Chapter 3
Monte
I did not want to attend the Theta party tonight. But what could I do? Carefully avoiding those girls had kept me sane these last few years. I heard the stories, and I knew all they wanted was to get drunk and fuck. That simply wasn’t me.
I avoided Theta girls like the plague.
My freshman year I spent more time at the Panther house than Theta, though I’d attended a few.
By my sophomore year I knew to just steer clear of that house.
Something about that place just set my wolf on edge.
As I got dressed for the evening in the black suit and blue and gold tie we’d all been instructed to wear, I could already feel my anxiety rising.
I wasn’t really sure why my wolf reacted so strongly there, but I had learned to trust him. When his anxiety rose, nothing good ever came from it, at least not in real life. It was only when I was climbing that a good sort of anxiety happened.
Dread washed over me as I braced for an uncomfortable evening. I was already counting down the minutes until I could excuse myself and go for a run to calm myself before retiring early.
It had been a long week, and I was exhausted.
I briefly considered begging off, but Denny had been very clear on his expectations and had personally warned me not to bother trying to get out of it.
Still, I wanted to try.
Remy pounded on my bedroom door. “Let’s go.”
I groaned, grabbed my black suit jacket and folded it across my arm as I left the safety of my room to be escorted right into the wolf den.
Ten minutes later we all walked over to Theta as a group.
“Denny, how long are we required to stay?” I asked. Maybe I could just make an appearance and leave.
“It’s a formal dinner followed by a night of dancing.
Denny and Zoey have agreed to keep things very civil tonight.
It’s the first required event they’ve shared together in quite some time,” Lauren explained.
“So no bailing until after you’ve had at least one dance.
” She wagged her finger in my direction in warning.
“Food better be good,” I muttered under my breath.
“It’s going to be fine. Fun even,” Caleb insisted.
“Everyone should be on their best behavior tonight,” Remy said with a wink.
The shit-eating grin on his face told me he had other plans for the evening.
I said a quick prayer that the night would be swift and painless.
As we arrived at the house a few minutes later, Denny stepped up to knock on the door. I was too far back to see who it was, but the shimmer of gold in the doorway made my eyes roll. They were clearly going all out to draw attention to themselves.
My wolf began to grow agitated.
From the very back of the line I looked around for an escape route as my brothers began filing in one by one.
“Don’t even think about it,” Braxton whispered, positioning himself behind me. “It’s not going to kill you to do this one thing. Besides, it might even be fun.”
I rolled my eyes. “I wasn’t trying to bail.”
“Liar.”
The closer to the door we got, the more irritated my wolf became.
I watched as each of my brothers hugged the woman at the door and disappeared into the house.
Five more of the guys ahead of me hugged her, and I glanced towards the woods.
“Not happening,” Braxton muttered.
Three more.
It was my last chance to bail.
Suddenly the hair on my arms stood up and my mouth went dry.
I sniffed the air, catching her scent just as Remy leaned in to hug the girl.
A deep guttural growl escaped me, causing Caleb and one of the pledges to turn toward me, but my eyes were fixated on her.
Our eyes locked over Remy’s shoulder. Hers were wide and so very blue.
Mine, my wolf growled.
My jaw dropped, and I heard a small gasp escape her.
Remy turned to check on me. My breathing was heavy as I tried desperately to rein in my control.
He was one of my best friends in the world, a true brother, but he was touching my mate and all I could see was red.
She seemed to recover more easily, but fur was already sprouting on my hands.
Goddamn it, I was about to shred my best suit, and I really couldn’t afford to replace it right now.
Braxton’s hand clamped down hard on my shoulder. The pain and shock of it broke the eye contact I had with the girl.
“Whatever you’re thinking of doing, don’t,” he warned.
Remy disappeared inside and Caleb stepped up next.
The girl seemed to be frozen as she continued to stare at me.
Always being a gentleman, he must have sensed her discomfort as he hesitated, then shook her hand instead and walked inside.
Confused, the pledge in front of me did the same.
And suddenly I was standing there face-to-face with my one true mate.
Time stood still as we stared at one another.
Mate, my wolf confirmed, causing me to suck in a sharp breath.
I knew that face. I knew those eyes. Zoey Rey.
I’d left a nasty review on her newest video today. I cringed, suddenly feeling guilty for doing that and making a mental note to delete it the second I could.
“Oh shit,” Braxton muttered behind me, then he chuckled.
I scowled, not fully realizing I was glaring at the girl until her eyes dropped and stared at the floor.
Not just any girl, Zoey—my mate.
Braxton gave me a little shove forward and I stepped right into Zoey’s space. As she teetered and started to fall backwards, I instinctively caught her in my arms, unprepared for the shock of touching her. It nearly took my breath away.
Her arms wrapped around my neck, and I just held her there for a moment until Brax cleared his throat behind me.
She gasped and scrambled to her feet, putting space between us.
My wolf was not happy, but I was a little relieved. So many emotions were assaulting me at once, overwhelming me.
She smoothed down her dress and cleared her throat, but her eyes wouldn’t quite meet mine again.
I clenched my fists and forced myself to walk past her.
How the hell was I going to make it through this night?
“Uh, hi. I’m Braxton,” I heard him say.
“Zoey. Welcome.”
Somehow, I knew her voice sounded strained and not quite right.
Knowing she was just as uncomfortable as I was helped me put one foot in front of the other and make my way to the long hall in the center of the house that was set up with tables and chairs and designed to seat a DOG between two Thetas.
Fortunately, being last to enter, there were more D.O.G.s than Thetas, so the last two seats were together. Brax didn’t hesitate to sit next to me.
Unfortunately, as president of Theta, Zoey sat at the opposite end of the room at the head of the table with Denny on one side and Jax on the other.
Jax wasn’t a wolf; he was a turtle shifter and a witch. He had the ability to hear people’s thoughts and when he chose to, he could talk telepathically with them.
Jax, you little asshole. If you’re listening, you better not even look her way. And if you lay a finger on her, so help me God . . .
Who?
Before I could stop myself I thought her name—Zoey.
He leaned forward and craned his head to look at me, then back at her. His eyes widened.
Oh shit! You’re mated to the hottest girl on campus?
Dammit Jax, get out of my head.
Hey, you called out to me. Anytime someone thinks my name I can’t help but hear it. It’s the one thing I cannot block out, so you only have yourself to blame.
Braxton grabbed my arm.
I growled, causing the girl next to me to scoot closer to Remy who was on her other side.
Good! I thought.
When I looked up at Brax, I could see concern in his eyes.
“I’m not going to do anything stupid. I’m here, aren’t I? Stop worrying,” I whispered.
I could tell by the look on his face that he understood what had happened when I met Zoey. He knew, but I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of admitting it.
Every male at the ARC wanted her. Every one of my brothers wanted her.
I’d tap that, Caleb’s words echoed in my mind.
I gripped the edge of the table and felt it start to give around my fingers.
“Dude, you have to calm down,” Braxton warned.
“I need to get out of here.”
“You can’t. Maybe after dinner. Until then, just relax and focus on the food or on me. Don’t even look her way.”
Didn’t he realize how impossible that was?
But I knew he was right, and I forced myself not to even glance her way as the food was served.
Deep breaths. You can do this.
You’ve got this, Monte, Jax insisted. If it helps, she’s as miserable as you are.
I groaned. Of course he was listening in. Asshole, get out of my head, and hers too!