Total pages in book: 35
Estimated words: 31591 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 158(@200wpm)___ 126(@250wpm)___ 105(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 31591 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 158(@200wpm)___ 126(@250wpm)___ 105(@300wpm)
I learned that Brandon was an early riser when he left his dorm just after dawn. I always woke up early as well, and my heart raced at the thought of watching every sunrise with my mate. It kept me smiling as I followed behind him to a cafe on campus, where he ordered a raisin bagel.
Now he was halfway back to his dorm (with me on his heels), and I was trying to come up with a smooth way to greet him. After the mess I made of things at the club, I wanted to show Brandon a totally different side of me; the side that would care for him and protect him.
That’s it! I’ll protect him! A slightly sneaky but undeniably genius idea came together quickly in my mind. I just need a little help...I internally cheered when I saw another young man about thirty feet away, walking in the opposite direction.
I hustled up to the stranger and asked him, “How would you like to make a quick fifty bucks?”
“Hard pass, man; I’m straight.”
“What? No, no, no.” I pointed at Brandon, who was getting closer to his building. “See that man over there?”
“Still straight.”
I bit back my rage at the thought of this man making a pass at my beloved. “I want you to go up to him and act like you want to fight. Don’t actually touch him or I swear to god, I’ll rip you apart limb by limb.” Reel it in, Talon; you need his help. “I’ll jump in, tell you to fuck off, and that’ll be the end of it.”
“That’s messed up, dude.”
“No, it’ll be great. I really need to make a good impression on him.” I pulled out my wallet and offered the man three twenty dollar bills. “Here’s sixty. Please?”
He shrugged and took the money, stuffing it into his pocket before walking briskly in Brandon’s direction. This was perfect; I’d get my chance to redeem myself and change my mate’s opinion of me.
I waited until the man was only two steps from Brandon and he yelled, “Hey!” before I began marching towards them. I kept my face screwed up in anger even though I was giddy and excited about my stroke of genius.
My mate turned around and I strode faster, ready to leap in and save the day. But my plan came crashing down to the ground when the man told him, “Dude, I think that guy is following you.” He pointed to me, and when Brandon’s eyes fell on me, his face folded into the same look of unbridled fear as the night before. “You should be careful; he looks dangerous.”
My mate squeaked, “Oh god,” before running the rest of the way to his building, peering over his shoulder at me before he ducked inside and slammed the door behind him.
The other young man flipped me off and went about his way, looking pleased with himself. That useless sack of shit! He worsened my chances with Brandon and took my money for doing so. I wanted to pounce him and rip him apart, and there was only one thing that could stop me.
I pulled out my cell phone and called Hunter, who answered on the first ring. “Hey, how did things-”
“Talk me down,” I pleaded.
“From what?”
“Murder.”
“Oh jesus. Okay, um...let’s see...you can’t fuck your mate if you’re in prison.”
I took a slow deep breath and felt myself gaining control again. “Thanks.”
“Wanna tell me what this is about?” I filled him in on my attempted plan of redemption as he groaned. “For the love of all things good and holy, tell me you didn’t seriously do that.”
“I did that.”
“Dammit, Tal. Okay, don’t move. I’m on my way. Just promise me that you won’t do anything stupid until I get there.”
“I’ll try.”
The line went dead, and I paced back and forth through the parking lot of Brandon’s building until Hunter pulled into a spot and leapt out of the pride’s Suburban. Before he could say anything, I assured him, “I didn’t do anything.”
“I still don’t understand why you paid someone to start a fight.”
“I was trying to impress Brandon!” I defended.
“Why didn’t you just return his book?” He pointed to the sketchpad beneath my arm; I’d held onto and protected it since I received it.
Well, fuck. “Because I’m an idiot,” I groaned.
Hunter gave me a reassuring smile. “No you’re not. You’re just not thinking straight because you’re in love.” It was true; even though I hadn’t officially met Brandon, my soul recognized him as its perfect match. I knew he was mine, and my heart accepted the fact without needing my brain to understand it.
“So what do I do?”
“You need to talk to him,” he shrugged.
“I’m sure he doesn’t want to talk to me.”
“He’s your fated one, Tal; the man you’re going to spend eternity with. You can’t just give up.”