Page 10 of Lonely Alpha
Franklin certainly was a character. I wondered why he hadn’t set himself up with a mate. Maybe he was still too heartbroken. Only he would know.
I walked up the stairs and was stunned by my wolf’s rowdiness. A new scent joined the one from Franklin’s culinary magic. Lilacs. Interesting. That was William’s scent as well, but all this time, maybe it was my wolf who chose the scent. Hadn’t heard of that, but I welcomed the notion of my new mate having such a familiar and comforting scent, though there was a part of me that lamented William in the process.
In my room, I took a shower to wash off all the airport funk and changed into a pair of nice shorts and a linen button-down shirt. The afternoon had turned a bit cool, but it was refreshing to my higher shifter temperature.
And I wasn’t just getting ready for dinner.
I dressed to see my mate.
My new mate.
The room. It was as cozy as the rest of the house, and I took the few moments I had left to sit by the bay window and look out from another vantage point. Franklin’s property was gorgeous from every angle. I tried to calm the butterflies in my stomach. Tonight would be a fork in the road for my life. Right on the other side of this door or maybe already downstairs waiting was my new mate. Soon I would forget about all the sadness and what-ifs and live my life again.
I got up and went to the door but paused with my hand on the knob. Nervous. I felt my mouth rise in a smile wondering what my mate looked like. If he would like me.
If he would even accept me.
One way to find out. I opened the door and stepped out and heard the door at the other end of the hallway open at the same time.
My heart dropped into my stomach as the omega across from me dragged in a swift breath.
He was the same as I remembered but also different. He’d aged, of course, as we both had, but his stunning green eyes and the curls at the ends of his brown hair hadn’t. Of course, he’d have had to buzz his hair down to military regulations, but it was growing out again, almost as long as I remembered.
It was William.
The man I gave my heart to such a long time ago.
He’d gained some weight, in a good way. He’d always been on the thin side, even before joining up. I’d encouraged him to eat more and he did, but he was a black hole with a rapid metabolism.
Faint lines bracketed his eyes like someone who’d been squinting into a desert landscape. Had he been in the Middle East, then? A war zone? My heart picked up pace at the frightening thought. I had to remind myself that whatever danger he might have been in, he was here now and safe. That relief almost overwhelmed the other emotions like anger and disappointment that my attempt to move forward was a giant stumble back.
Goddess, no wonder I smelled lilacs. It was him. How stupid of me.
This weekend was a mistake. Zeke had been wrong. I was wrong.
There was no new mate. No new omega or fresh start or bright, shiny future ahead of me.
There was the omega who had shattered my heart and ghosted me before the term had been coined.
What a fool I was to think this weekend would go right for me.
I steadied my breathing as his scent wafted toward me again. This time, it was laced with anxiousness, hurt, and pain. How dare he be hurt when he was the one who’d shattered my soul into so many pieces they could never be recovered again.
I had nothing to say to him. Nothing. I turned and made my way down the stairs with heavy feet and a heavier heart.
Franklin might’ve been some supernatural matchmaker, but this time was his first big flub.
If at all possible, I would eat here tonight and then get the next flight out first thing in the morning. Beautiful property or not, the last thing I wanted was to be in close proximity to the omega who almost ended me. Sure, my wolf was excited to see him again, but even he remembered what we went through because of William.
No way I was going to stay here any longer than I had to.
“Hope you’re hungry.” Franklin beamed as I got down the stairs. I heard the footsteps behind me but moved before he got too close.
Dinner.
Overnight.
Then I was gone. Back to the place I’d run to so long ago.
