The Bewitched Mate

Chapter 08

Chapter 08

Eliza’s POV:

“That was sweet baby!” I knew, the moment I heard that voice, who that was.

Alex’s mate was none other than my best friend Zoë.

“Are you kidding me?” I asked Alex. I had to be sure I understood correctly. One of my best friends was my brother’s mate.

Zoë walked around Alex and had wrapped her arms around my brother’s waist. My brother threw his arms over her shoulders.

A car sent by Alpha Hector picked up Zoë directly from the airport. While I had gone with Anna to her pack to start our summer vacation there. Because Zoë had turned eighteen yesterday, she had agreed with her parents to come home immediately.

Anna, she and I celebrated her birthday while we were still on campus. We had a lovely party with our other friends.

Alex tried to read my face.

“You’re not mad, are you, Liz?” Zoë spoke first.

“If you’re messing with me, yes, but if this is really true, then I’m just thrilled for you!!”

Alex let out a deep sigh. “Thank Goddess!”

“Of course, we’re not playing with you! Your brother was the one who picked me up from the airport. The moment I got in the car, I knew.” Zoë rattled.

I laughed, “Zoë, it’s okay. I wish you all the luck in the world. In this case, I don’t have to warn either of you not to hurt each other!” I added strength to my words by giving Zoë a big hug.

“Come to the table, you can chat there,” said my mother, after she kissed my father.

“So, tell me sweetie, how was it with Anna?” my father asked as soon as we sat down at the table.

“It was okay, I guess. The flight was quite exhausting, so I passed out in the evening. Jason made sure the pack doctor made some time for me. He forwarded the documents to Luna Nessa. I also got to know Nonna Torres. She had a pleasant story about grandpa and grandma Thompson and we had a party by the pool,” I rattled on and on.

“Jason huh?” my father said teasingly, “You mean Alpha Jason, from The Red Moon pack?”

I blushed. My father had always pointed out the protocols and rules within the pack. Alpha Hector and Luna Nessa had also always demanded of everyone who addressed them by their title.

“Oh honey, leave her. I met him this afternoon when he brought Eliza in. He’s a very charming and well-mannered young Alpha, but all that formal stuff is making him shiver. He’s not much older than Alex, after all. I could also call him by his first name too,” my mother defended me.

“He was even courteous enough to carry Eliza upstairs to bed. Apparently, she hadn’t slept well and had fallen asleep in the car. I don’t see Jake doing that yet, do you?” she then added.

While my parents continued to debate whether you could call an Alpha by his first name, Alex tapped me gently, “You and Alpha Jason, huh?”

I looked at him in amazement. “What’s up with Jason and me? We chatted for a bit and he said I could sleep, so I did.”

Alex had a look in his eyes, as if he didn’t believe me.

“There is not between us, Alex. He has a mate!” I said defensively.

Alex shrugged, “Whatever!”

I wanted to change the subject, so I nodded to Zoë. “You know who else found their mate?”

Zoë had put down her cutlery and was all ears. “No, tell me!”

“Anna” was all I said.

“Who is Anna’s mate?! Tell me!” she said eagerly.

“Beta Ben. Come to think of it,” I turned back to Alex, “What happened between you two while you were training with The Red Moon pack?” I asked.

My parents immediately stopped the conversation when they heard my question and everyone looked at Alex.

“Nothing happened. His ego took a hit, that’s all,” he answers indifferently.

My father kept looking at Alex questioningly, as if he wanted him to continue talking.

“Seriously, nothing happened. Gamma Tim wanted to teach us some techniques and Beta Ben would help us so we could practice them. Only before Gamma Tim had fully explained his technique, I had him already lying on the floor and he couldn’t move anymore. It was a little humiliating for him. That went wrong, and he was immediately angry. Alpha Jason had to come in between us to calm him down. After that, we avoided each other a bit. We mainly spent time with Gamma Tim, his twin brother Tom and two other warriors, James and Jack,” Alex ended his story.

My father nodded approvingly and continued eating.

During dinner we didn’t speak, instead we enjoyed a delicious meal, in the present of each other as a family.

Once finished, Zoë began, “So, Eliza, are you nervous yet? Just a few more days and then you, too, will be able to find your mate.”

I nodded, “Yeah, I’m just hoping for a sweet, caring wolf!” unnoticed, I let out a sigh.

“Maybe this summer we can all go to the beach house together,” Zoë suggested.

“That sounds nice,” I said enthusiastically.

“You don’t need your mate for that. You can do that anyway,” my mother said in between.

I raised my eyebrows, “What do you mean by that, mom? Don’t you want me to find my mate and be happy?”

It was a strange comment, as if she didn’t want that for me.

“Your mother means well, honey. You can also do nice things without a mate,” my father then said.

I turned in my seat so that I was sitting directly across from my father.

“What kind of strange comment is that? All our lives, we’re told how to save ourselves for our mate. How great the mate bond is yada-yada-yada and now I suddenly don’t have to sit on my mate to wait?” I said, slightly irritated.

“It’s not a strange comment. Look at your mother and me. I waited for your mother for about thirteen years before I found her,” my father explained.

“So, you want me, like you, to look for a nice wolf until I meet my mate?” I tried to bait my father with a comment I knew he didn’t agree with.

“No, I don’t mean that.” My father sighed.

“Dad, what do you mean? I agree with Eliza that it’s a strange comment, especially because mom is so stressed about it too,” Alex interrupted him now.

“Brad, not now!” was all my mom said. Before she got up and cleared the table. Zoë got up to help her, but my mother thanked her and said we should go hang out together. My father followed my mother into the kitchen and we could hear their conversation continuing there.

Alex, Zoë and I remained silent and before we could hear exactly what was being said, my father came back out of the kitchen.

“I need to discuss something with Alpha Hector,” he said and walked straight out the door.

Alex and I looked at each other with a frown.

“That was baffling, wasn’t it? That’s not in my head?” I asked, to be sure.

Alex and Zoë shook their heads. “No, you didn’t imagine it. It was strange!” confirmed Alex, and Zoë nodded in agreement.

My mother stayed in the kitchen, and we watched some TV together. Zoë and I told stories about school, going out and together we discussed what we could do this summer.

By ten pm, I was exhausted and went to bed. Zoë and I agreed we would go together sometime this week to shop for our dresses, for the ceremony in two weeks.

Zoë and Alex stayed in the living room for a while. While I went to my bedroom. My father had been gone for four hours. My mother stayed in the kitchen, claiming it needed to be cleaned.

I wasn’t sure how to feel about the situation. Something was up, that much was clear. I was too tired to worry about it any longer and would confront my parents about my unpleasant feelings tomorrow.

I slept peacefully that night, replaying the events of the past two days and how Jason had been there for me.

In the middle of the night, a door closing awakened me. I looked at my clock and saw that it was half-past two.

“That must have been a very important conversation,” I thought to myself.

While using the bathroom, I saw Jason’s sweater in the laundry basket. I thought back to the good feeling he had given me and took his sweater out of the wash and put it on. I slept wonderfully for the rest of the night. The smell of Jason’s sweater calmed me down and my dreams became almost as spicy as the books I read.