Mate (Bride, #2)

by Ali Hazelwood

“They say she’s your mate.”

OOP.TEA

“You’re the most beautiful woman that I’ve ever seen,” he says simply.

“I meant what I said, killer. This mate thing is about fucking. The part of me that matters isn’t interested in you. Like me, or don’t,” he says kindly. “I really couldn’t care less.”

right.right.

“I will take care of you,” he says roughly.

OPE. GIGGLES AND KICKS FEET.

“The many things that are wrong with you.”

CLOCKEDDDDD

“I haven’t been able to shift in months.”

UH OH.

Look at her. Just—look at her.

AHHHHHHH

Because every single thing I glanced at, grazed, examined, eyed, or even considered when we were at the grocery store, every single thing I decided to walk past, every single thing I told myself I didn’t need—every single thing has somehow made it here, inside Koen’s house.

I SHED A TEAR BECAUSE THAT IS A MAN IN LOVE

let this be known: fuck with my mate, and I’m going to kill you so slowly, draw it out so long, tectonic plates will move and create whole new mountain ranges. And when the rest of your family comes to avenge you, I’ll do the same to them.

IF I WERE HER ID SAY PARTYS OVER AND TAKE IT TO THE BEDROOM

He bends further, and there isn’t a single trace of doubt on his face. He’s an immovable object and an unstoppable force. And he says, slowly, “If you think I’m going to let you die, Serena, you know fuck all.”

AND THATS ON PERIOD.

He easily resigned himself to a lifetime without her, but… Simply put, he is unwilling to contemplate a universe in which she no longer exists.

“How perfect you are. I spent the last twenty years hoping that if there was a mate for me out there, I’d never come across them. And then I found you, and, Serena…there isn’t one thing I would change about you. Or one single thing I regret about knowing you.”

STOP

What if my soul is, too. What if the idea of doing any of this with someone who isn’t him makes my stomach turn and my heart shrivel?

After, I make tea. He makes me add several spoonfuls of sugar, and we drink it on the back porch, sitting on the steps, long after the sun has set. From the same mug. His lips touch the same water molecules as mine.

ILL CRY SMALL MOMENTS OF INTIMACY ARE THE BEST

“It’s…fast.” Like a drum. A rhythmic nudge against my skin. “Must be the tea.” “It was herbal. No caffeine.”

THIS IS SO FUNNY

How long have you known that you killed her mother?”

OH NO.