Page 12 of Marked
Except fate already beat them to the punch.
“Yeah, I’m down if Chey is,” Iver remarks, falling right into their trap. He arches a brow at me questioningly, and I’m not sure I could say no if I tried.
Idowant to see him again. And even though Javi and Lo shouldn’t be meddling, it does kinda take some of the pressure off to add more people into the mix on our first date.
“Okay, sure,” I breathe, smoothing my hair back as I push up from the couch. I don’t miss the conspiratorial glance that Javi and Lo exchange, pleased that their plan worked.
“You guys better get going,” Lo comments, glancing down at her watch.
“Chey, you good?” Javi asks, giving me a pointed look.
Love that he cares enough to check up on me, but it’s low key embarrassing in front of Iver.
“Fine,” I say, my cheeks heating in a blush as I glance back over at Iver. Mymate.
I have a fated mate.
“I’m gonna hang here,” Lo declares, stepping around the couch and flopping down onto it. She’s clearly way too comfortable in my space. She shows up at my door often and invites herself in under the guise of ‘female bonding’.
Wehavebonded in a short time though, so I suppose it’s worked.
Iver takes a step toward me, and I instinctively take one of my own backwards, my heart leaping into my throat. His expression twists, but he quickly schools it and steps back, giving me my space. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Chey,” he drawls, lifting a hand in a little wave.
Damnit, I hate that I can’t just benormal.
“Tomorrow,” I nod, clasping my hands together in front of me and twisting my fingers together.
Iver beams me one last smile before turning away and following Javi to the door. I watch after him, my pulse quickening as I take in the way his muscles bunch and flex beneath the thin fabric of his t-shirt.Is it suddenly hot in here?
He throws me a glance before stepping out the door, and when those baby blues lock with mine, my heart skips a beat.
That’s my fated mate.
CHAPTER FIVE
the first date
IVER
Are my palms supposed to sweat this much on a first date?I keep wiping them off on the legs of my jeans as I comb through my memories of prior dates, struggling to recall whether I’ve ever been this damn nervous before. Maybe they’ve all been this harrowing, and I mentally blocked it out. Maybe I just convinced myself I was smooth with the ladies to bolster my own self-confidence. Or maybe I’ve just never been this into someone before, and it’s got me all kinds of fucked up.
Definitely that last one.
“We said seven, right?” I ask as I glance down at the time displayed on my phone screen, my knee bouncing beneath the table.6:59 p.m.
“We did,” Javi replies, reaching for his margarita. We’ve been sitting in this booth at the Mexican restaurant in Norbury for ten minutes now, patiently waiting for our women to make their appearance. I’m glad they picked this place for our double date rather than some stuffy fine-dining establishment. At least the atmosphere is casual and relaxed, even ifI’mnot.
Each minute we’ve been here has felt like a damn hour.
Not that Javi’s bad company, but the anticipation of seeing my mate is making it hard to keep a conversation going. I’mpretty sure Lo insisted on her and Chey meeting us at the restaurant tonight so that Javi and I would be forced to spend some one-on-one time, but honestly, she doesn’t need to resort to setups like this. It’s weird when it’s forced. Besides, the two of us are cool.
Okay, I’ll admit I wasn’tthrilledwhen I found out he was mated to my sister, but I got over it. Men don’t hold onto things like women do. We’re simpler than they think.
Lo is annoyingly punctual, so of course the girls show up at seven o’clock on the dot. My inner wolf perks up when the breeze carries Chey’s distinctively delicious scent inside the restaurant as she enters, my mate’s proximity eliciting an intense physical reaction within me.
My pulse kicks up. My breathing quickens. Our bond strains in my chest, and my eyes immediately ping across the room to meet hers, as if they’re magnetized. My mouth runs dry. My pupils dilate. Even my dick hardens.
Mate.
