Page 29 of Mate Matched: Xavier & Brady
Thewaymymouthdropped open when Xavi took the empty seat at my birthday dinner! Stunned was not the word. Why did he have to look so good after weeks without seeing him? All the words I thought I’d say when face to face with him once again all dried up. I must have looked ridiculous with my mouth gaping open! In one short visit he’d undone a month’s worth of progress.
If anyone noticed how tangled up my words became around him, they were kind enough not to mention it. Being confronted in such a public way with the man you dumped and then ignored for over a month was a lot to deal with. I didn’t really need commentary from my family, especially my brothers.
Xavier’s gift was incredibly expensive and thoughtful. Who would have thought that an off-hand comment made monthsago would have led to such a special birthday gift? It wasn’t even a big birthday either. I had only turned twenty-eight!
A painting! I couldn’t believe he’d contacted the artist for me instead of himself. He could have replaced the painting he’d lost, which was something I’d thought of for his birthday, but it was well out of my price range. Dad had some connections for the Scotch I’d gotten for Xavier, otherwise I would never have been able to afford something so lavish.
He didn’t hang around long after he announced he’d signed up for Mate Match too. Why would he? It left such an impression on us all that it was all we talked about until our main course came!
“Did you seriously break up with that alpha?” my sister, Wendy, whispered, leaning in close. “He’s hot.”
“Yeah, but he’s only recently divorced with an ex who just didn’t want to get the hint. Besides, he wants kids, and that…”
Mom let out a groan, complete with rolled eyes. “Are you seriously paying attention to that recessive garbage? The only way it might cause issues is if you were both recessive and had other medical issues.” Dad wrapped an arm around him with a nod.
“We’ve gone through two heats unsuccessfully—”
Dad laughed. “Only two?” He shook his head. “Two. Wow,” he deadpanned. “We didn’t plan on a nearly five-year gap between you and your brothers. They are the result of intervention. I forget the name of it, but it promoted ovulation and boosted pheromone production. Effective as hell.”
Mom chuckled. “Yeah, they just forgot to mention that a common side effect is multiple pregnancies.”
I shared a look with my siblings. None of us had known this before. “Okay, still, his ex…”
“Is a problem,” Dad agreed. “Did you tell Xavi what he said to you? His ex is his problem, not yours. Gio loses all leverage against you once you tell Xavier.”
“I told him the other day.”
“After you broke up with him. Are you sure you can’t fix things?” Mom asked.
I thought back to how Xavier had looked when he joined us. His affable smile, the thoughtful gift, his insistence that he wasn’t giving up on us. “Maybe we can, but I think having some space is good for us. If it’s meant to be, then he’ll turn up in my matches, won’t he?”
The conversation swiftly switched focus when Noah said, “So you’re on Mate Match too? We’ve met someone. Can’t wait to introduce you to them.”
“Wait! Both of you are dating the same person?” Across from me, they nodded. Oh, the tea the twins were serving was piping hot!
My first match came the day after my profile went live. The alpha had a decent, if not a little boring, office job doing something with insurance. He was only two years older than me and was a dominant alpha who believed his dominance would make up for anything I lacked. Charming, though likely a fact.
Our date was at a mid-priced restaurant in a busy area of the city. Nothing fancy and something similar to where Curtis had taken Jae on their first date. My hopes weren’t as high as to expect to meet my perfect match since Conrad only scored somewhere in the high seventies. I needed to figure out how this matching thing worked.
Everything started off fine enough. Conrad was decent to look at. He appeared to be someone who took care of his appearance, and we matched with our love of the gym.
“What do you bench?”
Immediate ick. Never, and I mean never, had that conversation led anywhere good. It gave me the impression that my build intimidated Conrad, or Con, as he preferred to be called.
“Two hundred.”
Con gave a cough. My eyes narrowed when it sounded like “bullshit.”
I didn’t ask him what he did because I’d lost all interest in the man. Being dismissed because of my secondary gender was not uncommon. It just wasn’t something I expected to come across on my date.
The conversation lulled while I sipped my wine. I wished I’d gone for something stronger. My phone beeped. I apologized before reading the text.
Xavi
Date going well? Send a sign if you need to be rescued.
Was it going that badly I needed Xavier to step in? There was no way I was admitting defeat so early. Instead, I tried to move the conversation along. “Do you play any sports?”
