Invisible Mate ( Mate Series Book 1)
Misconceptions

After completing his work, Chris was back at the café to pick Adele. He parked his car just in front of the restaurant and saw Adele sitting with a girl through the restaurant’s glass. As he was about to enter inside, someone calls for him. Chris turns around and sees it was Archer.

" What are you doing here?” Archer asks Chris.

" I came here with my mate,” Chris replies casually.

“Mate? When did you replace your mate? Why didn’t you tell me?” Archer was surprised.

" A month back at the wedding party at Silverlake pack,” says Chris.

Archer recalls that day and realizes Chris had left that party before meeting Archer; now he knows why because he was busy with his mate.

" Then what about your relationship with Liam?” questions Archer.

" You don’t have to worry about that,” spats Chris. Chris never liked anybody meddling into his personal affairs.

“Anyways, what are you doing here?” He asks Archer.

Archer seemed reluctant. ” I-I was looking for someone.”

“Who?” asked Chris.

Archer didn’t want to answer that, so he avoids the question saying, ” That’s not important. First, you tell me where is your mate? I want to meet her.”

“She’s in the café with her friend,” saying that he points towards Adele sitting inside the café.

Archer looks inside and is shocked to see Adele. ” Adele Green? Is she your mate?” He was not at all happy about Adele being Chris’s mate.

" Yes. You know her?” Chris asked, a bit annoyed.

" Who doesn’t know her. She is pretty well known among the werewolves for being the first female head warrior. She has easily defeated a few alpha males without breaking a sweat.” Archer purposely praised Adele in front of Chris, knowing his hatred for women.

Chris was getting even more frustrated now. He gritted his teeth to stop himself from saying something he should not.

Archer sensed his discomfort and said, ” You said you never wanted a mate, then how come you are already on a date with her?”

Chris clenched his fist. He did not feel the need to justify himself to Archer. He simply replies, “That was in the past.”

Archer looks at Adele sitting in the café and recalls the incident when he had last met her. He always wanted to woo her, but now that she was Chris’s mate, it will never be possible.

At that time, Archer notices the girl Adele was talking to and gives a sarcastic smile. ” Ahhh... What if history repeats itself.”

" What do you mean?” Chris asked confused.

" Look at the girl she is sitting with. Do you know who she is?” smirks Archer.

Chris looks at Adele’s friend and shrugs, ” She’s Adele’s friend. So what?”

" Your mate seems to be following your mother’s footsteps. She is already hanging around with a witch,” mocks Archer.

At the mention of a witch, Chris is enraged and grabs hold of Archer’s neck. ” What are you trying to do here? Don’t mess with me, Archer.”

Archer was scared at Chris’s reaction and tried to calm him down. ” I am not doing anything, Chris. You are my friend, and I am worried for you. I know that girl, and she is a witch. I am telling you this because I don’t want you to go through the same pain and agony your father went through.”

Chris loosens his hold over Archer’s neck and signs. ” Adele is not like my mother. ”

Chris’s tone seemed like he is trying to convince himself more than Archer. Archer notices it and smirks. He knew Chris’s weakness and how to use it against him. Chris had trust issues because of his life’s past incidents, and Archer had already planted the seed of doubt in his mind.

Archer gives Chris a concerned look. ” I hope it is true, but I suggest you be careful because Adele is a power-hungry woman. If you don’t trust me, you can ask the other werewolves.”

At that moment, the café door was opened, and Adele walked out. She was surprised to see Archer with Chris.

" What are you doing here?′ she asks Archer.

Archer gives her a wide smile. ” Just chatting with my friend,” he says, pointing towards Chris.

" He is your friend?” Adele asked Chris in a disapproving tone.

Chris just nodded and said, ” Let’s go.” He then went and sat in the car.

Adele followed Chris when Archer whispered in a low tone, ” We will meet soon.”

Adele gave him a disgusted look and sat in the car.

While on their way to the pack, Chris was in a foul mood. He asked Adele, ” Who is she?”

“Who?” Adele seemed confused at first.

“The friend you met at the café.”

“She is just a friend I met at my Martial Arts School,”

“Is she a werewolf?” asked Chris.

Adele was contemplating whether to tell Chris about Sera being a witch. Then she thought about his reaction the last time he heard about a witch and decided to first speak to Sera and then tell anyone else about it.

" No, she is a human,” replies Adele

Chris didn’t reply. He was busy thinking, why would Adele lie to him? His mind was in turmoil. He was constantly getting the flashes of his past, and he couldn’t help but worry about the same things happening again. Once they reached the pack, Chris got out of his car and left to his room without giving Adele a second glance. Adele just sat in the car, wondering what was wrong with Chris.

Chris entered his room and shut the door with a bang. Liam heard the sound and rushed towards Chris’s room and saw him pacing around the room, talking to himself.

" What’s wrong?” Liam asked.

Chris held Liam’s arms and said, ” Adele’s friend is a witch.”

Liam was shocked. ” The friend whom she wanted to meet at the city?”

Chris nods, and Liam says, ” Why will she be friends with a witch? I think you must have been mistaken. ”

" I don’t know, but Archer said he knows that girl is a witch. Why will he lie to me?” questioned Chris.

Liam thought about it. Archer was their friend who had helped them on various occasions, so there was no reason to doubt him. ” Did you ask Adele about it? ”

" I asked her about her friend, and she said she is a human. Why would she lie about that? Do you think she has some ulterior motive?”

Liam knew why Chris’s thoughts went in that direction. Both Chris and Liam had come to accept being with Adele, but her being friends with a witch had surely dent their relationship. Now even if they did not want to, they couldn’t help but think about the what if’s.

" I think we should talk to her about it. Maybe Adele doesn’t know about her friend being a witch? Or she may be a good witch. We cannot just jump to conclusions like this.” Liam tries to reason with Chris.

Chris scoffs. “A good witch? Are you kidding me? Haven’t you heard about all the things witches and wizards have done to our kind? They are werewolves’ greatest enemies. And don’t forget what that evil dark witch did to our family.”

Liam’s blood boiled when he heard about the dark witch but he still felt it would be better to ask Adele directly about it. ” I still feel we should discuss it with Adele first. I don’t think she means any harm to us.”

" How can you be so sure?” asks Chris.

" I-I feel she is not someone who would harm others. She seems so caring and...”

Before Liam could finish, he was interrupted by Chris. ” Did you think my mother was someone who would harm others? Did you ever think your mother would kill her own mate?”

Liam was silent after hearing about his mother. The visuals of that fateful night flashed in front of his eyes. That night, he had witnessed his mother kill his father. Even now, he had nightmares about it.

Chris continued, ” If the person who gave birth to us and fed us can betray us, then how can we trust the person whom we met just a month back?”

Liam was silent for a while as he couldn’t answer that question because he himself was not sure anymore. How much ever they try, the past incidents do not let them live in peace.

After much thought, he asked, “But I still feel what is the harm in just asking her about her witch friend?”

“It’s because she will be on alert. If she is really up to something, she would be more careful and try to hide it from us. If she knows we do not doubt her, it will be easier for us to keep a watch on her.”

Liam still seemed reluctant, so Chris tried again to convince him. ” Please, Liam, we cannot afford to repeat the same mistakes our fathers did. I am just saying we will be careful around her and keep a watch, and if she actually cares for us, then we will know it sooner or later.”

Liam nods, and Chris hugs him tightly. Liam hugs him back but he was sad as he had started to like the bond the three shared with each other. He just hoped things would get better in the days to come.