Chapter 17 Ch 17

"What's the matter, Lee?" Matt pressed, leaning closer to me over the laminate table.

He had somehow managed to talk me into going out with him. It was Friday, after all, and this had been the wildest week of my life. I had lost my mate and then mated with him. My mind could hardly process all the emotion.

"Sorry," I said while shaking my head.

"Don't apologize. I want to know why you seem so distracted. Something's up."

"It's just—" A sigh pushed out of my lungs. "I didn't tell Tandan I was coming. He's going to be livid, probably."

He and I hadn't had any more sexual encounters since the incident in the break room on Wednesday, and I had been wondering why that was. Part of me was afraid he regretted it. We'd hardly even seen each other at work since then, both busy with clients. I had been too exhausted to wait around for him by the end of the day. So here I was, at a new bar with Matt, sipping on a rum and coke.

"Tandan?" my companion clarified. "Like Tandan the douche bag who wanted to fight me at your apartment?"

I reluctantly nodded.

"Why would he be livid? You guys aren't official or anything." At my hesitance, he groaned. "God, Lee, what did you do?"

"It's complicated, Matt. Can we just leave it at that? Please?" I really didn't feel like trying to explain that I slept with Tandan, who also happened to be my boss, but that we weren't really a thing. In fact, I didn't know what the hell we were.

"Fine," he complied annoyedly, "but if that douche comes storming in here to throw fists with me, I'm putting him on his ass."

I somehow managed to chuckle before saying, "As amusing as that would be, I would rather you let me handle such a scenario."

"Nu-uh." He shook his head. "I've seen how you handle him, and I don't really feel like going through that again. Unless it ends with us snuggling in bed. Then maybe I'm okay with it."

"Right." I chuckled nervously and rolled my eyes. Though I knew I needed to start drawing boundaries with him, I couldn't bring myself to do it. I was terrified of crushing him. "So," I said instead, "how about we find you a date tonight, Mattie?"

"Me?" He pretended to be appalled. "Why do I need to find a date when I already have you?"

"Because I'm your best friend, not your next conquest."

After blowing out a dramatic sigh, Matt finally nodded. "I guess you're right. But why can't it just be you and me?"

"Because I'm way too boring for you, Mattie. You deserve better company," I said while framing a smile onto my lips.

"Oh, whatever," he pouted.

Laughing, I pointed to the bar and jerked my head. "Blondes, brunettes, or redheads? Which is your preference?"

"I've been with 'em all, darling. I don't have a preference."

"Men." I rolled my eyes. "Boobs or butt?"

"Boobs. Definitely boobs."

Sighing, I scanned the bar scene. Lots of big-breasted women. I wasn't one of them, which normally would have been unfortunate but I was glad I didn't fit Matt's criteria.

"How about the brunette at the end of the bar?" I asked, nodding half-heartedly in her direction.

"Can't see her face from here," he muttered with an eye roll. "Got a nice back."

"Well, why don't you go buy her a drink so you can see her face?"

He stuck his tongue out at me. "Don't tell me what to do, little missy."

"Well, sometimes people need a little push in the right direction." I grinned at him. "And sometimes a little push in the wrong direction. I can be a bad influence on occasion."

"I might not have believed that until you told me you shacked up with Captain Douchebag."

My eyes widened, shocked. That was certainly not what I had anticipated him to say. I looked down at my run and coke with a deflated sigh.

"It doesn't make sense to you, I know," I admitted. "He's a schmuck, yet I'm still . . . hung up on him."

If only hung up even remotely covered it.

"You're right." He threw the rest of his beer down his throat and set the empty pint glass on the table. Looking up at me through those denim blue eyes, he said, "Girls never go for the ones who deserve them."

"Matt—" I started as he stood up from the table.

"I'm gonna get another beer," he muttered, not looking at me.

Sinking back into the seat, I sighed. Matt was pissed. It was my fault, of course. He had been nothing but sweet to me since we'd met, made out to be excellent boyfriend material, but I was stuck with another guy for reasons beyond his knowing. I wanted to tell him. Desperately. He was the only true friend I had in this town, and I couldn't lose him. Not when relations with my mate were so strenuous.

I watched Matt amble up to the bar and lean against it next to the brunette we'd been talking about. Though he didn't immediately give her notice, her head instantly whipped to the side to glance at him. They introduced themselves—I had tuned into my sensitive wolf hearing to sort through all the bar raucous—and Matt offered her a beautiful smile. I took a long draw from my drink and closed my eyes.

When I opened them, someone was sitting across from me. And it wasn't Matt. I gasped.

"How'd you find me?" I demanded, rendered helpless at the sight of my mate.

His dark eyes blazed like simmering campfire embers. "I tracked your scent from your apartment. What are you doing here anyway? I smell that thing here."

"Thing?" I demanded. "You mean, my friend Matt? Just when I start to think we can reconcile with one another, you have to start being an asshole again."

Even though I had expected him to react poorly about this if he found out, I was still angry he had the nerve to track me down and then insult my best friend.

"You shouldn't have any male friends," Tandan growled quietly, folding his burly arms over his chest.

"And you shouldn't tell me what to do."

"If we are going to try to make this work and act like real mates, you need to understand that there can be no other males in the picture. I won't allow it, Lee."

"Damn you," I hissed under my breath. "Matt has been here for me, even when you weren't. I'm not cutting him out of my life just because you're getting all jealous."

"This is more than being jealous. Your friend is a—"

"Look what the cat dragged in." Matt slowly approached to the table, full beer in hand, and a twisted scowl on his face. "The dickhead who made my girl cry. I should break your pretty little nose."

Tandan's nostrils flared as he leapt up from the booth. My heart squeezed in panic. Scrambling to my feet, I jumped between them and placed a hand on each chest. What a nightmare! What do I do?

"There will be no breaking anything," I said firmly, looking back and forth between them. "Tandan, I am spending time with my best friend. You can't just barge in like this. And Matt, you're looking way too drunk for starting your second beer. I should take you home."

Snorting, Matt rolled his eyes. "God, Lee. You sound like a mother. I'm perfectly content to get myself wasted. At least being drunk numbs me."

"You said you were never going to drink again, and now you want to get wasted?"

"Yeah. I do."

"Such a child," muttered Tandan while he rolled his eyes.

"Shut up!" I hissed. What was he even still doing here?

"You go on without me," Matt said. "I'll find someone else to drive me home."

Something inside me flared at his words. "Matt, please . . . just let me take you," I insisted.

"No. Don't worry 'bout it, missy. I'm a big boy. I can take care of myself."

"But I'm your friend. I might not be a very good one, but I want to make sure you—"

"You were trying to hook me up with someone tonight anyway," he reminded me, words already slightly slurred. "So what? Now I will just chat up that lady from earlier. She was real sweet on me."

Groaning, I rubbed my face. Tandan touched my shoulder and pressed close to my back.

"Leave him," he told me. "He wants to stay. We need to talk, anyway."

I studied Matt, who was giving me a savage look of annoyance, for a moment longer before deciding. "Fine. You better text me in the morning so I know you're still alive, Matthew Deloach."

He tried to narrow his eyes on me but was too inebriated for that much muscle control. "I'll think about it. If I'm not still shagging somebody in bed . . ."

With that, he turned and headed back to the bar. My guts were contorted in painful ways in worry for him. I couldn't help but want to keep him safe. Especially because he was drunk. Tandan wrapped an arm around my waist and lowered his mouth to my ear.

"Have you paid already or do we need to close out?" he asked.

"I haven't paid yet," I answered, still watching after Matt.

My hand was engulfed by Tandan's large one as he led me to a waitress at a computer. I started fishing out my wallet while he talked to her. By the time she said it would be about fifteen dollars for my drinks and Matt's two beers, Tandan had already given the waitress some cash. I shot him a glare.

"I was going to pay," I complained.

"It's the least I can do for disturbing your evening," he replied, though there was a hint of sarcasm or something in his voice. He didn't really mean that.

Still, it was nice of him to pay for our drinks. Matt would likely throw a fit about it later, but I couldn't do anything about that now. Tandan led me out of the hot, loud bar. We headed to his sports car since Matt and I had taxied here. Neither of us had planned on leaving with a low enough blood alcohol content to drive. I probably would've been fine, but I didn't want Matt to get suspicious.

"Where are we going?" I asked, sliding into the passenger seat of Tandan's car.

"You'll see." His face brightened in a smile and for once, I felt a little bit of hope.