His Unidentified & Untouchable Mate

Lunch Date (1)

Zahraa POV

When I checked my phone after getting home from Jacob’s, there were as many messages as I’d expected. I had opened a Door, as he’d let me borrow the sweats and shirt. I kind of liked smelling like him, but when Ingrid, Alanis and Tanis had informed – yes, informed, not asked – me that I was going to lunch with them, I knew I’d need to wash at least some of that scent off.

I climbed in the shower feeling…

Well. I was feeling.

I couldn’t place it – parts were like a dream come true, sure, but the other parts were a logistical nightmare.

I’d never had a boyfriend – it almost went without saying. The things that couples enjoyed – holding hands, kissing, perhaps more – were all things I couldn’t do without a layer of fabric between. And I knew the nature of men was fickle. No one would ever want me – not for long, at least.

So what Jacob was experiencing might be fated, sure – but it was probably temporary at best.

I took a deep breath and warned myself over and over. Inevitably, my mind would wander to the warmth of his hand on my thigh, through the thin fabric of my dress. Or to the kiss – the pain of it, but also the anticipation beforehand. The shock when he’d snatched me away from my alpha and he’d claimed me as his.

Mine, he’d said, with that sexy hint of feral ferocity.

I stepped out of the shower feeling like it’d passed in five minutes. When I looked at the display on my phone, it had been twenty-five, and I had several impatient messages from Alanis and Ingrid.

Sorry guys, I responded. Leaving now.

When you tend to open reality-bending Doors and travel instantly, that was an easy to guess lie. My phone was playing notification tones back to back to back as I slipped on some tights and a cream turtleneck, with my signature black gloves. I schooled my hair back into a ponytail, with the curls forming a poof ball behind my head. Knowing we’d be driving around LA for the better part of the day, I added some earrings and oversized sunglasses before opening a door to Alanis’s bedroom.

Alanis lived in the Total Eclipse Coven’s small, subdivided neighborhood. There was a huge gothic cathedral in the middle, where their midnight mass was held twice a week, a playground with a swing set that teenagers liked more than toddlers, and a corner store that sold all manner of snacks, drinks, and blood bags. Considering the area, one might expect the homes to look a bit gothic themselves, but actually, her house and every house on her street looked no different from a regular suburban area.

Alanis’s room was painted green, and she’d been working on perfecting a night sky mural on her ceiling forever, with pockets of blue tulle holding string lights that looked like clouds. Aside from the very artsy walls and ceiling, it looked like a normal bedroom. Tanis was sprawled out on her bed, face up with her legs up the wall. Ingrid had settled into a beanbag chair in the corner, and Alanis was at her own vanity, her back to the mirror as I doubtlessly interrupted whatever very serious conversation they weren’t having about me.

All eyes landed on me, as I leaned back against the door, unwilling to come any closer and risk seeing into the mirror.

“Oh my goddess, don’t just stand there,” Alanis said, standing sharply. She grabbed my hands and led me in, pushing me into her seat on the vanity before she took a towel and draped it over the mirror. “Tell. Us. Everything.”

So, I did.

As I progressed through the story, their expressions told me something I hadn’t thought about: they were clearly awaiting a rejection story.

Their expressions grew somber as I pressed through the story, and I found myself talking quieter and quieter until I was practically whispering.

“…He said he still wants to try,” I finished, eyes having dropped to the hands folded gently in my lap.

Tanis had sat up, staring at me with concern. “Is that what you want?”

The glance I sent to Ingrid was telling. “I don’t know,” I confessed. “This is… unexpected.”

Ingrid stood with a comical amount of effort (seriously, those things tend to just suck you in), crossed the room and put a hand on my shoulder. “It’s up to you, Z,” she said. But there was something in her tone – a mournful quality. When I met her eye, she laughed, waving her hand as if deflecting. “No, no – it’s not like that, really. I just worry for you, is all.”

“Yeah,” Alanis, who’d been silent since the start, agreed. “I’m just trying to calculate where goddess gifted mate lies on the girl code scale.”

There was a hefty silence.

“I don’t think it does,” Ingrid replied. “I mean, it is literally the goddess’s will, Zahraa, and who are we to intervene?”

“A nice thought,” Alanis huffed, “But where does that leave you?”

Ingrid shuffled her feet, retreating until she was back in her corner. Then, she flopped back onto the beanbag chair. “I don’t know. I’ve been thinking about it all night. I mean, I’m way, way, way beyond over him. I’m still hurt, by what he did, but… we were kids then. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to bury the hatchet.”

“Disgusting,” Tanis, also known as the Queen of Petty Grudges, wrinkled her nose.

“I know, I know,” Alanis sighed, settling next to Tanis and patting her shoulder. “Does he know that there won’t be a body left to find if he breaks your heart?”

I grimaced. “You can tell him that much yourself.”

“What about you?” Ingrid asked. “For real. No deflecting – what do you want?”

I examined the stony, expectant faces of my four best friends and deflated. “It’s…” I knew they’d accept whatever I said. They’d find a way to, even if they didn’t want to.

I sighed. “It’s a dream come true, to have a mate.” I hesitated before adding, “I’m just not sure about him.”

“Then do the same thing he’s doing,” Ingrid replied. “Go along with it for now. Feel it out. If it’s not for you, dump him.”

Alanis’s lips were painted stark red, and they curled into a mischievous grin. “And when you do, give us all the details.”