Page 13 of Confusing Hearts

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Let’s just say Chase was a little too happy to see me, or rather, you.”

Happiness blossomed in me. He was happy to see me? Even if it had been Tessa and not me, if he had thought it was me, then that had to be good. I was still in shock to hear he was a wolf. It couldn’t be true.

I tried to finish my homework, but I couldn’t stop picturing large snarling wolves, and had a tough time reconciling the images with Chase. Tessa had to be wrong. Then there was the issue of the bond. Could I really have been that off base? There’s no way a feline would be mated to a canine. It wasn’t possible.

I struggled against the urge to call him all night long. I had never felt that need with anyone, not even guys I’d actually dated.

Waking the next morning after a long restless sleep, I dragged myself to the shower and made a small effort to prepare for the day. In the end, I threw my wet hair up in a messy bun, and donned jeans and a school sweatshirt.

I had always had a quiet, passive rebellious side. I knew I was down dressing, part in exhaustion, but more as a statement. Tessa had called Chase a man-whore. If looks were all he was interested in, he wouldn’t give me a second glance today. Looking in the mirror I sighed, but with no time to fix it, I grabbed my backpack and headed off to my first class, calculus—with Chase.

I knew without looking around that he wasn’t there. Anita was, though, and gave me a quick wave as I headed down to the front row. I one arm hugged her as I took the seat next to her. She looked me over.

“Rough night?”

“Something like that,” I mumbled just as the now-familiar wave of goosebumps hit me. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, preparing myself for something, though I didn’t know what. I had somehow convinced myself that I imagined his effect on me, after hearing he was a wolf shifter.

“Good morning, ladies,” he said, and the shudder that wracked my body from hearing his voice made me angry.

“Morning, Chase,” Anita said cheerily.

“Morning,” I grumbled.

He sat down next to me and stared until I couldn’t stand the heat any longer and looked up at him. He genuinely smiled—dimples and all. I melted inside. Warm fuzzies fluttered in my stomach.Mate, a small voice in the back of my head sighed, and I wanted to lay my head down and cry. I bit my bottom lip, letting the shock of sharp pain stall my tears.

Chase didn’t say anything, and I couldn’t decide if I was grateful or infuriated.

At the end of calculus, I said goodbye to Anita and headed to graphic design class. My entire body was hyperaware of Chase.

“Hey, wait up,” he said, rushing to catch up to me. “You okay today? You seemed a little off at lunch the other day. I’ve been worried. Plus, you didn’t call me.”

My mouth fell open, but I didn’t know what to say. It was obvious he thought Tessa had been me, but how? He clearly didn’t know, but why couldn’t he tell? He either didn’t feel the same things I was feeling or . . . I didn’t want to think of it. Tessa and I were identical twins. Identical! Did that mean our own mate couldn’t tell us apart? Would he feel the same for both of us? The thought made me sick to my stomach and I gagged as I rushed to the nearest bathroom, ignoring his concerns.

I didn’t throw up, just dry heaved a bit. I washed my mouth out anyway, gargling water and spitting it into the sink. I splashed some water on my face and added a little lip gloss.

Walking out of the restroom, I was surprised to find Chase waiting for me. He didn’t say a word at first, just wrapped his arms around me. I froze, and then relaxed into him with a sigh. I let his scent wash over me in a moment of indulgence.

“Are you okay?” he asked, sounding very worried. I nodded against his chest but couldn’t find the words to speak. “Do you want to skip graphics today?”

“Yes, but I’m not going to,” I said, starting to pull away from him. It was a lot harder than it should have been. My entire body was on fire and my panther pranced happily in my mind, purring. My panther would only purr for her mate. It was a million times clear to me in that moment, that despite all odds or the impossibility of the situation, Chase Westin really was my one true mate.

“Come on then. I’ll deal with the professor.”

“Mr. Westin, Ms. Lockhardt, so nice of you to join us today,” our professor said, and my cheeks heated as I dropped my head and slid into my seat, knowing all eyes were on us.

Chase dropped his things and walked up to the professor. He whispered something that I couldn’t make out and the teacher looked at me, then back at Chase and nodded. Professor Stone slapped him on the back and pointed to his seat.

I knew from the syllabus that being late to Stone’s class meant an automatic ten point deduction for the day. I looked over the notes on the board and began to panic. Checking the time on my phone, I grabbed my laptop and started to get to work, panic rising inside me.

“Relax,” Chase leaned over and whispered. “He’s not going to deduct points from you today. The assignment isn’t the easiest, but it’s not that hard. I’ll show you, just follow along.”

He turned his laptop towards me and pointed out everything he was doing as he did it.

“Isn’t this cheating?” I asked.

He smiled. “No, actually, that’s why we’re partners.”

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