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When silence stretched between us for several beats too long, he let out a sigh.
“Look, I have to get back, but I’ll talk to you later,” he said, giving me a tight smile.
My mood instantly dropped and it felt like somebody threw a bucket of ice water over me. I nodded and watched as he hurried off, feeling my heart splintering little by little.
Did he not want me as a mate?
Tears burned behind my eyes and I had to calm my breathing so I didn’t cause a scene. I’ve been rejected before but this one hurt so much worse.
I took a minute to regain my composure, waiting until I heard the bell over the door signaling he’d left, before finally going to the front counter to check out.
Somehow I managed to get through the entire transaction without my voice cracking, even giving him a smile before heading out.
When I got back to the storefront I dropped the nails on the closest pallet and texted the guys to let them know where to find them and that I was leaving.
Having the house to myself for the next couple of hours had never sounded more enticing. I kind of just wanted to curl up into a ball and have a solid cry.
Did Ezra have someone else already? My thoughts continued to spiral as I made my way home, barely noticing as I walked by other people on the sidewalk. When I finally closed the door behind me the tears came at full force. My chest ached and the old wounds of rejection were starting to break apart like a single day hadn’t passed.
I felt a little bit silly for letting myself get invested in the idea of mates. Sure, I had mates who wanted me, but investing my heart before they did was a dangerous gamble.
Atlas and Dean texted me nearly every day if they weren’t stopping by the shop on my shifts. Collin and I were already thrown at each other often and after his impromptu date, I knew where he stood.
But Ezra continued to be a mystery.
The rational side of me knew that we’d barely known each other for a couple weeks and that he had been a little more open with me at the diner.
Yet no matter how many times I tried to make sense of it in my mind, I couldn’t. There was no way to know unless I asked him directly. Feeling sorry for myself wouldn’t magically help me understand.
Taking a deep breath to calm myself, I stood up and straightened my clothes, fixed my makeup, and grabbed my keys. Now I was hellbent on confronting him and not letting him run away. If he wasn’t interested then he needed to man-up and tell me himself.
I yanked open the front door, then froze.
Standing in the center of the porch with a bouquet of roses in his hand was Ezra. He looked like I caught him in the middle of something, eyes wild and mouth agape. His leg was mid-stride like he had been pacing out here.
He narrowed his eyes on my puffy face and red eyes.
“What’s wrong?”
I swiped a hand over my cheek and played it off. “Nothing. I was just coming to find you.” My voice came out harsher than I intended and he was taken aback, completely blind as to why I’d be upset with him.
“What did I do?” he asked.
“Nothing. Maybe it’s the fact that we’re mates and I barely get a ‘hi’ and ‘bye’ from you. Sure, you’re nice to me at the diner, more than others, but I get quick words and tight smiles. What am I supposed to get from that? If you don’t want me, then just fucking say it, Ezra.” My chest was heaving as I forced all of the words out. The alpha stood there, stunned.
Ezra was at a loss for words. His mouth opened and closed for a moment before he lunged forward. My yelp of surprise was quieted by his mouth over mine. His stubble scratched at my face and a hand went to my lower back to steady me and hold me closer so we were touching, hip to toes.
He didn’t deepen the kiss. It was purposeful, calm, collected, just like he was.
When he finally did break the contact, I could only blink at him, more confused now than ever.
“Look, I don’t know how to be a mate. I never had a pack to look up to. My mom was a single omega raising me and my sister. She was abandoned by everyone in her life. She’d talk shit about my father and all other men. It wasn’t exactly a shining example of how to treat an omega. I know that’s not an excuse, but I’ve never had to give a pack much thought until now.”
“I’m sorry,” I breathed out, still reeling.
“I was expecting to be single for the rest of my life,” he admitted. “Then you came crashing into it, smelling like tropical fruit and looking adorable. You never let my grumpiness bring you down. In fact you challenged me. I’ve never been more interested or intrigued by anyone in my entire life, Ellie.”
“Then stop holding back,” I said bluntly, not giving him a chance to talk himself out of this. “I’m not asking you to change your ways and to spend every second of every day with me. I’m pretty sure you’re aware that I have three other mates in this town. I’m a grown-ass woman, I don’t need my hand held…well, I do like hand holding but you know what I mean...” I cut myself off before I could keep rambling.
