Page 62 of My Broken Mate

“Kat!” Fiona calls out while happily running towards me. We are on our lunch break and are going to hit the cafeteria together with Clara.

I hug them both. “Good to see you, Clara! You rocked the gala.”

“I hope so,” she beams. “The reception went pretty well. I am so relieved. It was my first important event.”

“Your alpha looks really nice.”

“He is! And I think he and your brother were talking, too. Maybe they will become allies. We are a smaller pack as well, and Alpha Joel approached us yesterday.”

“This means we will see each other a lot in the future,” Fi beams. “Because Alpha Joel and Alpha Sean struck a deal, too. The news was all over the pack today. Alpha Joel and his pack are official allies now, with all the benefits and obligations. It’s the first official deal Alpha Sean made since he took over.”

“Really?” I ask. “I barely saw Joel yesterday as he was pretty busy. He got up and immediately left for a meeting. Now I see why!”

Pride fills me. My brother is truly amazing! He managed to strike a deal with one of the most important and renowned packs. Alpha Sean is in a completely different league than a lot of the other alphas, and for such a new alpha like Joel, this is amazing.

“You are still going to move, aren’t you, Clara?”

“Yes,” she says. “This is my last week here, and then I will move. I am really looking forward to it now. But we will stay in contact! I am not far away.”

“Are you switching colleges?”

“No, I will switch to home study, though. My alpha pulled some strings. I will only come for a couple of specific exams. Most of my classes I will take online.”

“That’s so great for you,” I say. “And it means we will see each other at least for our exams.”

“Oh, right, Kat!” Fi gives me the thumbs up. “I saw that you handed in your paper today.”

“Last minute,” I say.

“But still in time!”

“It’s all thanks to my tutor,” I admit. Remy set up a schedule for me, for the most important milestones I need to reach, and handing in this paper was one of them. He said it’s achievable and that I can definitely do it with the right plan. His schedule worked. I made sure to follow it, and it just showed how well he thought this through. He is also not overloading me. It’s more like he helps me with organizing myself.

He helps with lifting the fog from my brain.

Goddess…

Thinking about this makes butterflies appear in my stomach. It’s the first time I have ever felt that way. Sure, I might have dated in school, just for the fun of it. I was always so happy if someone paid attention to me. One kind word and I fell for someone, but I don’t think I ever truly loved one of them.

But now, I reallylikeRemy, although he isn’t showering me with affection. There is this draw to him, partly because of the mate bond, but it can’t be just the bond that’s responsible, because I don’t feel it strongly. It’s his eyes, these dark eyes. Sometimes gloomy, sometimes sad, sometimes distanced.

I wish I could get to know him better. If only he would let me…

Ayden picks me up for the next lecture that we have together. I know that Remy has a seminar at the same time, on the same floor. I search around, not spotting him anywhere. I know he has a class at this time. Did he not come?

“He didn’t come today,” Ayden says quietly, as if he just read my mind. “He hasn’t shown up all day.”

“How did you know I was looking for him?”

“Kat,” he sighs. “I’ve known you since forever. Come on.” He pauses, looking at me. “What is this really about?”

“I… I am sorry, I just can’t tell you yet. Are you mad?”

To my surprise, Ayden just grins. “Don’t be silly! You tell me when you are ready. So… our pretty boy truly got to you, huh?”

“I don’t even know why,” I admit. “He isn’t even nice to me, yet I just like him.”

“Sometimes it can’t be explained,” Ayden says.