Craved Mate: Cybermates, Ayers, Candace [the rosie project .txt] 📗

reminded me it wasn’t him. There was no way it could be Mac.

As soon as the song ended, I turned to Pierce and motioned for him to sing. The father-daughter dance was next, and he could handle singing their song choice without a problem. I needed a break. Pierce didn’t look concerned, which was weird for him. Instead, he just smiled and nodded.

Stepping off the stage and out of the ballroom, I made my way outside and sucked in fresh air. Hands on my hips, I bent over and tried to slow my breathing. How crazy—panting, practically having a panic attack, all because I imagined for a moment I saw Mac.

What did I even think was going to happen? My hopeful brain was foolishly imagining a scenario where Mac showed up at a random wedding because he came for me. Like that would ever happen.

The door opened behind me and I straightened up. I didn’t want anyone else to know how much of a wreck I was. With my back turned to the door, the hair on the back of my neck stood straight up and a warm sensation washed down my spine.

“Hello, Mel.”

Oh no. My blood sugar. I was hallucinating. Although I didn’t feel lightheaded or dizzy. No nausea…

I jerked around and there he was. Mac. The man who’d stolen every conscious thought I’d had for the last couple of weeks. I’d gone through this moment a thousand times in my head. Lying in bed at night, I’d planned whole conversations of what I would say if he showed up. None of them came to mind now that it was finally happening. I was tongue-tied.

Mac’s eyes moved over my face and down my body. They settled somewhere in the middle and he frowned. “You’ve lost weight.”

I hugged my middle, shrinking into myself.

“You’re still incredibly beautiful.”

“Why are you here?”

He stepped closer and tried to touch me, but I stepped back. With a sigh, he rubbed his hand over his head. His hair had grown a little longer and looked more unkempt than it had been. “There are a few things I need to say to you.”

I steeled myself. “I’m listening.”

“There’s something very important—can we go somewhere and talk?”

“Um…we can talk here, can’t we?”

He grunted. “Fine.”

I crossed my arms over my chest and backed up a few steps. I was fighting my body’s instinct to throw myself into his arms and beg him to give us another chance.

“I miss you. I think you miss me too, and if so, I owe you an apology and an explanation.”

My heart leaped into my throat. He stared down at me with such intensity. Under his gaze, I felt like chocolate melting in the hot sun. “What are you talking about?”

“You know what I am. Well, there’s something that comes with being a shifter.” He looked uncomfortable. “We have mates. Like…soulmates. One person on the face of this planet meant solely for us. It’s a very special bond, one that grows stronger with time. Many shifters look forward to finding their mates, even go looking for them. It’s finding your best friend and the person you’re most sexually attracted to all in one. There’s an instant connection that can’t be denied. No matter what. No matter if the other person already has a boyfriend, or if they’re only there on vacation and leaving to go home in just a few days.”

My pulse raced. “What exactly are you saying?”

“Sometimes, one of the mates makes a mistake and doesn’t think things through.”

I frowned.

“You’re my mate, Melody. I knew the moment I saw you in that tree that you were mine.” He came closer.

I held up a hand. I was having trouble processing what he was saying. “I don’t understand. If we’re…what you say we are—”

“Mates.”

“Mates. Why would you abandon me at the hospital? And again after I almost drowned?”

He ran a hand through his hair and blew out a harsh breath. “I was scared.”

“Of what?”

“You’re human, Mel. Fragile. Compared to humans, shifters are tough. Our cells regenerate and adapt at an alarming rate. Shifters don’t get human illnesses or diseases. Physically, we’re ten times as strong. If we’re injured, we heal quickly.” He cleared his throat. “My sister, Heather, her mate is human. They’re the reason I moved to Sunkissed Key—to help take care of him. Her human mate is fighting cancer. He’s been in chemo for a while and he’s…sick.”

I felt a lump forming in my throat and shook my head. “I’m so sorry.”

“Mates don’t function well without each other, especially if they’ve been together for a long time. Heather is suffering too. The sicker Warren gets, the more she hurts.” Mac looked away and blew out a rough breath. “I was scared that if anything happened to you, that I wouldn’t be okay.”

I nodded. “And I ended up in the hospital and then I almost drowned.”

“Mel, I knew the moment I laid eyes on you that you were mine. I screwed up and I have no right to ask, but I’m hoping you’ll at least give me a chance to prove to you that I want you. I promise you that if you just give me a chance, I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to you and trying to be the man you deserve. At the risk of sounding cliché… You complete me.”

I couldn’t believe this was happening. Tears filled my eyes. My voice broke. “At the risk of sounding cliché, you had me at hello.”

24

Mac

Mel returned to the stage.

Every time she sang, she looked through the crowd, spotted me, and her eyes lit up. She sang as though she was singing right to me. I was one lucky sonofabitch.

As I stood near the edge of the large festive wedding reception, I decided I wanted to marry Mel in a big wedding. Shifters didn’t normally have wedding ceremonies, but humans did. I’d discuss it with Mel, of course, but if she wanted a ceremony like this,