My Second Chance Mate: A Shifter Romance Read online

  Happily grabbing my shake, we make our way to the entertainment room where the boys offer to watch a chick flick with me in support of my heartache. I decline to their amazement and suggest we watch an action film with lots of violence and explosions which causes whoops and hollers as they hurry to find a good one. They settle on Rush Hour because they insist I need a little humor to cheer me up. Then we spread out around the room to watch the movie.

  I laugh along with the guys and enjoy the action all the while psyching myself up for school tomorrow. I will have to see Trevor, but I'm not going to run away like I did with Aiden. I can do this. As long as I don't have to see him hooking up with other girls. Because if he does, I don't know how I'd cope with that.

  Chapter Seven

  Best Intentions, Worst Outcome

  The next morning dawns bright and sunny for most people. For myself, not so much. There's a big, gloomy, and gray rain cloud hanging over my head, but I refuse to let Trevor see how badly his rejection hurts. My plan is to put on all the armor I can both physically and emotionally. Inhaling a few deep breaths, I make sure to lock up my pain. Then I jump out of bed to take a long relaxing shower, washing away the events of the day before. When I'm done, I brush my teeth, blow dry my hair, and go to choose an outfit; I settle on a cute denim skirt that ends about two inches above my knees, I want to look sexy not skanky. I pair it with a cute, green, tank top that brings out my eyes, and hugs my body. Then I put on a loose, white, see-through top over it, that has a habit of falling off my shoulders, but I figure the more skin that plays peek-a-boo the better. I finish the outfit off with a pair beige wedge sandals. Heading back to the bathroom, I put my hair into a messy bun, with a few strands coming loose around my face, gloss my lips, and enhance my lashes with mascara. I take a look in the mirror for a final inspection, and I like what I see. I look hot. From my shoulders up, I have that just-got-out-of-bed look the guys seem to love. From the chest down screams sexy but classy. Trevor is going to regret rejecting me.

  With that thought in mind, I skip down to the kitchen to meet up with the guys. As I enter, I'm greeted with wolf whistles and a, “D-A-M-N, girl!” from Nate. My armor is going to be very effective today, judging by their reactions.

  “Morning, guys!” I say cheerfully as I get a bowl down from the cabinet. I fill it with some cinnamon toast crunch, add milk, and sit down on a stool at the center island. After crossing my right leg over my left, I start to eat, but notice it's unusually silent which isn't the norm for these boys. Tearing myself away from my breakfast, I glance around and see they were all staring at me with wide eyed expressions, and I knew they were having some naughty thoughts right now. All except for Jared who has a scowl on his face.

  Knowing how protective my cousin is, I cut him off before he could say anything. “I’m not changing, Jared!” I tell him defiantly.

  A movement to my left catches my eye, and I notice Nate staring at my legs. Glancing around to Jace and Brad, I see that they are equally stunned by me as well. I have to hide a giggle. Boys are just too predictable.

  Jared must notice the guys’ wandering eyes, because through clenched teeth he says, “YES. YOU. ARE.”

  “What is so wrong with what I’m wearing?” I ask exasperated.

  “Your skirt is too short, your shirt too tight, and you look like you just got out of bed after a sex-a-thon. Go change,” he orders.

  My humor in the moment evaporates. “For your information, my skirt is long enough to hide the goods. Only my undershirt is tight which is why I have the white one over it, and we both know I wasn’t having a sex-a-thon, because I was crying my eyes out all night long.” My last point softens the scowl on his face. “I need to show Trevor I’m fine. I can’t let him see what he’s done to me. I refuse to be broken. Can’t you understand that?” I plead with him.

  I can see him caving. He takes one last look around. It seems like the guys are all trying to shake themselves out of their lustful thoughts, and put on impassive expressions as if my appearance isn't affecting them, even though it is. I look away quickly as I notice Nate attempt to adjust himself behind the island. I hope Jared didn't see that.

  “Fine but if anyone tries to touch you, or say anything sexual to you today, you’re explaining to my dad why I shifted in public to tear them apart.”

  “That won’t happen. I’ve got all you guys to take care of me.” I smile at him confidently.

  We resume eating, but I hear Jared mumble, “That’s what I’m worried about,” before saying out loud to the guys, “that includes you. Hands off my cousin.” They all put said hands up in surrender, but Nate shoots me a mischievous wink. What's that about?

  Once at school, the morning passes by with no sight of Trevor. It isn’t odd because we only share one class, math. And that's the last period of the day. I did see a few of the guys that sat at his table yesterday, and when they saw me, they all did double takes before quickly averting their eyes. Ah, so the cowardly alpha must’ve filled them in on our little situation. Oh well, no biggie. I pass by Austin on the way to my last class before lunch. He looks at me in surprise. His eyes travel from my head to my toes and back up, before he runs a weary hand down his face and mutters, “Oh hell. Lunch is gonna be a shit show.”

  I give him a confused look, but he just waves and continues walking in the opposite direction. Having one goal while getting ready this morning, I forgot to consider an important fact. More than half of our classmates were male. Horny, teenage males to be exact. Though none of them got physical as they knew who my close circle of guys were, that didn't stop the lecherous stares or flirty comments. I stopped counting the number of times I got asked out after eight. By the time lunch rolled around, both the guys and myself were over this day. Why did I put myself in this situation? It will serve as future reference for me to never make decisions while heart broken.

  After grabbing our lunch, we make our way to a table that just happens to be across Trevor and his group’s table. Being Jared and the guys were in super overprotective mode thanks to all the attention I was getting, they decided to skip their football game. They put me in a little hot guy circle instead. With Jared and Nate on either side of me, and Brad and Jace directly across. It was a bit much but my wolf appreciated their support and protection. The heat Trevor’s stare starts burning a hole through me, and I look up to see him looking intently at my body as I sit down. His hands are fisted as he rigidly stands next to his table. Austin grips his shoulder and says something to him, causing him to relax a little and take a seat while he continues to stare. Hiding a small smile of satisfaction, I’m finally feeling what I'm doing pay off. I begin to pick at my food until I'm nudged by Nate. Turning to him, I see that same mischievous look from this morning return. “What’s with that look?” I ask.

  “Do you really want to make Trevor regret his stupidity?” He questions with a grin.

  “You know I do. Thus, the outfit. HELLOOOOO,” I state.

  “That’s a great start. But what pisses off a male mate more than unmated males looking at what‘s supposed to be his? Them moving in on his territory.”

  And with that said, he gets up and turns to straddle the bench we are sitting on, caging me in between his legs. Then he gently tucks a wayward hair that has fallen from my bun behind my ear. Jared shoots him a murderous look, but Nate quickly mind links him, “Chill, bro. It’s only an act. Check out douchebag over there.”, and discreetly nods towards Trevor.

  Nate’s actions are definitely pissing Trevor off. He's shaking again, and now Austin and another guy are holding him down by his shoulders. Jared smiles and leaves us to it. Nate and I chuckle, then he leans close to my ear and starts whispering nonsense things. His breath on my ear tickles and I try stifle my giggles. To anyone else it would look like he's saying naughty things to me. That is so far from the truth. Nate being the clown he is, starts telling me he's going to have to shift to the side in a little bit because his boxers are riding up his crack, suffocating his balls. I can't help but crack up laughing at that.

  Abruptly, Trevor stands and starts to head in our direction. My wolf perks up from where she's been quietly hiding in the background, hoping that our mate has changed his mind and is coming to claim us. The guys tense up, expecting a fight. Then as suddenly as he started going towards us, he changes direction to a table on our right filled with girls scantily dressed with lots of make up. He stops next to a brunette, similar in size and appearance to me and whispers something in her ear, causing her face to light up and takes her by the hand. He then tosses me one last look before heading off to the trees, the brunette eagerly following behind.

  It hits me. A hot stabbing pain in my chest. My little plan just backfired. It definitely worked Trevor up, but instead of getting him to regret rejecting me, he chose a downgraded version of me as a substitute. Now they were headed into the woods together, probably to do what Trevor is known for. My vision blurs with the thought. I don't realize I'm crying until I feel Nate wipe a tear, and pull me into his side so no one else gets to witness my pain.

  “He's a freakin idiot,” Jared says, rubbing my arm.

  “Sorry, baby girl. I thought he was smarter than that,” Nate says while rubbing my back.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Jace suggests. We grab our trays and start to leave.

  I glance back once more to the trees where I last saw Trevor. Then to the table where his pack is sitting, shaking their heads. Finally, my eyes land on Austin who is staring in the direction Trevor went angrily. Feeling my stare, he turns and his eyes meet mine. He has an apology written all over his face. I give him a small tear filled smile with a shrug and follow the guys.

  I appreciate the sentiment but he isn't the guy that needs to apologize, and I don't w
ant one from the guy who should.

  Chapter Eight

  Sudden Clarity

  Trevor

  I was going crazy. I knew it was going to be hard to stay away from her, but it isn't supposed to be this hard. Cody's not making things any easier for me either. It's bad enough that I have to resist her at school, but to constantly be reminded of her by a five year old who at the moment convinced himself I'm the reason his pretty Harmony isn't coming back is torture.

  He makes sure to talk sense into me before I drop him off at school. “You should go to the doctor and find out what’s wrong with you, Uncle Trevor.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with me.” At least not physically. Emotionally, I'm screwed up. That's not exactly something I can explain to a precocious five-year-old. “Why would you think that?” I ask him.

  “Because you make Harmony lergic to you. So you have to get fixed, so she’ll come back,” he states as if it were obvious.

  Lergic? He still thinks she fainted because of me. Which is correct, except not for the reasons he’s come up with; First, it was because I was ugly. Then he said I must’ve smelt funny. And now he’s decided there’s something wrong inside of me.

  “She’s not allergic to me, Cody. She’s just not coming for grown up reasons, okay?” I offer lamely.

  “But I—”

  “Just let it go already, Cody. Now hurry before you’re late,” I scold.

  He huffs, “Fine. Grown ups are so silly sometimes. I hope I never grow up.”, and then hurries into the school.

  Once I reach our High School, I walk to the back where the rest of my young pack members hang out. I catch the tail end of their conversation.

  “ . . . I’m telling you. She is hot. I just passed her in the hallway on my way here, and she has some mighty fine legs!” A junior, Lenny, is saying.

  Not really caring what random girl they're talking about since all my thoughts are consumed with a certain brown haired, green-eyed beauty, I ignore them until his next words make my blood boil.

  “I swear. She’s the hottest new girl our school has ever had! Too bad she’s not in our pack. I would so do her,” he boasts.

  Grabbing him by the collar, I push him against the wall and ask, “Who is this girl you’re talking about? What’s her name?”

  Shaking, he replies, “I th-think it's H-Harmony, Alpha. Yeah. Harmony Ev-vans.”

  “SHE’S MINE! STAY AWAY FROM HER,” I order and notice the fear in his eyes, as he drops his gaze in submission.

  Releasing his collar, I let him drop to the ground and turn to face the rest of the boys. “That goes for all of you. Don’t even look her way, because if I find out you did, you’ll answer to me.” They nod and scurry off to their homerooms.

  “Funny. For someone who rejected her, you seem to be very possessive.” Austin observes with amusement.

  “Don’t start with me, Austin.”

  “I’m just saying. You may have control over the pups in our pack, but what about the ones in hers? Not to mention the three closest to her besides her cousin. Then there’s the human guys, too. It’s only a matter of time before a girl as amazing as her is snatched up,” he continues.

  I feel my wolf wanting to be let loose, but I control him and look at Austin. “That’s fine. It’s what I want for her. To be with someone who can love her like I can’t. But I’ll be damned if it’s one of my own pack members. Other than that, she’s free to be with whoever makes her happy.” I force that load of bull crap out of my mouth.

  Austin smirks. The asshole actually smirks and says, “Yeah. Keep telling yourself that. Let me know when you actually believe it.” Then saunters off.

  Dickhead. When lunch arrives, I'm boiling with anger. Not only did I smell her intoxicating vanilla and honey scent everywhere I turned, but I had to listen to constant chatter about how hot my mate is and how this or that jerk wants to make her theirs. She's mine, damn it! I'm standing with my pack at our usual spot when I feel her presence. Looking in her direction, it's as if my ability to breathe is taken away. She is beautiful. Her legs go on for days, a skirt covers what I know to be a very firm butt, and the sun glistens off her lightly tanned shoulder that's peeking out from her white top. Her hair is pulled up, showing off her elegant neck and her face has a dreamy expression as if . . . Wait a minute . . . SHE LOOKS AS IF SHE JUST ROLLED OUT OF BED AFTER A NIGHT OF HOT, STEAMY SEX! I'm going to murder someone! Suddenly, I feel Austin’s hand firmly on my shoulder.

  “Relax. Sniff the air, Trevor. Her scent hasn’t changed. It’s still pure. No one else has been with or in her,” he reassures me.

  Releasing my fists, I sniff and realize he's right. I allow him to push me to a seated position, but I keep my eyes on her the entire time. God, she's gorgeous. My body calms until the blonde idiot at her side cages her in between his legs and starts whispering in her ear. She's giggling and a slight blush is appearing on her cheeks. What the hell kind is he saying to my mate? This time I feel two sets of hands on my shoulders, and I am distantly aware of Austin and Lenny trying to get me to calm down, but it isn't working.

  My wolf is trying to take over. He wants me to throw her over my shoulders, take her into the woods, and mark her. I get up to do just that and head toward her when realization hits. I can't do that. It will make her mine and the pain of losing her will kill me. Quickly changing directions, I head over to what we called the easy table. It's full of fake, overly made up skanks that are fast to give it up. I grab the one resembling Harmony and whisper, “Come with me.”, and pull her toward the trees, throwing one last look at Harmony over my shoulder. My wolf whimpers at the pain etched in her features, but I can't give in. I have to stay strong, and this little brunette holding my hand is going to help me with that. Moving deeper into the woods, I grab her by the waist and shove her against a tree, crashing my lips to hers. I start to move my hands to her butt, bringing her closer all the while thinking of Harmony. She moans and it should make me hard as steel, but it has the opposite effect. Visions of Harmony fill my head, but the voice of the girl in front of me is nowhere near my mate’s beautiful tone. Opening my eyes to see her flushed face, I start noticing other differences. Her hair isn't as shiny, her green eyes lack the brightness and warmth found in Harmony’s, and her scent is all wrong. There's no vanilla and honey. This slut’s smell is overloaded with expensive perfume. She finally notices the lack of enthusiasm in my member, and looks up confused.

  “Do you want me to help you with that?” her irritating voice asks as she gets down on her knees.

  Filled with immediate disgust at having someone other than my mate offer me this, I pull her up and push her away. “I’ve changed my mind. Leave,” I order. It's only then that she bows her head in submission that I realize she's an unmated member of my pack. What was I doing? I never mess with anyone from my pack. I always satisfy my needs with humans or she-wolves from Jared’s pack. Every player knows not to mess with someone a little too close to home. It’s a recipe for disaster. I need to get myself under control and fast. Walking back to my table, I take a seat opposite Austin and scan the area for Harmony.

  “You won’t find her. She already left,” Austin informs me angrily.

  I look at him surprised by the animosity in his eyes.

  “Was it worth it?” he asks with a raised eyebrow.

  “Was what worth it?”

  “Hurting someone as innocent as Harmony to satisfy your own needs?” he continues.

  I'm too stunned to speak. I knew he was upset with my choice to reject Harmony, but I didn’t realize how much.

  “I’ve been your Beta for a while and I’ve never questioned the judgment or choices you‘ve made, until now. Yes, if you lose her it will hurt. But what if you don’t? What if you both live ‘til you’re old and gray with your children and children’s children surrounding you? What if you have years of love ahead of you. What if you can be happy?” he pauses to let his words sink in. “You could have all of that. You got lucky. You had a rotten first mate but the fates blessed you with an amazing second one, and you’re too scared to grab on to that. It makes me sad for you.”