Chapter 5

Caden

We need to bite and claim her, my wolf says as we get ready for our date.

Not tonight. We need to get her used to us. She knows about shifters now, but she still needs time to get used to all of this.

Fine. We bite her at the end of the date.

No, no biting today at all. She barely trusts us. You saw her with us yesterday. She barely left the market with us.

He growls and starts to pace inside of me. I ignore him as I tie my shoes and head for the door. It's close to six, and I'm supposed to be meeting Astrid at the steakhouse in town in fifteen minutes. I had offered to pick her up, but she turned me down.

My wolf picks up the pace as I head out to my bike and climb on. I head towards town, trying to take the backroads to the steakhouse. I don't want anything to go wrong tonight, and I have a feeling that if the Midnight Rebels spot me before I get to my date, they'll try to start something.

We can't be late,my wolf says, and I roll my eyes.

I know. We won't be, I promise him.

I pull into the steakhouse parking lot and drive around to the side. I try to park out of the way, hoping that no one will notice my Harley parked in the back. I scan the parking lot as I head for the front door, but I don't see any sign of my mate.

She could be inside, waiting for us. We should have got here earlier,my wolf admonishes me.

We're ten minutes early already,I point out.

I head inside, looking around for Astrid, but she's not here yet.

"For one?" The hostess asks, and I shake my head.

"Two, but my date isn't here yet."

"I can seat you," she offers.

"I'll wait."

She nods and goes back to checking in the next couple. I step to the side and look out the front door.

What if she doesn't show up?My wolf asks me.

She will.

An older car pulls into the lot, and my wolf and I perk up. When Astrid steps out, we both smile, and I head out to greet her.

"You look gorgeous," I tell her when I get to her side.

She does too. Her pale blonde hair is hanging in soft waves around her face and shoulders, and she's wearing a pretty navy blue sundress that ends just above her knees. My wolf licks his lips as we eye her bare legs, and I try to rein him in.

She wants us. I can smell it,he growls, and I grit my teeth.

I know. I can smell it too. She's not ready for that, though, and I'm not scaring her off.

I push my wolf to the back of my mind as I hold out my hand to Astrid.

"Worried that I won't be able to make it across the street by myself?" She asks me sarcastically, and I grin.

"Nah, I just like touching you."

She seems surprised by my honesty, and I grin, squeezing her hand as I lead her over to the restaurant.

"For two?" The hostess asks when I walk back inside.

"Yes."

Astrid looks around, and I watch her as the hostess gathers our menus.

"Have you been here before?" I ask as we head over to our table.

"No, I thought it was always for special occasions, and I never really had many of them."

I frown, and my wolf snarls in my head.

"What about your birthdays? Your graduations?" I ask as I pull out her chair.

"No, I never really had any money to go," she admits, looking down at the linen tablecloth.

I take my seat and vow then and there to spoil the shit out of my mate from this day forward.

"What about you? Do you bring all of your dates here?" She asks, obviously trying to change the subject.

"I don't date," I tell her.

She looks skeptical, and I lean closer to her across the table.

"Shifter, remember?" I ask, lowering my voice.

"Ah. Right."

"We don't ever really date. Not until we find our fated mate."

"So, what happens now?" She asks, and I lean back.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you've found me. So, now what?"

"Well, if you were a shifter too, we would have already marked each other and fucked each other's brains out."

Her eyes widen and she clears her throat.

"But because I'm not?" She asks hoarsely.

"Now, I have to woo you and try to show you that we're meant to be so that I can mark you, and then we can fuck each other's brains out."

She stares at me wide-eyed, and I grin at her. The waiter comes over then, breaking the spell between us and I lean all of the way back in my chair.

"Can I get you two started with something to drink?" He asks.

"Water," Astrid blurts, and I smirk.

"Water for me too," I order.

He nods and heads off, leaving me and Astrid alone.

"What did you do today?" I ask my mate.

"Work."

"What do you do?"

"I'm a junior marketing exec for a company called Clutch Marketing. They're a pretty big company with offices all over, but a lot of us get to work from home. I'm one of them."

"And what does a junior marketing exec do all day?" I ask her.

"Well, I spent all day today working on a new client's file. So, it was a long phone call where we discussed what they were looking for help with and expectations."

"Sounds cool."

"I like it. It's fun trying to come up with ways to help companies grow. I like being creative," she says with a small smile.

The waiter comes back with our waters, and I hurry to pick up my menu and find something to order. Astrid does the same thing, and I wait until she looks up before I motion for her to order first. We both get the sirloin, medium, with a house salad and baked potato.

"I'll have that out for you shortly," the waiter says as he turns to leave.

"What about you?" She asks me once he's gone. "What did you do today?"

"Club stuff. I had a meeting with Jude and then went home and did some work."

"What do you do?"

"Believe it or not, I'm actually damn good at investments. I have a small company that I run where I invest for other military and ex-military members."

"Is this all a way for you to try to get my money?" She asks, and I grin.

"Nope. You're not military, though, I would make an exception for you, of course."

"Uh-huh," she says, eyeing me suspiciously.

"I would, or hell, we'll be married soon, so what's mine will be yours."

"We're not getting married," she rushes to say, and I smile.

"Not tonight."

She looks like she wants to argue, but the waiter comes back with our salads. He sets the plates down and Astrid and I dig in.

"What about your family?" I ask, and her head snaps up.

"What about them?"

"Are you an only child? Are your parents still together? Are they still living in town?" I ask, rattling off questions.

I want to know everything about my mate. I also think that if she opens up to me, maybe that will mean she trusts me too.

"Yes, unfortunately, and yes."

"Why, unfortunately?"

"Because they hate each other. I don't know why they didn't just get a divorce years ago."

"I'm sorry."

She nods, pushing some lettuce around on her plate.

"It sucked," she whispers. "Growing up like that. I was always walking on eggshells, always checking to see what kind of mood they were in. The summers were the worst. I had nowhere to go until I was older, and being stuck in that house was like torture," she admits.

She looks up at me and blinks, looking shocked that she had just admitted all of that to me.

"I'm sorry, Astrid. At least you got away from them."

"For a bit," she says, "but now that college is over, I'm back there with them."

"Move out," I encourage her, and she gives me a sad smile.

"I wish I could, but college was expensive, and between student loans and other bills, I can't afford it."

"You can move in with me," I offer, and she looks tempted for a moment before it fades.

The waiter comes back with our food, and I change the subject.

"I grew up in the south. I was happy to get away from the heat… until I was deployed and realized that I might have been sent somewhere even hotter," I joke, and she laughs.

"Where were you stationed?" She asks as we each cut into our steaks.

"Virginia, mostly."

"Did you like it?"

"At first. Training, pushing myself to the brink, I liked that. I like a challenge," I say and she gives me a look that has me grinning.

"What did you not like?"

"Watching my friends get hurt or die."

She freezes and her eyes soften.

"That had to be… shit, Caden. I'm so sorry."

I nod, and we eat in silence for a bit.

This is really romantic. Good job,my wolf snaps at me, and I clear my throat.

"What do you have planned for the rest of this week?" I ask her as we finish up our food.

"Just more work."

"So, you'll have time to go out with me again then?" I ask, and she bites back a smile.

"I guess."

"Good."

We share a small smile, and when the waiter comes back over, I ask for the check.

Then, I start to plan our second date.