Chapter 12
Twelve
Brady
The way my mouth dropped open when Xavi took the empty seat at my birthday dinner!
Stunned was not the word. Why did he have to look so good after weeks without seeing him?
All the words I thought I’d say when face to face with him once again all dried up.
I must have looked ridiculous with my mouth gaping open!
In one short visit he’d undone a month’s worth of progress.
If anyone noticed how tangled up my words became around him, they were kind enough not to mention it. Being confronted in such a public way with the man you dumped and then ignored for over a month was a lot to deal with. I didn’t really need commentary from my family, especially my brothers.
Xavier’s gift was incredibly expensive and thoughtful. Who would have thought that an off-hand comment made months ago would have led to such a special birthday gift? It wasn’t even a big birthday either. I had only turned twenty-eight!
A painting! I couldn’t believe he’d contacted the artist for me instead of himself.
He could have replaced the painting he’d lost, which was something I’d thought of for his birthday, but it was well out of my price range.
Dad had some connections for the Scotch I’d gotten for Xavier, otherwise I would never have been able to afford something so lavish.
He didn’t hang around long after he announced he’d signed up for Mate Match too. Why would he? It left such an impression on us all that it was all we talked about until our main course came!
“Did you seriously break up with that alpha?” my sister, Wendy, whispered, leaning in close. “He’s hot.”
“Yeah, but he’s only recently divorced with an ex who just didn’t want to get the hint. Besides, he wants kids, and that…”
Mom let out a groan, complete with rolled eyes. “Are you seriously paying attention to that recessive garbage? The only way it might cause issues is if you were both recessive and had other medical issues.” Dad wrapped an arm around him with a nod.
“We’ve gone through two heats unsuccessfully—”
Dad laughed. “Only two?” He shook his head. “Two. Wow,” he deadpanned. “We didn’t plan on a nearly five-year gap between you and your brothers. They are the result of intervention. I forget the name of it, but it promoted ovulation and boosted pheromone production. Effective as hell.”
Mom chuckled. “Yeah, they just forgot to mention that a common side effect is multiple pregnancies.”
I shared a look with my siblings. None of us had known this before. “Okay, still, his ex…”
“Is a problem,” Dad agreed. “Did you tell Xavi what he said to you? His ex is his problem, not yours. Gio loses all leverage against you once you tell Xavier.”
“I told him the other day.”
“After you broke up with him. Are you sure you can’t fix things?” Mom asked.
I thought back to how Xavier had looked when he joined us. His affable smile, the thoughtful gift, his insistence that he wasn’t giving up on us. “Maybe we can, but I think having some space is good for us. If it’s meant to be, then he’ll turn up in my matches, won’t he?”
The conversation swiftly switched focus when Noah said, “So you’re on Mate Match too? We’ve met someone. Can’t wait to introduce you to them.”
“Wait! Both of you are dating the same person?” Across from me, they nodded. Oh, the tea the twins were serving was piping hot!
My first match came the day after my profile went live.
The alpha had a decent, if not a little boring, office job doing something with insurance.
He was only two years older than me and was a dominant alpha who believed his dominance would make up for anything I lacked. Charming, though likely a fact.
Our date was at a mid-priced restaurant in a busy area of the city.
Nothing fancy and something similar to where Curtis had taken Jae on their first date.
My hopes weren’t as high as to expect to meet my perfect match since Conrad only scored somewhere in the high seventies.
I needed to figure out how this matching thing worked.
Everything started off fine enough. Conrad was decent to look at. He appeared to be someone who took care of his appearance, and we matched with our love of the gym.
“What do you bench?”
Immediate ick. Never, and I mean never, had that conversation led anywhere good. It gave me the impression that my build intimidated Conrad, or Con, as he preferred to be called.
“Two hundred.”
Con gave a cough. My eyes narrowed when it sounded like “bullshit.”
I didn’t ask him what he did because I’d lost all interest in the man. Being dismissed because of my secondary gender was not uncommon. It just wasn’t something I expected to come across on my date.
The conversation lulled while I sipped my wine. I wished I’d gone for something stronger. My phone beeped. I apologized before reading the text.
Xavi
Date going well? Send a sign if you need to be rescued.
Was it going that badly I needed Xavier to step in? There was no way I was admitting defeat so early. Instead, I tried to move the conversation along. “Do you play any sports?”
Half an hour later, I was ready to quit.
Con talked and talked about his pickup basketball games, his soccer league, and the occasional baseball game he played.
There was no wonder he was single if all he did was play sports with his alpha buddies.
He made it quite clear that he would not invite me along if we continued dating.
By the time we finished our main courses, I was ready to go home. I called for the check.
“Want to split it?” Con asked, staring at the bill in the middle of the table.
Unsurprised, I gave a strained smile. “Sure.”
“Hey,” an all too familiar voice said from behind me. “Why don’t I pay for your dinner? I think Brady still wants dessert.”
“Who are you?” Conrad’s face flushed with anger, and perhaps some embarrassment as he took in the other alpha.
“Just an old friend. I’d like to catch up with Brady, if you don’t mind.”
“We’re on a date,” Conrad said stiffly.
“It looked like it had ended since you were about to split the check. I’m offering to pay for your dinner and Brady’s if you give me your seat.” Xavier’s smile was charming, though it held a hint of challenge.
“Whatever. Free dinner, I guess.” Conrad stood and didn’t offer me a goodbye before leaving the restaurant.
“Well, we won’t be having date number two.”
Xavier paused halfway in Conrad’s abandoned seat. “Is that a problem?”
I laughed. “No, but you knew that already.”
He sat with an unrepentant grin. “Dessert?”
“Alright.”
We chose desserts to add to the bill once Xavier flagged down the server. He was incredibly charming with them, earning himself a fond smile. I couldn’t help feeling at ease now that he was with me.
The desserts were great, made better by the improvement in dining partner.
“So, ready to ditch Mate Match yet?”
I laughed. “No. I want to see if you’ll turn up soon.”
Xavier pushed my phone closer. “You’ll need to unmatch with that guy before you can get your next one.”
My fingers shook as I unlocked the app and went to the match details. I clicked the button to unpair me and Conrad and waited. Sure enough, a match came in:
Congratulations, Jae, you have an 83% match! Click here to open your Mate Matched profile.
I hit the button again, my stomach fluttering with nerves. My heart dropped.
Across the table, Xavier watched me carefully. “Not me, huh?”
Somehow Xavier knew when I was on a date, and always came to find me unless I asked him not to, which hadn’t happened because all these dates were a dud! What was wrong with me that I couldn’t match with a decent guy?
Movie date, the guy got handsy. He actually followed me to the bathroom thinking I wanted to hook up there in the theater! I was actually grateful Xavier had mysteriously turned up that time. I reported my date to the app. Mate Match gave me a free month and banned the dude, so that was something.
When I asked Xavier how he was always there when I needed him, he admitted he was still on my heat tracking app. That’s how he knew when I was out on a date. The app showed my location. I could also track him. It really was reassuring to have that backup with all these bad dates.
They kept getting worse. There was one where I met a guy at the gym, only for him to go off with a beta who could bench far heavier than me.
Xavier turned up to spot me before I could get into trouble.
We had lunch after. It was so nice. Effortless in the way we had been back at the start.
Then I remembered Gio’s words and how worthless they made me feel.
It wasn’t enough to have this with Xavier. I needed something more. Some proof.
Despite Xavier’s saves and persistence, I knew I wasn’t ready to call it a day with Mate Match. Deep down, I was beginning to suspect that only Xavier turning up as my Mate Match would give me what I needed to be certain he was meant for me.
If the app couldn’t pick him for me, why would I pick him for myself?
So it went on and on. Xavier didn’t come to every date because not all of them were disasters. Many were fine enough, with no sparks to lead to another date. Either the alpha or I would agree not to go further. Until Lucas, at least.
I met Lucas for Sunday brunch at the cutest cafe just off the beaten path of the main street. We talked about books, art, and swimming, with the conversation flowing easily between us. When it came time to head out, we opted for a walk in the park.
The day was breezy, yet the skies were clear enough to risk a wander through the ornate gardens. Lucas walked close to me, dipping his head to catch every word I said. He was sweet, attentive, and very nice to look at. Still, I didn’t quite feel anything aside from friendship between us.
When Xavi sent his check up text, I replied saying I didn’t need him. I wanted to give Lucas a fair shot despite my lukewarm feelings for the guy.
At the end of our date, Lucas kissed my cheek and asked to take me out to dinner. Without a reason to say no, I accepted, though I felt conflicted about it.
All week I fretted over it. My parents wanted me to work this out by myself. My brothers were far too busy with their mate, and Jae had wedding stuff along with his mate and kid, so I tried not to bother him with my petty problems.
Wendy had my back. “I think you should give Lucas a shot. He’s a what? Nearly ninety percent match? I think if you quit all this now, you’ll always wonder if Xavier would ever get matched with you.”
“I’m already wondering that. I’ve been on seven dates now!”
“Well, if Lucas doesn’t work out, you could call Mate Match. Maybe they can tell you if he’s in there. Didn’t you say it’s in a queuing system? That there are far more omegas than alphas?”
“Yeah, you’re right. I can see there are a few pending.”
“Really?”
“It says in the FAQ that you risk losing a higher percentage match if you swipe off a match in the hopes of getting a better one, or something. It’s all science stuff I don’t understand.”
“Huh. So, are you giving Lucas date number two?”
“I already said yes. I’m not changing my mind about him now. If it’s not working later, I’ll pull the plug.”
Dinner went well with conversation flowing, but Lucas was especially intense.
He kept brushing my hand with his fingers, or his foot would touch my leg under the table.
His pheromones were stronger, too, as if he’d given up on the pretense of being a more passive alpha.
The server kept giving me looks. Were they worried about me?
Nothing from our interactions suggested I was in danger. Still, I couldn’t quite relax.
“Would you like to go for a walk? There’s an observatory if you’d like to see the stars.”
Unable to think of a decent excuse, I accepted. Before we left the restaurant, I texted a worried face emoji to Xavier without really thinking about it. What I was doing wasn’t fair. If he turned up, he would see me on a date again, this time a second date. It had to be hurtful to him.
We walked along the path leading up to the lookout point. No one was around us at that late hour. My instincts were at war with common sense, leaving me on edge. Lucas wasn’t a danger to me. The app had vetted him, and we’d been out before. I was overthinking things.
Lucas took my hand. “This okay?”
I nodded, unable to find my voice with fear flooding my system. “Could we maybe go back? I’m not sure the food agreed with me.”
He pulled me to a stop at the edge of the path, my back against a rock wall. “And end our date before the good stuff?” Lucas leaned down to kiss me, but I turned my head away. “C’mon,” he cajoled, “just a kiss.”
His lips met mine, cold and unyielding as he forced his tongue into my mouth. He let his pheromones loose in a cascading wave. Without the pheromone scrubbers in the restaurant, my knees threatened to buckle.
I savagely bit his tongue. Lucas jerked back. “Fuck!” I thought he was going to hit me when I heard footsteps on the path.
“Hey!” Xavier’s voice was loud and tinged with anger.
I nearly cried with relief. My knight was here to rescue me! I shook as my adrenaline crashed.
Lucas pushed away from me. “Whatever. Fucking omega tease.” He stalked away from me, his shoulder bumping into Xavier’s.
Warm arms surrounded me, grounding me in the moment. “Let’s get you home.”
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have texted you,” I muttered, feeling guilty.
Xavier held me closer. “I’m glad you did, though I’m sure you had him handled.”
“It’s selfish of me to keep doing this.” I leaned into Xavier’s warmth as we walked back down the path toward the bright lights of Main Street.
“Maybe, but I get why you are. I’m going to wait for you to be ready to face the truth.”
“What truth?”
“That we are a perfect match and no other alpha will get you the way I do.”