Brother’s Best Friends Are My Mates novel Chapter 20

Lia

Simone had warned me and she was right. I wished that I had heeded her warnings that day because now I was finding myself between a rock and a hard place. What was I going to do now that these guys, who were best friends all their lives, were fighting with one another?

This was so stressful. The first person I reached out to was Simone. A part of me was tempted to reach out to my brother Michael. I knew he would set those guys straight but I also didn’t want to intrude on his happiness right now. He and his mate were trying to adjust to living together as well as being mates for good now.

I couldn’t imagine when the four became my official mates. Flushing, it was going to be quite the experience but I had to put that out of my mind because it wasn’t going to be happening anytime soon.

With a tired sigh, I grabbed my phone and sent a text to Simone. She didn’t take very long to respond much to my relief. Leave it to Simone to respond to me within seconds. I never had to wait long to hear from her!

You were right about the guys being jealous and possessive. – L

Of course, I was. What happened? – S

Simone, I need your advice. Things are getting… complicated. – L

Uh-oh. What’s going on? Spill. – S

Do you know how Colby, Matt, Rain, and Jesse are all best friends? – L

Yes, your future mates. What about them? – S

They’ve finally started acting territorial. Like, full-on wolves. – L

Yikes. What are they doing? – S

It’s the unimportant thing, but they’re constantly trying to one-up each other now. It’s like a competition for my attention. –

L

Oof. That sounds exhausting. – S

It is. I feel like I’m stuck in the middle, and I don’t want to ruin their friendship. – L

Have you tried talking to them about it? – S

I don’t even know how to start that conversation without making it worse. Any ideas? – L

You need to remind them you’re not a prize to fight over, and they’re on the same team here. Maybe get them all together and lay it out. – S

I just hope they listen… Wolves can be stubborn. – L

True, but if anyone can handle it, it’s you. And if you need backup, just say the word. I’ve got you, and I won’t let anyone hurt my best friend. – S

Thanks, Simone. That means a lot. – L

She was right. I had to remind them that I was not a prize to be fought over! What I was their future mate. Yes, this was a situation that none of us thought we would end up in but it didn’t mean that we couldn’t make the best of it.

I did attempt to talk to them that morning. The first person I spotted was Jesse but then Matt caught wind of it and started growling. Colby took the chance to say something to me, leaning closely and whispering.

“Hey!” Rain snarled. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? Trying to make a move when we’re distracted?”

“I’ll do as I want,” Colby hissed back. “She’s my future mate too.”

This time Rain snarled even louder than before, causing my eyes to widen almost as large as saucers.

The snarl from Rain caught me off guard. He never sounded that angry, almost always having a positive attitude and a smile on his face. I had to take a step back. While I wasn’t scared of him, the tension in the air did make me uncomfortable.

“What?” Colby snapped. “You have a problem with me all of a sudden Rain?”

“Yeah, I do! You’re trying to weasel your way into Lia’s good graces.”

He huffed. “I don’t need to weasel my way into her graces. She loves having me near her.”

I started to say but then Matt and Jesse jumped into the fray.

I sighed, trying to get their attention but no matter what I said they wouldn’t listen. It was beyond frustration.

So, I did what anyone would do in my situation. I turned around and went back upstairs, slamming the door behind me. They didn’t even realize I was gone until about an hour later when they started texting as well as knocking at the door, to see if I was all right.

How I wished my brother were here! Maybe he could talk some sense into them but I had to handle this on my own. As a fully- fledged adult and their future mate, I had to deal with it.

Lia: Okay, you four. Welcome to the group chat A Bonding Experiment. The mission: Bond without tearing each other apart. You’re all amazing in your way, so get to know each other. Play nice. ♦♦

“Hey Lia!” Rain greeted.

Jesse nodded towards me. “Lia.”

Colby and Matt just waved at me. I smiled at all of them, trying not to show attention to one over the other. What if they started arguing or fighting again?

“So have you guys made peace?”

This made Colby sigh.

“I mean, we’re not killing each other so I suppose yes.”

“Then if you haven’t realized your friendship is important we’ll have to start spending time as a group-no we’re a pack,” I told them firmly. “And this is something I want as your future mate so if you care about me you’ll agree to it.”

The looks on their faces were priceless. I once sported that deer in a headlight look but now it wasn’t me. It was their turn to deal with this.

“Yes, that is fair,” Jesse said after a while.

Leave it to Jesse to turn around and be the voice of reason. I almost wished that Rain would say something to lessen the tension but he hadn’t been in a good mood as of late. It was one of the things I liked about him.

Rain hung his head. “Yeah, we should do something like that today after practice.”

“Why don’t I go with you guys to watch you practice?” I suggested unexpectedly.

Sports still weren’t something I was interested in, but these guys were very interested in it. As their future mate, the least I could do was try to go to some of their practice. Sure I went to their games, but going to practice was difference.

“Really?” Colby asked hopefully. “You don’t mind coming? It’s not exactly exciting.”

I smiled faintly. “It’s all right. I’ll take Simone with me if she has time and if not then I’ll find a way to occupy myself.” 2

Let’s just hope the guys would be able to resist fighting on the field. This wouldn’t be good since they were on the same team!