A Royal's Love (Unit Matched #1) (6 page)

“You can’t ask me that ever again.” I pointed my finger right in his face. “You don’t understand anything, do you?” my voice rising another octave. “I’ve waited twenty years for my Matched to kiss me, and then I end up with you.” His eyes went wide.

“Xaviera,” he started but I cut him off.

“No. You haven’t even held my hand or made any attempt to touch me, which is fine because we’re going slowly, but you can’t just bet me to kiss you.” I crossed my arms trying to protect myself. My first kiss wasn’t going to be because I beat him in a race.

“I apologize. I mean that, I truly do. I wasn’t thinking correctly. I was,” he paused. “I was trying to be funny. I didn’t mean to insult you in any way.”

I hugged myself tighter. “Your apology is accepted, but I want to go home. Right now, Thaddeus,” I ordered.

“Of course.”

We walked in silence back to my house. “You don’t need to walk me in.” I rushed up the stairs before he could say anything.

I went to the kitchen, grabbed a bottle of water and chugged it as fast as I could.

“I guess that was a successful run,” Mom’s voice scared me, and I almost spit out my water.

“Something like that,” I mumbled. Mom was at the kitchen table with papers spread out all around her. I know that I shouldn’t bother her, but she was the only person that might understand what I’m really going through. “Mom?”

“Yes?” She looked up to me.

“May I ask you a question? One Matched girl to another, not a mother to a daughter.”

“Of course, what is it?” She looked a little concerned.

“When did your
Matched
kiss you?” I know my voice was quiet almost a whisper.

“Did Thaddeus kiss you?” She gasped with excitement on her face.

“No.” I shook my head.

“Oh well.” I heard the hint of disappointment in her voice. “My
Matched
kissed me on our first date. Why are you asking?”

I took a deep breath and told her what happened on the trail.

“Well, my dear, you have to remember a few things. One, this is his first kiss too. Two, I’m sure he’s nervous. And three, boys of that age don’t always think clearly. You both are very young. It will happen, just let it.” Her smile gleamed at me. “But could you promise me something?”

I nodded.

“If Thaddeus and you become more serious, please use protection. I know that you’re Matched, but you’re still young and have plenty of time to have children later.” Mom smiled.

I was blushing at the conversation, but I understood what she meant.

“Thanks, Mom.” I headed up to my room and hoped that I would be able to sleep tonight with all that’s running through my head.

Chapter 7

Amaya’s Twentieth Birthday

Thaddeus and I hadn’t seen each other since the night we went jogging. He was very busy with work and the school work was piling up for me.

The few text messages that we exchanged were mainly him saying that he was sorry, again. Of course I told him that I was sorry for shouting at him. Mom was right it would have been his first kiss too. Needless to say, it was a moment I would never forget in my life.

I straightened my hair and finished my makeup. Amaya’s party was going to start soon. Gia and I asked several times if she wanted us to come over and help her get ready, but she said that her mom and sister were going to help her.

“Xaviera, it’s time to go,” my dad shouted up the stairs.

I zipped up the back of my brown gladiator sandals. I checked the mirror making sure my white sun dress wasn’t above my knees, and then I put my lightweight brown leather jacket on.

I headed to the car where my parents were waiting and Dad drove us to the park. It was already filled with people.

The Roberts’ were extremely popular in Unit. They were the family that trained all the other Protectors’ in fighting.

When I got out of the car, I found Amaya. “Do you know anything yet?”

“Nope.” She looked nervous. Amaya had on a long dark blue maxi dress with a light white jacket. She paired it with white sandals.

“I’m sure you will find out soon.” I gave her a quick hug.

“I have to go mingle.” She walked over to a small crowd that showed up.

I glanced around the crowd to see if Gia was here, but I didn’t see her. My parents’ were talking to a group of people, and I wasn’t in the mood to be around a lot of people. I walked to the side furthest from the party. I found a lone picnic table and sat there gazing out to the lake. It’s the end of July, and it isn’t as hot as it should.

I thought about Thaddeus while I was sitting there. He wasn’t sure if he was going to make it to the party today because of work. I understood that. He really wanted to lead this account. I admired that about him, and that he was trying to reach for his goal. I did feel bad that we hadn’t communicated a lot lately.

I thought about leaving Unit at the end of the decision period. Where would I go? To the city? Maybe I would go to New York? What if Thaddeus and I actually became closer, and we didn’t leave, then what? Would I want that? What about my parents? I know that Mom said she would let me go, but I saw her face that day at the Edwards’ kitchen table. The hurt and pain of possibly losing me was all over it.

I have been more conflicted about everything, especially since July is almost over. It brings me one step closer to graduating and the end of my decision period.

“A pretty Matched girl like you shouldn’t be sitting alone.” Thaddeus’ voice washed over me. I twisted slightly and saw him staring down at me.

“My Matched said he wasn’t coming.”

“He wanted me to deliver a message to you.” He sat down next to me. He was so close that I could smell his cologne. It smelled like the ocean. He was in khaki cargo pants and a dark green polo. I’ve grown accustomed to his black boots and wonder if those are his only pair of shoes.

“What’s the message?” I bite down on my lip holding back my smile.

“That he’s still very sorry, and he would like to take you out tonight?” He handed me a single daisy.

My Matched gave me a flower. “Don’t you have work to do?”

“It can wait a few hours.” His small smirk that made my heart flutter appeared.

“I would love to.” I stared at the daisy in my hand.

“When I walked up you were thinking pretty hard. What were you thinking about?”

“Everything,” I told him truthfully.

He nodded remaining quiet. We sat there together looking out at the world in front of us, peaceful and calm, as the party behind us grew louder. It felt like an oxymoron of my life. There was quiet in my life, but the chaos of Unit was still there within ear shot.

“Have you made a decision?”

I almost didn’t hear him, it was so low. “No. You?”

He shook his head.

“Xaviera.” Mom came up to me interrupting us. “Hello, Thaddeus.” She smiled.

“Hello, Your Majesty.” He stood when she spoke to him. Like a true Unit gentlemen.

“Come on, both of you, it’s time to eat.” Mom waved us over to the tables upon tables of food.

We walked up to the tables going down the line of food and then went back to the table we were originally at. I sat next to Thaddeus, and he said that he would get us something to drink. Amaya and Gia appeared next to me and they sat down.

“Okay, I get how nervous you were,” Amaya said looking flushed.

“Told ya.” I giggled. “You know anything yet.”

“My mom let it slip that he was here, but I don’t know who it is.” She took a huge gulp from a bottle of water.

“Amaya, should we start planning our décor for our house?” Graham teased as he and Oliver sat down across from us.

“Not now.” She put her head in her hands.

Thaddeus came back, and frowned seeing that our table filled up and handed me a bottle of water.

“I think our first night together should be somewhere remote, like a huge log cabin in Canada or Vegas,” Graham chuckled.

“Enough,” Thaddeus warned him.

“Oh, I’m kidding. Besides I already know who my Matched is.” He shoved food into his mouth.

“Yea, your right hand,” Amaya quipped at him causing the whole table to begin coughing and choking on our food and drinks. She got up from the table leaving us all stunned. Although, I shouldn’t be that surprised by her comment or anything she says.

Once we all caught our breaths, Gia scooted closer to me. “Graham, do you know your Matched?” she looked at him with wide eyes.

“I can read my mother like a book. If I was being Matched today she would be overjoyed.” He pointed over to his parents a couple of tables over. Graham had his mom’s coal black hair and tall frame. She looked calm, content while eating. “See, cool as a cucumber. So, it’s not me.”

Gia looked at me, and I patted her hand. “September will be here soon.”

Throughout the lunch, the guys talked about some sports team. While Gia and I talked about shoes that we had seen at the mall.

We cleaned up our mess, and I mingled with a few people. Of course, Mrs. Edwards was overly excited to see Thaddeus was right by my side, and how close we were.

My dad yelled for our attention and we all turn to look at him. My dad was always the one to announce the Matched pair. He called for Amaya to come forward. She walked over with her head high.

“Citizens of Unit, I’m proud to announce the Amaya Roberts will be Matched with Oliver Thomas.”

Gia and I both gasped and put our hands over our mouths. I shook my head in disbelief. Amaya was going to be a challenge for Oliver. I watch as he made his way to Dad and Amaya. Her face was red, and I knew that she was mad. I prayed that she doesn’t punch him in front of everyone.

“You’re going to have to calm her before she strangles him,” I told Gia.

She nods, and I see the sadness on her face. I knew that she wanted Oliver to be her Matched.

“It’ll be okay.” I reassured her.

“Everyone,” Dad hollered for our attention again. He stands between Amaya and Oliver. “
Occurret vobis pares conjunctio amoris in perpetuum
.”

It was done. They are now Matched.

The crowd begins to gather around them, offering their congratulations and best wishes.

“Come on.” Thaddeus headed that way, and we followed him.

I gave Amaya a quick hug, and I felt how tense she was. I think I even saw tears in her eyes.

“Well, you’re Matched.” I smiled brightly at her, but she narrowed her eyes at me.

“I’m not in the mood, Xaviera.”

I nodded, knowing that she was upset at everyone right now, and left her alone.

After several minutes, Thaddeus asked if I was ready to go, and I agreed. I told my parents I was going with Thaddeus.

When we got in his car, we headed out of Unit as we always did. I assumed that we were going to the city, but he went the opposite way. He was heading to the New York state line. Not that this was uncommon for Unit residents. Unit sat close to Canada and New York, so going over the line wasn’t a big deal.

We didn’t say a whole lot. I started thinking about Gia’s Matched. I thought it was going to be Oliver, for sure.

“Do guys get nervous?” I asked.

“What do you mean?”

“If you’re not a Matched guy, do you get nervous at a girl’s party? I’ve always wondered.” I watched his face as he thought about his answer.

“Well, yeah, some do. I know Oliver does, but he really wants to be Matched. Now, he is,” he explained.

“Oliver?”

“Yea, he loves Unit, and all that it stands for. He’s always been that way.” He shrugged.

“He’s like Gia then. Can you believe that it’s Amaya?”

“Well, I thought it was going to be you. Actually, when I saw you at the bank and you said it was your birthday, I texted him and told him. We all thought it was going to be you and him.”

My mouth dropped a bit. Oliver? I mean he was good looking and a sweet guy, but we had nothing in common at all. “May I ask a question? It’s kind of personal.”

“Sure.”

“What did you think when you came to my house that night?” I closed my mouth tight after asking because I hoped he would answer it.

“I didn’t think anything, actually. When Mom and Dad told me that they were going over to your house, I assumed it was to say ‘Happy Birthday’. I mean our mothers are Paired, and our dads do a lot of business together. It didn’t seem out of the ordinary. What did you think?”

“Nothing until we sat down. I thought that was a little strange.”

There was a moment of silence between us before I got the nerve to ask him. “What was your first thought? When Dad said we were Matched?”

He didn’t say anything at first and then he pulled into a parking garage. When he parked and shut off the car, he sat there boring a hole through the steering wheel.

“I don’t know what I thought.” He laid his head back on the headrest. “See, when I turned of age, I had it all planned to leave and not come back. But,” he paused closing his eyes. “Mom begged me not to. I’m my father’s only son. It’s his dream for me to take over the business that he created, and at the time, I didn’t want that. So, I asked if I had been Matched and she said I was. I told her that I didn’t want to be, and she said if I stayed, she would see if I could be unmatched.” He opened his eyes turning his head toward me. His blue eyes were sad.

“So, did she try? Did she talk to my parents?” I could hear the cracking in my voice.

“No, she told me the other night that she didn’t because she thought that I would eventually change my mind.” He faced forward. “What about you? Why did you stay?”

I blinked the tears away trying to keep my emotions in check thinking about my reasons. “My parents. I’m their only child and leaving would be hard on them. On top of that, there’s no one to carry on our bloodline. Who would control Unit after my parents? And I won’t lie; I was curious about my Matched, but at the same time I didn’t know if I wanted to be.”

He nodded understanding my dilemma. “Why is leaving important to you?”

“I wanted to see if I could do it on my own, and I want to see the world. It would be hard for me to do if I remained in Unit.”

“Why is traveling so important to you?”

“I’ve always wanted to. I mean,” I sighed. I wanted to open up to him, but I didn’t want to tell him everything, either. “I want to see what’s outside Unit. I know there’s more than just this.” I waved my hand at the nothing I felt in front of me. “I want to explore. Maybe even met others from different clans?”

Thaddeus doesn’t say anything. He only gets out of the car comes around and opens my door. I wasn’t sure where we were, so I waited for Thaddeus to take the lead.

Then…it…happened.

I felt it before I realize that it was happening. His fingers touched the back of my knuckles and then laced with mine. I didn’t know how to act at first as he began to head towards the elevators.

I was holding hands with a guy.

With Thaddeus Edwards.

With my Matched.

Thaddeus was acting like it wasn’t a big deal as the elevator passed each floor until we reached the one we wanted. When the doors opened, we were in a large mall. It towered several floors up and there were even lower levels.

“Oh wow.” I gulped looking around me.

Thaddeus chuckled. “Figured you would like it here.”

“Did you
laugh
?”

“Maybe.” He winked, then rubbed his thumb over my knuckles, causing my heart to race faster. “Come on, I have the perfect store for you.”

We go to the left and head towards the end of the mall. “Okay.” Thaddeus lightly tugged on my hand, halting me in my path. “Close your eyes.”