My parents insisted on throwing me a birthday bash, urging me to invite friends.
Evander, being his shameless self, wheedled an invite out of me.
As the party wound down, I slipped out to the balcony alone, needing a breather in the cool night air.
The breeze carried the crisp edge of early fall.
Footsteps sounded behind me.
“Talia…”
Kael’s voice was a wrecked, hoarse mess.
His suit was rumpled, tie askew, reeking of whiskey so strong it stung my nose.
“I don’t get it. How did we end up like this?” He grabbed my wrist, desperate. “We were so close to getting married… on
our way to forever…”
The night air turned biting, cutting through me.
“So you’re blaming me?” I let out a bitter laugh. “Blaming me for not forgiving you after you slapped me?”
His eyes flinched, like my words had sliced him open.
“Why should I forgive you?”
“And that night at the bar,” I said, a mocking twist to my lips, “I heard everything.”
Kael staggered back, like I’d yanked the spine right out of him.
“I heard your little bet.” I smoothed my sleeve, cool as ice. “Too bad you lost.”
“Kael, own it.” I turned toward the glowing lights of the party. “Don’t make me lose the last shred of respect I have for you.”
That night at the bar, the air was thick with smoke and liquor, stinging my eyes.
I’d barely reached the private room when I heard Kael’s buddies hooting.
“Kael, you’re the man! Stringing along the Silverclaw Pack’s only heir for years! Not scared Talia’s done with you for real
this time?”
Kael lounged back in his chair, a sly smirk playing on his lips. “Her? A little sweet–talk, and she’s putty. I’ve had her figured out for years.”
Riley leaned in close, her chestnut curls brushing his shoulder. “Talia’s the type you can play like a fiddle,” she purred, red lips curving. “Bet you could slap her in front of everyone, and with a little coaxing… she’d come crawling back, tail wagging.”
I saw a flicker of admiration in Kael’s eyes.
Under the neon glow, he downed his beer in one go amid their laughter. “Let’s see,” he said, wiping his mouth, grinning like it was all a game.
Eighteen years of my heart, reduced to a barroom bet.
In that moment, the bitter burn of whiskey felt like it was seeping into my chest.
On the balcony, Kael’s face was pale as death.
“You heard…” He lurched forward, reaching for my hand. “Talia, I was drunk. It was just a stupid joke.”
“A joke?” I stepped back, the night breeze scattering the ashes of my dress’s hem. “Then why’d you do it the next day?”
“I didn’t mean-”
“Kael,” I touched my cheek, “don’t lie. It’s pathetic, you know that?”
He froze, like the air had been sucked out of him.
I looked at him, my voice soft but sharp. “Didn’t you always say talking trash behind someone’s back was low? Look at yourself. How are you any better?”
Kael’s face drained of color, his smile a ghostly flicker under the moonlight.
He opened his mouth, but no sound came out, his arms dropping limp.
The wind tugged at the balcony’s sheer curtains, his suit catching the moonlight, gray and faded, like a statue crumbling to dust.
His lips trembled, voiceless.
“I screwed up…”
“What were you thinking?” I stepped forward, my heels crushing the shadow he cast on the ground. “That I’d just take it? Forgive you? Or like Riley said-”
“That a little sweet–talk, and I’d come running back like some lovesick pup?”
Chapter 12
