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Instead of being sympathetic to my woes, Liv claps her hands excitedly. She loves gossip. “Ooooh, this sounds juicy! What man?! No, actually, don’t tell me. This needs wine.”
The clink of bottles and hum of the fridge in the background tell me she means business.
“Thanks, Liv. I’ll see you soon.”
Smiling, I cradle the phone against my shoulder and pack my bags as fast as I can. Venting to Liv won’t get rid of the gnawing feeling in my gut, but she has been happily mated for the last ten years. Maybe she can give me some sage advice. Or at least ply me with enough alcohol to forget my woes.
Ignoring the twenty missed calls from my mate and refusing to open the ten text messages waiting for me, I’m officially burying my head in the sand. My coping mechanism of choice. He can’t reject me, or prove himself to be a complete bastard, if I pretend he doesn’t exist; if I pretend that none of this ever happened. It’s not a solution, but I don’t know how to handle this. I like to be in control.
I remind myself that I have things to do as well, that I was going to leave him even if he was completely available, but the knowledge that he’s worrying more about her feelings than mine is triggering some dark emotions and insecurities within me I don’t want to acknowledge.
Except blocking Ethan from my mind is pretty much impossible, staying in the cabin where he ravished me on practically every surface. Slinging my bag onto my shoulder, I snatch my purse off the locker and head to the reception. Sliding the keys across the counter, I avoid the curious gaze of the grey-haired gentleman manning the desk.
“Huh. I thought you two hit it off, I was expecting you to leave together.” He tilts his head and frowns, unashamed to admit he was watching the comings and goings of his guests. There’s also a chance we were pretty loud.
“So did I,” I mutter, letting this stranger see my hurt and disappointment. “But what can you do?” Shrugging, I start to leave, but he stops me and presses a little wooden keyring into my hand: a carved likeness of the cabin.
“Keep it. That man looked like he was going to face the firing squad; I have a feeling it’s not done yet. You might want this as a memento someday.”
I give him a weak smile and close my fingers around it.
“Thank you,” I mumble, practically running to the car. Tossing my bags inside, I slip behind the wheel, where I take a minute to compose myself before I drive anywhere. What has this man done to me?
My phone pings beside me and I see a message from Alpha Steel.
BLAKE: Everything okay?
Pushing back my shoulders, I shake my head and my limbs. This is not me. I’m a trained warrior, loyal enforcer, not a woman who can’t function because her boyfriend didn’t call her when he said he would.
Firing back a message to say all is good, I put my key in the ignition and reverse out of the parking spot, feeling a bit stronger. This is who I am. Find out what Leon Lennox is up to, so that Alpha Steel knows whether he still needs to keep an eye on him, and get home.
An hour later, I pull up to Liv’s house, having successfully answered the security guard’s questions about who I’m visiting and how long I’ll be here. He knew the answers already, Liv already cleared my visit, but the arrogant wolf enjoyed making me wait. He even seemed to take an instant dislike to me when I told him what pack I was coming from. Normally it’s the opposite. Everyone likes Alpha Steel, and I’m inundated with questions about what it’s like to work so closely with him. But not this guy.
Liv rushes out the door, a massive smile on her face, and slams into me as I try to wrestle my bag out of the passenger seat.
“It’s so good to see you, Belle.” Maybe I’m not the only one who is badly in need of a friend. “It has been way too long, but things have been tricky here.”
Her mate, Will, waves from the front door. I try to lift my arm but Liv has it pinned to my side. I give Will a help me please look, but he merely shrugs, smiling fondly at his mate and disappearing inside.
“Liv… can I have my arms back now?”
She ignores me and clings on even harder. I roll my eyes at her ridiculousness when she looks up at me, but the longer she holds on, the more I feel myself let go. I never have to pretend with Liv. I don’t have to act like everything is fine.
Even as I stand here, wrapped in her hug, I can feel my phone vibrating in my back pocket.
Liv snatches it before I have the chance to stop her and quickly reads the notification, turning the phone around to face me.
ETHAN: Please talk to me
My heart breaks a little when I see those words. “Livvy, I need your help. I don’t know what to do.”
Liv’s face crumples when she sees how upset I am. She puts the phone into her own pocket and drags my face down so she can kiss me on the forehead.
“Come on. Leave the bags.”
Nodding, I take her hand and let her pull me up the path and onto the porch swing. Will appears with two mugs of tea and a blanket.
“I’ll clear off and leave you two to catch up. Come to the packhouse for dinner if you’re feeling up to it. See you later Belle.” Giving Liv a peck on the lips, he briefly squeezes my shoulder and jogs down the steps, waving as he goes.
