Chapter 17
Elena's POV
"Elena?" Lila's voice gentled. "Talk to me."
"I'm fine." My voice sounded dead even to my own ears.
"Bullshit."
I met her eyes. She wasn't excited anymore. Just worried.
Then she asked the question.
"You said you have someone you like. Was that true?"
My heart stuttered.
A face flashed through my mind: tall, cold, amber-gold eyes burning in the dark. The way he'd held me in the snowstorm.
"I don't know," I whispered.
Maybe it was just impulse. Something I said to hurt Damon.
Right?
Lila studied me for a long moment, then sighed. "You need a drink."
"What?"
"You need to get out of your head." She stood, pulling me up with her. "We're going to a bar tonight. You're going to drink and forget about that asshole."
I hesitated. I'd never been to a bar. Never had hard liquor.
But God, I wanted to disappear. Just for one night.
"Okay."
---
Evening. District 9.
The Glitch Bar's neon sign flickered purple and blue against the night snow. Electronic music thumped from inside, so loud I felt it in my chest.
Lila pulled me past the door. The bouncer—massive, scarred—gave us a long look before nodding us through.
He knows. This wasn't just any bar.
The door opened. Sound and light crashed over me like a wave.
The dance floor writhed with bodies. Some had eyes that glowed faintly in the dark.
The air was thick with scents:
Musk. Leather. Sweat. Alcohol.
And underneath—pheromones. Too many, all tangled together.
My stomach churned.
"Come on!" Lila dragged me deeper inside. She couldn't smell what I could.
We found a booth in a quieter corner. I looked down at myself: no makeup, plain sweater, jeans. Around us, girls wore heavy eyeliner and backless dresses.
"We shouldn't be here."
"Relax!" Lila was already flagging down a server. "Tonight you're free!"
Two whiskeys appeared. Amber liquid in short glasses.
I stared at mine, pulse racing.
Lila raised hers. "To Elena's new life! To dumping that asshole!"
I clinked my glass against hers. Lifted it to my lips.
The first sip burned.
Fire down my throat, into my stomach. I squeezed my eyes shut, coughing.
What the hell?
Heat flooded my body. My heart raced. The room started to blur at the edges.
"First sip's rough!" Lila laughed. "It gets easier."
I took another drink. Then another.
The world tilted sideways. For a moment, I escaped the pain that had been tearing at me.
---
My phone vibrated.
I answered without checking.
"Elena. Where are you?" Damon's voice. Sharp with barely controlled anger.
He heard the music immediately.
"Are you at a bar?!"
My tongue felt thick. "None of your business."
"Who are you with? Lila? Or that guy—"
"Doesn't matter."
"The hell it doesn't!" His voice rose. "Do you know how dangerous—you can't handle alcohol, you don't know—"
"You take Scarlett to bars." The words fell out of my mouth. "How come that's not dangerous?"
Silence.
"That's different. Scarlett knows how to protect herself—"
"So you think I'm stupid?"
"I didn't—Elena, just tell me which bar. I'll come get you right now."
I shook my head. "No."
"Elena—"
I hung up.
Then turned off my phone.
Lila smiled at me. "My girl. Well done."
I drained the rest of my whiskey in one gulp.
The alcohol hit hard. My consciousness started to dissolve.
Something else woke up underneath.
---
I stood. Lila was saying something, but I couldn't hear her over the music.
The beat pulsed like a heartbeat. Calling me.
I walked onto the dance floor and closed my eyes.
Free.
My body moved on instinct. The rhythm took over. All the pain, the pressure, the expectations—melting away.
I didn't notice the males circling closer. My scent drawing them in.
Just as I was lost in my own world, a hand caught my wrist. Strong. Unyielding.
I opened my eyes.
Blurry vision. But I'd know that silhouette anywhere.
Tall. Broad. Eyes glowing amber-gold in the strobing lights.
Caleb.
His scent slammed into me: ice and cedarwood and smoke and something wild underneath.
My heart kicked into overdrive. Breath coming fast.
He didn't speak. Just pulled me by the wrist, away from the dance floor.
The males who'd been circling retreated when he arrived. They realized something.
---
Caleb brought me to a VIP booth. Quiet. Private.
His hand on my shoulder pushed me down onto the seat.
"Why are you here?" Low voice. Controlled. But those eyes burned.
I looked up at him, everything spinning.
"Damon's a liar." My words slurred together. "I was so stupid... believed him for so long..."
Tears started falling.
"Our grandfathers made the Blood Pact. Father said I'd be Damon's mate too. I accepted it. I thought Damon accepted it too." My voice broke. "But he betrayed me. If he didn't want me, why didn't he refuse from the start?"
Caleb's fingers tightened on the back of the booth. I could see him fighting something.
"I rejected him today," I continued. "Thought it would make me feel better. It just made me feel pathetic."
I leaned closer without thinking. "Why aren't you saying anything?"
His throat worked. But no sound came out.
He was holding something back. The tension coiled in every muscle. The way his eyes kept flickering gold.
Then I did something I'd never done before.
I buried my face against his neck.
And breathed him in.
My nose traced along his pulse point. Warm skin. Racing heartbeat underneath.
He smells so good.
I nuzzled deeper, lips brushing his throat.
Caleb went completely rigid.
Something sharp grazed my cheek—fangs. His canines had extended.
"Elena." Barely human anymore. "You're drunk."
"So?"
My wolf was driving now. And she knew exactly what she wanted.
Him.
I reached for the whiskey glass on the table.
Caleb's hand shot out, covering mine. "No more."
"Let go."
"No."
We struggled. The glass tipped—
Whiskey splashed across my chest.
Cold liquid soaked through my white sweater, making it cling.
I looked down, confused. "The drink's gone."
Caleb's gaze snapped away like I'd burned him. His jaw clenched so hard I heard teeth grinding.
He shrugged off his black coat and wrapped it around me.
"Don't want it." I tried to push it away. My body was on fire. "Too hot."
He pulled the coat tight around my shoulders, face very close now. "Stop fighting me."
Our eyes locked.
Gray meeting amber-gold.
I saw it—the razor's edge of his control. One more second and he'd break.
"Please," he said quietly. "Be good."
Something in his voice made me go still.
He pulled back, breathing hard. Put distance between us.
If I stay here one more second, I'll do something I can't take back.
He stood abruptly. "I'm taking you home."
But I didn't want to go home.