At the table where Talia, Maya, Mindy, Kalina, Tatiana, and Meg were sitting…

Mindy looked at Talia with a sulky expression. "Now that I know you and Damon are mates, I guess we can forget about beach volleyball with men vs women."

Talia didn't understand from where that comment came. "Why?

"Will you play against Damon?", Mindy responded with a question, and then she turned to Kalina. "And you also. Will you play against Tony?"

"Them being mates doesn't mean they lost their minds.", Tatiana said while rubbing her right temple. Was she getting a headache? "Don't underestimate my sister. And I have a feeling that Talia also has a fighting spirit."

Mindy bobbed her head. "I am not underestimating anyone, but I grew up with a typical Alpha, and I can confirm that Alphas don't like to lose. If they play in opposing teams, one of them will lose and in that case, guys will either sulk because they lost or will be rubbing it in." Probably rubbing it in because Alphas are unmatched in competitions that are about anything physical. "I wanted us to play girls vs boys, but I don't want to cause discord in any relationship."

Talia wanted to say how Tatiana was right, but Mindy had a point also. Unless she teams up with Damon, the next few days will be difficult no matter if Damon lost or won. But then… she wanted to be in a team with Damon.

Tatiana cocked her eyebrow at Mindy. "Why are you talking like that's a guy thing? Do YOU like to lose?"

Mindy paused. Tatiana was right. Mindy hates losing, but this was more about accepting a loss and she knows that Maddox will rather pull his hair out than suffer a loss. At the Summer Solstice festival, Maddox was cool, but when they reached home, he threw a fit because their soccer team didn't reach the finals (and won), and he punished them all with an increased training regime.

But Mindy didn't want to argue with Tatiana on this. In a way, both of them were right and Mindy wanted Tatiana to have a good opinion of her, so she yielded. "I admit. You are right. And that's why the two of us are going to be in a team, Tatiana."

Tatiana's neatly groomed brows came together in a frown. She was not in the mood for chasing a ball. Other than not being the sport-ish type (for a werewolf), she was heavily jet lagging, but she didn't want to complain because it might make her sound weak, and she will never admit weakness.

However, she decided to say, "If we are a team, stop calling me Tatiana. Friends call me Tanya."

"Tanya.", Mindy said with a satisfied smirk. Finally, Tatiana confirmed they are friends! Ah, it took Tatiana one whole breakfast to accept Mindy!

Talia perked up when Tatiana told her that she can call her Tanya also. Ah, another friend!

"I heard that Lina calls you Lia. Can I call you like that?", Tatiana asked.

"Sure. Lina is the one who gave me that nickname.", Talia said cheerfully and then her face dropped. "Are you alright?"

"Oh, my…", Kalina said under her breath while staring at her sister who seemed to be in a daze.

"Oh, my!", Mindy exclaimed when she realized that Maddox was approaching them with an equally dazed expression.

"What's going on?", Talia asked with panic in her voice. Why did Tatiana and Maddox seem to be in some trance? Was something wrong with the food?

"Mates", Maya said breathily, and Meg's eyes were darting from Tatiana to Maddox, resembling someone who was following a ball during a ping-pong match.

It was always exciting to see the moment when mates recognize each other.

Talia's eyes widened and her heart rate increased when she realized what was happening right in front of her. Mates! This was important!

…

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Tatiana turned backward robotically and stood up in slow motion while staring at Maddox who stopped when he was one step away from her.

Everything stilled. Even the birds muted their chirping as Maddox's and Tatiana's eyes regained focus.

Maddox swallowed hard while wondering what happened. One moment he was starving and taking a bite of toast with strawberry jam over there, and now he was standing in front of the most beautiful woman in the world who smelled of strawberries and it was so delicious that saliva pooled into his mouth. And he was not hungry anymore, at least not for food, but he definitely wanted to sample the Goddess in front of him.

Tatiana blinked. How was it possible that there was such a handsome man in the world? And he smelled delicious, like dark coffee. Bittersweet and rich with a promise of a velvety smooth texture and Maddox's sun-kissed tan gave him a tropical feel, like Kona Coffee from Hawaii.

Every cell in Tatiana's body screamed to drink him up.

Maddox stood awkwardly, unsure what to do. His brain was stuttering, and he couldn't come up with anything reasonable. His instincts told him to get closer, but he didn't even know her name. Yeah. A name. That's a good start.

"I am Max."

Maddox's deep voice made Tatiana feel funny in the pit of her stomach. She was never aroused just by the sound of someone's voice. Mates!

Did he say his name is Max? Who cares?

Tatiana grabbed Maddox's collar and yanked him down and his body bent like it was made out of soft clay, for Tatiana to do what she wanted.

Their lips touched first, jolting both of them with fantastic sparks, and Tatiana devoured his lips with urgency. He was delicious, better than she imagined.

A few moments later, Maddox realized what's going on. That enchanting woman was kissing him!

And it was not just kissing, but there were sparks, and she smelled amazing, and her tongue was in his mouth already!

Damn! That's his mate, and she is a spitfire!

Maddox's big arms wrapped around Tatiana and pulled her toward him.

The moment their bodies connected, his tongue caught up with Tatiana's in a seductive dance that consumed them completely.

Neither of them cared that there was an audience around them.

Tatiana was ecstatic that her mate was so impressive.

Maddox's body was firm as he towered above her, and his solid embrace cocooned her with a promise of endless carnal pleasures. His addictive flavor was even better than his scent because it came with spicy afternotes that entered Tatiana's system and ran through her veins, embedding Maddox's existence as part of her.

Her fingers laced into his hair, and she gripped it firmly. Mine!

Maddox was already half-hard and when Tatiana moaned into his mouth, his cock lurched painfully in response. He really wanted to push her on the ground right there and claim her every cavity as his.

Talia was surprised by this development and happy that she got to see it up close. It was her first time to see mates recognizing each other, and it was fantastic!

Talia's eyes moved to the side, and she smiled at the sight of Damon who was standing there and staring stupidly at Maddox and Tatiana, obviously wondering what's going on.

Until a few seconds ago, Damon was talking with Tony, but when he felt Talia's panic, he rushed back thinking that the silly girl got herself into some kind of trouble again. Talia was upset because Tatiana's behavior was odd, but Damon didn't know that, and now that Maddox was making out with Kalina's sister for everyone to see, Damon was totally confused.

Damon saw Talia approaching him and he extended his arm toward Talia while looking at her questionably.

Talia accepted Damon's hand and snuggled in his embrace before whispering, "Mates."

Damon needed a moment to process this.

An evil grin appeared on Damon's handsome face. Maddox, who was making fun of Damon for being a wuss with Talia, was now standing there and kissing Tatiana like there is no tomorrow, and Damon definitely saw that Tatiana kissed Maddox first.

Ha! Damon will have a blast with this. A woman made her first move on Maddox! Who is a wuss now?

Damon felt that Talia's emotions were warm and fuzzy, and his heart cracked.

"What's wrong?", Talia asked softly.

Damon pressed his lips on her forehead and spoke without pulling back, "If I was not an immature idiot, I would hold you like that when we met the first time."

Damon never paid much attention to these scenes, but he knew that when mates meet, their bond is forming and emotions are sizzling, and he regretted that Talia missed it, and it was all his fault.

Talia didn't agree. "If you came onto me like that, I would run for my life, and when you caught me, I would die of anxiety. I was timid and ignorant and…" Unworthy. Was she worthy now? Talia was not sure, but she was working on it.

"You are perfect, kitten", Damon murmured and tightened his hold on her. "I guess both of us came a long way since then."

Talia nodded in agreement with this. In just a few short weeks, Damon transformed from a scary Alpha to someone she relies on, someone who makes her feel safe. He is her home. Her everything.

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Check the picture of Alpha Maddox and Tatiana in the comments.

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