One Night

Ch*r 1**3**6

Audrey

“Nice costume.

Fiona leaned against the bar, a drink is one hand, the latex of her sleek cat costume creaking as she moved.

She looked devastatingly beautiful, with her platinum hair trailing down her back in loose curls and black eyeliner haloing her eyes. Her waist, long and slender, seemed to move fluidly like a serpent as she reached forward to pluck a piece of lint off of my red cape.

“Red Riding Hood,” she said with a sweet smile as she flicked the lint onto the floor. “Where’s your big, bad wolf?”

I swallowed hard. “What are you doing here?” I bit out before I could think twice.

“I heard this town had a nice Halloween festival,” Fiona replied **lly, unbothered by my harsh voice. “I thought I’d check it out for myself.”

As she spoke, I couldn’t help but look over her costume again. Her legs were so long. She had to have been a solid four inches taller than I was, with a slender, athletic build. Next to her, I felt like a child, especially in my costume. Seeing her like this… I knew she was beautiful, but I hadn’t noticed just how much more beautiful she was than me.

No wonder he won’t make things official with you, a tiny voice seemed to say in the back of my mind. She’s so much more than you’ll ever be…

No. I bit down hard on my tongue to dispel the thoughts. Edwin would never. My Edwin…

Was he mine, though? It didn’t matter. Fiona was a snake, and Edwin had said so himself. He had also told me to steer the hell away from her.

“I have to go,” I mumbled, trying to slip past her. But Fiona moved with cat-like grace, suddenly blocking my path. “Wait,” she said, her voice soft. I looked up at her, resisting the urge to shove her out of the way. But I knew it wouldn’t do any good even if I did; she was a werewolf, unlike me, a human. Her strength, especially with that lean build, was likely leaps and bounds ahead of mine.

When I didn’t answer or move, she said, “I wanted to apologize again for how I treated you before. I really didn’t mean to hurt you. I’m so sorry.”

I hesitated for a moment, Edwin’s warning ringing in my cars. I should have been running by now-running for the hills. But I was rooted to the spot. Out of fear, confusion, or curiosity, I couldn’t tell, Maybe I was more like Red Riding Hood than I thought.

“It’s just that…” she continued, leaning in closer as if sharing a secret, “Edwin has a history of h*king u**p with younger girls Especially humans.”

“What?”

She nodded. “He’s been like this throughout our entire relationship,” she sighed. “When I saw how pretty you were and how close you two were getting, I knew exactly what he was doing.

“You’re lying, Thissed, moving past her.

But once again, Flona somehow wound up in my way, “I know I haven’t given you a good reason to trust me, she said

09:29 Thu, Sep 19

**

D

quietly, her breath smelling like spearmint, “but it’s true. I know the signs-I know what he’s doing to you.

“Prove it,” I growled.

78% I

Fiona sighed and shrugged. “Very well. Let me guess-and you don’t have to confirm nor deny it: he’s been sleeping with

you.”

I must have paled considerably, because her eyes flicked over my face before she continued, “And he’s whispering sweet nothings to you. Making you feel like the only girl in the world. Showering you with gifts and affection whenever it’s convenient for him. But you want more, something real, and he won’t give it to you, will he?”

Her words hit me like a punch to the gut, and it felt as if all of the air had been knocked out of me.

I thought back to Edwin calling our weekly meetings just h**king up.’ The memory of his voice, so casual about what I thought was blossoming into a real relationship, made my chest tighten painfully.

How did she know? Unless…

“You’re not saying anything,” she sighed, pushing a platinum curl over her shoulder. “Which means I’m right.”

I swallowed hard, the lump in my throat suddenly feeling like shards of glass. She… She was right. Edwin had made me feel like I was the only girl in the world. He had held me so intimately, so tenderly. He had fed me chocolate covered strawberries and combed his fingers through my hair.

And when I wanted more, he wouldn’t give it to me. The one thing I really wanted, more than the gifts and the secret rendezvous and the treats-a relationship. Even a secret one, I would have taken until he ended things with Fiona.

But we were ‘just h**ing up”.

“If he’s been doing this throughout your entire relationship, then why would you stay with someone like that?” I asked, my voice barely more than a whisper. I gripped my little wicker basket tighter, needing something to anchor me, although I feared I might snap the handle clean in half.

Fiona shrugged, a sad smile on her face. “He’s my fated mate. It’s not like we have much of a choice.”

I felt like I would be sick. Fated mate. The other half of his soul

That was something that I had feared this entire time, something that I could never bring myself to voice. As a human, I could never fulfill that role-only werewolves had fated mates. Those who were paired together by the Moon Goddess, whose souls were intertwined.

My chest burned. Why hadn’t he told me if he had already found his?

I wanted to think that Fiona was lying, that this was just another one of her tricks. But as I stared up at her, and I saw the sincerity in her eyes, a sinking feeling took over me.

Was that why he hadn’t ended things with her? Because they were… bound?

Fiona must have noticed my expression because she reached out and squeezed my arm. Lflinched away, and she dropped her arm back to her side, but her eyes remained soft and apologetic.

“I don’t blame you if you have slept with him,” she said. “Edwins a master manipulator. But you should be careful around him, and take everything he says with a grain of salt. I’m only telling you this for your own safety

She leaned in close then, her voice dropping to a whisper. “In fact, Edwin night spread hes about me. He always says I’m the Gruel and manipulative one, but-Don’t believe everything he tells you about me, okay?”

09:29 Thu, Sep 19:

Ch** **he crowd, leaving me reeling. The noise of the bar came rushing back, suddenly too loud, too overwhelming. I needed to breathe. Or vomit. I couldn’t decide which.

Without waiting for my friends, I pushed through the crowd and out the front door, back into the bustling street. It was just as crowded, but far less stuffy, which was an improvement. I leaned against the side of the building, sucking in deep lungfuls

of air.

–

Fated mate…

Manipulator…

Audrey!”

The sound of Tina’s voice cut through my haze. She was pushing through the front door, the others close behind. “Where are you going?”

I blinked, trying to focus on my friends. My family. I wanted to run to them, drown them in my tears. But for their sakes, and for the sake of our Halloween, I pulled my shoulders back and forced a smile.

“I just needed some air,” I said, my voice sounding so much steadier than I felt

“Who were you talking to just now?” Gavin asked, the plastic sword of his pirate costume bobbing against his hip as he strode up

to me. Gavin, sweet Gavin. He would never. Not like Edwin…

“Oh, just… an acquaintance,” I mumbled, not meeting my friends’ eyes.

“Oh, I recognized her! She was that nice woman from a few weeks ago,” Avis suddenly said. She was wearing a glittering fairy costume, and if circumstances had been different, I would have laughed at the way her big pink wings almost whacked a passerby in the face as she suddenly turned to peer through the bar window to get a better look at Fiona.

I felt the blood drain from my face at that moment, particularly as Tina’s gaze began burning a hole into the side of my head. She knew something was up now. That I had lied to her. To everyone.

“Uh, yeah,” I managed. “That was her.”

There was a brief silence. Tina crossed her arms over her chest, opening her mouth to no doubt spew a lecture at me. But before she could, the sound of screams echoed down the street, Betty turned, pointing in their direction.

“Haunted house, anyone?”

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