One Night
One Night 90

Chapter 90

Audrey

As soon as the stranger’s lips met mine, my first instinct was to pish him away. Who did he think he was, kissing me like that in front of everyone!

But as the kiss lingered, something familiar washed over me. The warmth, the pressure, the taste… I knew these lips. My body relaxed involuntarily and my wide eyes fluttered closed, my muscles melting into his embrace as the rest of the world around us faded away into nothingness.

Yes. I knew these lips. Edwin’s lips.

The kiss was deep and passionate, the sensation of his tongue gently pushing into my mouth sending the most delightful shiver down my spine. His warm hand came up to cup the back of my neck, his fingers gently tangling in my hair.

For a moment, I forgot where we were, who we were, too lost in the sensation to notice anything else in the entire world. I didn’t know left from right, up from down, east from west. I just knew, somehow, that it felt right-like coming home after a long journey or feeling the sun on your face for the first time in far too long.

But then, all too soon, it was over-just like that

The strange man-no, Edwin, I was sure of it now-set me back on my feet, and by the time I opened my eyes, he was gone, disappearing into the sea of masks and glittering gowns like a shadow on the wall.

Audrey!” the sound of Tina’s voice cut through my daze, “Oh my Goddess, are you okay? Who was that?”

I blinked as I struggled to clear the fog from my head. I hadn’t realized it, but the winners’ dance was over. My friends had swarmed around me, their faces a dizzying combination of concern, excitement, and confusion. The orchestra was playing an upbeat piece now, but I could feel the eyes of the other partygoers on me, too intrigued by whatever had just happened to pay attention to themselves.

“L.. I’m fine,” I managed, still scanning the crowd for any sign of the mysterious man in the blue mask. Edwin. It had to be Edwin. But how! Why was he here?

“That was so romantic!” Betty gushed, grabbing my arm. “Like something out of a movie! Was that tongue? It looked like there was tongue!”

I felt my checks burn at her insinuation. “Betty!” I hissed, my face likely as bright as a ripe tomato.

Gavin stood off to the side with an unreadable expression on his face, although I could sense that seeing me kiss someone else likely stung for him, even if only a little.

“Are you sure you’re alright?” he asked, c**g his head. “That seemed pretty… intense.”

I nodded, forcing a smile. “Yeah, I’m fine. Really.”

Avis raised an eyebrow. “That was hot. Did you know him?”

I shook my head, hating the lie even as it left my lips. “No, I…” I thought quickly, then came to a decision. “It wasn’t a real kiss. We were just pretending, you know… For the showmanship of it all.”

My friends blinked at me, clearly grappling with whether to believe my lie. But if it was Edwin, I didn’t exactly want to broadcast what had just happened; so I kept my face stony.

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Chapter 90

“Well, it worked, Tina finally laughed, fanning herself dramatically. “It looked so real.”

“It’s definitely gonna wind up on social media come morning. Betty giggled.

Great. I thought to myself. That was just what I needed-to go viral kissing a stranger at a masquerade ball. More unwanted attention. Couldn’t I just have one good party without any drama?

“You should replace him!” Avis suddenly insisted, practically bouncing with excitement. “Get his number or something. He seemed like a real gentleman, sweeping you off your feet like that. Even if it was fake.”

1 hesitated, tom between the desire to chase after Edwin and the knowledge that I shouldn’t. If it really was him, why had he run off? And if i wasn’t… Well, that was a whole other problem. Because I certainly liked kissing him.

“I don’t know.” I said, biting my lip.

“Come on,” Tina urged, giving me a gentle push. “Go after him.” She lowered her voice then: “You could use a distraction from you-know-who.”

I almost scoffed out loud at that. But, seeing that there was no way out from beneath the weight of peer pressure, I nodded. If anything, I just needed to replace a quiet place to get some air. And if it was Edwin, then we needed to talk. “Okay, okay. I’ll go look for him”

“That’s my girl.” Tina grinned. “Go get your Prince Charming!”

Shaking my head. I slipped away from my friends and followed the direction I thought I had seen Edwin disappear. I found a small door toward the back of the ballroom, which was slightly open. Glancing over my shoulder to make sure security wasn’t watching. I pushed through the door and shut it behind me

The noise of the party instantly became m**d once the door was shut, and I found myself in a hallway that was lit only by a few faux torches on the walls.

Sighing, I smoothed down the front of my dress and began making my way down the corridor. The plush carpet m**d my footsteps, and the dim lighting cast eerie shadows on the ornate wallpaper, but it was nice to get away from the

excitement for a minute or two.

“Edwin?” I called out softly, not wanting to draw attention from any other partygoers who might be wandering around. “Are you here?”

The halls were eerily quiet, the only sound that of my own ragged breathing and the rustle of my dress. I was about to turn back when I heard something that made my blood run cold.

low, menacing growl.

turned slowly, my heart pounding in my chest. There, at the end of the hallway, stood a small gray wolf. Its fangs were ared, its eyes glowing yellow in the dim light.

This wasn’t a costume or a trick of the light-this was a real, shifted werewolf.

for a moment, I stood frozen in terror. Then, as the wolf took a step forward, its claws clicking against the hardwood floor, nd its hideous face came into view of the light instinct kicked in.

ΓΑΠ.

My heels clacked against the floor as I raced through the maze-like corridors. I could hear the wolf behind me, its heavy reathing and the scrape of its claws getting closer and closer with each step.

Chapter 90

Π

“Help!” I screamed, hoping someone, anyone, would hear me. But the sounds of the party were far away now, and my cries echoed unanswered through the empty halls. “Somebody, please!”

I turned corner after corner in a flurry of green skirts, getting more and more lost with each one. The mansion seemed to go on forever, a labyrinth of identical hallways and locked doors.

way

Somewhere, at some point, my mask flew off of my head and was left abandoned, but I hardly noticed. All I felt was the that my lungs burned and my legs ached, but I didn’t dare slow down. The growls behind me were getting closer, and every so often, I could practically feel the wolf nipping at my heels before it would case back and give me some lead-as if it were toying with me.

Finally, I rounded a corner and found myself facing a dead end. Casping, I practically barrelled all the way to the end and peered out the large window, pressing my hands to the glass-it overlooked the moonlit gardens, but it was far too high to jump.

I was trapped.

Whimpering, I spun around and pressed my back against the window as the gray wolf appeared around the corner, stalking toward me with a low growl.

This was it. As a human, I was powerless against a shifted wolf. Tears streamed down my face as I closed my eyes, waiting for

the inevitable.

In that moment, I thought of my mother, my friends, and… Edwin. I wished I’d had the chance to tell him how I felt. How I really felt.

But instead of feeling fangs tear into me, I heard an ear-splitting growl and the sound of bodies colliding. Snarls and yelps filled the air, followed by a pained whimper mere moments later. Only then did I finally rip my eyes open to see the gray wolf skittering away with blood dripping from its leg.

And there, with the gray wolf’s blood staining its teeth, was the most enormous black wolf I had ever seen.

For the longest moment, the black wolf just stood there, panting heavily, its sides heaving with each breath. I pressed myself harder up against the glass behind me, my eyes darting around for any chance of escape, but there was none; the black wolf practically took up the entire width of the hallway

could only stand there, trembling, as the black wolf slowly turned to face me. For a moment, I feared it might oo. But then, before my eyes, it began to change.

attack me

The transformation was both beautiful and terrifying to watch. The fur receded, the snout shortened, and limbs elongated. na matter of seconds, where the wolf had stood, a man now crouched.

.very familiar man in a blue mask.

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