Why My Mate Cries
Chapter 11

ALIYAH’S POV

Needless to say, Reid did not fail to impress me every day.

I watched him in excitement while he was preparing the ingredients that we would be using to bake a chocolate cake. Who would have thought that an Alpha had a thing for baking? I tilted my head to the side and smiled. My face lit up even further when he took a few glances at me. His blue eyes sparkled and indicated an emotion I struggled to name.

“So, you love to bake?” I asked him curiously, walking near the countertop table and taking a look at the ingredients and kitchen utensils he was preparing to bake.

“Not that much. But I baked muffins to feed the children a lot of times,” he replied.

“You’re feeding them?”

He nodded, and once again I was deeply impressed by his kindness. He may have looked so ruthless and uptight, but deep within lies his warmhearted readiness to help anyone in need.

I couldn’t stop myself from comparing him to my own b***d. My father, and even my brother, who became the new Alpha of the Silver Moon pack, had never done such charitable acts as far as I could remember.

“How about you, Aliyah? Do you love to bake?” he asked.

“I do. I love being in the kitchen, actually. I was the captain cook in the family,” but couldn’t get even a spoon of the food I cooked since my family loved to keep me starving.

“Hmm, you probably know how to bake a cake more than I do.” One of his eyebrows was raised, seemingly trying to challenge my cooking skills.

“Well…” I scratched the side of my neck. “The last time I baked a cake was a year ago.”

He pouted his lips. Gorgeous… But it only lasted for a second.

“Do the honor then,” he said, handing me the bowl of eggs.

I swallowed hard and gazed up at him. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, Aliyah, I’d like to watch you bake.” His voice sounded so calm and collected, but it was enough to make my cheeks blush.

“I thought we were going to do this together?”

“Yes. Only this time you will be my main cook, and I will just be right beside you to assist.” He smirked, and boyishly ran his fingers through his hair.

Oh no… How could he do that so handsomely?

“Alright, y–you can sit down. I will bake a cake for you,” I said unwittingly. Heat filled my face seconds later when I realized what I had just said. My goodness, Aliyah!

Reid chuckled. He grabbed the chair next to me and sat down. His elbows were both leaning on the table, supporting his head as he watched me.

“Just tell me if you need something,” he said.

“I–I will…” I gulped the lump in my throat.

Reid would be watching me navigate, and my wolf was so excited for me to showcase my skills. I thought that it would be the best time to impress him. I took a deep breath and focused on my goal: to make a delicious cake for him.

I grabbed a bowl and put the flour and baking powder in it, then preheated the baking pan I would be using later on. I thought that my knowledge of baking had already vanished, but it became vivid like crystal water the moment I whisked the ingredients in one bowl.

“You’re doing it great, Aliyah,” Reid commented softly.

I glanced at him and noticed that he was all smiles while watching my hand mix the ingredients, and admittedly, it fueled my will to make him more dazzled.

When the batter was ready, I divided it and put it in the baking pan. Bullets of sweat have formed on my forehead after putting the pan inside the oven. I was about to wipe them off using my forearm when I felt a dry towel that dabbed on my skin.

My heartbeat raced aggressively when I realized Reid was wiping my sweats himself. I then felt that familiar and powerful desire coursing through me, that strong pull that made me want to pull him closer, touch him… and feel him skin by skin.

“You worked so well that you sweat so hard,” he remarked, draping the towel over my head.

“Th—that’s because you didn’t assist me,” I hissed, and he laughed.

I grabbed the towel and wiped my neck, but my entire body shuddered when I caught Reid looking at me intently. His blue eyes… It conveyed emotions that I couldn’t name. He seemed to be trying to connect with me, to read my mind and possibly reach my wolf.

My forehead creased in frustration. I was continuously fighting the intense desire that was trying to overpower my mind. However, it was so strong and stubborn that I lost it for a moment.

“C—Can I touch you?” I asked, surrendering to the pull that was making me go insane.

“Why would you like to do that?”

I licked my lower l*p and huffed.

“Something in me is saying that I should… I must touch you,” I said in my faint voice.

Reid’s breathing became ragged. Our gazes locked. For a moment, I saw the same emotions behind his eyes.

The need, his desire.

My hand was shaking when it tried to move and touch his chest, where I could feel the beat of his heart.

However, the sudden loud noise outside the kitchen echoed throughout the place. I went into an instant panic and was so anxious that I immediately hid myself under the countertop table with my hands covering both of my ears.

“No… No way… They can’t see me. Please, let them leave…” My tears fell like a rapid river.

I heard the loud laughter of some men, and it added to the anxiety that consumed my senses. I shook my head and shielded myself.

“Leave!” Reid growled loudly, which made his packmates silent. He then snarled. “I said leave!”

So many footsteps rushing away from the kitchen were the sounds I heard next. I took several deep breaths, trying to calm my heart from its violent race. I heard Reid’s low growl afterward. He crouched down, and when I gazed up at him, I saw how the color of his eyes changed from crimson red to their normal blue color.

“They’re gone,” he said in his deep yet soothing voice.

His hand reached out and held my cheek, wiping my tears away and caressing it as if he was telling me that everything had been taken under control; that I no longer had to worry because he was here by my side…

I sobbed, feeling the warmth of his hand on my cheek that brought me comfort.

“Come here.” He opened his arm and I automatically moved closer to him.

I gasped softly when he engulfed me in a tight embrace, and all I could do was whimper as I buried my face in my chest.

“I’m sorry if that scared you. It won’t happen again, I promise…” he whispered.

I nodded and stopped crying. For a second, the fear that I once felt shifted into relief. I closed my eyes and seized the moment, only feeling the loud beating of my heart because I was being held in his arms with care.

However, as soon as I heard the beat of his heart inside his chest, it felt as if the air shifted suddenly. I was taken aback and moved away for a bit.

“Aliyah, are you alright?” he asked carefully.

My anxiety spiked when my heart made a violent thump. It was so loud that I felt like it was about to explode. Then my limbs felt like they were being dragged out of me. I whimpered loudly, my veins becoming visible in my hands due to the pain rising through my body.

Mate…

A voice in my head whispered, and I gasped once again because of the irresistible pull my mind couldn’t contain.

Mate…

This time, the voice in my head became extremely loud, and I was overcome with a powerful desire.

“Aliyah!”

My mind went blank and while shaking the voice away in my head, my eyes locked onto Reid. His eyes radiate worry, pain, and the same amount of need as if he was also feeling the same pull, and I wasn’t the only one affected.

My pupils dilated at the realization that suddenly hit me.

“Mate,” I whispered.

His eyes widened, and I could see both his happiness and fear.

“Yes… we’re mates,” he confirmed.

Both of us were breathing heavily, with our eyes still locked together. He leaned closer and was about to k**s me. However, my vision faded away, and all I could remember was darkness.