Chapter 16: Her Mate

**Amina**

"Benji!"

"Dude!"

"What?" Benjamin yelled at his sister and the man named Ryan, his back now completely turned from me. "Am I being unfair, huh? Unreasonable? Maybe I should remind you both we're under attack, so yeah, I don't have time to be dealing with any of this."

"That's your mate, man," Ryan said, slowly shaking his head while Roxanne took my hand in hers.

"I know that. She doesn't." Benjamin responded, bitterly emphasizing every word, and I could feel my heart sink.

Such a shame. 

I spent years thinking I had grown tougher, yet here I was, still as weak and vulnerable as the first day I met Micheal. Nothing had changed. And tonight, my tears and the lump forming in my stomach at Benjamin's stark contempt and indifference were proof of it. 

Why did it hurt me so much? He was still a stranger. I shouldn't have cared about what he thought of me, but I did. I cared about Benjamin and his feelings as if I had my entire life. I couldn't explain it. It was as though something in me, something deep within my soul, called out to him as it had with no other before. From the moment I saw him in the square, my need for him was relentless and overwhelming, and knowing that he felt something completely different was heart-wrenching.

"Attack?" I whispered to Roxanne, ignoring my pain and focusing on the threat of danger brought up by Benjamin. "What does he mean?" I asked.

"You don't have to worry about that," Benjamin answered dryly in her stead. "Just go with Roxy, okay? Go home."

"I was going home, but you stopped me. So let me leave," I said as his jaw muscles clenched and twitched.  

"No," he replied. 

"Why?"

"Because I need you," he answered through his teeth, then cleared his throat at my surprised face. "Look, I know this is all new and scary to you, but you have to trust us… or at least trust Roxy. She won't let anything happen to you," he sighed, taking a few hesitant steps in my direction. "And I can't let anything happen to you. Do you understand that?" he asked.

I didn't say anything, unsure if I understood or even believed him, but I didn't flinch this time around when Benjamin's hand suddenly reached for my face. His fingers brushed my cheek, and it took all of me to suppress my moans and fight off the overpowering urge to touch him back. My skin was set ablaze by his, and almost immediately, I was on the brink of collapse. I clung tighter to Roxanne's hands and held my breath, lest his warm, earthy scent tipped me over, and I couldn't have been more grateful when my friend suddenly spoke up and forced Benjamin back.

"We're gonna go," she said, pulling me closer to her. "Are you okay with that, Mina?"

"I- I think so," I managed to say, my gaze never leaving Benjamin's.

His eyes were narrowed, and his lips were pursed from anger and puzzlement, but his expression softened at my words. "Okay," he said lowly before turning to his truck and calling for Ryan to follow him.

"Welcome back, Roxy," the blond winked and smiled at my friend as he walked backward to meet Benjamin. 

Within minutes, Roxanne and I were left alone on the deserted road; then, silently, we climbed into the white sedan I essentially stole. 

"How did you know this was my car?" she said out of nowhere, smiling as she drove us back to her house.

"I didn't. I just… I picked one at random."

"Ha! Out of the other ten?" she chuckled. "You can't tell me we weren't meant to be friends."

"Right," I smiled back. 

Roxanne's parents were already at home when we arrived and had prepared a little snack for us in the kitchen. They knew that neither their daughter nor I had eaten anything for hours and watched with amusement as we scarfed up, plate after plate, the tiny sandwiches laid out.

"Maybe I should make some more," Grace laughed, pouring herself a second cup of tea. "Do you girls want more?"

"No, I'm okay," I answered, wiping crumbs off my lips. "Thank you, Grace."

"Yeah, thanks, mom," Roxanne added before all three Millers suddenly fell silent and stared at me.

"What?" I asked, concerned. "Is there a problem?"

"No, honey, no problem," Grace said softly.

"We were just wondering if you had any questions for us," Carson added. "It's not every day you're told werewolves exist, and we thought you may need some more information."

"Oh, umm, right," I let out, scratching my head. "I have questions, but I… I just don't know if I'm ready for all the answers, you know?" 

"Understandable," Carson smiled. "Take your time, and whenever you are ready, you can-"

"Benji?" I unexpectedly said, shocking even myself. 

"What about Benji?" Grace asked. 

"I'm his… umm…."

"Mate, honey, yes. And he's yours."

"Mate?" 

"As in soulmates," Roxanne chimed in, chewing her last piece of food. 

"Not quite, but yes," Carson retorted. "Every werewolf, male or female, has only one true mate in the universe. They and their wolf recognize each other's souls as the extended version of themselves. Like the other half of the puzzle, if you will, and as such, mates can relate to each other and can feel almost everything the other does. It's why we're so protective of our person. For example, if they were to hurt, we would suffer too."

It sounded way too good to be true, and I couldn't help but be a little skeptical of the whole thing. But even through all my doubts, a small part of me still understood what Carson was explaining. I was drawn to Benjamin, there were no two ways about it, and the more I saw of him, the greater his pull on me became.

"You said werewolf," I mumbled back. "I'm a human."

"Honey, it doesn't matter," Grace reached her hand out to mine. "A werewolf's mate can be anyone, even a human. Benjamin's your mate, and I, for one, couldn't be happier about it."

"I second that," Carson winked.

"And you already know how I feel about you, babe," Roxanne smiled. 

"What do I do now? What am I supposed t-"

"Nothing!" Grace stopped me. "You don't have to do anything, Mina. You just take your time, give yourself a chance to figure it all out."

"But will he be okay with that?" I asked her, remembering Benjamin's earlier words, and neither she nor the other two Millers could give me an answer.

Instead, they just stared at each other, almost as if sharing a wordless conversation, then suddenly all looked up at the kitchen doorway.

Benjamin was standing there.

His eyes bore into mine, and instantly, my body betrayed me for the second time tonight. My heart raced a million miles per hour and stupid butterflies stirred inside my stomach. I was a total mess, like each time I saw him. 

"I didn't mean to interrupt. I just wanted to make sure everything's okay," Benjamin said in his low, hoarse voice.

"Everything is okay, son," Carson replied. 

"Good," he sighed, finally pulling his gaze from me. "I'm too tired to drive back home now," he spoke to his parents. "Would you mind if I stayed the night?"

"We'll prepare a guest room."

"It's alright, mom. I'd rather sleep in the living room if that’s okay with you guys." 

"No problem, honey, we'll make the couch up for you then," Grace said, then left with Carson right behind. 

Following their exit, the air in the kitchen quickly became more uncomfortable as Benjamin remained by the door, mute and motionless. On the other hand, Roxanne glanced back and forth between the both of us, seemingly enjoying the situation's awkwardness, and when I couldn't take any more of it, I got up and excused myself. 

Benjamin's lips parted to say something in turn, but I ran out of the room before he could even utter a single word.