Mates: Melanie's Warrior

Chapter 10

~Melanie~

Two more matches resulted in wins, and I’m climbing higher up the ladder. My second opponent called himself being ‘gentle’ with me, and I had to show him how irritated that made me. The third opponent had a severely over-inflated ego, and it was my joy to bring him down a few notches.

I was able to avoid that Brady bastard and was lucky enough not to run into my mate. I caught myself wondering who he was and what his name was. Each time I drifted into those thoughts, I had to find a way to reel myself back into reality.

I have one more match to close out the day; then, I can return to the hotel and rest. These are one-and-done matches; lose the match and you are eliminated. I don’t always like that format, but there are so many participants here that they had to find a way to cut down the numbers.

I’m sitting in the medic tent getting a few cuts cleaned out. These men may not be ready for me, but their scary antics have caused damage. I want to make sure I keep on top of things and not let them get worse. I look up, and I see those two men again. They have been following me for most of the day, and I have no idea why.

They are horrible at surveillance. I spotted them the moment they started to keep tabs on me. I’ve purposely put us in situations that would cause us to interact with each other. Rather than subtly ignore me, they avoided me in the most obvious ways. I told my warriors to keep an eye out. I need Brooklyn to be safe, and I need them to be aware if I’m messed with.

I can smell him as he gets close to me, and I want to gag. He smells like burnt tires and gasoline. No one in their right mind would want to breathe that scent all day. I feel sorry for his fated mate because she’s going to want to have her olfactory neurons removed. “Have you been enjoying the show, beautiful?” I stand up and hand the ice pack to a nearby nurse.

“Thank you for your help.” The nurse smiles at me, and I walk to the tent opening. I try to step out of the tent, but he blocks my way. I roll my eyes and try to approach his left, but I’m blocked. I approach his right, but I’m blocked again. I’m really starting to get pissed now, and so is Winnie.

“Come on, Melanie. You act as if you don’t like me.” I had to fight my body not to react to my name. How the hell did he find out who I am? I feel a shudder go through my body. My name from his mouth is vile and makes me want to scrub myself clean.

“Move.” I borrow the pitch of my wolf’s voice. I want him to worry enough to move but not so much that he gets physical. He steps toward me and grabs my hand, trying to lace our fingers together. I use my free hand and slap him across the face so hard that his face is pushed to the side. A handprint is visible on his face, making me wish it would last longer than 24 hours.

Brady tries to motion discreetly, a hand up behind him and a quick shake of his head. I notice the only eyes on him are the ones that have been watching and following me. I figured they were working for someone. Had I known it was him, I’d probably have pulled their eyes out already. “I’m going to let you get away with that one. We all know how emotional women can get. The next time you put your hands on me, though, you will find out what the consequences of that tend to be.” Brady took a step closer. “Let’s talk about you and me now.”

I want to rip his throat out. I’m itching to do it, and if I did, I doubt I’d get in too much trouble. I’m a pack Gamma, and I can regulate people however I see fit. My hands are at my sides, and I’m clenching my fists. This moment will probably cause a ripple effect, but I’m ready. “There you are, Melanie. We were looking for you.” I lean a bit to look over Brady’s shoulder. I’m relieved to see Brooklyn. She saved this i***t from dying and kept me from becoming someone I don’t want to be.

I step to the side and push myself past Brady. “Hey, Brooky.” Brady grabs my arms, making me stop. I look at his hand and then look back into his eyes. I tell him silently that he’s playing with his last few moments on Earth. I guess he got the message because he releases my arm. I push past him and hurry to Brooklyn, wrapping her in my arms.

“You did good, Mel. I was so proud of you. I can’t wait for you to kick butt tomorrow.” I place my arm around Brooklyn and let her tell me about her day. She has literally saved the day, and I couldn’t be happier.

“You don’t have to wait until tomorrow. I have one more match today. Let’s go so I can train a bit.”

~Brady~

I’m still rubbing my cheek where her hand struck me. Whoever the kid is to her, she’s very close to them. I would have pulled her into the nearest room and corrected her awful behavior any other time.

My men come rushing over to me with a look of worry on their faces. “Should we go after her?”

“Are you okay?” I don’t respond. I grab an ice pack from the nurse and walk away from the tent. I can feel my anger building, and I wish I could jump into a ring to release it.

That little b***h thinks she can put her hands on me whenever she feels like it. I’ve let her get away with too many things already. I need to teach her how a woman is supposed to treat a man. The first lessons she will learn from me are obedience and how to act like a lady. As feisty as she is, I need her to know when to behave. That spicy aspect of her personality should only come out in the bedroom. Find out who that child is to her, and I want more information!