Page 22 of A Broody Mate for the Human

“Get us two plates of curry,” I tell her. “And a slice of that cheesecake.” I look at Dave, remembering he doesn’t eat meat. “Is there a vegetarian option for the curry?”

The waitress nods. “We have a vegan curry with seitan, peanuts, and lots of vegetables.”

“Would you like that?” I ask Dave.

He looks at me. There is a hint of sadness in his eyes, but then he nods. His lips curl into a smile. “Thank you for watching out for me, Jun.”

I wait for the young woman to leave us alone before I look at him with a frown. “What happened, Dave?”

“Nothing.” He rubs his head. “I had a few rough nights.”

“Rough nights?” I urge him.

“I had a few panic attacks,” he admits quietly. “Fuck, Jun, I haven’t had these in so long, and certainly not that strong.”

“Are you sure they are panic attacks?” I ask carefully.

He shrugs. “No, which is why I went to the hospital for a check-up, but they said nothing was wrong. It’s all in my head, apparently.” He shakes his head. “I feel like I’m losing my sanity, Jun. That’s not normal! Every night…”

“When did it start?” I inquire.

“Right after I went to the fair with Matthew a few days ago.” He pauses, licking his lips slightly, a hint of pain in his eyes. It’s easy to tell that he isn’t telling me everything, but I don’t want to push him. “I went home that day, and at night it started.” He sighs. “It’s just… it always starts with an ache in my chest, which makes it difficult to breathe, and then it feels like someone is stabbing me over and over again. Fuck, Jun, they don’t feel like the panic attacks I used to have.”

I can only sit there and listen to him while my mind spirals in all kinds of directions. What Dave describes sounds like… no… Matthew wouldn’t do that, would he? Judging by Dave’s lukewarm reactions to any questions concerning Matthew, and by the way he doesn’t seem to want to share anything, I can take a wild guess that things are rocky, but… no way… someone would betray the mate bond. Every evening on top of that. Dave is saying he has these every night.

And Matthew comes from Emerald Moon. His alpha is a close friend with Liam and also with Liam’s father, Alpha Elden. They have one thing in common: they truly respect and cherish the mate bond.

“Did you hear from Matthew?” I ask him.

Dave blinks at me. “What does Matthew have to do with this?”

“Nothing, I was just asking,” I say warily. If it’s true that Matthew cheats on him, then I’ll be the first to kick his pathetic ass, but as long as I’m not certain I don’t want to hurt Dave by speculating and spreading rumors. I hate people who blurt out unfounded accusations. And I certainly don’t want to sabotage Dave’s happiness…

Doesn’t look too happy to me,Akio mutters.

Akio never minded me getting close to Dave. He probably knew that Dave helped me heal a fundamental part of my soul that was broken through the abuse of my former alpha. But he also never got tired of pointing out that he wasn’t our mate.

“Jun,” Dave interrupts my trail of thoughts. “How would one normally react if they found their mate?”

“They would be head over heels,” I say. “It’s something special to meet the one person literally destined to you. I mean, of course there are exceptions…” I look at him. “What’s going on between you and Matthew?”

Dave sighs. “I don’t know. I don’t even know if he likes me, and I’m not even talking about relationships but about liking me as a friend, as a person. But then, when he loosens up, he can be nice.” He pauses. “And the sparks are no joke. I can understand so much more now why mates are so important to you.”

“You feel the sparks?” I ask curiously.

He nods tentatively. “I assume it’s a lighter version for me, but there is this pull… something that constantly pushes me to him, you know? Your goddess isn’t kidding. That much I can tell by now.”

“Is he good to you?” I ask bluntly.

“He isn’t bad.”

“That didn’t answer my question,” I say.

Dave contemplates for a while before he smiles at me, but it looks forced. “We don’t know each other well yet.”

If his wary answers and his haunted look weren’t enough conviction, his sad smile certainly is. I shift the talk to lighter topics until we’ve had our lunch, and Dave hurries back to university. But once I’m back at the pack grounds, I instantly look for the person I know will be able to help me.

Annie is with the twins at the moment, watching them smear paint all over the floor. Liam is there too, snapping pictures of his little family and beaming with pride. I hate to interrupt this moment, but I know postponing it will make things worse for Dave.