Alpha Consumed (The Dixon Brothers 2)

“Jeremy is coming to clean it up,” I say with a nervous shrug.

He looks as stunned as I am. He stands back up to his impressive height and runs his hand through his beard. His hand is full of conditioner and it makes his beard stick out at a funny angle. I giggle.

“I’ve been looking for you for a long time,” he says in a low dominant voice that makes any urge to giggle disappear.

“I’ve been looking for you too,” I say in a timid, not-so-dominant voice. “Are you who I think you are?”

“Your mate.”

I gulp. “Then I think we’re on the same page.”

We stare at each other until the air is crackling with sexual energy. My fingertips are tingling with the need to touch him. He looks like he’s going to sweep me up in his big arms and kiss me.

Just as we’re about to come together, Jeremy comes over with a mop and interrupts everything.

“Whoa! What happened here?” the pimply teenager asks with a braying laugh. “Looks like someone jizzed all over the floor!”

He sees our serious faces and starts to panic. “That was just a joke. Please don’t tell on me! I already got a warning this week.”

My mate walks up to me, ignoring him, and takes my hand. “Let’s go.”

I nod my head as I follow him out and nearly forget to pay. I hurry over to the cash, practically throw my money at her, and then hurry out to the parking lot with my new man.

It can’t be, I tell myself whenever he’s out of my view, but then as soon as I see him again, I know that it is. There’s no doubt. He’s my mate.

“What’s your name?” I ask him when we’re outside, standing beside my brother’s truck. The conditioner bottles are in the back and I suddenly don’t know what to do with my hands.

“Roman Dixon,” he says as he stares at me in awe.

God, that look… He’s looking at me like no one else has before. Like no one else ever will.

“I’m Bailey,” I squeak out. “Bailey Donovan.”

“Do you live here?” he asks as he looks at my mouth.

I lick my lips. “Born and raised.”

“How come I haven’t seen you or smelled you before?”

Smelled me?

It’s a weird thing to say, but then I think back to my brother’s insane ability to smell and hear anything, and it makes sense. Of course, he could recognize his mate’s scent. My scent.

“I’ve been traveling,” I tell him. “Around Europe for almost a year.”

“By yourself?” He doesn’t like that answer. I can tell he’s going to be a protective one.

“Nothing happened,” I quickly tell him. “It was very safe.”

He grumbles as his forehead scrunches up in a frown.

We watch and study each other, but no words come out.

It’s weird to be so close to someone but not know them at all. It sets up an encounter that should be awkward but feels strangely comforting.

I shift my weight from foot to foot. “We could go get coffee? If you want.”

He smiles and I swear it’s like my heart turns into a pretzel. “Coffee would be great.”

We head over to the coffee shop across the street and he slides his hand into mine. My cheeks are on fire as he grips my hand like he’s never going to let it go.

No big deal. Just me and my mate walking hand-in-hand.

My life will never be the same again.

Chapter Three

Roman

Bailey’s sweet lips hit her coffee mug as she takes a sip and my dick throbs harder than ever. I have to peel my eyes away from her sexy mouth just so I can breathe.

She’s incredible. I’m already in love.

My bear is too. I can feel him grumbling softly as I watch her across the booth. There’s only a couple of people in the nice cozy coffee shop—a few students arguing about something over a textbook, a young man completely absorbed in his laptop, a woman with her elderly father, and the workers who are messing around behind the counter.

We have the corner to ourselves. It’s just the two of us.

Me and my mate.

I can’t help but smile at the word. I finally found her. She’s finally here.

I was in the store when a searing pain shot down my throat like I just had a gulp of a molotov cocktail. It burned, but it was a sweet pain. My bear knew what was up immediately. It took me a little while longer to catch on.

But when I realized it was my mate’s scent that I was smelling, it stunned me. Then, I flew into panic mode, frantically searching each aisle until I ran into her.

“Tell me about your trip,” I say as I cup my steaming mug of coffee and watch her.

Her sweet voice starts filling my ears and I’m finding it hard to pay attention as she starts telling me all about the countries she visited. It’s so overwhelming to be here with her.