I kind of had Jack's words about fate stuck on my mind for the next week. People's words didn't normally put me on edge, but for some reason, his did.

I didn't see Matteo very often, but I wasn't complaining. Well, not out loud. Inside, I was dying not being able to see his annoyingly beautiful face.

He was constantly working with some visiting Alpha. Jack explained to me that this certain Alpha happened to be leading one of the largest packs closest to us. This pack is also located four states away from us, so that gives a pretty good idea of how big Matteo's territory expands.

I honestly have no clue what Matteo and the other Alpha guy have been doing throughout the past week. I don't really pay much attention to them. Jack isn't allowed to tell me anything about it either, so he's a hopeless case. He did tell me the Alpha's name is Noel. I hadn't actually met the dude, though. It's apparently not safe for me considering I'm still classified as a rogue until I accept pack life which has not been happening too easily for me.

The only person I actually carry on conversations with is Jack. Daniella kicked me in the shin the other day, and in response I told her that I hope she drowns in a bath tub. That was about as much conversation Daniella and I had. I don't even really carry on conversations with Matteo. First of all, he's barely around. And when he is around, we just get on each other's nerves. He'll say something, and then I'll make a smart remark which starts an argument. He in turn locks himself in his office, and I rant to Jack about how much I want to punch Matteo in the teeth. I don't know why I go to Jack because all that he ever says is 'the sexual tension is rising'.

Matteo and I still sleep in the same bed together every night, though. A person would think that for two people who can't even handle a normal conversation between one another that we wouldn't be able to share a bed, but we always fall asleep the same way.

Myself on the far left side of the bed and Matteo on the far right.

Somehow, we find our way to one another, though. I always wake up with a death grip on his arm.

We only ever had one conversation while we were laying in bed. It was about the smell of cheese. I was just casually eating cheese when suddenly Matteo ripped it out of my hand and threw it across the room. His reason for doing so is because he doesn't like the smell of it. I just sat there dumbfounded.

So, yeah. Our relationship at the moment is a bit rocky, and neither of us are really doing anything to better it. We literally pick fights over everything. We argued in the kitchen over how to properly wash a potato. I'd never even washed a potato in my entire life, but the way he insisted on doing it seemed pretty stupid.

Everything was just one big argument with us, and the more often it happened, the more it killed me inside. It was a feeling I'd never felt before, and I wasn't sure how to describe it. Not to mention, every time he walked away from me when it was all over I just wanted to kiss him until he stopped breathing.

I think Jack may be right about the sexual tension. Well, for me at least.

"Because I don't want to wear the other one, Matteo!" I shouted at the top of my lungs in the middle of one of the pack house's main lounge areas. The few people who were enjoying the peace of the comfy sitting space had all left as soon as Matteo and I began our daily banter.

"Why would you wear one and not the other? They're a pair!" He shouted back at me.

"Why are you so worried about a stupid sock?"

"Your foot is going to get cold!" Matteo declared. I wasn't positive, but by the look on his face, I think he was being dead serious.

"Good! I want it to be cold! I hope it falls off!" I exclaimed throwing my hands into the air.

Matteo's jaw was clenched and I wasn't sure if it was due to frustration or anger, but I did know one thing. He looked extremely hot. His hand was gripping my white sock (that is technically Daniella's) so hard that the muscles on his arm were literally popping out. If I could freeze time and just stroke the muscles on his arms, I would.

Matteo let out a really throaty sigh showing his obvious annoyance and frustration due to the situation. His dark blue eyes that seemed to be trained on me the entire time looked away.

"I don't have time to do this with you," he grumbled lowly. I glared at his muscular back as he began walking away from me. My teeth clenched together and I scrunched my nose in annoyance like a five year old. I wanted to stomp my foot, too, but I didn't want to seem like a complete five year old.

"Yeah, real mature! Just walk away even though you started it!" I shouted at him causing him to freeze in his spot. I admit, I was being petty, but I didn't want him to leave. As soon as he left, he wouldn't be back until we went to bed. By then, we'd be too annoyed with everything that happened throughout our day that we wouldn't even want to talk to each other.

I didn't really care that whatever Alpha was staying here could no doubt hear us, either.

Matteo slowly turned around to face me. His facial expression seemed calm, but I could see the anger swimming around in his eyes.

"I will see you later," he stated with a freakishly large amount of calmness to his tone, but I could just feel how close he was to losing his shit with me. With that, he left the room leaving me there alone. I hadn't even realized how tense I had been until I was the only person left in the room. My hands were clenched into fists, my body tensed to the max, and my lip was curled up into almost a snarl.

"Ugh!" I grunted out as I brought my foot up and kicked the couch. It swiftly slid across the wooden floor and slammed into the wall.

My chest felt heavy, and I had this weird feeling in my heart that I didn't like. It made me want to cry which is something I rarely ever do. I think the last time I did was when I decided to cartwheel in my cell and ended up smacking my foot.

I plopped down on the couch with my hand on my chest. I was breathing heavily for some unknown reason. I couldn't quite make out whether it was due to my shouting match I just had with Matteo or the fact that I was close to tears.

"What the hell was that noise—oh, hey, are you okay?" Jack asked worriedly, walking into the room. I'm sure I looked like a mess. Mentally, I felt like one, and I didn't even know why. Everything in me just wanted to cry.

"No," I stated feeling slightly panicked by my own emotions and the heaviness of my chest making it hard to inhale. "I feel like I'm about to cry, and I can't breathe, Jack. I can't breathe." Jack immediately went into a panic.

"Okay, okay! Hold on! I'm going to get Matteo, alright?" He rushed out as he began turning around to leave.

"No!" I shouted as my hand shot out to grasp his arm. He turned around to face me, his green eyes finding my blue ones. I could see the worry in them. I wasn't sure if it was worry about me or what Matteo would do to him if I ended up collapsing because I couldn't catch my breath, though. "Please don't get him," I pleaded. Tears brimmed my eyes, and that just made me mad which made me want to cry even more. "Just take me upstairs." Jack sighed in defeat.

"This mate thing is really getting to you, isn't it?" Ignoring his question which he obviously knew the answer to, I held my hands out to him like a little kid.

"Please just take me upstairs." With a sigh, Jack picked me up effortlessly and walked upstairs with me in his arms.

I skipped dinner. I slept straight through it, actually. The only thing that could stop the feeling in my heart making me want to cry was sleep. I think I was just mentally exhausted from arguing with Matteo so much. Our mate bond was really starting to get the best of me.

I was laying in bed flat on my back just staring at the ceiling when Matteo finally walked in. It was about 11:30 pm, so I didn't expect him to even realize I was awake considering there was barely any light coming into the room. My body was submerged under the covers up to my neck which I was pretty thankful for. I was wearing a pair of black Nike pro shorts with one of Matteo's shirts. I wasn't positive if borrowing one of Matteo's shirts would start an argument, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to take that chance. I still wanted to wear his shirt, though. It soothed my nerves which had been progressively getting worse.

Matteo walked into the room and shut the door behind him making as minimal noise as possible. I thought he was just going to go straight to his side of the bed, but he stopped at my side.

"Why are you awake?" He asked quietly, noticing me just staring at the white ceiling.

"Waiting," I stated bluntly. The achiness in my chest started to return as did the want to cry at the sound of Matteo's voice. It was all because of the stupid bond.

I hate this mate bond. I hate it.

"For what?"

"The morning." I could tell he wanted to ask why I was waiting for the morning, but instead he said nothing. He just walked into the bathroom for a shower.

He wasn't in there long before he came back out wearing just a pair of grey sweatpants that hung loosely on his hips. I was still laying in the exact same position I had been when he left for his shower.

"Still waiting?" He asked as he stood over me with his arms crossed over his rippled chest. What I would do to have that body on top of me right now.

"Yep," I said, popping the 'p'. I could just manage to see him raise an eyebrow in a questioning way as his eyes scanned over me.

"That all?" I knew exactly what he meant. He was waiting for a smart remark or a cocky reply.

"Yep." Matteo stood there for a minute just watching my face as if the answers to all of life's questions were going to appear on my forehead.

"Well, then," he mumbled after he realized I wasn't going to egg on another argument. I didn't have it in me tonight.

He made his way over to his side of the bed, pulled the covers down, and climbed in. The bed sank, and as soon as it did, I could feel the body heat generating off of Matteo. I for one was freezing. I hadn't been cold in years, but ever since I had met Matteo a little over a week ago, I always seem to go to bed cold. All I wanted to do was cuddle for warmth. I also wanted to cuddle just so that I could snuggle against Matteo and have him hold me, but that is completely irrelevant.

I craned my head to the side to see the back of Matteo's head. I was also greeted by his muscled back which made me feel a lot of different ways that just a back in general should not make a normal person feel. I snapped my attention back to the ceiling trying very hard to not think about how badly I wanted to run my fingers through his dark brown hair and down his brawny back.

"Matteo," I spoke up, feeling the heavy feeling beginning to appear in my chest, again.

"Kaia," he answered me in a very deep voice as if he were already half asleep.

"You know, it's kind of cold, and I don't have socks on. I'm just sort of—I don't know. I don't really snuggle or whatever, but we're like—yeah. I don't really get to see you, and when we do, we fight and that kind of just—I don't know. It bothers me right in the chest area—well, not like my boobs, but my chest. You feel me? I just—we're mates, and I don't think it would be wrong if we just cling to each other for warmth because it's cold, and I—"

In the midst of my embarrassing babble, Matteo rolled over, hooked his arm around me, and pulled me to his chest. I shut up immediately, loving the way his body fit next to mine. My entire body flooded with warmth, and the heaviness and the achiness in my chest vanished. I felt completely fine. Actually, I felt like a brand new person.

"Good night, Kaia," Matteo mumbled into the hair on the back of my head as he pulled me impossibly closer.

"I missed you today," I said so faintly that I didn't even expect him to be able to hear me.

"I missed you, too."

That was the first night I fell asleep with a smile on my face that wasn't from murdering someone.

_____________________

I literally have nothing to say.

Kaia and Matteo are pretty dysfunctionally cute. I enjoy their bickering, but I have to get the book moving because I gotta start the main plot and that's gonna be a roller coaster and a half to write. So that means a lot more Kaia and Matteo together time and also more Daniella.

Jack is literally always in the chapters so I doubt anyone missed him lmao.

Stay awesome Gotham 3/3/17