“My Queen, we thought you should be made aware.”

Amanda, Micah and I met the Fae Queen, Queen Aisling, at the gates of her realm, meeting in person for the first time in who knows how long. Fairy royalty do not leave their realms themselves unless it is of the utmost importance. They dare not risk the mistakes of their past that led to the predicament we are currently in. If things go well, we will need her permission. Hadley will need her blessing so we don’t cause problems with the fae.

“I have been made aware. You are sure she is of nobility?”

“I was friends with her mother. We grew up together. She was a direct descendant of the north,” Micah informs her.

Queen Aisling is as regal as they say, her silvered hair descending down to her h**s, woven with intricate vines and budding roses. Her skin had a glittering sheen cast over it, illuminated by her deep, violet eyes.

Her age is unknown, but she looks ageless, like she is made from plastic with her poreless and wrinkle-free golden skin. She is clad in a thin, sheer golden tunic, outlining her slender frame. She looks like a vision from a dream or an angel. Even I, a middle-aged woman, find her obscenely attractive.

“She will be granted our protection, of course, as a favor to my brother.”

“Thank you, my queen,” Micah said as the three of us bowed to her.

Her court knights, much more medieval than the fairy knights we are used to seeing, are clad in armor made from tree bark. All 6 of them surround their queen, ensuring her safety. It’s a bit excessive if you ask me, considering the queen’s magic is enough to protect herself and the entire kingdom she reigns over. But no one asked me, so I kept my thoughts to myself.

“With your blessing, we will take our leave. We have a lot to do to ensure her safety ourselves. Thank you again, Queen Aisling, for your abundant grace and sympathy.”

“Go in peace,” the queen inclines her head, then turns, retreating back into her realm, her knights following her one by one.

Mark POV

I don’t know what was up with my parents earlier, but it was very discouraging. Why would they tell me to stay away from my mate? It doesn’t make sense. How could being around her hurt her?

I thought Hadley was just a random hire, but it seems my mom had ulterior motives for hiring and bringing her here. What circumstances brought her to Miami? I need to know.

The past two days, I’ve been coming in and out of the resort at all times of the day, walking through the offices searching for her. She must have had the last two days off. There had been no sign of her, and when I asked Ralph earlier where she went when I was looking for mom, he told me she must have gone home for the day with a smirk..

The flowers I left for her were sitting on his desk too.

I don’t know how to get her attention or how to get in her favor. Why the hell did I have to go and hit on that front desk chick right in front of her? I f****d up, but I want nothing more than to make her see I’m not really like that. Well, not anymore anyway.

Mitch isn’t even around. I went to find him after leaving my parents’ hours ago and he’s nowhere in the resort. Even his phone is going to voicemail. Maybe he’s at the bar we like to frequent? It is night now.

I haven’t even had a chance to tell him about finding my mate yet. I’ve been hesitant to, thinking it may bum him out, but maybe he can help me since mom and dad didn’t. I know they said to stay away from her, but the wolf in me is driving me to find her and claim her before someone else can.

She’s gorgeous. Literally the prettiest woman in the entire world. If I don’t claim her, someone else will try. I don’t want anyone else getting close to my mate. I don’t want anyone else even flirting with her, looking at her, or having a thought about her.

I don’t have to get close to her now, but if I know where she’s at, I can keep watch over her, making sure pests stay away.

My phone starts vibrating in my pocket. I pulled it out to see that Matt was calling me.

“Hey bro,” I answered.

“Hey! How did the flowers go?”Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.

I huff in defeat, “Not well. She gave them to Ralph.”

Matt laughs at me, “She didn’t throw them away though. There’s that.”

“The card wasn’t there anymore either. She kept that.”

“See! That’s a positive. What did the card say?”

I told him and Matt burst out laughing, my usual confidence taking a big hit.

“What the f**k, man? That’s the cringiest s**t I’ve ever heard,” Matt tells me, then I hear Lilly in the background telling him to watch his mouth. Matt mutters a “Sorry babe,” and quiets down his laughter. Usually I would make fun of my brother for being p***y whipped, but right now I’m jealous. I want to be p***y whipped too. My mate has a fire inside her. I want to be the one to temper that fire, or let it consume me with her.

“Sorry, man. She just got the kids to sleep. So what are you doing now?”

“Looking for our a*****e brother. He’s been M.I.A for the last few days.”

“He was in training 2 days ago. I didn’t get much chance to talk with him either though. He was talking to Carlos mostly, then they left together and went to see Vincent. Trevor was bitching about it the next day because they hung out all day without him. He might be busy with work for the vampires. Maybe try the bar. You know he likes heading there after he gets off.”

“Walking there now,” I said. I did blow him off the other night when I found my mate. Going to the bar filled with other girls when none of them could compare to the girl that just kneed me in the face didn’t sound fun at all. I’m done with that now. Mitch seems dependent on me when he is trying to have a good time and going out with him could have ruined my chances with my mate.

As I reached the bar, I caught the faint scent of lavender and honey. I looked around excitedly, thinking I might have accidentally bumped into her, but I didn’t see her anywhere on the busy street.

Matt is talking away in my ear, but I’m only half paying attention while looking around for my mate. The scent gets stronger the closer I get to the restaurant side of the bar. The place has a bar on one side and a restaurant on the other, and the restaurant is packed. The patio is filled with people laughing and drinking while eating their food.

Vincent owns this place, and it’s amazing. Maybe I’ll take my mate here soon, if I ever get a f*****g chance to talk to her to ask her out.

The scent is unbelievably strong now, making my whole body vibrate with the need to claim her. Where the f**k is she?

My eyes roam the patio, and then I see her, looking beautiful and elegant, and to my surprise, she is sitting right by Simone, bent over laughing at something while gripping Simone’s hand. Her voice is as wonderful as I remember, and her laugh brings forth this longing I’ve never felt before. All the others around her are invisible to me because all I can focus on is her.

Until she leans away from Simone, whispering something into another man’s ear.

Mitch.

She is talking and giggling with my brother.

He laughs at whatever she said, and she rests her head on his shoulder, laughing with him, his hand grazing down her back to steady her as she does.

“You two are so cute together,” Simone tells them, settling into Vincent’s side as he agrees.

Hadley blushed furiously, and didn’t deny it. She’s embarrassed, then turns her face to look up at a beaming Mitch.

Even Trevor and Carlos are there, agreeing that my brother and mate would make an amazing couple.

A growl tears through my chest, making the humans around startle, then hurry away from me in fear.

“Mark, what’s wrong?” Matt’s voice desperately asked me through the phone.

“I’m going to f*****g kill him,” I sneered.

“Who?”

“YOUR BROTHER!” I’m having a hard time controlling my murderous rage in front of so many humans.

“He’s your brother too. What the f**k is going on?”

“Your brother is stealing my f*****g mate.”

“Oh, shit.” I hear shuffling at the other end of the line, keys jiggling as he calls out to Lilly that he needs to go, “I’ll be right there.”