Mates: Melanie's Warrior

Chapter 15

~Melanie~

Uh, what the hell just happened? Brooklyn is a mass of tears and snot at this point. She’s damn near hyperventilating, and my touch sends her into a tailspin. I don’t know how this came to be or how I upset her, but it’s hurting my soul.

Jax is trying to console her, and Shanice looks sad at us both. I don’t even know what to say right now. I want to say I’ll never leave and don’t even want the mate bond. The issue in saying this lies in the fact that I may go, not to my mate, but somewhere. If that were to happen, then I would just become a liar.

I take a deep breath and sit on the floor in front of Brooklyn. I have about two hours before my next event, and I plan to use all of that time to fix this. I know I’m the last person she wants to hear from right now, but that’s tough. We need to get this sorted. “Brooky, where am I going exactly?” She doesn’t say anything for a while, but I know she’s listening. I don’t want this to become a major fight or a situation where I’m being ignored. I want us to talk about this like we’ve always been able to talk about things. I want to make things better for her.

“I heard everyone talking. You found your fated mate. That means you will leave the pack to go live with him. You’re going to leave me all a….a…..alone!” Brooklyn breaks a fresh wave of tears, and my heart breaks. I don’t even know how to answer this.

“I haven’t claimed anyone as my mate Brooky.” I won’t ever claim him. Maybe I will meet someone and fall in love. I guess there’s a chance I could leave then, so her concern is valid. There is a slight chance that I may go somewhere down the line. I can see how that would be upsetting.

“THAT’S BECAUSE YOU’RE BEING STUBBORN AND STUPID!” Brooklyn throws herself down, wailing. Damn, stubborn and stupid. That’s a bit harsh.

No, not harsh at all. She’s completely right. You are being stubborn and stupid. You are letting a past issue cloud this situation, and it isn’t right; it isn’t fair to our mate.

I didn’t ask your opinion, Winnie. You’ve made your position very clear already. Winnie doesn’t respond; she just engages in a staring contest with me. I don’t know who wins because the next sentence changes things.

“I told him that.” My head shoots up, and I look at Jax. He’s looking at the wall while stroking Brooklyn’s back, but I know what I heard. Jax spoke to my supposed mate? Is this a real thing? I swallow thickly, not wanting my anger to interrupt the interview process.

“You told who what?” Jax’s hand stops, but he doesn’t look at me.

“Huh?” I feel the anger build, and I have to breathe to keep myself in check.

“I heard you just now. You said, ‘I told him that.’ You told who what?” Jax slowly rubs Brooklyn’s back again, but he still isn’t looking at me.

“I….I…..”

“Did you talk to him about me?”

“D….d….did I talk to who?”

“S.T.O.P. playing with me, Jax. Did you talk to him about me?” Jax takes a deep breath and turns to me.

“I did. You ARE being stubborn and stupid, so I did talk to him. I told him about you.” The tears are starting to form, and I try my best to fight them off. I can’t believe this; I can’t believe Jax.

“How could you?! How could you betray me like this?” Jax stands up and looks at me.

“How could I?! How could you? How could you do this to yourself, to your wolf? We’ve talked about this time and time again. What happened to you sucks, it really does, but you can’t live your life in the shadow of that tragedy. You have to move on. You have to let love in. You won’t even speak to him. You know nothing about him and that’s the sad part. If he was a POS then I would get it, but you don’t even know that to be true because you won’t even try.”

My anger is at high levels and still climbing. How dare Jax think he can make such an important decision for me! He didn’t even talk to me first; he just did it. I know I will lose it if I stay in this room any longer. I don’t want to do that in front of Brooklyn, nor do I want my Alphas to have to pay for damage that may come to this hotel room.

I jump to my feet and storm out. I ignore the calls from Shanice and Jax. I have to get out of this building before I completely lose it. I push the elevator button, but it’s taking too long. I walk to the stairwell and hope it isn’t one that can only be opened in case of emergencies.

I check the door, and I’m in luck; it can be used. I throw the door open, and here it clangs against the wall. I hurry down the stairs, taking two at a time. I tear through the lobby and out the door when I make it downstairs. I just need to shift. No, I need to punch something. Yes, that would be better; I will punch something. I need to get this out before my next match, or someone may get seriously hurt.

His scent hits me as soon as his hand touches my shoulder. The sparks almost melt me down to the grass beneath my feet, but I refuse to succumb that easily. “Hey, mate.” Without hesitation, I turn and bring my fist with me, landing a sound punch into his face. The blood erupts like volcanic lava. He stumbles backward, holding his nose. I feel good; I feel triumphant. I feel bad. F**k! I just punched the s**t out of my mate.