My Mate

Prologue

I found my mate.

She's human.

And already has a boyfriend.

Fuck!

And that boyfriend is my best friend.

Double fuck!

What happens when the deception of the senses messes with who happens to be this werewolf's mate? Can he handle being around two people he's known for forever and has given and gained the trust of? Will the mate bond take over and make him run rampant? Or will he find out just what happens when two best friends are way too close? ...well for his comfort that is.

Now my mate's best friend is telling me she likes me.

Ah hell...

Chapter 1

I have been patient for the last 18 years of my life. I have waited and waited and waited. I have been kind and respectful and nervous in the head. I have been a bit lost and a bit frightened. I have been working to keep control and sometimes I scare myself. It's annoying and confusing. It's frustrating. I. Am. Frustrated.

I am sick of going to classes that are irrelevant to me. "We do it to fit in," he says. "We want to be as normal as possible," he says. Blah Blah Blah.

"Quit your bitching and put up with it for a little longer. We only have like," Brett's mind link pauses as he looks over at the watch clock above the headboard in the front of the classroom.

"Twenty minutes of class left and we are free to go." Brett continues as he stares ahead.

Brett is my best bud. Three-time wrestling champ in our small town. He's extremely good and has made a great reputation for himself. He gets calls from scouts at different colleges and universities. But we both know he isn't going anywhere. At least that's what he keeps telling me.

I watch as his eyes drift over to the front corner of the classroom. He stares at her and she glances back towards him like she already knows. Like she can feel it.

It makes me want to punch something.

I want to punch everything.

I don’t want her. I want someone to have that with. He believes that she is his mate. But he won’t know for a couple of months. As for me, I shouldn’t have to wait much longer. I understand that I shouldn’t be jealous but sometimes, it just hits like a ton of bricks.

Sometimes I feel like I am missing something and sometimes I feel like that something is staring me right in the face. I don’t know, I am a confused hormonal teenager. Except worse. Way worse.

I feel an agitated tick start to set in a few seconds before the school bell rings. Everyone begins to rush to head out the door including myself.

“The bell doesn’t dismiss you,” I hear our teacher say as a few students escape the room.

I roll my eyes and continue out of the classroom. Bad enough that your voice is like listening to a drone.

“I guess there’s no homework for tomorrow since everyone wants to just leave,” our teacher, Mr. Jeffries mutters and sighs before the door to his room is slammed closed by the last student that exits.

“You’ve been a little more on edge these past few days. You alright bro?” Brett asks me as we exit the school building.

His girlfriend, Jasmine or Jazzy, trails along next to him with her earbuds in. She usually doesn’t pay me much attention or anyone for that matter. Always keeping to herself. She seems off to me though.

Bretts fingers snap in front of my face causing me to jerk to a stop and someone to bump into me from behind. I narrow my eyes at him and he just shrugs.

“What,” he asks innocently.

“I’m fine,” I mutter before turning around to help the person that was scrambling to pick up her stuff off the ground.

As I’m picking up what I can only assume is A. P. Calculus, I realize the person that bumped into me is Jasmine’s best friend, Maxine. She’s wearing a huge oversized hoodie today. Her sneakers are more scuffed up than usual and her black hair is a complete mess. When she finally stands up from scrambling she stumbles a little and I catch her arm to steady her. When Maxine looks up at me, I realize her glasses are broken and I feel horrible. I feel so bad a pit forms in my stomach. It makes me feel weird.

“Sorry,” she mumbles. “I was staring at the assignment in my hands and wasn’t paying attention very well. I didn’t expect you to stop walking.” Her words come out rushed and if it weren’t for her brown skin, which is incredibly soft, I would say she was blushing. (The sleeve on her arm had ridden up.)

“It’s fine really. I’m sorry about your glasses.” I say and let go of her. I give her her papers back and she shuffles them into her bag.

“Sorry, again.” Her eyes move from side to like she’s nervous.

I look around and realize it’s just us over here talking as the parking lot is almost empty besides Brett, Jazzy, Max, me, and a couple of stragglers who are waiting for a ride.

I feel a strange itch to touch her again. I scrunch my face to hold back the urge and turn around to walk back to Brett. I know she’s following me based on her timid steps. Once we reach Brett’s car she goes over to the side that Jasmine is on and tries to hug her. That’s usually what best friends do. But Jasmine shrugs her off and all that does is register as weird in my head. Maybe they’re fighting.

“Are you guys still t-t-taking me h-home?” Max asks.

Before Brett can even let a breath out Jasmine says, “Nope. You can ride with Xander.”

I glance at Brett who has his eyebrows raised in surprise. He purses his lips and doesn’t say anything.

“Oh-okay,” Max squeaks out. She speed walks to my car and stands over there with her head down.

“Um, I’ll see you later bro,” I say. We slap palms then pull each other in and slap each other’s back twice. Girls like to call it a bro hug.

Brett nods in return before getting in the car with Jasmine. He peels out of the lot to where you can see and hear the rubber burning on his tires. He’s been reprimanded so many times for that.

I unlock the doors to my Toyota Camry. My dad’s choice of car. We both get in and leave the school. It’s awkward, to say the least. I don’t dare touch the radio or say a word as Max faces the window not making a sound. There’s only a slight indication that she is alive based on her almost silent breathing.

“Are you okay? Are you guys fighting?” The words leave my mouth before I can process the shit storm that will enter my world. Never get involved between two best friends. That’s rule number one.

“Yes,” comes her quick reply.

Don’t ask. Don’t ask. “Are you sure?”

“Yep.” Her response is short and curt. I nod to her in response.

I keep driving and take the turn opposite her house.

“Umm...” she begins but I beat her to it. I ask, “Are you hungry?” Max opens her mouth to respond but I again interrupted her. “I’m hungry, let’s get something to eat real quick.”

I glance at her to see her reaction. Her eyebrows are scrunched as she glances from me to the window but once she catches my gaze her eyes glue to the window. I bite my lip to hide my smirk.

I pull into Tony’s Pizza. The best New York-style pizza here. Why what could be such a big establishment moved into this small town, I don’t know.

I open the door to get out of the car. When I see she makes no move to exit I round the car and open her door for her. “Come on,” I say. "I won't bite," I pause for a second as she just stares at me. "Not you at least."

She unbucles the seatbelt around her waist and gets out of the car. "Thank you," I hear her mumble as I open the door for her to the pizza shop.

I notice how she walks more on her left than her right. How timid her steps are and how she plays with her glasses once we sit down. The pristine white marble table takes her attention quickly. And I look away before it looks like I'm staring. I'm not staring, I'm observing. I'm always observing my surroundings.

The red and white checkerboard floor of the restuarant looks clean. The glass cases with the fresh pizza in them offer an amazing aroma to my hightened sense. But an aroma that's been wrapped around me sense I stepped foot in my car makes me have a stong urge to sigh. My eyes drift back to her to find her staring at me already. Her dark brown eyes are staring at me and I don't know if she realized I'm staring back. My eyebrows move of their own accord to a raised position as if saying, "yeah?"

She blows out a breath like she's going to say something but before she can, she's interrupted. "How may I offer my services today," comes the chipper tone of Amanda, our waitress.

Once Amanda looks up from the notepad in her hand, her short cut blonde hair bouncing on her shoulders, her eyes widen at seeing me. "Aww, man you've moved on. Left me hanging. Finally found yourself a girl," Amanda says while pouting.

I watch Max bite her lip and scrunch her eyebrows in confusion. Don't bite your lip like that. I shake my head in confusion at the thought. I chuckle before answering Amanda and saying, "No. We're just... friends. She's feeling pretty down so I thought I'd bring her for pizza. She'll have two large slices of pinneapple by the way and I'll have my regular."

Amanda narrows her eyes at me, nodding as she writes down my order without even looking at the paper. She hums as she turns around and makes her way to the back of the restaurant the swinging door closing behind her. That woman drives me nuts.

"So, um... did you guys like go out? Are going out... um," Max asks confused. When I turn back to her to give her my attention she seems a bit lost for words on the exchange I just had with out waitress. "Is that why you never dated anyone in school? Oh my gosh the rumors are true!" Her eyes widen and the purple ring around the brown of her eyes become more prominent.

Rumors? What rumors? I voice my thoughts, "There are rumors about me in school? What?"

"Oh," she squeaks.

I stare at her finding this hilarious. Of course there are rumors about me, no one can mind their own business in that school. I swear. I place my arms on the table quite enjoying myself and leaning forward. She looks at everything but me: the round light fixtures hanging above us, the sleeve of my black denim jacket, the red chairs, the giant menu above the ordering counter, and anything else her eyes can take in.

"Well there's one," she pauses. "So the girls think... um that. And the boys, well some, think you're only into older chicks. Like you're," She raises her hands and put quotation marks around her next statement. "Too good for school girls. And that, well, you might have lost your... um," she takes much longer getting this last bit out. "V-card," she whispers. "To someone much older than you, and you don't like kids your own age anymore."

A loud laugh comes from behind the doors to the kitchen in the back. It's the loudest laugh I have ever heard. It's so loud that Max can hear it and she jumps at the sound. Her nose scrunches up and I swear if it weren't for the melanin in her that I would be able to see her blush.