"You're my mate," she whispered, feeling her heart racing out of control.

He turned to her. For a second she thought she saw a flicker of recognition and then it was gone.

He shook his head. "I'm sorry, you must be mistaken." He turned to Aiden. "I'll be in the car." He walked away without looking back.

"But..."--she looked around--"but he is."

The men looked at her dubiously.

"Maybe he just looks like your mate?" Aiden speculated, putting Meryn down.

Amelia shook her head. "It's him. I know it's him."

Aiden looked at the other men. They shrugged, looking unsure of what to say.

Keelan turned to her. "We'll talk to him," he promised.

Meryn stepped forward. "Remember what we talked about in the ice cream shop? We're heading there now. All of Alpha Unit."

All? Amelia was confused for a second, and then it hit her. Meryn was telling her where Darian would be.

"If you could escort me to the city limits, I'll find my way to the bed and breakfast," she said, trying to keep her voice nonchalant.

Aiden nodded looking relieved. "Sure, no problem. I hope you find your mate soon."

"Me, too," she said.

"Aiden, Gamma will wrap up with the authorities here. We'll be along soon." The blond offered.

"Thanks, Ben." Aiden wrapped an arm around Meryn, and they headed toward their cars.

Rheia and Elizabeth nodded at her before walking away with their mates. Though they had just met, she knew the women believed her. Feeling like maybe she wasn't crazy and making the biggest mistake of her life, she jogged to her car to follow her new friends into Lycaonia.

You bet I'll be finding my mate real soon, like, right after I freaking park.

CHAPTER TWO

Amelia followed the SUVs in front of her and replayed her mate's rejection over and over again in her mind. Even if he didn't recognize her, fae could identify their mates by their aura. Was hers broken? Finally, after what seemed like forever, the cars turned onto a side road. She watched as Aiden pulled over and got out of the lead car. He walked back to the main road.

She slowly came to a stop next to him and rolled down her passenger side window.

He pointed forward. "Lycaonia is about ten minutes down this road. You'll have to park at the garage and walk into the city. Did you need someone to show you around?" She was touched at the look of concern on his face.

She shook her head. "That's okay. I can figure it out. Thanks for the escort in."

He smiled wide. "Anytime. If you need anything while you're visiting, here's my cell phone number." He handed her a small piece of paper with a number scrawled almost illegibly on it. "Normally, we have visitors go through the council, but your brothers are my unit leaders in Storm Keep. We take care of our own."

Amelia felt her chest swell with pride. Not every paranormal could be a unit warrior. It took dedication and discipline. The fact that all three of her brothers not only served, but were also unit leaders spoke volumes about her family.

"Thank you. My brothers speak very highly of you." She smiled at him and his cheeks tinted pink.

Adorable!

Aiden cleared his throat. "I never have to worry about the units in Storm Keep; Caiden runs a great program out there."

Amelia had to fight to keep the smile off her face. If the Unit Commander knew of the shenanigans that went on, pretty much on a daily basis, she bet he wouldn't think that. "It was an amazing way to grow up."

Aiden laughed loudly. "I bet." He looked up at the sky. "Well, I better get going. We have a few more hours of daylight left, and I want to join the other units for afternoon drills. Drive safe."

"Thank you, I will." Amelia waved as he walked back to the SUV. She waited until they were moving forward before she started her car. When the two SUVs disappeared around the bend, she backed her car up and turned down the side road. She moved forward slowly in case the Alpha estate was closer than she realized.

After a couple minutes, she saw the road opening up. She pulled her car over to the side as close to the tree line as possible.

"Sure, I'll go to Lycaonia, right after I claim my mate," she muttered to herself. She opened her car door and got out. She reached into the back seat and grabbed her tote bag and eased the door closed, trying to make as little noise as possible. She walked until she could see a large estate house. Next to the house was an open field where men were performing various drill exercises. Smiling to herself, she looked around. When she spotted a tall oak tree, she did a happy dance. She hoisted herself up, climbed as high as the branches allowed, then got comfortable leaning against the large trunk. Praying that the spell didn't blow her up, she whispered an incantation she'd learned from Sederick in the Omicron Unit. Seconds later, she could hear the men's coarse banter clearly.

Even though it was still January, the men were starting to remove jackets and shirts. She had never appreciated shifter's high body temperature more.

"Yum," she sighed happily and reached into her tote bag. She grabbed a small bag of chips and her bottle of diet Mountain Dew, her favorite road trip snacks.

"Okay mate of mine, where are you?" She popped a Dorito in her mouth and watched the door to the Alpha estate carefully.

She was just finishing her snack when the door opened and the men she had met in the street walked out. From the direction of the road, another group of men walked up, the man in front was tall, very built, and had snow-white hair.