Chapter 221

Randys POV

I set my phone down on my desk and leaned back in my desk chair, making a mental note to fix the squeak. Inside my stomach, butterflies or some sort of squirmy things wriggled all over. I had a date with the good doctor.

Friday, after Helen’s appointment, I had a very difficult time making myself wait to call Emily, but I forced myself to. I didn’t want to sound desperate, especially if her wolf hadn’t chosen my wolf for a mate. If this were simply an exploratory date, then calling the same night I got her number would just come off as weird.

But despite waiting, I couldn’t help the anticipation that built inside me. In agony, I waited as late into the day on Saturday as I could before finally giving in to the impulse to call. Thankfully, the phone call went smoothly, and she had agreed to meet me for dinner tonight.

Because Emily was Helen’s doctor, and I was Justin’s beta, the last thing I wanted to do was have any awkwardness on our first date. So I’d made the reservations for a steakhouse in a human city not too far away.

We’d still have to drive for about forty-five minutes to get there, but for the privacy, the trip was worth it. Besides, the long drive would give us a chance to get to know one another while we were killing the time on the road.

Inside me, my wolf was also jumping around behind my rib cage, yelping. “We’re getting a mate! We’re getting a mate! We’re getting a mate!” As if he were an overexcited child.

“You have to calm down,” I lectured him.

“But we’re getting a mate!” he repeated yet again.

“We don’t know that,” I contradicted, wondering why I always had to be the practical one.

Whether it was with Justin and Helen, or my own wolf, it seemed like I was always the voice of reason.

“She agreed to go out with you the day after you met her. We’re getting a mate!” he chanted.

I growled. If only there was some way to plug my ears or leave my wolf behind. But unlike with Justin, where I could walk out and shut the door to the room and leave him for a little bit, I couldn’t get rid of my wolf like that. I would have to find a way to try to redirect his attention. But what would kill a few hours?

If I was a girl, I could spend the time before my date worrying about my makeup or taking a shower and spending hours on my hair and my outfit. But I knew exactly what I was going to wear. I’d take a quick shower and my hair and deodorant would hardly took any time at all. After that, I’d be ready to go.

“We should get her a gift,” my wolf announced.

“Since when did you become the romantic?” I asked. “We don’t know anything about her yet. How would we get her a gift?”

“Sweets are always good.”

“She’s a doctor,” I said, shutting down that idea. “She doesn’t want junk food.”

For the first time in quite a while, my wolf sat down, deep in thought. “Flowers might be nice.”

“Once again, we don’t know enough about her. What if she’s allergic?” I pointed out.

He tapped his claws in a rhythmic pattern. “Well,” he thought aloud, “if she’s a doctor get her some doctor stuff.”

I shook my head. “You really are a child. If she needs medical supplies, she’ll buy them for herself. Only she would know what she needs. Trying to guess and getting it wrong would just be weird. We have to do something nice. We have to do something to impress her.”

He suddenly bolted up, bouncing around again like an excited pup, much the way he had been while been singing about getting a mate. Except for this time, he was just breathing hard.

“I know what we need to do,” he exclaimed.

“All right. Enlighten me.”

I had a feeling this was going to be another dumb idea, but when he spoke, he proved me wrong.

“Did you see those little clips in her hair?” he asked. “She likes little hair clips. And underneath her doctor’s coat, her shirt was dark green. You should get her some green clips with sparkles or, like she had in her ears, pearls.”

This advice made me pause. “You’re a lot more observant than I give you credit for.”

He bounced around again excitedly. “That’s because she’s our mate. I see everything about her.”

“You have the energy of an overexcited parrot,” I said. “But that might not be a bad idea. All right. We’ll kill the time and go out and get something for her.”

“Why don’t you ask one of the girls that you’re friends with to show you good shops?” he suggested. “Like Helen or Lisa.”

“Absolutely not,” I snapped.

“They can also give you advice on what’s pretty.”

“They can’t go because I am not giving Helen the pleasure of having meddled in my life and succeeded. And I’m not going to trust Lisa with the secret that I’m going out with Helen’s doctor. Because then she would tell Helen, and Helen would get the satisfaction of having meddled in my love life.”

“What makes you so sure Helen meddled in your love life?” my wolf insisted.

“Why else would she pick that doctor?” I snapped. “It’s obvious. She set Lisa up, and this is a setup for me too. And if you weren’t so freaking excited about Emily, I would never have called her just on principle. But if you’re so damn sure she’s our mate, then I guess I can’t in good conscience let the opportunity slide by.”

“At the very least,” I continued, “I have to ask and see if she feels the same way. I’m crossing my fingers and hoping she doesn’t. That way, you can move on, and I can discreetly find someone without Helen poking her fingers where they don’t belong. But for this shopping trip, absolutely no girls!”

“Oh,” I added. “And we’re not getting Emily a big gift, just a little something to say that we noticed her. A big gift would make her feel awkward, especially if her wolf isn’t feeling pulled towards you.”

“Fair enough,” he said. “As long as we’re getting her something, our mate will be happy, I’m sure.”

I sighed and rubbed my face. This was going to be a long afternoon and night. Thankfully, the best shops weren’t too far from Juden’s mansion. I only had to go a short way to a downtown street that had lots of little boutique shops on it.

These were the kinds of places that had sparkly things and pretty things that girls loved. I’d be able to find something in one of them for her, and the idea of hair clips was a good one. Giving her clips wasn’t as much pressure as giving this poor woman jewelry on our first date. Besides, flowers and chocolates, on top of being possible allergens and junk food for a doctor, were also too cliché.

I wasn’t interested in being the guy who pulled out all the cheesy moves on the first date. Then I shook my head again. Why was I so worried about making a good impression on her? If Emily was actually our mate, then so be it. If not, it wasn’t like I picked her to go out with. This date was all on my wolf and Helen.