Page 49 of Unbreak Me

"Can I hug you?" I asked.

He nodded slowly.

I gently put my arms around him and pressed him to my chest. He felt so frail—I could feel every rib under my fingers. The stark difference between us hit me like a punch. He didn’t stand a chance against Ferguson, and the thought made my anger burn hotter. Leaning in, I kissed him softly on the temple and whispered, "I promise I will never hurt you, Day."

He didn’t say anything, but his slender arms wrapped around my waist, and he pressed his face against my shoulder. Something inside me stirred, and before I realized it, my nose instinctively brushed against the gland on his neck.

Unfortunately, I also realized his closeness was affecting me in another way—one that absolutely shouldn’t happen in such a tender moment. I quickly let him go before he could notice my growing erection.

Clearing my throat, I said, "I made breakfast. Come on, eat before it gets cold."

Day gave me a shy smile and murmured his thanks.

As we sat down to eat, an idea came to me, but I wasn’t sure if it was the right time to bring it up. It was risky. It might not work, or worse, it could provoke a negative reaction from the person I needed to involve. If that happened, it would break Day’s heart. I decided I had to handle it myself, just in case things went downhill.

Now, I only needed to ease Day into the topic without tipping him off about what I really wanted to ask.

"So," I began, "did your parents have a high mateship?"

Day took a sip of his coffee before answering. "They are Half Mates. After they got married, they decided to take suppressants—to avoid complications with meeting a higher mate later. They wanted a stable family without the fear of their kids suddenly losing a parent…" He trailed off, bitterness creeping into his voice. "But now they don't take it anymore because we're all adults."

I nodded slowly. "That was a smart choice. So many relationships fall apart when one partner finds their higher mate. So many broken hearts… and tragedies."

Day’s expression shifted, and I realized he’d caught onto what I was hinting at. He tensed slightly and muttered, "Nico wanted to take it, but the side effects were terrible for him—he had a severe adverse reaction. Probably some kind of allergic response."

I felt a wave of relief. Day had brought up the exact topic I’d been planning to discuss—it made things so much easier.

"So, Nico ended up with his High Mate, right?"

Day nodded and leaned over his plate, clearly not eager to talk about it.

But I still needed more information.

"You mentioned he was from a press mogul family?" I asked cautiously.

"Yeah. The Lowens," Day muttered.

I blinked in surprise. That was a big name—famous not just in the city but across the country. I’d even crossed paths with someone from their family before: Blue Lowen, from Malden Pharmaceuticals.

"Wow. Lowen Press is massive," I said.

Day’s lips twisted into a bitter grimace. "Yeah, Nico really hit the jackpot. Coming from a family as poor as mine, marrying into the crazy-rich Lowens, and landing a cushy position at one of their companies. He’s editor-in-chief atEast Timesnow."

Bingo. Day had handed me exactly the information I needed.

"East Timesmagazine? Seriously? He really climbed the ladder fast—though probably through the bedroom," I said with a grimace.

Day shrugged. "You could say that. He was completely inexperienced when he started. Normally, he’d be covering localfluff stories, like someone stealing bags of dog food from a shelter. But to be fair, Nico had talent. He earned those later promotions. It was just… easier for him than for most."

"His husband’s seven years older, right?"

"Yeah. But when they met, he looked very youthful—he had the money to keep himself in shape. He’d been married before and already had two kids, but you’d never have guessed. He and Nico had two more kids."

I noticed a flicker of jealousy in Day’s tone. He probably felt like he didn’t measure up to Nico’s new partner.

"Well, High Mates are almost as strong a bond as True Mates, just without the weird rejuvenation and healing magic—or so I’ve heard," I said, trying to comfort him. After all, the attraction between High Mates was why Day and Nico had broken up.

High Mates were often seen as even more ideal than True Mates. High compatibility—without the risks. True Mates, on the other hand, were energetically bound—separation was unbearable, and if one died, the other wouldn’t survive.

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