Page 3 of Rejected Alpha Mate

Tobias grins nervously, rubbing the back of his neck in that awkwardly endearing way that makes everyone like him instantly. “Got it. Cecelia. I’m sorry. I’m just nervous.”

“I can tell,” Cecelia giggles. “If you were paying any attention, you would have realized that I’m Donna’s age.”

“Yeah…yeah, I remember that. Obviously. Donna has told me so much about you.”

“Well, you’re forgiven, as long as you can handle the guys,” Cecelia says as she curiously watches her mate join the others at the fire pit. “They’re much more intimidating than I am.”

“I’ll do my best,” Tobias throws her a wink. “Thanks for the heads up.”

Cecelia slinks her arm between mine just as the other women come sauntering forward, inspecting Tobias like he’s a hot new commodity.

Which he is, except for the ‘hot’ part. I’ve never thought about him that way.

He’s always just been my friend—someone who reminds me of Cecelia, filling the void of her not being in college with me. For his part, he’s never given me any indication that he wants more than friendship, making me comfortable enough to get close to him in a platonic way.

While Lily—the Lunaris beta’s mate—and Emily and Arianna introduce themselves to Tobias, I know I should be smiling, too, soaking in the warmth of this moment, but all I can think about is him. The weight of his intense stare still presses against my back like an invisible hand—hot, heavy, and infuriatingly familiar. My pulse refuses to slow, and my wolf paces inside me, restless. She recognizes him even before I dare turn around again.

“I’m Tyler’s wife,” Arianna introduces herself, leaving out the wolfy part in the introductions. “We’re from Portland. Tyler and Dominic are…business partners,” she says, glancing at me and wincing as if she made a mistake.

I purse my lips to stifle my giggle. They’re trying hard not to slip up, but it’s more amusing to watch Arianna have a hard time—she’d been living in the human world for four years while Tyler was in black ops. Dominic must have hammered them about tonight, and having a human in our midst. That’s the only reason they’d be so nervous.

“Come on,” Cecelia chirps, letting go of my arm in exchange for Tobias’s, tugging him toward the circle of people by the fire. “You’ve got to meet the rest of the gang.”

My mouth goes dry as I slowly follow, my heart thudding louder and filling my eardrums with every step closer to the inevitable. Dominic is laughing with Tyler and Santo—his beta—and beside them is Sean, talking to him….

I pointedly avoid making eye contact with him, even when I feel his eyes turning to me from where he’s standing, one foot planted on a log bench, one elbow pressed into his thigh with a beer dangling loosely in his hand.

As much as I try not to look at him, his imposing presence is impossible to ignore. Or maybe it’s just me who feels intimidated.

He hasn’t changed much. He’s still impossibly tall and broad-shouldered, that golden-blonde hair catching the flickering glow of firelight like a damn halo. Except halos shouldn’t belong to devils. Especially not the one who’d made a mockery of my heart last summer.

Goddess…why is he so devilishly handsome?

“Donna,” Dominic calls, waving me over with a chuffed smile. “Look who made it tonight.”

My brother grins as if he’s proud of the announcement, as if I’m duty-bound to remember that this is his best friend. Of course, I remember. I remember every damn detail about the man: the roughness of his hands, the taste of whiskey on his lips, the way he’d laughed when I told him a silly joke. That was back when I was lighthearted and carefree enough to make them. The memory of him pangs in my chest like heartburn, and I force a smile that feels like broken glass against my cheeks.

“Of course,” I say sweetly to my brother, hiding my scorn. “Hey, Nicholas.”

“Donna,” he says in a sultry tone that catches me off guard, my knees quivering slightly.

That's when his gaze collides with mine, penetrating forest-green eyes lit up like emerald gems, steady and unreadable. But there’s something under the surface.

Regret? Guilt?

I push the thought away before it can fester, turning to my source of strength for tonight as I tear my eyes away from him.

I didn’t catch the moment he peeled himself off the log bench, but somehow, he’s already standing in front of Tobias and me.

“Nicholas Bartalow,” he greets coolly, extending his hand.

“Tobias Peck.” As Tobias shakes his hand, I notice Nicholas still staring at me with the same curiosity as a kid in a candy store that’s been there the first time we met.

It was the day Dominic returned from black ops. Back then, the starry, green-eyed Adonis was nothing more than an intrigue inciter.

That was before I visited his pack in Wells with my brother and Cecelia last year.

Nicholas’s lips twitch as if he’s forcing back amusement when Tobias mentions that he’s never heard of him.