Huntress (Alexa O'Brien, Huntress #0.5)

I was hurt alright. The pain came from the inside, my physical troubles forgotten. I felt sick to my stomach at the thought of Belle and Raoul together. I should have known better.

It wasn’t the first time he’d done this. What else did I expect? We weren’t together. Not the way I wished we were. I hated myself for longing for that. It wasn’t going to happen. Raoul made it clear. He wanted what he wanted and made no apology for it.

“I’m ok.” My words came out on a sigh.

Shaz steered me into the kitchen where he poured me a straight shot of whiskey. He didn’t bother with any words of false comfort, no pitiful “there there”. I adored him for that.

I accepted the glass of dark bronze liquor that he pressed into my hand. It burned a fiery path down my throat but the resulting glow that spread throughout me was numbing and welcome.

I wanted nothing more than to storm up the stairs and tear Belle’s throat out. The bitch would be sorry. It was just a matter of time. She was married to a rich, elderly man who knew nothing of her true nature or the fact that she was nothing more than a trashy slut. Karma had to come for her at some point.

The reality of the situation was crushing. Just a day after he’d been with me and now he was with her. I felt so used. I was nothing to Raoul.

“Lex?” Shaz studied me closely and I was both grateful to have such a sweet friend and embarrassed that my pain was so evident. He was a sweet kid. One day, he’d make some lucky lady incredibly happy.

“Let’s go sit outside. Get some air and just relax.” I held my empty glass out for a refill, giving him a look when he didn’t fill it high enough. A genuine smile spread across my face when he took the glass from my hand and passed me the whiskey bottle instead.

I followed him out the patio door off the kitchen and to the swing in the backyard. Shaz’ warm, wolf energy felt comforting and I clung to that feeling, knowing it was temporary.

Taking a large swallow of the potent whiskey, I laid my head on his shoulder and let him swing us. We didn’t need words to fill the quiet. It wasn’t uncomfortable and everything we could possibly say seemed to pass between us anyway.

After a long silence, I said, “I can’t be here anymore.”

“Yeah. You need to go. He’s going to ruin you. And I don’t want to see that.” Shaz reached to stroke the back of my hand with a gentle touch.

I raised my head to look at him and he leaned in, pressing a soft kiss to my temple. I was falling apart inside. It felt like my entire world was falling down around me. I had put so much hope into Raoul. Like a fool, I’d fallen hard for him and been naive enough to believe those feelings might be returned.

When I was alone later, I might cry. But right here and now with Shaz, I didn’t feel the need. I only felt the driving urge to make a change, to walk out of this place and never look back.