“What if it doesn’t?” he repeated.
“Then that’s my answer, isn’t it? I won’t try to date anyone else from the app. Only him. I won’t tell you who he is, so you can’t be accused of manipulating it.” I swear I heard a sigh of relief. “If I don’t get matched with my omega, then I will withdraw from the app.”
“You swear it?”
“Yeah.”
“Xavier? Can I call you Xavier?”
“You can? What’s your name?”
“I’m Brent, the co-founder of this app with my mate, Julian.”
“Nice to meet you, Brent.”
“You too, Xavier. I hope this works out for you. Send support a message if you get matched with him, won’t you? We love a good love story here.”
***
By the time I got to the restaurant, the rest of the party was seated, looking at the extra chair apprehensively. “Who else is coming?” I heard Brady ask as I approached.
“Hey, sorry for keeping you. Traffic was a nightmare.”
There wasn’t a spare chair next to Brady, so I sat next to his brothers and who I assumed was his alpha father, Arturo.
“Xavi! What’re you doing here?” Brady’s face had paled considerably over the last almost five weeks since I’d last seen him, like he’d lost something vital. He looked tired.
“It’s your birthday, of course I wouldn’t miss it.” Across from me, next to Brady, I saw his omega parent, Evan, smile. I remembered he preferred to be called Mom. Would I ever get the chance to call him my mom-in-law? The others appeared to be waiting for a signal from Brady. Otherwise, they were happy to listen in on our conversation.
Brady stuttered, the first time I’d ever heard him be so unnerved. “I assumed—”
“Well, you know what they say when you assume,” I joked. “Happy birthday, Brady.” I rose and handed the gift bag over to him.
He took the bag with an automatic “thank you.”
“Go on,” I urged, retaking my seat. “Open it.” The others watched us curiously but didn’t intervene.
His finger trembled around the box I’d wedged into the bag. He pulled the top off and let out a gasp when the contents were revealed. “No!”
“What is it?” His sister leaned closer to get a look. Her eyes widened. “Is that?”
There was a softening in Brady’s expression. Less angry tiger, more scared kitten. “Xavi, this must have cost a fortune! When did you buy this?”
“I know the artist, so they struck a deal. Remember when you said you liked that piece I had to give up?” He nodded. Gio had demanded that he get my favorite landscape from that collection. “You were more upset than I was. That’s when I knew I had to get this for you.”
“That was six months ago!”
I shrugged. “I knew you’d still be in my life.”
He softened further, then seemed to remember everything. His eyes hardened. “Xavi…” he leaned forward to hiss. “How dare you come here on my birthday and give me such a thoughtful gift?” A laugh caught in my throat. “I’m not changing my mind. I meant it when I said we were over. There’s no future for us.”
The others at the table all stiffened. I had to play this part carefully.
“That’s where you’re wrong, Brady. I’m going to fight for you. I am fighting for you. See?” I held out my phone, my profile on the Mate Match app up on the screen. Brady took one look at the display, disbelief written all over his pretty face. “I am going to be your perfect Mate Match.”
Twelve
Brady
