The Broken Luna's Fated Mate

Chapter 10: You'll Never Be a Luna

LILA

I can't believe it. Is Caden Wilder actually defending me?

The guy who threw the towel straightens, bristling with temper. He's as tall as Caden and just as muscular with light skin and short, dark hair.

He shoves Caden back. "What the hell is your problem, man? You defending the help now?"

"I'm not defending anyone. I'm just sick of you acting like such an asshole all the time," Caden snaps.

They stand chest to chest, nose to nose. Impending violence makes the air feel electric. Caden growls low in his throat.

Beside me, Noel takes a breath and steps forward as though to intervene.

"All right, down boys," a cool feminine voice says.

A slender, dark-haired girl appears and grabs the tawny guy's hand, pulling him away. It's Aurora.

"Come on, baby. Forget him. Let's go," she says to the guy. Then she looks past his shoulder at me just before they turn. Her eyes are icy gray, glowing with hostility.

As they leave, Caden turns, snatches his towel from the bench press, and storms off.

He doesn't give me a second glance. I wonder if he blames me for the near fight.

Probably.

"Who was that guy?" I ask Noel.

His face is pulled into a disapproving frown. "The rude guy? That's Troy Henderson, Caden's—well, they used to be friends. Best friends even. Troy was going to be Caden's Beta, or so I heard. I guess they had some kind of falling out."

He notices I'm still holding the dirty towel Troy threw at me and takes it. "Listen, don't worry about those guys, OK? Alphas are always acting like that—getting into fights over nothing or puffing up their chests to see who's the toughest. You just got caught in the crossfire."

I realize he's trying to comfort me. A warm sensation spreads throughout my chest. "Thanks," I say, meaning it. "You're not very fond of Alphas, huh?"

He shrugs. "Some Alphas are great, but the young ones are a little too macho for my taste. You know what I mean?"

I nod, although I don't really think being macho is as bad as Noel makes it. Caden always seems calm and in control to me—even when Troy came at him just now.

"All right, let's get on with the tour, shall we?" he says, motioning me to follow him past the rows of weight machines toward the back rooms. He shows me the office and how to clock in on the computer at his desk.

"You can use this locker here," he points to a narrow panel of lockers in the corner behind the door. "That's for employees. I've got a new lock around here somewhere." He starts rummaging through the drawers.

"That's okay," I say. "I don't really have anything to put in there."

He looks up and then realizes I'm not carrying a bag of any kind. "No phone or...?"

I shake my head. I would be embarrassed if it were anyone else, but I know by now that Noel won't make fun of me for not having a phone.

"Hm. Well, if you need to use a locker in the future just ask, OK?" he says.

"Okay. Thanks."

He takes me out into the hall again and points to the locker room door. "Let's head in here. The locker room for students is co-ed, but there are private changing rooms at the back too."

He leads me past the rows of lockers and polished wood benches to the back and shows me the private changing rooms. They're kind of like the dressing rooms at a department store, but they have tufted leather benches and doors with actual knobs. So, fancier—of course.