Page 68 of Alpha Mates

“Emitt, you’re starting to piss me off.” I barely keep myself from growling. “He’s just a guy with an attitude problem. Calm down.”

“… He’s also your mate,” he mumbles like a kicked puppy.

I force myself to look at him, and he blinks up at me with this hideous expression. His green eyes are wide, and his lips pouted—I think he’s begging.

“Fine, whatever, just stop making that disgusting face.”

He beams. “Thank you, Aiden.”

“Yeah, yeah, go fuck yourself with a cactus.”

He snorts and almost chokes on his next breath, sending us both into a fit of laughter as we walk through the cafeteria doors. It’s enough to lighten my mood. I spot Julian’s table and the blue eyes already on me, but he looks away quickly, refocusing his attention on his friends.

Oh. If Shy Julian is here, then maybe this won’t be so bad.

I bite back a smirk as I approach the table, bringing the conversation between his friends to a halt.

“Hey,” I say.

“Hello,” Isabel greets me while looking from me to Beckett, who shakes his head slightly. “Julian didn’t tell us we’d be hosting today.”

“Well, he’s forgetful like that,” I reply, earning small smiles from the pair, who pointedly ignore Julian’s frosty glare.

When Emitt slides into the space beside Isabel and makes room for me, I hesitate. I’d been hoping to squeeze next to Julian, but Beckett sits next to him and shows no signs of taking a hint. Emitt burns a hole into the side of my skull until I sit next to him. Directly across from my mate, who scowls at me from across the table.

What the hell is his problem now?

“So, in case introductions are necessary, I’m Isabel,” she says, leaning over her end of the table so everyone can see her smile. “I’m the lucky delta assigned to be Julian’s third pair of eyes while he’s out here, frolicking with the humans.”

“Are you sure lucky is the word?” I ask, making the others laugh. My mate does not.

“I’m Emitt,” my beta adds while he pulls a bag of chips from his bag. “I’m Aiden’s beta, but I think everyone knows that.”

“Kinda small for a beta, no?” Isabel asks, not aware in the slightest of thenerve she’d just struck.

“Kinda mouthy for a delta, no?” Emitt fires back. I smile proudly at him and nudge him under the table so he knows it.

“Fair enough,” Isabel laughs, leaning back. “Though Beckett and Julian think I don’t talk enough.”

“That’s a damn lie,” Beckett says, and while she scowls, I watch the pair with a smile on my face. They’re normal. I wasn’t sure what I’d expected from Julian’s closest friends, but this hadn’t been it.

Emitt and I are always lax with our ranks whenever it’s just us, and it seems these three have the same thing going on, which is surprising since Julian’s pack has always been more stringent than mine, quicker to watch and judge than speak. These two aren’t like that.

“How are you two getting along?” Isabel asks, looking between Beckett and Emitt. “You know, both being betas with the merge?”

“We’ve only spoken a few times, but it’s been great. He’s easy to work with,” Beckett answers with a smile that Emitt returns.

With Emitt’s attention on Beckett, I steal some of his chips and shove them into my mouth. He doesn’t notice, and that makes them taste even better.

“I’ve got no complaints, plus the workload’s lighter with someone else, so that’s a bonus,” Emitt adds with his usual liveliness, nerves evaporating.

“So, you’re saying that I’m going to be doing everything?” Beckett asks, and Emitt starts to protest, then realises the guy is messing with him.

“Of course not,” Emitt snipes.

“You okay, Julian?” Isabel asks, glancing at my mate at the same time I do.

“Peachy,” he replies in a near growl. He’s glaring at me. Or more specifically, at the hand I have in Emitt’s chips.