Chapter 61

Judy’s POV

This kiss was like no other; my heart was racing in my chest. I never thought Walter could kiss like this, but here I was, practically floating in his arms while his lips conquered mine. Yet, the kiss was so familiar… it was almost like I was kissing Gavin.

Why was I thinking about Gavin yet again? It was like I couldn’t get that man out of my mind. When we broke apart, I breathed heavily. My cheeks were flushed, and my heart was racing at lightning speed.

I opened my mouth to say something to him, but he stepped away, his eyes wide and yet dark with lust.

“Walter—”

My words were cut off as he disappeared through the crowd, leaving me standing breathless and blushing. I was shocked that he left me there after such an incredible kiss. I reached my fingers to my lips, touching them. They were swollen and I’m sure they were probably red as well.

“Are you okay?” Irene asked as she paused next to me, she was looking in the same direction I was.

“I… uh…” I stammered, not sure how to respond. “Do you know where Walter is going?”

“Walter?” She asked with a frown before glancing over her shoulder at the table. “He just got back to the table.”

My entire body froze; what did she just say?

I slowly turned to see Walter saying something to Ethan as he took his seat, and his eyes scanned the area until he found me. A smile lit up his face and he waved me over to join him; I was taken aback. If that was Walter, then who just kissed me?

I looked back in the direction of that man, but he was long gone. My heart was racing, and my palms were sweating. A stranger just gave me one of the best kisses of my life, filled with passion and longing that I had never felt before… well, that’s a lie. I’ve felt it once before. I feel it whenever Gavin kisses me…

But that couldn’t have been Gavin. He wouldn’t kiss me in public like that. He had way more self-control and we both agreed that our night of passion should never happen again. We agreed that we had to pretend it never happened, so if that wasn’t Walter and it wasn’t Gavin, who was it?

“Your face is all red,” Walter said with a frown as I reached the table. “Is everything okay?”

I couldn’t tell him what had happened, so I nodded.

“Yes,” I answered, giving him a small smile. “I think I’m just a little tired.”

At this point, we had been here for a couple of hours and as much fun as it’s been, I was exhausted. I wasn’t used to this kind of thing and the alcohol was getting to my head a little.

“Here, have a sip of water,” Walter said, passing me a glass.

I smiled greatly at him and took some mouthfuls of water, sighing in contentment as the cold liquid soothed my dry throat.

“Thank you,” I said to him sweetly.

He stood to his feet and wrapped an arm around my waist, kissing my cheek softly. Even his scent was different than the man I was just kissing on the dance floor. My mind was whirling with confusion and my wolf was practically whimpering in my head. She wanted me to chase after that man and yet she was still conflicted and in pain over the fact that our mate was here with another woman. It was driving her crazy and in return, it was driving me crazy as well.

“How about we go outside,” he suggested. “There was something I wanted to talk to you about anyway.”

I nodded and let him take my hand; we said goodbye to Irene and ignored Ethan completely. He was glaring at me, and I wasn’t in the mood to deal with him right now. I walked with Walter towards the back door, and we stepped onto the back patio of the Gala Hall. It was a gorgeous night; the moon was a perfect crescent and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, making way for the most gorgeous display of stars I had ever seen. The air was a bit chilly, and I wrapped my arms around my body to keep warm.

I should have brought a coat, but I wasn’t really thinking about it when we left this evening. Walter took his suit coat off and wrapped it around my shoulders as if he could read my thoughts.

“Thanks,” I said to him.

“Of course,” he replied, keeping his arm around me and pulling me close to his side.

“It’s a beautiful night,” I told him, trying to make conversation to ease some of the awkwardness I was feeling around him.

“Not as beautiful as you,” he basically purred.

Wanting to change the subject, I cleared my throat and shimmied out of his embrace. I turned to face him, and he had a small frown on his lips.

“So, what did you want to talk about?” I asked him.

He lifted his mask over his face so I could actually look at him; I completely forgot that I had a mask on as well, so I took mine off and held it in my hands while I looked up at him. He looked nervous and I could tell he was internally trying to talk himself into something… or maybe out of it.

“Walter?” I asked after a long pause.

He blinked a few times and cleared his throat, meeting my eyes, he gave me a boyish smile.

“I like you, Judy,” he blurted out, making me raise my brows. “I really like you. I think I could potentially fall in love with you.”

My heart sank in my chest; any woman would love to hear those words, especially from Walter Landry. He was every woman’s eye candy, and I was so lucky to be in this position with him… but I didn’t feel the same way about him. I thought of him more like a friend than anything. But I truly did not want to hurt him.

“So, I wanted to ask you… if… you’d be my girlfriend,” he concluded, his eyes shining with hope and love. It made my stomach twist guiltily.

I twiddled with my fingers thinking about that kiss on the dance floor and the fact that I had sex with his uncle the other day. My cheeks flushed at the memory, and I bit my lower lip.

“Walter…” I said slowly, a sigh leaving my lips.

It was enough for him to know that this wasn’t going to be a good conversation and that I wasn’t giving him the answer he wanted. I watched as his face fell a little, but he remained silent so that I could continue.

“I think you’re a really great guy,” I told him, looking up to meet his eyes. “And any woman would be so lucky to have you. But I’m not really in a place to be seriously involved with anyone. As you already know, my fated mate is marrying another woman, and my wolf is messed up over it…”

“I’m not like him though,” Walter said, grabbing a hold of my arm, startling me. “I’m different than him. I would never hurt you. Just give it some time and you can grow to love me as can your wolf.”

I shook my head and tried to pull my hand away from him.

“Walter, you’re amazing and I’m so sorry. I don’t want to hurt you, but I just don’t feel the same way about you as you do for me. I tried… I truly did but—”

“Then try harder!” He exclaimed, his grip tightening. “We have fun together and we have amazing chemistry, Judy.”

“As friends,” I told him, trying to keep my tone under control so we wouldn’t draw any unwanted attention.

“That’s a lie and you know it!” He scolded me. “We fucking kissed!!”

“Please, let go of me. You’re hurting me,” I told him, struggling against his hold. His coat fell to the ground during the struggle and his grip only tightened around my forearm; I knew at this point it would leave a mark.

“You led me on! You made me believe there was a future,” he said through his teeth, anger flashing across his face. His eyes were wild; I had never seen that look in his eyes before and it made me nervous.

“Please, Walter…”

“You are nothing but a slut,” he growled. “I should have never put my trust in you! I should have never fallen for you. It’s no wonder Ethan left you for my cousin!”

Before I could stop myself, I slapped him across the face. He was so startled by the motion that he released me. I pulled away from him and stared at him with anger in my own eyes and a fire burning deep in my belly.

“Don’t you ever speak to me like that again, Walter. I’m sorry that I hurt you but that doesn’t give you the right to be a complete asshole!” I scolded him, pointing my finger in his face.

His resolve faded a bit, and I could see the remorse in his eyes as he ran his fingers through his hair.

“Look, you’re right. I’m sorry. I was out of line,” he murmured. “But I don’t understand why we can’t be together. I mean you came here as my date didn’t you? You let me kiss you multiple times tonight. And now you’re telling me you only see me as a friend? It doesn’t make any sense. Did something happen? I saw someone with you earlier today… is it because of him?”

My heart fell into my stomach.

He saw me with that guy earlier? Did he see us kissing? My face must have been enough of an answer because that fury was back in his eyes as he glared down at me.

“It is, isn’t it?” He asked in a growl. “Something happened between you two. Didn’t it?”

“Walter—”

He grabbed my arm again, this time even harder and I let out a distressed whimper.

“You truly are a slut!” He hissed. “I wish I never met you, Judy Montague!”

“Let me go!” I growled, my fight and flight activating. “You have no right to touch me like this! I don’t want to be with you, so just leave me alone—”

The sting in my cheek cut off my words and the taste of blood filled my mouth before I even realized what had happened. I stared up at him and saw the anger in his eyes and his own hand red from the impact.

He just slapped me across the face.