Invisible Mate ( Mate Series Book 1)
Insecurities

" You have got competition,” Archer said with a smirk.

" What do you mean?” asked Chris.

" I thought you were Liam’s only love, but that’s no longer the case,” said Archer. He observed the change in Chris’s expression and aggravated him even more. ” He seems to be taken by his mate. It’s true nobody can fight the pull of a mate bond.”

“No,” said Chris, a bit offended. ” Liam was just concerned about Adele.”

" Are you trying to convince me or yourself?” asked Archer.

Chris clenched his fist in anger, and Archer continued, ” You look jealous.”

" I am not jealous, ” Chris said calmly, trying to control his anger.

" I can understand your jealousy, but I’ am confused about something.”

" What?” asked Chris.

" Are you jealous for your lover or your mate?” mocked Archer.

" Are you looking for a beating?” spat Chris.

Right then, Chris saw Liam argue with a guest. He rushed towards Liam, who was speaking to someone, ” Why have you come now? You never showed up for the past 15 years.”

" I couldn’t stop myself when I heard about you being a father. ”

Chris interrupted them. ” Why are you here, Alpha Smith?”

" Chris, my boy! You have grown so tall! ” Alpha Smith replied with enthusiasm.

" Stop with your fake concern and tell your purpose of coming here, ” Liam asked, annoyed.

" Don’t talk to me like that. I am an Alpha and your mother’s brother. Show some respect,” sneered Alpha Smith.

" You got to be the Alpha only because your actual Alpha and Luna died unexpectedly, and I am surprised you still remember you had a sister,” says Liam without any emotion.

" I couldn’t face you, Liam. After I heard what Lea and Clara did, I didn’t know how to react,” Alpha Smith said calmly, trying to convince Liam.

Chris scoffed. ” Why don’t you accept you were scared to face my father.”

“N-No... It’s not...” Alpha Smith tried to explain but was stopped by Liam. ” Don’t bring up the past and tell me why are you here now?”

Alpha Smith realized he had to come out clean. ” I need your help,” he said, looking from Liam to Chris.

" What help?” asked Liam.

" Can you train my son?”

" Why can’t you do it yourself?” sneered Chris.

" I tried to train him, but he is still not able to cope up. He is a spoilt brat who does not listen to me at all,” Alpha Smith said, frustrated at his son. He then held Liam’s hand and pleaded, ” Please, Liam, he is your little brother. Can’t you help him for once?”

" O-Okay, ask him to come to Blackwood pack next week,” said Liam thinking about his little cousin, whom he had met 15 years ago when he visited his mother’s old pack.

“No,” Alpha Smith said instantly. Liam and Chris stared at him confused when he said, ” I-I mean, can’t you come and train him at our pack?”

“No, he won’t,” Chris replied before Liam.

" Why not?”

" Your son is the one who needs the training, then ask him to come here,” said Chris.

Alpha Smith knew it was not easy to convince Chris, so he pestered Liam. ” My son is an introvert. He would be discouraged seeing the ability of your fighters here. It’s just a matter of a few days; I am begging you, Liam.”

Chris wanted to refuse, but Liam stopped him and said, ” I will think about it.”

In the meantime, Archer replaces Adele alone and goes towards her. ” Are you happy now?”

" Of course I am, and why do you ask?” asked Adele.

" I always care about you, Adele. I know your mates don’t treat you the way they should,” said Archer trying to look concerned, but Adele felt disgusted.

" How my mates treat me is none of your concern,” Adele said, offended, but Archer was not the one to stop so easily.

" You are the strongest female werewolf I have ever seen. You are destined for more than this. Don’t you think you deserve better?”

Adele’s relation with her mates was not so great, but that didn’t mean she would allow a third person to interfere and try to influence her against it. She immediately felt something was fishy with Archer. She scrunched her eyebrows and retorted, ” What are you trying to do? What’s your motive?”

Archer was a bit taken aback at Adele’s question. He looked flustered, and Adele was even more convinced that Archer had an ulterior motive.

" You are misunderstanding...” Archer tried to assure Adele.

" Then why do you look so tensed?” Adele asked.

Archer had no idea how to respond. Luckily, he saw one of his friends and said, “M-My friend is calling for me,” and ran away while Adele thought about his strange behavior.

The next day, Adele was getting ready to meet Sera. Despite her suspicions, she needed to meet with Sera personally to confirm if she was Sybil’s daughter.

Adele contemplated informing her mates about her meeting with Sera. If they knew she was a witch, they would indeed not allow her to go. Finally, she asks Maria to take care of her kids and tells her she is going to the city for a while.

Adele reaches the cafe and waits for Sera for a long time, but she never shows up. Adele even tried to call Sera on the phone, but it was switched off.

Meanwhile, Sera cautiously leaves her home to meet Adele but is attacked by a few men. She tries to fight them but ultimately is knocked out when one of them hits her on the head.

When Sera came back to her senses, she was tied up to a chair. She observed her surroundings, and the room looked like it was in an old building. After a few minutes, her room door is opened, and a man enters inside.

Sera didn’t look surprised and screamed at the top of her voice, ” Why did you get me here? Where’s my Mom?”

" Your Mom is safe.”

" I want to see her right now,” Sera demanded.

" You are not in a position to make demands here. You can meet your mother after our job is done.”

" She told you everything she knew about the moonstone. What more can we do? Why can’t you leave us alone?” yelled Sera.

" You and your mother will be our guest until Samara is free from the moonstone, and don’t raise your voice at me; I know what you were trying to do.”

“W-What do you know?”

" If we hadn’t caught you, you would have told your dear friend about our plans, right?”

Sera looked at him in shock, wondering how he got to know about her talk with Adele. ” H-How did you...?”

" We have our eyes everywhere, especially the Blackwood pack, and you thought your friend could help you rescue your mother?” the man gave an evil smile to Sera and left the room, locking the door behind him.

At the Blackwood pack, Liam noticed that Adele was not at home. Maria informed him that she had gone to the city alone, and Liam got worried for Adele.

Chris saw Liam pacing around his room and asked him, ” What happened? What’s bothering you?”

" Adele went to the city alone. She left two hours back and has still not returned,” Liam said with concern.

" Why are you so worked up? Adele is not a kid; she can take care of herself,” Chris said, annoyed at Liam’s behavior.

" I know she can take care of herself, but we cannot ignore the recent attacks. What if the rogues attack her again?” saying this, Liam tries to call Adele again, but her phone is not reachable.

Chris observes Liam and recalls Archer’s words. ” Why are you so concerned about Adele?”

Liam was confused by that question. ” Didn’t you hear what I said just now? What if she gets attacked?”

" Is it only that or something else?” asked Chris.

" What are you trying to say? Can you be more specific?”

" I just want to know...” Chris started saying but stopped when Liam suddenly got out of the room. Chris followed Liam and saw him running towards Adele.

Liam held Adele’s arms and asked, ” Where were you? Are you all right?”

Adele was surprised and stuttered, ” I-I went to the city.”

" Why didn’t you tell me? I could have taken you to the city. Why did you go alone?”

" You were busy with work, and I didn’t want to disturb you.”

" You are not a disturbance. Don’t you know about the situation right now? What if someone attacked you? Do you know how worried I was?” Liam said, exasperated.

Adele couldn’t help but feel elated. Liam looked genuinely concerned for her. ” Were you worried for me?” she asked in surprise.

" Of course! Why wouldn’t I?”

" I am sorry. I will let you know the next time I want to go somewhere,” Adele replied with a smile. Even though she could take care of herself, she didn’t want to miss an opportunity to be with her mate.

" Make sure you do,” said Liam and sighed in relief while Chris saw them together and felt strange. He was not necessarily angry, but he was not happy either. This feeling was something new, and he didn’t know how to deal with it.