Engaging Evelyn (Blissful Bets #1)

by Alaska Angelini

  Stephen huffed. “I can’t believe she would do this. It doesn’t sound like the same Evelyn I know.”

  “Knew,” Brandon corrected. “You don’t know her anymore, Stephen. She’s completely different from how she was when you were both together. Trust me, I saw everything. Listen, go to work and I’ll be here watching over her until you come back…if you come back.”

  “I’ll be back. Keep your hands off her or I’ll break them. Do you hear me? Just because we share Evelyn in common doesn’t mean we’re friends.”

  Brandon laughed. “Yeah, yeah, go to work, cub.”

  “Quit being a smart-ass and calling me that damn name. I’ll be back,” Stephen said, shutting the door behind him.

  The thudding of the stairs was a loud echo in Brandon’s ears. When he was sure Stephen was gone, he opened his phone and hit Taylor’s number. It was time he told him what was going on.

  * * * *

  Stephen got into his cruiser and sat there quietly for a few minutes. The game Evelyn was playing was a ticking time bomb. What happened when she pissed off the wrong guy? What happened if she was attacked? Had she lost her damn mind?

  This was all his fault. How had he let things get this bad? Breaking off the engagement with Evelyn was supposed to protect her, not put her in more danger. He had never expected Sheila to take two years to accept her change.

  Ayden had made him promise, had ordered and trusted him, to make sure she got better. Sheila wouldn’t let Ayden anywhere near her, not after she had found out her own brother gave her lycanthropy. It had been a freak accident, but Sheila didn’t care. She hated what she had become.

  The cruiser came to life as Stephen started the car, and he pulled out of the parking lot.

  His thoughts took over while he headed to the station.

  Evelyn was never supposed to find out what he was until he could win her back and explain things his own way. She needed to be eased into the situation. The way she had acted, as if the news of what they were didn’t bother her, was amazing. Stephen could feel how scared she was through the bond, and he hated that she feared him. This time, he would find a way to break it to her where she would understand.

  Rubbing his eyes, he tried to fit the pieces together. Never had he thought anything remotely like this was going to happen. A freaking vampire of all things. When had they come to town? Brandon knew about Ayden, so he had to have been here for a while, but why? Vampires traveled. They did not usually stay in one place for more than a week or two.

  Stephen smiled as he took Brandon’s wallet out of his pocket. He was betting his name wasn’t even his real one, but it wouldn’t stop him from seeing what was on his file.

  The wallet fell open, and he read the Texas driver’s license, Brandon Charles De La Cruz.

  “Yeah, right.” Stephen laughed. “Austin, interesting. What is he doing down here, I wonder?”

  Well, it was time he found out. Brandon De La Cruz was going to get checked out very thoroughly, and Stephen was certain that his record was going to be squeaky clean.

  Chapter 13

  Evelyn yawned and stretched, feeling completely refreshed. Wow, she must have slept very well. The thoughts of Bill swamped her mind and she smiled, remembering how his hair had curled around her finger. She hoped she would get to see him again.

  Light flickered as Evelyn blinked her eyes open. A hoarse scream came out of her throat at seeing two men standing at the end of her bed. Rubbing her eyes, she watched them come into focus.

  “Brandon…Stephen? What in the hell is going on?”

  The surprise of seeing Stephen after all this time was confusing. She always expected to feel excited or sad, but as strange as it was, she just felt shocked. He looked good, tired, but very good. The flutter of her heart made her smile. Why wasn’t she angry at seeing him? Could she actually be happy at the sight of him? Surely not.

  “We were just checking on you. Brandon found you passed out in your car yesterday and he called the station. I was the one who showed up. You woke up, though, twice…” Stephen said, looking over at Brandon. “We knew you would be okay. We just had to make sure.”

  Evelyn squinted, trying to remember. All right, she had had amazing sex with Bill, and then she had left, and then what?

  “I don’t remember coming home from…” She looked up at them and thought, What the hell, what’s the point of lying? “From Bill’s.”

  “Is Bill your boyfriend?” Stephen asked, pulling out a notebook. Brandon and Evelyn both looked at him.

  “I don’t see how that is any of your concern, Stephen,” Evelyn said, confused.

  Stephen just looked up from the pad of paper and looked back down, scribbling against the sheet. Evelyn wondered what in the hell he was doing. What could he possibly be writing?

  “Evelyn, you could have been slipped some kind of illegal drug. I just want to talk to this guy to make sure both of your stories match up.”

  Laughter floated out of Evelyn’s mouth. “Oh, Stephen, no one drugged me.” She barely got the words out. Then her laughter died. Had she been drugged? Is that why she couldn’t remember? Bill hadn’t given her anything, but had someone the night before given her something? She was missing bits and pieces of that night, too.

  “Oh my God, Stephen you might be right. I can’t remember the night before either. I went out. Brandon, you were there. Was I acting weird that you remember?”

  Brandon looked over at Stephen for a split-second. Evelyn was sure that she saw him whisper, but there was no way he said anything she could hear.

  “Well, you did pass out right before we finished, but you were very passionate. I guess it’s possible you were on something, but I doubt it. I think you were just drunk,” Brandon said, glaring at Stephen.

  “So what was Bill’s full name and where can I find him?” Stephen gave her his serious cop expression. She wanted to smile. So many times she’d seen him use that face on other people. It was odd that he was now using it on her.

  Evelyn searched her mind. “I don’t know his last name. Truthfully, I didn’t think to ask.

  Well, I didn’t care to, actually. His location…well, he’s on a plane, back to Houston.

  “Really?” Stephen began writing down her response. “Well, what was the hotel you were staying at? I’ll get his information at the front desk.”

  Evelyn once again searched her mind. She had been there plenty of times, and yet the name wouldn’t come to her. “Shit,” she said heavily. “I don’t know. I can’t remember. What is happening to me? It’s the one closest to the ferry. It’s…it’s…”

  “No need, Evelyn. I know which one you’re talking about. Do you need me to get you anything?” Stephen walked to the bed and sat on the edge.

  She looked into his eyes deeply, searching for the feelings that had led to her heartache the last two years. It had been there, hadn’t it? Why did she feel so light?

  “I’m fine, Stephen. Remarkably so, it seems. How have you been? Good, I hope?” Evelyn grabbed his hand. Her heart leaped at the touch, but not with pain, with excitement. Had she hit her head? Why was she so happy to see him?

  “All right, I guess.” He gave her a puzzled look and glanced at Brandon.

  “And Sheila, how is she?” Evelyn asked, waiting for the ache to come. It didn’t.

  “Last I heard she was fine. We’re no longer together. She got her own place two months

  ago.”

  “Really? I’m sorry to hear things didn’t work out. I know how much you loved her.”

  Evelyn gave his hand a squeeze trying to show her support. Hadn’t she gone through so much pain over him? Even if he had hurt her, she didn’t wish that on anyone.

  “Evelyn…”

  Stephen’s eyes held so much emotion. She took in a long, ragged breath. At the unidentified look that covered his face, a stabbing appeared in her chest. The pain was still there. She could feel it, hidden behind something. Great, and to think she had gotten lucky. Nope,
not her.

  “Stephen, don’t. Everything will be okay. I promise. If you would have asked me that yesterday, I probably would have said love was the worst thing imaginable, but you’ll get over it. See, I’m fine.” Evelyn almost choked on her words. The damn stabbing punctured her chest again. She wanted to scream, Damn it, go away.

  Evelyn quickly climbed off the bed and noticed that she was in her nightgown. “Who changed me?” She looked back and forth between them. Did she really want to know?

  “I did. I hope you don’t mind. I wanted you to be comfortable,” Brandon said, looking down.

  “Thank you, both of you, for everything. If you both don’t mind, I need to jump in the shower and get dressed. There’s something I have to do today. I’m supposed to…” Evelyn trailed off, not remembering. Everything had suddenly gone blank, like that part of her mind had been wiped clean.

  “I’m supposed to…damn it! I can’t remember. Sarah should know. I’ll call her. If you two want, you can both wait in the living room. I’d love to catch up on more that I’ve missed. I just really feel like I should get clean.”

  “Take your time, we’ll be here when you get out,” Stephen said, walking out of the room. He still looked upset. Evelyn’s heart sank. Oh well, she wouldn’t think about that right now. She obviously didn’t get to shower after Bill. Ugh, she felt dirty.

  Brandon walked out the door, and she grabbed a pair of jeans, a T-shirt, and a clean set of matching undergarments. With the water turned as hot as she could get it, she didn’t waste any time scrubbing herself clean with her body soap.

  Pink flowers on the designer bottle caught her attention and she read the words on the front. Cherry blossoms with almond extract. Something in her memory tugged. Why was it so imperative for her to remember what type of soap she used? She couldn’t quit staring at the label. Captivated, she reread it over and over.

  The smell circulated around her, clouding the steamy restroom, and still her mind pulled at a reason why the words on the bottle were so important. “Cherry blossoms and almond extract…”

  Had someone said something about her soap? She felt like they had. Was it the same person who drugged her? Had she been drugged? Fuck, Evelyn wished she could remember.

  The soap trailed down her back while she washed out her shampoo. The feel of Brandon caressing her brought a moan. From what she could remember, he had been amazing. She was definitely going to have to break her rules and “make love” to him again. That was just an offer too good for her to pass up.

  * * * *

  Brandon paced the living room nervously. “Drugged? Are you serious, Stephen? You couldn’t have come up with something other than that? And what the hell were you writing down?”

  “Bill’s information, that’s what the hell I was writing down. It wouldn’t hurt to make sure the guy’s not a wanted serial killer or rapist,” Stephen snapped.

  “She seems a lot better, don’t you think?” Brandon stopped long enough to look over at Stephen lounging on the couch.

  “Yeah, she seems happy,” Stephen whispered. “So do you think it worked?”

  Brandon gave up pacing to go sit down on the couch, too. “I don’t know, we’ll have to see. She’s better than I thought she was going be. I’m not sure I like it so much. Evelyn’s memories are gone, but I’m not a miracle worker. She should be feeling something.”

  The water from the shower turned off, and the guys looked at each other. With Brandon sensitive to sound he could hear almost all of her movement from the next room. He didn’t doubt Stephen could hear the same thing.

  “So what now,” Stephen asked wearily.

  “Now we wait until she kicks us out, or you’re free to leave now if you want. I’ll stay with her as long as she allows it. She’s probably hungry. You feel like eating?” Brandon asked. Even though he didn’t eat much human food, he still could enjoy some of it. It might not be very appetizing, but it was more habit than anything.

  “I’m fucking starving. I feel like steak. What do you think?” Stephen looked toward him, but before Brandon could answer, footsteps against the carpet grabbed his attention.

  “Mmm, that sounds great. I’m starving too. How about we all go to lunch?” Evelyn said, walking in and drying her hair with a towel.

  “You do owe me so I guess we’ll call this even.” Brandon said, laughing.

  “That’s right, I remember.” Evelyn laughed. “I believe I rejected you, repeatedly if I’m not mistaken.”

  “You’re absolutely right. You did.” Brandon looked at how beautiful she appeared without any makeup. Not very many women could look just as good with or without, but she could. Her skin was flawless. Everything about her made him want to gravitate toward her, if not to touch her, then to at least be closer to her presence.

  Evelyn reached for her black flip-flops by the front door. Watching her slide them on, he noticed her pause. She stood rooted to the floor, her mouth slightly parted. Brandon could feel panic start to take over while he waited for her to do or say something.

  “What’s wrong,” Stephen asked, walking up to her. Concern was etched on his face.

  The way she shook her head back and forth gave him the impression that she was confused. “I don’t know. The smell of my soap and the words on my bottle, they keep playing over and over in my mind. I think someone mentioned it. Maybe they liked it. I’m not sure. I can’t remember. I just keep hearing cherry blossoms and almond extract, repeatedly. The words want to follow, but they won’t come.”

  Brandon cleared his throat. “So whose car? I’d say mine, but I don’t see how three of us are going to fit in a two-seater. What are you driving, Stephen?”

  “Cruiser. My car’s at the house,” he said quietly.

  “My car it is.” Evelyn fished her keys out from her purse. “Maybe I shouldn’t drive. Here, Stephen, you drive.” Evelyn handed her keys over. “Brandon can sit in the back for trying to sidetrack me, and he can kindly explain why in the world he tried to distract me from not remembering about the soap.”

  Brandon opened his mouth and then closed it. “Fuck, all right. I said the information about the soap. Once I tell you this, you will remember.” Brandon kept eye contact with her while he approached.

  “Think back to when we were on our way home from the bar. You told me to tell you something that I wouldn’t know. I told you…” Brandon looked over at Stephen, who was paying extra attention. “I told you,” he started over, “that you weren’t wearing any panties, that your soap was cherry blossoms with almond extract, and…”

  He watched as Evelyn’s face transformed. The memory Brandon had just placed back in her head was one he really didn’t want there. It was what had started her doubt in the first place. Well, shit. Not much he could do now. It was better than her searching for something that wasn’t there. But if she had recalled the soap, what else would she recall?

  “You said I was ovulating. I slammed on the brakes. I remember!” She laughed. Then her smile twisted slightly. “That was really creepy, you know? You shouldn’t joke around like that. I was sure you weren’t real. Wow, I was really drunk, wasn’t I.”

  “I would have thought the same thing,” Stephen said, glaring at Brandon, who just smiled back at him. “Shall we go eat?” He held the door open for Evelyn.

  Giving Stephen a smile, he watched Evelyn walk out into the salty sea air. The waves could be heard crashing even from the second-floor walkway. It was windier than usual. There was definitely a chill in the air, too.

  He tried not to think of the consequences for what he’d done as they headed for the parking lot. If he knew one thing it was that locking someone’s memory wasn’t always permanent. But hopefully they could reach some sort of a conclusion before things backfired in all of their faces.

  Chapter 14

  Two weeks had gone by without anything significant happening. Evelyn looked down at her watch and went back to surfing the Web on her office computer. In ten minutes, she’d be a
ble to leave. Office duty had been hers this week, and she had to admit that this was the part she hated the most about her job. It was so boring, sitting here waiting for someone to come by.

  Sure, they had a receptionist to lock up, but she was the one who took calls if anyone was interested to know the price of a certain property. The only time she got to leave was at lunch, whoopee big fucking deal. One hour out of the nine.

  “Evelyn, don’t look so depressed,” Sarah said, walking over to her desk. Her stilettos clicked on the tile as she approached.

  “Thank God. I thought I was going to go crazy. Where has everyone been today? You didn’t even call me once.” Evelyn glared playfully at her friend.

  “Sorry, there was this cute little dish I had to shag before I started the weekend off. Now what’s this I hear about you hiding Stephen out in your apartment? Are you seriously talking to him again after everything he put you through?”

  Evelyn felt the sharp stab of pain in her chest. That damn feeling was happening more frequently the last two days. “I’m not hiding him out. We all watch movies at night. I forgive him. He’s going through something similar at the moment. Sheila and Stephen broke it off, and he’s upset. I know how that feels.”

  “Personally, I think you’ve lost your damn mind. I would have booted his ass right out of my house.” Sarah paused. “Wait, who is ‘we all’?” Her friend narrowed her eyes.

  Evelyn blushed. “Brandon. He’s here until right after spring break, so he says. He’s really funny, actually.”

  Sarah mouth parted. “He is such a hunk. And…so interested in you, I might add. I couldn’t even catch his attention that night in the bar. He watched you like a hawk. I don’t even think he blinked once. I thought you liked Paul, though. Whatever happened to him?”

  Evelyn searched her memories. “Oh, him. He was hot, but something about him told me to back off. I don’t know. It was weird.”