ELAHEH
Jitters. That was all I could feel. I would be going home with this gorgeous specimen that I knew nothing about. I pushed my food around my plate with my fork till I felt a pair of eyes on me. I looked up to meet them.
Those strange yet familiar grey eyes that saw through everything. I'd noticed the way his eyes were always roaming. Always taking in his surroundings. Except when they were on me. They seemed to have no desire to look anywhere else then and that confused me. These astute grey eyes bore into me now, searching my face and I knew he saw everything I was feeling but they offered no comfort. They offered no emotion at all. I smiled tentatively at him and he didn't return it. It was okay though because I knew he wouldn't. For some reason, that didn't bother me at all.
"Call me every day," Jenna said and I turned to her and smiled, my thoughts on my jittery nerves.
When dinner was finished, I began to help Jenna clear the table when I heard a voice in my head.
"El, come outside."
I blinked. Logan? What was he doing here? Then I caught his thoughts. I groaned and everyone turned to stare at me. I made my way outside the house quickly ignoring everyone else.
I stepped outside to see Logan, his eyes red and furious. My own anger began to surface.
"What the hell do you think you're doing here? " I asked.
"Don't go. I won't let him take you away from me."
"You better get out of here before I beat your ass up myself." I snapped.
"I made mistakes but I know better now. I'm sorry Elaheh." He pleaded.
"You don't understand Logan I don't want to be with you. You should leave." Just as I said that Aleksy came up behind me. He was so close I could feel the heat from his body. I resisted the urge to shut my eyes and inhale his scent.
Logan glared at my mate but I could see the fear in his eyes.
"I'm not going to give her up to you." He said angrily.
"Is she yours to give up? " Aleksy asked. Although he sounded bored I could tell it was feigned because I didn't miss the irritation in his voice.
"She was." He said simply and Aleksy growled. "I want her back."
"Excuse me." Came another voice and I moved to let Chad through.
"Listen pup, we don't have time for this. So if you know what's good for you, you'll leave. Now."
"I won't let her go without a fight," Logan argued and all I could think was, did nobody care about what I wanted? I rolled my eyes.
"Stop being dramatic Logan." I sighed.
"You want to fight?" Aleksy asked. He stepped passed me and I felt a tingle of fear...for Logan.
"I haven't broken anyone's neck since yesterday." He cracked his fingers and Logan burst into his wolf form.
He was a grey blur as he charged at Aleksy, still in his human form. As Logan hurled himself at my mate, I watched, almost in slow motion as Aleksy's fist met Logan's face sending him sprawling a few yards away, whimpering.
He got up and shook his head, charging again. I looked at Aleksy, his face was neutral and actually bored this time. He was going easy on Logan. I hadn't realised that my brother and Jenna and Eric had come out to watch the fun too. I whirled around to face Kaveh.
"Aren't you going to stop this??" I asked incredulously.
Kaveh shrugged. "I've been waiting to see that kid get beat up a bit and since I couldn't do it..."
My mouth opened and closed like that of a gaping fish not knowing what to say to that satisfied, evil smirk of his. I looked at Chad but he just shrugged as well.
"I warned him. He pushed it. Also, he went around calling you his." Chad said.
Obviously, I was going to have to do something to stop them.
Aleksy was just toying with him. He hadn't broken a sweat and hadn't really moved while Logan, once again lay sprawled on the floor. He got up and lunged again and this time I moved to stand in between them.
"Stop this!" I growled glaring at Logan. I didn't realise how stupid I was until I saw the panic in Logan's eyes. He wasn't going to be able to stop himself from hurtling at me. I wouldn't be able to get out of the way in time either.
"Well shit," I said as I shut my eyes waiting for the inevitable impact. It didn't come. I opened my eyes as I felt a whoosh of air. I stared at his back as he grabbed Logan's still flying form and slammed him into the ground. It was just enough power to make him hurt...a lot. Not enough to break anything though.
He turned to me and I cowered under his gaze. His eyes were burning. They flashed for a second but I wasn't sure if I had imagined it. They almost looked silver.
"Do you have a death wish?" He asked. Even though I was being told off, I almost shivered at the proximity and the way his voice trickled over my skin.
"We'd better leave Alpha," Chad said. Logan still lay on the floor. I felt bad for him as Eric picked him up and took him into the house and came jogging back. My family walked us to the car. Kaveh pulled me into a hug that I thought was going to crush my ribs all over again but I didn't care. Jenna sniffled and smoothed my hair down as though it wasn't already limp enough. Eric pulled me into a hug too, his eyes a well of sadness. He glared at Aleksy.
"If you fail to keep her safe. If you hurt her, I will kill you myself." He threatened and my eyes almost popped out of my head. What the hell did he think he was doing?
"I'd like to see you try. " Aleksy said. Then they did the weirdest thing... and shook hands. I looked at Kaveh who just smirked and then at Chad who just smiled and shook his head.
I sighed. Men would forever continue to baffle me. My stuff was all loaded into the car and with a pounding heart, I was on my way to something strange and unknown.
I sat in the passenger seat while Aleksy drove and Chad sat at the back, which he wasn't too happy about. I'd automatically reached for the back door and Chad had automatically reached for the door to the passenger seat when Aleksy told him that I would be sitting in front. The flabbergasted expression on his face almost killed me. I bit my lip in order to keep from laughing but I did feel slightly guilty about it.
"So, Elaheh," Chad said, breaking the suffocating silence in the car. I was extremely aware of Aleksy driving next to me. The way his sleeves were rolled up to show the extremely expensive-looking watch. The way his veins stood out in his arms almost had me swooning and his scent clung to everything in the car. He would run his fingers through his hair from time to time but his eyes never left the road.
"What's the deal with the stalker ex?" Chad asked.
"He's not a stalker, he's just confused." I defended.
"Yeah, he didn't seem confused about what he wanted. What's the history?"
I sighed. Were we seriously going to discuss my teenage drama? I stole a glance at Aleksy. He didn't seem to mind me talking about this, in fact, he seemed to be waiting for it.
"He was every girl's dream including mine. He just dazzled me and when he gave me special attention I figured he was done with his player ways. When he realised I wasn't going to put out, he turned to other sources. I found out too late that he'd been cheating on me almost throughout our relationship and he wasn't sorry about it. He made it seem like it was my fault. We broke up and until this morning I haven't really spoken to him." I said monotonously. My stupidity was not something I liked to talk about.
"Why didn't you want to put out if he was your dream?" Chad asked.
"He wasn't my mate."
I realised what I said a minute too late. The crushing silence was back and I blushed furiously. What the hell did I just say? I resisted the urge to bang my head against the window.
"I see," Chad said his tone slightly teasing. I blushed harder.
"That was not what I meant," I said in a higher pitch than I intended.
"Oh do enlighten us," Chad said.
"I wasn't in love with him. Sure I liked him a lot but I wasn't about to give myself to him like that." Not that it made a difference in the end. It was taken from me anyway I thought bitterly.
"What did you do to get back at him?" Chad asked.
"Why would I want to get back at him? I dumped his ass and forgot about him." I said.
"You didn't cry?" He asked and I laughed.
"Of course not." It was the truth. I didn't cry over him but I was crushed. I may not have been in love with him but I really liked him and it was sad to realise I wasn't as special as he made me believe.
"What about you? You ever been in love?" I asked Chad.
"I'm deep in it right now. My mate's name is Alyssa. I think you two will be good friends." He said and I smiled. It would be nice to get along with someone.
I looked at Aleksy wondering whether I dared to ask him and decided what the hell. "Have you ever been in love?"
He ran his hand through his hair again making my heart trip. "I don't have the time or the need for it."
I nodded to myself. It didn't really worry me. I didn't plan on falling for this man. The mate bond made me automatically want to be by his side but I realised that it wasn't messing with me emotionally. Just physically and...hormonally.
"I...would like to continue my training. " I said hesitantly.
Aleksy nodded. "Yes, I would rather you did. You need to build some muscle. At the moment you're too small. Kaveh says you're eating well so that's good."
I frowned. He did see me as weak.
"I'll be your trainer," Chad said and I looked at him in surprise.
"I'm the best after Aleksy. Don't expect me to go easy on you just coz you're a little underweight." I had to smile at that. I was beginning to like Chad. He was cheerful and easy to talk to compared to his friend who looked like he was brooding all the time.
"Which reminds me," I said remembering his fight with Logan. "How were you able to beat Logan without even transforming?"
He didn't answer me. I turned to look at Chad who stared outside his window. Obviously, there was far more to this man than I thought. I'd find out what it was either way but for now, I'd change the topic to something more basic.
"How old are you?" I asked.
"Twenty-two" He answered.
"Just twenty-two?" I asked incredulously. He turned to regard me for a second before looking away. "Why? How old did you think I was?"
"A lot older. You look and act far older." It was true. I had thought he was older by the way he carried himself.
"He became Alpha at fifteen," Chad said and I stared at Aleksy. He'd obviously lost his parents early too, but to be Alpha at fifteen. I couldn't begin to imagine how he shouldered the responsibility. He was just a child.
Realising that I was still staring at him, I quickly looked outside my window. The trees whizzed passed but my curiosity about the man beside me only grew.
My eyelids began to droop. Who was my mate really? He was so secretive. Tomorrow I would learn more...tomorrow...
I woke up to the feeling of being gently rocked. I was braced against a hard wall that emanated heat. I snuggled closer to the source of the heat moaning softly in appreciation.
Before long I was laid down into what felt like a cloud but the absence of the previous warmth left me feeling empty. Something covered me and in a few minutes I was warm again but it wasn't like before. The warmth I felt before not only warmed my skin but my bones too. It filled me up. I slowly drifted back to sleep and when I woke up the next morning, the sun had risen high and I had my first panic attack.
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