Her Brother, Her Mate

A huge bouquet of roses is waiting for me on my desk when I get to work a few days later. I smile, thinking they may be from Mitchel, but g***n in disgust when I read the card attached to them.

Mark. Wrong brother.

I’m not even going to entertain that man by keeping them. He probably has a list of women he sends flowers to trying to get in their pants.

Everyone keeps warning me about both Meyers brothers, but to me they are like night and day. Mark seemed insincere and almost slimy, the way he flirted with Jenny and Ralph, then just moved on to me when I appeared, not taking Jenny’s feelings into any kind of consideration.

Mitch was nothing but a gentleman. Helping Jenny get home safely, driving me, not trying to make a move on me when we got to Amanda’s house. Perfect gentleman. I’m still not entertaining anything more than being friends with the man, but I don’t find him repulsive. The opposite, really. I feel this strange pull towards him, almost a protective instinct.

I picked up the expensive looking bouquet, walked them out to Ralph’s desk and set them on the corner.

He looks up at me with a smirk, quirking an eyebrow.

“If you’re coming on to me, I’m sorry, but you’re not exactly my type,” he teases me.

I chuckled softly, plucking the card from the stems and handing it to him. He opens it then spews a laugh at the note’s contents.

“To the loveliest flower I have ever seen, I hope you find this small gift to be but a minor reflection of your beauty,” Ralph reads the card out loud with an elaborate accent, “Markus Meyers. He even left his number for you here. Aww. You should give him a call and tell him thank you,” he tilts his head down and giggles, “What a tool.”

“I’m adding the number to my block list. I don’t want those,” I pointed to the bouquet. “Do you want them?”

“Ow, how cold. Regifting a gift from the boss’s son.”

I sighed, rubbing my temples, “I’m going to go talk to her about it. I kinda need this job and don’t want to lose it because of the tool bag.”

“I wouldn’t worry about that. Vivian Meyers knows her sons. She knows how they can be. She will deal with him for you. You won’t get on her bad side for treating them coldly. Like I told you the other day, you will probably get a raise.”

That’s reassuring to hear. I keep hearing about both sons being like this, but Mark is the only one that makes me feel uncomfortable.

“The other son, Mitchel, is he as bad as his brother?” I asked Ralph.

He shrugs, “Pretty much. He’s settled down over the years. He doesn’t bring women back to the hotel as much as Mark. I think he follows Mark’s lead, only really getting into trouble when Mark is involved.”

That’s too bad. It’s disappointing to hear that he’s not much better than his brother, but it doesn’t change the strange pull I feel towards him. Being in the car with him that night, it was like there was electricity passing between us. The current in the air was almost tangible. He never came on to me, never made an advance towards me, and he never made me feel like something he just wanted to defile….but I almost wanted him to.

I can’t explain it. He should be everything I hate, but it was like I couldn’t bring myself to carry any negative feelings towards the man.

It’s so confusing.

“Does Mrs. Meyers have any openings today, so I can speak with her?” I asked Ralph, leaning over to peer at her schedule on his desk.

He looks down and hums, running his finger over the calendar. “She’s got a half hour before lunch. You can come see her then. I won’t be here. I have an appointment with my chiropractor, but you can just knock on her door and she will call you right in.”

“Thanks, sweetie,” I pounded his fist, then twinkled my fingers with his, something we started doing for kicks.

I hope Mrs. Meyers is as understanding as Ralph claims. I don’t want to offend her, but I don’t want to continually fight off Mark’s attention.

Mitch POV

I’ve been thinking about what to do about my mate. I had a hard time holding myself back the other night with her in the car so close to me, her amazing scent filling the small space. I couldn’t get any closer without the risk of scaring her and ruining my chances of her accepting me.

I wanted to reach out and run my fingers across her bare shoulder just to see if her skin felt as smooth as it appeared. I wanted to bury my nose in her luscious hair, getting drunk on the smell of honey and lavender. I bet her skin tastes like she smells.

I sat stiffly in my seat, trying to keep my focus on the road instead of the way her toes flinched every time we hit a rough spot in the road, or the way her sweat beaded on her velvety skin.

I waved bye like a goofball when we got to her house, which I recognized as one of my mother’s friends. Amanda Phillips is in the same coven as my father. How does she relate to my mate?

Vincent didn’t know anything about Hadley, and when I mentioned her being my mate in front of Simone she burst out laughing, telling me good luck. It was discouraging, and now I’m desperate. I don’t know how to win over a human mate.

I’m biting the bullet, seeking my mom out for help. I was going to go to dad this morning, but he seemed to be in a mood. Scared the s**t out of me when I went into my parent’s suite and heard him yelling at someone on the phone. I backed out of there and decided mom was the better option. She should know more about mates anyway.

I knocked hesitantly on mom’s office door.

“Come in!” she calls.

When I entered, she seemed surprised to see me, like she was expecting someone else.

“Mitch? What do I owe the pleasure? I think that’s the first time you ever knocked on my door.”

“Hey, mom. I, uh, need your help.”

She c***s her head to the side, “With what? Everything okay?”

I looked down at the floor and shrugged, not sure how to start.

“Mitch? What is it?” Mom gets up from her desk, comes around and puts her hands on my shoulders. Crap. I didn’t mean to make her feel bad for me. I’m nervous, not trying to earn her sympathy.

I looked up and tried to smile reassuringly. “I, uh, found my mate, mom.”

Her face lights up, “Really?! That’s fantastic, baby. I’m so excited for you! Where is she? Do I know her?”

I shrugged again, “I’m pretty sure you do. It’s Hadley, mom. Your new event coordinator.”

Her smile drops, “What? Hadley Hart?”

I nodded, smiling softly at hearing her last name for the first time. Hart. I like it.

Mom coughs, running her hands down the front of her silky blouse, something she does when she’s nervous. I furrow my brows at her behavior.

“Are you upset with me? I know you said to stay away from her.”

“No! No, honey. It’s just unexpected. She’s, uh, been through a lot. I’m just nervous for you. Have you approached her yet?”

Been through a lot? Like what? My protective instinct is overpowering right now, telling me to run to her and just hold her in my arms, sheltering her from anything that could ever hurt her. My hands are flexing at my sides thinking about what my mom might mean by ‘she’s been through a lot’.

“I talked with her. Gave her a ride home the other night. I didn’t say anything about her being my mate, though. She’s human. I didn’t want to scare her. I was,” I gulped audibly, nervous, “I was hoping you might help me. Tell me how you got dad to accept you?”

Mom offers me a sad smile, “It wasn’t without its challenges. I don’t think you will face the same problems I did. You might have entirely different issues.”

“What do you mean?”

Mom kneads her lips between her fingers, thinking about how to respond. “Well….”

Before mom can answer, a knock sounds on her door. Mom takes a deep breath, composing her face. “I’m going to help you, and we can talk later,” she whispers in a hushed voice.

“What?” I was confused for a moment, then she called out for the person to come in.

My breath catches in my throat as the scent of lavender and honey wafts through the opening door.

“Hadley, my dear,” mom walked towards her, holding her arms open and pulling a surprised looking Hadley into a warm hug, kissing both of her cheeks. “Come in and meet my darling son.”