awkward, even for me. “Sorry.”
I started to turn back around but froze when he asked, “Do you want to join me?”
The offer was surprising, but I was quick to take him up on it. “Uh, sure.”
I grabbed my stuff and brought it over to his table, setting the plate with the muffin and Danish between us in case he wanted to share. Once I was settled in my new seat across from him, I flashed him a shy smile.
“I’m Luke Besnik.” He stretched his arm out to offer his hand to me.
“I’m Adley Hoyt,” I replied as I slid my palm against his. It felt as though a bolt of electricity jumped from his body to mine. I yanked my hand away and shook it. “Whoa.”
“That was unexpected.” Luke’s animal flashed in his eyes so quickly that I thought I might have imagined it. But his husky tone let me know his inner beast was close to the surface.
I touched the metal lid on the salt shaker to make sure I didn’t shock myself again. “I guess we got rid of all of the static already.”
He tugged on my hand and interlaced his fingers through mine. “It looks like you’re right.”
“Yup,” I agreed as I glanced down and thanked my lucky stars the goose bumps I was feeling weren’t visible.
“Sorry,” he rumbled as he released my hand. “I figured that was the easiest way to make sure the static shock wasn’t on my end instead of yours.”
“Uh-huh.” It was official, my dormant libido had roared to life and left me incapable of speaking in full sentences. Luckily, Luke didn’t seem to mind.
He grinned at me and cocked his head to the side, a dark lock of hair falling against his forehead. “Or it might’ve just been a convenient excuse to touch you again.”
“You have to be fucking kidding me,” Brea whined, her gaze darting back and forth between the two of us as she returned to the table to drop another cup of coffee down in front of him. The hot, dark liquid splashed onto the table, and she tossed some napkins down before stomping away again.
“What’s her problem?” Luke muttered as he wiped up the mess.
I wasn’t sure how to answer his question without totally embarrassing myself. I was pretty sure Brea had assumed we were fated mates, but I did
n't know what to think. Shifters didn’t flirt with anyone except their mate, but Luke was being extremely subtle if I was meant to be his.
4
Luke
“With Brea, it could be just about anything.” The gorgeous woman sitting across from me leaned her elbow on the table and propped a fist under her chin. Her long, blond hair spilled over her shoulder, and sincerity shone from her bright blue eyes. “Don’t take it personally. She tends to throw her bad attitude all over the place.”
The question I’d asked was rhetorical, but Adley’s answer worried me. There was no doubt who she was to me—not when her scent made my cock as hard as steel for the first time in my life. I finally met my fated mate, but I was torn over how to handle the situation. She was human, so I couldn’t just toss her over my shoulder and find the nearest flat surface. Although the Badlands Territory was home to many packs, it seemed likely that Adley had no idea shifters existed. Her delicious scent carried a trace of wolves, but she could be unaware that some of the people she came in contact with on a regular basis carried an animal inside them.
“Just so long as she doesn’t toss her insults your way again when I’m around, I won’t let her get to me,” I grumbled.
I felt the smile she flashed at me to the depths of my soul. “You’re too sweet.”
Staring at the woman fate had picked for me, I wanted to kick myself for never asking Kace or Zeke about how they’d told their women about shifters and mates. Tane had lucked out because Calliope had been let in on the secret since it would have been difficult to hide when both of her best friends were mated. But I might not have been as fortunate and possibly needed to figure out a way to break the news to her without sending her running in the other direction. Being turned away by your fated mate was rare, but I was acutely aware of how badly rejection hit a shifter after what had happened to Aaron. My pack mate had gone lone wolf after the woman who should’ve been his decided she’d rather marry a rich guy she had zero feelings for than mate the only man she’d ever desire.
The situation had sent my sister spiraling. She’d never admitted to it, but I was certain she’d been hoping that he would turn out to be her mate when she turned eighteen. She was devastated to discover differently only a week before her birthday and had been acting out ever since. I’d been so angry with Heather for the shit she’d pulled, but it turned out that I had to be grateful things had gone down the way they had. In the ultimate twist of fate, her refusal to see how wrong she’d been had brought my fated mate into my life. Now it was up to me to make certain Adley didn’t have any reason to reject me. I’d never tried to flirt before, but I had spent enough time around the mated pairs in my pack—including my parents—to know how to treat the woman who was going to be mine.
“I think you’re the first person who’s ever called me that.” I picked up the chocolate chip muffin she had set between us and quirked a brow. When she nodded, I tore a piece off and popped it into my mouth. After I swallowed and took a sip of my coffee, I added, “Maybe if I eat more stuff like this, that’ll change.”
She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “The first time I came in, I was surprised to discover how amazing the baked goods are here. I would never have guessed that Brea would serve anything that tasted this good since I’m pretty sure she survives on salad and caffeine.”
“She should start eating what she sells.” I nudged the plate closer to her. “Maybe then she wouldn’t be so bitchy.”
My gorgeous mate started to giggle, but then she bit her bottom lip to hold back her laughter. “Careful.” Reaching over the table, I tugged her lip free from her teeth. “It would be a damn shame if you bruised yourself.”
Her tongue came close to brushing against my thumb when she wet her lips before murmuring, “Thanks.”
My wolf leaped for control, trying to burst through my skin to get to his mate. I fisted my hands and squeezed my eyes shut, struggling to keep him reined in. When he finally settled his ass down after I warned him that he would send Adley running in the opposite direction, I opened my eyes again. I was surprised to see the huge-ass grin on her face. “What?”
Her gaze darted around the coffee shop before she leaned closer and whispered, “You don’t have to hide from me. I know you’re a shifter of some kind.”
“You do?” My wolf brushed against my skin again, smug as fuck that his pushing had prompted Adley to admit she knew about our kind.
She nodded and grinned. “Yeah, the signs are impossible to miss since I was raised by wolves.”
Holy fucking shit. Not only did she know the score about shifters, but she’d also grown up with my kind. Fate had been more than kind to me. I stretched my hand out and twined our fingers together. “Do you know about fated mates, too?”
“You mean how shifters don’t feel complete until they find the other half of their souls?” I nodded, and her smile widened. “And that they don’t feel desire for anyone other than their mate?”
I could barely stand how adorable she was. It was a major turn-on for me. “Yeah, baby. I mean all of that.”
“Then yes, I know about fated mates.” Her blue eyes lit with so much happiness that the blue orbs practically glowed.
I loved how she teased me, and so did my cock, which was flexing against my zipper. “How would you feel if I told you that fate paired us together?”
“I’d be over the moon,” she breathed, her hand clenching mine. “Ever since I learned about fated mates, I’ve hoped that I would be lucky enough to have one out there waiting for me.”
“Sorry it took me so long to find you, baby.” I brushed my thumb across her knuckles. “If I’d known you were in the Badlands Territory, I would’ve been here a fuck of a lot sooner.”
“I was a little worried that I’d stay a virgin forever because I was holding out for a false dream.” Her cheeks turned pink as her gaze drifted from my face to my chest and back up again. “But then I saw you sitting here, and I felt things I was starting to think my body was incapable of experiencing with anyone—shifter or human.”
Even though she knew shifters had someone out there who fate intended for them to be with, Adley had no guarantee she was paired with one. I was relieved as fuck to learn she had still saved herself for me, since that wasn’t always true for human mates. Sometimes the doubt got to them—or they had no idea why their bodies didn’t feel desire since they didn’t know that shifters existed—and they forced themselves to try a relationship with someone else. “Thank you for waiting for me.”
“I’m so glad I didn’t give up hope until you found me,” she admitted softly, a pretty blush filling her cheeks again.
My wolf and I were primed to take Adley somewhere private and mark her as ours. But she was human and might not be feeling the mating urge as strongly as I was. Even though she was happy to find out we were fated, she might need some time to get to know me before she was ready to take that step. I didn’t want to assume anything, so I straight up asked, “Do you want to wait before I claim you?”
“Nope, I don’t see any reason for us to hold back.” She tugged her hand free from mine and leaned back a little, putting some distance between us. “Unless you do?”
“Fuck no,” I growled as I slid to the edge of the bench seat on my side of the booth. “We can head out now if you’d like.”
She heaved a deep sigh of relief and grinned. “Sounds like a plan to me.”
I stood and looked down at the stuff on the table. “What about your latte and pastries?”
“The only thing I need right now is you,” she declared as she scooted out of the booth.
The trip was just long enough that I’d decided to book a hotel room, but all I’d done was check in and drop my stuff off before heading to the coffee shop. I hated the idea of my mate being hungry later, so I suggested, “How about we take everything to go? I don’t think my hotel has room service, and we’re going to need sustenance later.”
Her cheeks turned the most
adorable shade of pink before she darted over to the counter to grab a bag and a couple of to-go cups. I couldn’t wait to get her all to myself in my room so I could see how far down the color went.
5
Adley
What a difference an hour made. When I left my house, I was frustrated with my life and feeling blue, and now, I was walking down the street, hand-in-hand with my fated mate. Even better, we were headed to the hotel a couple of blocks down so Luke could take my virginity and claim me. Quickening my stride, I urged, “C’mon, I know you can go faster than this.”
“I’m good with rushing to the hotel, but I’m not going to let you hurry me once I get your body under mine,” he warned with a wink.
I pictured what would happen once we were in his hotel room, and a shiver raced up my spine. We’d only found each other less than an hour ago, but it felt as though I had waited forever for this moment. “I can’t make any promises.”
He picked up his pace, practically dragging me behind him as he growled, “The only promise I can make right now is that I’m going to make you scream so loud every shifter in this territory will know that you belong to me and only me.”
“Holy freaking crap,” I panted even though I wasn’t out of breath from the walk. Luke had me so turned on that my panties were about ready to spontaneously combust. I heaved a sigh of relief when we reached the hotel's side door, and Luke swiped his key card in front of the sensor. A few minutes later, the door to his room slammed shut behind us.
“About damn time.” He swept me off my feet and strode over to the king-sized bed. As soon as he dropped me on the mattress, he yanked his cable-knit sweater over his head and kicked off his shoes. His jeans were the next thing to go.
Her Mate: Badlands Territory/Shifted Love Crossover Page 2
