She had a point. We were practically strangers a few weeks ago, and clearly, the feelings weren’t mutual. I’d done my homework on the concept of fated mates, all in a bid to win her sister back.
I knew rejection was a possibility. The mere thought of it sent chills down my spine and shattered my heart into a million pieces.
“Kate, I can’t,” I began.
“Yes, you can,” she countered. “It’ll be good for you. We can both move on.”
“I can’t even begin to explain what I feel for you,” I stuttered, struggling to find the right words. “You’re my everything.”
“That’s not my fault,” she retorted.
“No, it’s not,” I conceded. “All I’m asking is for a chance to show you what we could be. Please, just give me a shot.”
She looked like she was about to tell me to take a hike. Again. But then, her expression softened a bit before she sighed, and her ocean-blue eyes locked with mine.
“What would that even look like?” she asked in a whisper.
I had to restrain myself from jumping for joy. This was the first sign of hope she had given me.
“I’d like to take you out on a date,” I proposed.
“Just a date?” she sought clarification.
“Yes, a regular man-and-woman kind of thing.”
I cringed at how awkward I sounded. I was usually smooth with women, but around this fiery redhead, I was a complete social klutz.
“I’m not my sister. I’m not going to marry you tomorrow,” she stated.
I shook my head. “Kate, I’ve told you before, no one is comparing you to Sam.”
This was a touchy subject between us. Kate despised the fact that Sam and I had been together. I tried to convince her that it was a brief fling, but she reminded me that I had proposed during that time.
I wished I had never met Samantha Paulson. I was deeply in love with her at one point—or at least I thought I was. Back then, I couldn’t comprehend Sam’s instant attraction to King Ivar. Now that I had experienced the bond with my own mate, the idea that I could win her over seemed ludicrous.
“Fine,” Kate huffed, clearly not convinced. “When’s our date?”
“Well, since you’re having dinner with Sam tonight—”
“Tonight sounds perfect,” she interrupted.
I frowned. “Don’t you want to see your sister? You just invited me.”
“She checks in on me six times a day to make sure Luke’s eating his greens. A date with you is an excuse she won’t argue with. She might even throw a party.” She rolled her eyes. “Honestly, I don’t want to be there when he tells her he’s been skipping school for a week.”
I winced at the thought of the storm Sam would unleash on us when she found out we were struggling to keep Luke in line. It was hard to argue with him about his priorities, though. Calculus was incredibly dull compared to leading a werewolf pack. Besides, it was his birthright.
That was the argument I was sticking with.
“What time?” She brought me back from my thoughts.
“Uh, how about six?”
“Make it five-thirty,” she suggested, and I tilted my head. “Sam’s supposed to arrive at six and I need a buffer.”
I smiled down at her. She liked to take control of situations. It was hard to be annoyed when the love of my life had finally agreed to go on a date with me.
“Whatever you say, hun,” I replied.
“Ew, no.” She wrinkled her nose. “Don’t start with the pet names.”
I laughed as I walked away. “All right, Kate. I’ll pick you up at five-thirty.”
I felt lighter than I had in weeks.
Despite being preoccupied with thoughts of our upcoming date, I got caught up in work and found myself rushing to the alpha’s residence to pick up Kate. After Sam relieved me of my duties as beta, she struggled to find a new role for me.
I moved around different departments, lending a hand wherever I could. Then, the head security advisor retired and I campaigned for the position.
At the time, it seemed like a good deal. I worked closely with Sam—which was the whole point. But now that I wasn’t trying to woo the alpha and there was a deranged witch on the loose, the job was less appealing.
I was constantly on conference calls discussing strategies for whatever was coming. If I wasn’t so preoccupied chasing my soulmate, I might find it interesting. Instead, it was just tiresome.
It didn’t help that I couldn’t sleep. As soon as my head hit the pillow, I was haunted by dreams of my beautiful mate. When I woke up, her absence brought a longing that made it hard to breathe.
All of that would change tonight. I was determined to win her over. Or at least secure a second date.
I pulled up to the front door right at five-thirty and got out of the car to ring the bell. I was halfway up the porch stairs when Kate came out.
My breath hitched as I took her in. She had swapped her business attire for a form-fitting black dress that accentuated her curves perfectly. Her long legs seemed endless in strappy heels, and her auburn hair swayed in loose curls as she sauntered toward me.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Uh, what do you mean?” I frowned. “I’m here to pick you up.”
“Why are you out of the car?”
I stared at her, not understanding the question.
“You could have just texted that you were here,” she suggested. “I saw you on the cameras.”
“Umm, yeah. I’m not going to do that.”
I moved to open the passenger door for her, and she gave me a strange look.
“What?” I asked.
“No one’s ever done that for me before,” she admitted.
My frown deepened. “What do you mean? Opened your car door?”
She dismissed me with a wave. “I haven’t dated much.”
I tried to suppress my anger on the way back to the driver’s side. The thought of a man not treating my woman with respect was infuriating. On the other hand, the idea of her going on a date with anyone else had my wolf, Zef, clawing at my consciousness.
When I opened my own car door to get in, Kate was already fiddling with the sound system.
I couldn’t help but inwardly smile at how straightforward she was. There was no shyness with her. She was confident and didn’t try to be anything less than who she was.
“Why do you have so much music from the ‘80s and ‘90s in here?” she asked as I slowly drove down the gravel driveway.
“I was a teenager when this music was popular,” I confessed with a shrug.
“Did your parents play it around the house or something?” she asked, trying to piece it together.
I made a face. “No, I was actually a teenager when this came out.”
She seemed to be calculating something in her head before she looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“I don’t think we’ve ever talked about your birthday, Mr. Stone,” she noted.
“It’s on June sixteenth.”
“And the year?” she probed.
I let out a sigh. “I’m forty-two, Kate.”
I had always been careful to avoid this topic. In werewolf years, I was in my prime, but I knew the age difference could be a turn-off for my twenty-seven-year-old human mate. I didn’t want to give her another reason to push me away.
“You look like you’re barely thirty,” she said slowly. “I need to know your skincare routine.”
I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling awkward. “Well, uh, we age more slowly.”
“How much slower?” she asked. “I know Sam and Ivar are immortal, but I thought that was just them.”
I tried to sound casual. “Werewolves usually live well past a hundred years. It’s not unusual for our human mates to be much younger.”
She shook her head in disbelief. “Wait, what?”
I shrugged. “Your parents are a wolf and human pair, Kate. I thought you might have guessed because of their age difference.”
“What age difference?” she asked. “They’re only three years apart.”
“Umm…” I was scrambling to find a way to backtrack.
Kate saw right through me and narrowed her eyes. “How old is my dad, Mr. Stone?”
I sighed. “Your dad is in his seventies.”
She looked shocked. “That puts a whole new spin on ‘dog years.’ You would be terrible under interrogation, by the way. You caved immediately.”
I laughed as we pulled into the restaurant.
I had chosen a sushi place on pack lands. I wasn’t a fan of fish, especially raw, but Sam had told me that Kate loved sushi back in Chicago.
As we settled into our seats, Kate gave the menu a skeptical look.
“Is something wrong?” I asked, suddenly unsure. “We can go somewhere else if you want.”
“How did you know I like sushi?”
“I asked Sam,” I admitted.
She nodded, but her lips formed a slight pout. I wasn’t sure how to convince her that I no longer had feelings for her sister. I regretted ever letting things get this complicated.
“What’s good here?” Kate asked, interrupting my thoughts.
“Uh…” I looked at the menu, which was filled with descriptions that made me question everything I knew about food.
“Do you even like sushi?” she asked, tilting her head at me.
“To be honest, I don’t eat fish,” I confessed.
She rolled her eyes. “Then why are we here?”
I shrugged. “I wanted to take you somewhere you would enjoy. Sam mentioned you missed some of the restaurants in Chicago. We might not have the same variety here, but I thought we could try this place.”
She stared at me for a moment, her expression unreadable.
“Why are you trying so hard? You don’t even know me.”
“You’re my mate,” I said firmly. “I would do anything to make you happy, Kaitlyn. I want to get to know you.”
She looked down at the table. “If you really knew me, you wouldn’t want me.”
Her words caught me off guard. I had never heard her express any kind of vulnerability before. She always seemed so confident, almost to a fault.
“Hey,” I said, and she looked up at me. “That’s not true.”
She pressed her lips together and shook her head slightly.
“I have to go to Chicago for a few days to wrap up some things at work and pack up my condo. Can you watch Luke while I’m gone?”
She was clearly trying to change the subject. I wanted to argue, to tell her all the things I found amazing about her. But it was hard to know where to draw the line with her until I had already crossed it. For now, I decided to let it go.
“Your parents could stay at the house if you want company on your trip,” I suggested.
“I don’t,” she said bluntly. “Sam’s already stressed and you’re the person she trusts to watch out for him.”
“Okay,” I agreed, not wanting to start a fight.
Our conversation was interrupted by the waiter coming to take our order. I let Kate handle it since I had no idea what to order. She picked some of the milder options, and I ordered a beer to help ease the tension I felt around this fierce woman.
“What do you have left to do in Chicago?” I asked once the waiter had left.
“I need to hand over a few clients and pack up my personal stuff,” she explained. “I’m going to rent out the condo until I decide whether to sell it or not.”
“Makes sense. How do you like working for the pack?”
She looked thoughtful. “It’s…different. My old job was really competitive, which kept things interesting. But I like being closer to my family. I didn’t realize how much I missed them.”
I nodded. “You and Luke seem really close.”
“We are,” she agreed. “I was young when he was born, so we kind of grew up together. When I moved after law school, the hardest part was knowing I would miss so much of his childhood. This feels like I’m making up for lost time.”
“What made you take the job in Chicago?” I asked.
She tensed up for a moment before shaking it off.
“I interned there and they loved me,” she said, her usual bravado returning. “I took a full-time position when I graduated.”
“I’ve heard you’ve done well.”
“I have,” she agreed. “But, you know, duty calls. Plus, who wouldn’t want to live among a secret society that worships an obscure deity and blindly follows a charismatic leader without asking questions.”
“Well, when you put it that way…” I grinned.
“Just so you know,” she continued, smirking mischievously. “I draw the line at Kool-Aid.”
I laughed.
“You’re a good sister.”
“Please.” Kate rolled her eyes. “Moving here to be closer to my family is hardly praiseworthy.”
“You’re too hard on yourself,” I observed. “Giving up your entire life is a big deal.”
Kate shrugged. “Sam didn’t ask me to. I offered. She’s always put others before herself. She deserves to be with her soulmate.”
“She’s a very kind person,” I agreed. “And strong, tenacious, brave—qualities you both share.”
“Don’t forget beautiful,” she teased.
“That goes without saying.” I smirked.
Just as we were served our meals, I found myself captivated by her transformation in this cozy environment. All our previous encounters had been marked by her assertiveness, a trait so strong it was nearly daunting.
Yet, as I sat opposite her, I saw that she was still the same fierce, self-assured woman I had fallen for, but there was an added depth to her.
I found myself gazing at this stunning woman, and a sudden urge to uncover all her secrets washed over me.
“Do you come here often?” I asked, trying to sound casual.
She looked up from her plate, a small smile playing on her lips. “Not really,” she replied. “I usually prefer quieter places.”
I nodded, taking a bite of my food. “I can see why you like it here, though. It’s got a nice atmosphere.”
She chuckled softly. “Yes, it does. It’s a good place to unwind.”
We continued eating in comfortable silence for a few moments. Then, she glanced at me, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. “What about you? Do you have a favorite spot?”
I thought for a moment before answering. “There’s a little café near my apartment. It’s nothing fancy, but it feels like home.”
Her smile widened. “I’d love to see it sometime.”
“Maybe we can go there next time,” I suggested, feeling a warm glow inside.
“I’d like that,” she said softly, her gaze holding mine.
