Page 35 of Engaging Evelyn (Blissful Bets)

Evelyn dropped his hand, stood, and walked away from the bed. “The only two men I’ve allowed in my life and you both betray me. Get out, both of you. I swear if either of you ever come to my door again, I’ll…” Evelyn’s voice trailed off. She couldn’t think of what else to say.

The shock of everything was beyond words. It was downright astounding. How could this have even happened? Everyone left the room but Nicole. She walked over very slowly, her face filled with sorrow.

“I’m sorry for what you’ve been through. If you need anything, anything at all, please call me. I’ve been where you are, believe it or not. I wasn’t parted from Ayden as long as you were from Stephen, but I know what it feels like. You see, Ayden and I have been through a lot. He left me also, for a reason at the time I didn’t know. Truthfully, I didn’t think I’d ever forgive him, but I did. I would love to tell you all about it one day, if you’re interested.”

“Thank you, Nicole. I’d like that,” Evelyn said, collapsing on the bed. Her energy seemed to drain completely out of her. The events of the day were too much for her body to take.

“Here’s my number.” Nicole handed her a business card. “I’m sorry, it’s the only thing I have with my cell phone number on it. I don’t live that far away, if you ever want to stop by. I’m sure Ayden and Trevor would love the company.”

“Thanks, Nicole. I’d love to. You know where I live, too, if you’re ever on the island.”

Both girls laughed at their situation. “I better get in the shower. I need to change. Stephen made a mess of my dress. Thank God the material clings to your skin or else I would be flashing everyone.”

“I’ll let you shower. Call me,” Nicole said, walking out of the room and shutting the door quietly.

Evelyn didn’t move for a long time. Everything circled around her mind. She’d been mated to a werewolf, lied to by a vampire, and bitten by both. What in the hell else could happen?

Chapter 17

The month of March was officially almost over and, with it, spring break. Brandon was still her neighbor, although she’d tried to avoid him as much as possible so she could get her thoughts together.

When Stephen wasn’t working, he was at Brandon’s and they usually sat outside drinking beer, watching her every move. She’d swear that a time or two, she had actually caught glimpses of them at the Martini Bar. But that of course was still debatable. It could have been she wished to see them and that’s why she had.

Marker four was the spot to be, so of course, she and the girls were all there. Markers numbered the beach as far as the eye could see. The younger crowd thought the cool thing to do was drive from marker one through twelve, showing off their big trucks and expensive sports cars. Of course, there was nothing impressive when the expensive cars continued to get stuck in the loose sand.

The sun beat down on Evelyn’s pale skin while she worked on getting a much-needed tan. She could hardly open her eyes, it was so bright. To make things worse, she had forgotten her sunglasses in her apartment. It wouldn’t take ten minutes to walk up there to get them, but dodging the cars was something she didn’t want to do.

The Bud Light can was warming in her hand. With it only being noon, she was already on her third one. Things were actually better than before. Bets was on hold until after spring break. Natalie was taking her spot. She’d told the girls that she was through.

Evelyn had plenty of time to think about what she wanted. Nicole was becoming a great friend. It seemed that if she wasn’t at work, she was hanging out with the trio, which was what she called the threesome. There wasn’t a movie they hadn’t watched together.

Ayden and Trevor had convinced her that if she was ever going to move on with her life, she needed to forgive Stephen. She did. He could have made better choices, but the past was the past, and she could do nothing about it. He’d tried to protect her. It had to be worth something.

As for Brandon, well, he was an altogether different story. Like her, he had made a type of pact. His was a favor, and hers was Bets. She couldn’t hold that against him. What she had done to Taylor had been rude. Well, all right, she was a complete and utter bitch. Karma was a grand thing.

Evelyn finished off her beer and grabbed another one from the Styrofoam ice-chest. Last one and she was done. Then she would proceed with her preparations.

“Sarah, so tell me again what everyone’s plan is for tonight?”

The platinum blonde sighed. “Really, Evelyn, you should pay more attention. First, it’s Essence. Then we head to Toxic, then Stingers, and last it’s the Martini Bar. Why are you asking? It’s not like you’re going. You have your own plan, remember? God, I still can’t believe you’re quitting Bets.”

“The only reason I ask is just in case I’m told to take a hike, I want to know where to go to get sympathy drinks. And I have to quit Bets. It’s time. Natalie will fill my shoes perfectly.”

“No one will fill your shoes. You have a record that will probably remain unbeatable. The only one you lost you reclaimed the following weekend, and that sucks. My record is nowhere near that. None of ours is. Well, Melissa is the closest, but that’s it. She’s only been denied three times total, and that’s because one of them was married.”

“Yes, well, Melissa is very good, but don’t underestimate Natalie. I’m telling you, there’s a wild side within her that’s going to blow you away.” Evelyn took a big drink of her ice-cold beer.

“And how do you know this,” Sarah asked skeptically.

Evelyn laughed. “The first time I met Natalie, we were both shopping at Victoria’s Secret. I watched three different guys approach her. All seemed to know her, if you know what I mean. Two of the guys even said hello to each other, and something passed between all three of them. Let’s just say she’s my kind of girl.”

“No way, that lucky bitch. I am so going to find me something like that. If you succeed in your plan, I think I’m going to have a whole new respect for you. You always pick the best- looking guys.”

Evelyn downed her beer. “Yeah, well, speaking of them, I need to go and get ready for the first stage of my plan. If I don’t show up to work on Monday then you all are allowed to call,” she said, loud enough to draw the attention of Melissa and Julie, who were huddled together whispering.

“No one is going to interrupt your weekend, Evelyn. This is big for you. Are you sure this is what you want?” Julie asked.

“There’s no doubt in my mind. It’s time.”

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