He still remembered me.
I nodded at him. “You still remember me?”
“Yes, you used to work here. You were diligent and meticulous.”
His sudden compliment caught me off guard. I hadn’t forgotten what he said to me before. Back then, his words were far from kind.
“No, no, if I recall correctly, didn’t you fire Seraphina because you thought she wasn’t doing a good job?” Kael frowned, his voice cold.
“No, no, it was all a misunderstanding. My fault, my fault entirely. Seraphina, if you want to come back and work part-time, you’re always welcome,” the boss said, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.
“I won’t come back. I was clearly misunderstood before, but you refused to believe me. As a boss, you didn’t stand by your employee. I’ll never work here again.”
“Well said.” Kael clapped his hands, his eyes full of admiration giving me a boost of courage.
“I’m sorry. That incident was my failure to investigate thoroughly. I was worried about the bar’s business and chose to compromise with the customer. Seraphina, if there’s anything I can do to make it up to you, just say the word. I’ll do my best,” the boss said, humbled to the point of groveling.
“I don’t need anything. I just hope that in the future, if something like this happens again, you’ll find out the truth before jumping to conclusions.”
I didn’t want to make things difficult for him. After all, I had earned quite a bit of money working part-time here before. Despite that one misunderstanding, the boss had mostly been good to me. Even after I left, he was willing to let me come back. For that, I was grateful.
“Alright, Seraphina. I promise you, I’ll get to the truth before making decisions in the future. And I’m genuinely sorry for what happened,” he said earnestly.
After he apologized, I let him leave.
Kael poured me a drink and raised his glass to mine. “Come on, cheers.”
“Cheers,” I said, smiling at him.
In that moment, the shadow of what had happened before finally lifted.
I suddenly felt deeply grateful to Kael. He had found a way to pull me out of that painful memory.
“Thank you, Kael. I thought time would dull the pain, but I never expected you to teach me how to truly move on.”
Kael couldn’t help but laugh. “Seraphina, you thought time would just smooth everything over? That’s a terrible idea. Time heals slowly. You should treat others the way they treat you. Only then will you stop getting hurt.”
“You mean if someone wrongs me, I should get back at them right away?”
Kael nodded.
“So, you’re saying I should deal with Vivienne, too? She’s caused me so much trouble.”
I glanced toward Vivienne, who wasn’t far away. She was always dressed to impress, and tonight was no exception.
She wore a black sequined slip dress that sparkled under the bar’s lights. Her ample chest was on full display, drawing the attention of nearly every man in the bar. They stared at her like predators eyeing their prey.
But Vivienne’s gaze was fixed in our direction.
“Of course. You can do whatever you want,” Kael said nonchalantly, downing his drink in one gulp.
“She’s a werewolf too. I can’t beat her,” I said, shaking my head.
“If you unlock your potential, I think you could. You’d be stronger than her,” Kael said, his gaze filled with meaning.
I glared at him, annoyed.
He was always like this, trying to provoke me into unleashing my potential. Was he so certain I was a werewolf?
Even if I might be, I didn’t dare imagine it.
The thought of my body being like theirs, of turning into a wolf-it was horrifying. I couldn’t accept it.
“Don’t look at me like that, Seraphina. I might really think you want to awaken the wolf inside you. Maybe I can help,” Kael teased.
“Stop joking!” I snapped, growing agitated. “No, I just want to be an ordinary human.”
“Then you need to be prepared. Lately, so many werewolves have been targeting you, and the town has been getting more dangerous. Awakening your potential might be the best way to protect yourself.”
I took a sip of my drink, refusing to discuss it further.
I didn’t want to end up like Lucian, unaware of the harm I could cause to others.
Vivienne was still staring in our direction. I quickly changed the subject.
“Vivienne’s watching us. Aren’t you going to respond to her?”
“No. But if you want me to, I can, for your sake,” Kael said with a shrug, clearly uninterested in her.
Vivienne’s gaze turned venomous. When I met her eyes, she quickly looked away, her expression full of disdain.
What a terrifying woman. She could sleep with someone else’s boyfriend, but the moment the man she liked showed interest in me, she hated me.
It was as if she believed every man in the world should be hers.
We kept drinking for hours, until I was dizzy and lightheaded. Kael wrapped an arm around me and led me out of the bar.
Leaning against him, I felt the warmth of his embrace and nuzzled my head against him.
I had to admit, his arms were broad and comforting, making me feel safe.
The more time I spent with him, the more at ease I felt-more than I ever had with Lucian.
Being with Kael felt freeing, like I could do anything, and he’d always have my back.
With Lucian, it had been different. I’d walked on eggshells, constantly trying to maintain our relationship. Whatever Lucian said, I obeyed.
But now, in this moment, I said to Kael, “Kael, can you carry me? I can’t walk anymore.”
Without hesitation, Kael lifted me onto his back.
I rested against him, feeling the solid strength of his muscles. His broad shoulders gave me an endless sense of security.
It was this feeling-being by his side-that made me unafraid of anything. Whatever troubles came my way, I knew he’d handle them.
Unable to resist, I leaned down and kissed the back of his neck.
Kael’s body stiffened slightly.
“Seraphina, if you keep doing that, I might just take you to my apartment,” he said.