Page 43 of Holiday Surprise

I stood there in shock grabbing at my chest and trying to breathe as I watched him drive away. We may be mated, but the sting of rejection hadn’t lessened any.

I had faced rejection with Thomas the day he told me about Lily, and I knew I could never compete with his true mate. In some ways it had sucked further because I had already really liked Lily. That had been a terrible day and hurt like hell. Apparently, I had no idea what I was talking about, because that was nothing compared to the physical pain I felt watching Luke dismiss me and then walk away.

I wasn’t certain how long I stood there, just staring out in the direction he had gone. Eventually I turned and walked inside the house.

Chasity and several of the other teens were hanging out in the dining room playing a board game.

“This is boring,” someone whined.

When they took notice of my presence, they all stopped talking and looked at me instead.

“Um, hi. How’s it going?” I asked awkwardly. My question was only answered with silent shrugs. “Chasity, can I have a word with you?” I asked.

A couple of people made sounds reminiscent of kids being obnoxious when someone was in trouble or sent to the principal’s office back in my school days.

Chasity rose and walked over to me.

“Did I do something wrong, Sydney? Am I in trouble?” she asked.

“No, not at all.”

“Oh, okay. What did you need?”

I smiled at her trying to look perfectly normal even while I was still feeling overcome by emotions from Luke’s rejection.

“I have a store, in town,” I blurted awkwardly.

“Peyton’s told me about it. Apparently, it is the chicest place around. I hope to see it for myself someday.”

I started to relax and genuinely smiled this time. “How about today?”

“Wait, are you serious?”

“Yes, and if you’re interested, I’d like to hire you to work there for the rest of your break, and maybe even a little after school and on weekends after that as long as your grades don’t suffer. What do you think?”

“Yes!” she squealed. “Yes, yes, a million times yes!”

She surprised me when her arms wound around my neck and she hugged me tightly.

“I don’t know, I thought you’d be a little more excited about the opportunity,” I teased.

She blushed and laughed. “Sorry, it’s just the first truly good news I’ve had in days. When can I start?”

“How about now?”

“Okay, let me grab my purse. I’m ready.”

“Do you have a car?” I asked.

“Yes, I do,” she admitted.

“Great, because I have a few errands to run, so if you don’t mind, I’ll give you directions and you can head on over. Lily is there and volunteered to start your training.”

“Lily? You don’t mean Collier Pack Mother, do you?”

I nodded. “The one and only. I promise you will love her.”

“This is the coolest day ever,” she said dramatically. “You can count on me, Sydney.”

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