The Other Part of Me
Chapter 3

Cassie

"That was a surprisingly delicious meal," Cassie signed the check and put her credit card away. "Did you enjoy it too?"

"The steak was cold; the lettuce was warm, and the coffee was weak." Eva responded. "You have low standards."

Cassie giggled. "That would explain why I'm still single."

"You're single because you sleep with guys too quickly." Eva scolded.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," she feigned offense. "No slut shaming! Get with the times!" Cassie laughed while thinking about all the condoms in her purse and how she couldn't wait to put them to use. "Besides, all of those guys have been wrong for you."

"Ugh! Not the wolf, the birds and the bees talk again!" Cassie plugged her ears with her fingers-not that much good came of that since Eva dominated her internal dialogue.

If Eva felt Cassie's annoyance, she ignored it per the norm. "Moon Goddess has someone tailor-made for you already. You will meet him and when you do, you will know it's him by his scent, by the feelings he awakens in you- the gifts of the mate bond."

"Stop!" Cassie let her weight fall against the booth in dramatic fashion.

The server stopped in her tracks as she had begun to take the empty coffee cup away, "I'm sorry, honey, I thought you said you didn't want more coffee."

Cassie blushed and smiled at the server. "I'm just reminding myself I need to cut back on the stuff. Bad for my blood pressure."

The server gave her an awkward smile. "So, can I-" she motioned towards the cup.

Cassie nodded uncomfortably.

As soon as they were alone again, Cassie stood up. "Besides, I'm better off on my own. You know how afraid I am of passing this freak mutation onto future generations." She looked around the sparsely patroned eatery. Cassie began making her way to the exit when she noticed the smell of peppermint emanating from the cash register area.

A slight deviation is necessary.

"You have to trust me, Cassie. You are not the only one of your kind." Eva continued.

Cassie patted her gut, "The only thing I'm trusting you to do is to work off all the calories I consumed tonight." After grabbing a plastic-wrapped starlight mint, she turned to the door.

As she approached it, she nearly collided with a soaking wet male in a black t-shirt that molded to every muscle of his form.

She was instantly stricken by a heady scent that made her want to do naughty things to this stranger. She smiled absent-mindedly as she felt comfort in his presence. Although he was an inch away and clearly soaked to the bone, Cassie felt his warmth envelope her.

She moved her nose closer to him and took a whiff. "Mmmm," she moaned as she confirmed he was the source of the intoxicating scent. Cassie looked up at intense cobalt blue eyes which seemed to penetrate every molecule in her body with a gentle caress. "Your cologne, is that lemon grass and... rainfall?" No sooner the last word left her mouth, Cassie gasped and focused her widened eyes on him. "Oh, fuck," she whispered.

Feeling as if Earth had rotated out of its axis at rapid speed, Cassie took a few wobbly steps back. "No, no, no," she shook her head, tears brimmed her eyes. "I'm dreaming, this can't be real, it's all in my head."

"We're mated," she heard his deep, masculine voice say. She felt his breath wrap around her like a warm blanket covering her body.

The drumming in her ears began light but it quickly escalated and was now as loud and thunderous as the earlier thunderclap. Her vision began to darken from the outside, in. She was going into shock. Her strength waned and unable to sustain herself by her own will, she felt gravity pull her body towards the floor, face first.

The darkness encroached her vision more and more and she felt herself getting closer to the sticky, checkered floor.

Before the darkness completely claimed her, she felt an electric jolt resurrect her consciousness. Strong hands were gripping her awkwardly by her shoulders.

"Miss, a glass of ice water, please," she heard the same deep voice yell out. Not having the energy to keep her eyes open, Cassie felt herself bumped, pushed, and pulled against the nearest booth. She tried to adjust herself on the bench, but she could not.

She was deadweight.

"You're okay," the voice kept talking softly into her ear. "You're going to be fine," it said tenderly. "I'm with you."

"Who are you?" she mustered.

"My name is Braden Hunter."

A sense of peace she had never felt overtook her as soon as she heard his name. She didn't know how she felt it, but she knew she belonged here, in his arms. He was her home. She breathed him in while her face was against his wet, rock-hard chest.

Mate.

The word repeated itself within her mind.

Mate.

"Mate?" Cassie questioned as she slowly pulled her face away from his wet t-shirt.

She looked up to see his cobalt blue eyes gazing into her bright-green ones with a look of concern.

They sat there for a moment just staring at each other.

Time stood still.

Cassie wanted to laugh and cry and run away all at the same time. She was overwhelmed with... what? She couldn't recognize if it was questions, emotions, or all of the above.

The clink of a water glass being placed before her broke the spell. The server stood by them with her cell phone in hand. "Miss, do you need an ambulance?"

Cassie shook her head. "I'm fine," she said quickly, wanting to be alone with this man again. She looked back at Braden. "Are you going to order anything?" He shook his head.

Cassie looked at the server. "Thank you for everything."

The server slipped her phone in her apron's front pocket and she walked away.

"Are you sure you don't need medical attention?" Braden asked her.

She straightened her posture slowly. "What I need is for you to answer the millions of questions I have going through my mind."

He nodded. "Do you want to talk here or..." he let the words linger.

She slowly slid her way out of the U-shaped booth and carefully stood up. "I'm staying nearby." She secured her purse strap on her shoulder. "Do you have a car here?" She looked through the diner's glass walls. There were only three cars sitting in the lot and one of them was her Jeep.

She felt him move next to her. "It's down the road, at a gas station."

"Broken down?" She asked while turning to him. Her breath caught as she noticed for the first time just how close to perfection he was. A face that looked as though it was chiseled by Michelangelo himself. Hair as black as the sins she wanted to commit with him right then and there, and muscular arms that could probably easily carry her off into the sunset when she wasn't practically lifeless.

He shook his head. "I was filling up for a long drive home," he explained, "but then I sensed you near."

Cassie stared at his thick, kissable lips. She needed them- no, she recognized she needed all of him so much, it hurt. "I have so many questions." She whispered softly.

He nodded. "As do I."