Page 157 of Dream Mates
Elaris loved it and knew how to use it strategically and artfully. I just accepted it and tried not to ever do anything that I wouldn’t want my mother to see on the evening news.
Somehow everything had changed.
It was one thing if I was at a conference, dinner, or meeting for work. However, I wasn’t. I was with Grace, sharing a private moment. Seeing her face light up as she pet horses then tossed hay at me. Chasing her across a garden and then catching her and twirling her around. Holding her as the sun set.
Those moments were for me alone.
The bugs were out in full force, and I swatted one on my arm–I’d taken off my suit jacket and rolled up my sleeves.
“Shall we go before we get eaten?” I asked her.
“I suppose. Let’s go in the hot tub when we return to the hotel?” She started cleaning everything up and putting it back into the picnic basket.
“Oh definitely. Perhaps wear that swimsuit you wore yesterday? The yellow polka dot one?”
It was a ridiculously tiny bikini, that for some reason she found amusing.
Grace grinned. “If you insist.”
I grabbed the basket, and she got the blanket. Arm in arm, we returned to the barn to turn in our picnic items. The sun had fully set, but the parking lot was busy, since they had outdoor dining in the evening.
“I don’t know who you are or what you think you’re doing, but you need to stay away from my family,” a female voice commanded.
A sharp-featured woman, probably in her early fifties, marched over to us, her brown eyes narrowing in the dim parking lot light. There was something a bit familiar about her. Like I’d run into her before at a conference or meeting. Which was entirely probable.
“Why are you here,Dr. Ellington,if that’s even your name?” she sneered.
“I’m here for the PIIP Conference,Dr. Thorne.” Grace rolled her eyes. “Who do you thinkIam? What did you do to the professor’s poor daughter that you are so sure that I’m not her? Though I’m not. I’m not the professor’s. I’m not Barrett’s. All I am is a mathematician who made the mistake of having coffee with someone I met at a conference. Apologies for existing.”
Grace did raise a good point. Why did Dr. Thorne immediately assume that this Grace wasn’t the Grace her mate was looking for?
Of course, I could put together a small list–one that didn’t put Dr. Thorne in a very good light.
“How dare you,” she snarled, anger crossing her face. “You’re not her. You can’t be.”
“Iknow,” Grace snapped back. “I’m not here to make claims to your family. Believe me, the more I learn about you the more I fear for the professor’s Grace.”
“Please leave us, Dr. Thorne. As you can see, we’re nowhere near your family. We’re just enjoying our evening, and I’d advise you to go home and do the same.” I stepped in front of Grace, shielding.
I made my voice hard, filling it with alpha authority, though it wasn’t quite a bark. Yet. While she was an alpha, I was easily more dominant than her. Part of me wanted to hit her for daring to lay a hand on my mate, but we didn’t need photos of that, either.
“Who the fuck are you?” Dr. Thorne blinked as if just truly noticing me.
“I’m Spencer Thanukos, one of Grace’s alphas. Please, leave us be, Dr. Thorne. We’ve done nothing to you,” I warned.
“Fuck. You’re not her. You can’t be.” She turned and ran into the parking lot, getting out her phone. “You didn’t tell me she was mated to Spencer Fucking Thanukos.”
I pulled Grace into my arms as the car arrived.
“Are you all right?” I asked, helping her inside.
“I have no idea what that was,” she frowned, leaning into me. “I’m so tired. It’s been a day.”
“Then rest, Darling.” As she dozed in my arms, I texted someone that I used for background checks, trying to figure out why Dr. Thorne bothered me. If she was in chemistry, she probably wouldn't have been one of my father’s students. Perhaps I had her as a professor or teaching assistant at some point? I also texted Brennan to see if the genscan came back.
Brennan
Not yet. But my mom is on the rampage because the media picked up on the foundation getting rid of scholarships for vulnerable omegas.
