Page 19 of A Broody Mate for the Human

“Wait,” I say.

But Luca just bows at us. “I… I’m sorry to have interrupted you,” he blurts out before hurrying away.

I clasp my plastic knife and fork, turning my head to glare at Matthew. “What’s wrong with you?” I huff, feeling upset and, for the first time, deciding not to hide it from him. “This kid was heavily abused growing up. It wouldn’t hurt you to be nice, would it?”

“He was checking you out,” Matthew hisses. “Is this one of your exes too!? How many of them are roaming the planet?”

“He is a former student,” I say, annoyed. “I tutored him so he could pass his exam. He is a friend.”

“You have many of those,” Matthew points out, his eyes flashing slightly.

“Okay.” I stand up abruptly. “I don’t need to listen to this.” I grab my plate and throw it in the nearest bin before taking long strides towards the exit.

What the fuck is this guy thinking? He hasn’t even shown the slightest interest in me, yet he already gets prissy when I even talk to an old friend, a former student on top of that. Great, now I have to apologize to Luca too and explain things to him.

I’m fuming so much that I don’t notice Matthew approaching me again until he grabs me and pulls me to the area with the lockers, pushing me against the wall. I stare at the man in front of me, noticing how his eyes swirl in black.

“Who is the guy?” Matthew huffs.

“I told you, Luca is a former—”

“No, not the wimp,” Matthew growls. “The one who was dancing.”

I look at him, not sure what he is talking about, until it slowly dawns on me. “You were on my phone?” I ask quietly.

Something like guilt flashes in Matthew’s eyes before it’s replaced with anger again. “It was a coincidence.”

How did he coincidentally see the video of Ye-Joon dancing? I can’t even wrap my mind around how weak his excuse is.

“What are you hiding from me!?” Matthew hisses.

“Are you nuts?” I breathe out. “I don’t know what the heck you want from me. Mates or not, I won’t let anyone snoop through my stuff.”

“Fuck,” Matthew curses, clenching his hand into a fist and punching the wall next to me. I flinch at the sound of it, glad it wasn’t my face. Then he grabs me by my collar and smashes our lips together. I gasp in shock, not having expected this even the slightest. I feel tingles shooting through my body where he touches and kisses me. My head goes dizzy. Is this the mate bond? Or am I just pissed?

One part of me likes that he finally acts on the bond. The other part feels terrified and angry.

Something inside me keeps pushing me towards him, though, like I’m seeking his touch. I eventually give in to it instead of clinging to my anger. Fuck, he is a good kisser. His hand moves to my ass, squeezing it a bit. This is almost nice.

When he draws back from me, I can finally catch a glimpse of his expression. The anger is replaced by something else. A hint of shock, a bit of disgust, fear… and vulnerability.

“Don’t ever do that again,” I tell him. “Don’t go through my stuff.”

Matthew just keeps looking at me like he is not sure what just happened.

*MATTHEW*

Dash howls in my mind when we kiss Dave. Damn it, he tastes so good, and his smell drives me crazy. I wanted to punch him first, wipe that judgemental look off his face, but fuck, he is so hot. Damn it. Dash was going crazy, and I just had to claim his lips.

He tastes even better than he smells. All my instincts scream at me to claim him, to grab him and take him home with him, and put my mark on his neck. To have everyone see he is mine and that no one aside from me can ever touch him again.

He is mine. Mine!

Dash growls possessively in my mind. Then I see it briefly… me introducing Dave as my mate to my pack, to my friends, to my alpha… to my father. I… fuck… no, this is sick. I can’t do it.

I push back from Dave, not able to look at him properly. This is just wrong.

Dave tells me never to do it again… I almost forget what he is talking about. “You should go home,” I tell him quietly.