Chapter 74

BELLE

The name seemed to hold some unsaid significance because chills covered my body. I leaned back

in my

seat after shaking her outstretched hand. “Well, thank you for the meal, Ms. Viotto. I really appreciate it.”

“Oh, please, call me Evangeline. I’ve never gone by Ms. Viotto. I’m not even sure I would answer to

it.”

“Evangeline, then.”

She considered me for a few seconds before continuing. “I want you to know that I don’t plan on telling your mate where you are. I think you have every right to hide after everything you went through.”

My heart did a flip in my chest. I hadn’t even considered the fact that she could give my whereabouts to Grayson. “Thank you,” I breathed out. “It’s very important that he doesn’t ever find

me.”

Her smile faltered, turning serious. Before I knew what she was doing, she reached across the table and took hand in hers, squeezing it.

my

“You have a long journey ahead of you, darling Belle. And it isn’t going to be easy.”

“What do you mean?”

“I want you to know that power isn’t a bad thing when in the right hands. It may seem scary at first to shift to your true potential, but you are more than capable of handling it. You do not have to be afraid.”

She was talking in riddles, and I had no idea. “How do you know all of this?”

“You remind me quite a bit of myself at your age. I was also terrified of

my

mate.”

“Really?” I asked. I hated that this amazing, kind woman seemed to have gone through a similar situation to me.

Chapter 13 of 59: Chapter 13

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Emergency calls onlyM

“I don’t get it. Why are werewolves blessed with soulmates if they just take advantage of them? My mother is terrified of her mate too. He abuses her…just like mine did.”

“My mate didn’t abuse me, darling. He did the opposite. He took care of me when no one else did. He saved me from a cruel fate.”

“So then…why were you scared of him?”

“It’s hard to explain. For one thing, werewolves are terrifying creatures. It is okay to be hesitant around them at first, especially when they claim to possess you.

“People from my past also made it difficult for me to trust anyone. I didn’t know what he wanted from me, and that was terrifying. But I don’t know what I would do without him now. He is the best part of my life.”

The genuine love in her tone made my throat feel raw. As much as I hated to admit it, I was jealous of what she had. There was a point when I was convinced that Grayson and I would have a life like

that.

I shoved down the intense and sudden longing to be with my mate. What was wrong with me? He hated me. He hated me. Go d, why did that make me feel like crying?

I swallowed the lump in my throat while somehow managing to keep my tears at bay.

“I wish my mate loved me the same way yours does. Grayson slept with someone else and told me he only planned to keep me around for power. I truly hope I never have to see him again.”

Evangeline gave me a sad smile. “You don’t mean that.”

“Uh, actually, I do—”

“No. You don’t. You miss him. Terribly. And that is okay. It’s okay to miss him even after what went through.

you

“He is your mate. Your soulmate. Which is why it is also okay to hate him for what he did to you. No one you love should ever treat you that way.”

I wasn’t sure why she was saying all of this to me. Why did she care how I felt or how I was handling my mate rejecting me?

“Give me your phone, dear,” she said before I could ask.

Emergency calls only M

I found myself handing over my cell phone without thinking.

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She typed something in quickly. “You call me if you ever need anything, okay? I’m here for you. And I have a funny feeling that you’re going to want to talk to me again.”

When she gave me my phone back, her number was programmed in.

“I-“I started.

“What are you doing, Belle?” someone said, cutting me off.

My attention swung around behind me. Standing by the door of the kitchen was Bert, staring at me with a confused expression on his face.

“Oh, I, uh, was just having a meal with-” When I looked back at the seat in front of me, I was shocked to find that it was completely empty.

“Where did she…?” My gaze scanned the diner, but Evangeline was nowhere to be seen.

“Are you eating some random people’s leftovers?” Bert continued.

I looked down at the half-eaten meal in front of me. “What? No. You made this for me and the woman I was just sitting with.”

Bert’s eyes fell on Evangeline’s plate of untouched food and empty seat, raising a brow. “I think might be losing it, sweetheart. I haven’t gotten any orders for the last three hours.”

“But…No, I swear there was this woman-

99

you

“Look, I’m honestly too tired to care. It makes no difference to me. Listen, I promise not to tell the boss you’re stealing from the kitchen if you agree to close the diner on your own tonight so I can get

home.”

“You want to go home now?” I asked. “But the diner doesn’t close for two more hours. I don’t think I’ll be able to waitress and cook…’

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My voice trailed off as I looked up at the big clock hanging over the kitchen window. It read 2 a.m.

I reared back. I had been talking to Evangeline for two hours? That couldn’t be right. It felt like half an hour at most. I didn’t even have time to finish my meal, for goodness sake.

“I, uh…” When I turned back to Bert, he was looking at me like I had a screw loose.

Emergency calls only M

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“Talking to people who aren’t there, cating random strangers’ scraps, hallucinating about what time it is. That’s three for three, sweetheart. I think you could use a good night’s sleep ’cause you ain’t functioning correctly.”

Maybe he was right. Maybe I was losing it. All of my sleepless nights and time spent missing my former mate must’ve been getting to me.

“So you gonna close for me?” Bert questioned again.

I found it a bit funny that he was just saying how much I needed sleep but then was asking me to stay later for his benefit.

I ran a hand down my face, trying to clear my confusion and exhaustion. “Yeah. Sure. I can close tonight.”

It wasn’t like I was going to be getting any sleep tonight anyway. Might as well avoid my night terrors full of a red-eyed Grayson for as long as possible.

He grinned widely. “You’re a doll.”

I hadn’t even realized that he was ready to go until he was marching out the door, leaving me

completely on my own.

I slumped down in the booth I was sitting in, looking back at Evangeline’s untouched plate of food.

I was still extremely confused about what the hell had just happened, but honestly, I just didn’t have the energy to think too much about it at the moment.

All I cared about was cleaning up the diner and kitchen so that I could get home and at least try to get some sleep since I was opening the diner tomorrow morning too.

I groaned when I realized I would have to be back here in less than five hours.

I guess anything was better than sitting in my rat-infested, one-bedroom apartment with nothing to do other than trying to ignore my pain and not think about him.

Speaking of pain, it occurred to me for the first time since realizing Evangeline had disappeared that I still wasn’t experiencing any of the agony that came from my starving mate bond.

My body felt at peace for the first time in months, with no aches or pains or blinding headaches. Evangeline said she had taken it from me, but how? And would it return?

Speaking of pain, it occurred to me for the first time since realizing Evangeline had disappeared that I still wasn’t experiencing any of the agony that came from my starving mate bond.

My body felt at peace for the first time in months, with no aches or pains or blinding headaches. Evangeline said she had taken it from me, but how? And would it return?

She said she could only hang on to it for so long.

Deciding to take advantage of the situation while I still could, I stood and began clearing off my table and the other ones that still needed to be scrubbed down, then walked to the kitchen to do the

dishes.

I sighed when I saw that Bert had left me with all the dishes. Hadn’t he said he hadn’t had any orders for the last several hours? What the heck had he been doing out here all of that time?

Welp, it looked like I was going to be there for a little while longer.