Chasing His Kickass Luna Back

#Chapter 93: A New Angle

Abby

I push open the door to the restaurant, the soft chime signaling my unexpected entrance. I feel the

weight of curious gazes on me—Daisy, Ethan, a few waiters. They’re all surprised to see me back so

early.

“Abby, what are you doing here?” Ethan asks, a mix of confusion and concern etching his face. “We

thought you weren’t supposed to be back from your vacation until tomorrow.”

“I just… wasn’t really feeling it,” I say, forcing a smile that probably looks more like a grimace. “I

decided to come back a little early.”

Ethan nods. Maybe he’s satisfied with my response, or maybe he just figures that it’s not his business.

But then my eyes lock with Chloe’s. The slight tilt of her head, the thin press of her lips—it all screams,

‘We need to talk.’

“As happy as I am to see you home early,” Chloe says, lowering her voice, “I think we should talk.

Now.”

As soon as we’re enclosed in the privacy of my dimly lit office, Chloe locks the door and turns to me

with an expression that’s a cross between a detective and a protective sister.

“Okay, start talking,” she says, folding her arms across her chest. “What happened?”

I let out an almost inaudible sigh, feeling the burden of the past few days settle on my shoulders. But

I’ve resolved not to tell her—or anyone, for that matter. It’s too embarrassing. “Nothing happened. I just

decided to come home early.”

Her eyebrows lift. “Oh yeah? Just got lonely on your ‘solo vacation’, hm?”

I give her a half-smile. “Yup.”

“Alright.” Chloe sits down, leaning her elbows on the desk. There’s an air of annoyance about her. “Tell

me the truth, Abby. All of it.”

Part of me wants to keep up the lie, but I know that it’s no use. Chloe has always been too intuitive to

believe my lies. Taking a deep breath, I start to recount the events—how Karl and I went back to our

old home, the dinner, the email, everything.

“You’re telling me he bribed Adam into leaving you?” Chloe’s voice sharpens, her eyes ablaze with a

sort of indignant fury on my behalf.

“Yes,” I say. “Adam is gay. But that’s besides the point…”

Chloe clenches her fists. “Right,” she says. “What really sucks is that Karl was going to bribe Adam to

leave you regardless of Adam’s orientation.”

“Yep,” I mutter, running a hand through my hair. “And I really thought that Karl was becoming a better

person, too.”

Chloe leans back, sighing as she pinches the bridge of her nose. “It’s just so… shitty, Abby. We’re both

fools for letting him manipulate us into thinking he’d changed.”

“No kidding.”

“So, what did he say when you confronted him?”

“He tried to justify it by saying that he could tell that Adam didn’t have the same feelings for me as I did

for him. That he was helping me in the long run by doing this in secret.”

Chloe scoffs. “He could have just talked to you. Told you about his suspicions.”

I shrug. “I’m not sure if I would have listened to him. But yeah, telling me about it would be something

that a normal person would do, wouldn’t it?”

There’s a moment of silence. Chloe looks both furious and incredibly sad at the same time, which is

exactly how I feel. That, and I feel like an utter idiot.

“Did he apologize?” she asks, her voice low.

I nod. “Yeah. But it’s not good enough right now.”

“Will it ever be good enough?” Chloe’s voice is softer now.

“I don’t know, Chloe,” I say, pacing across the room to stare out the window. “I really don’t know. Right

now, I’m leaning toward no. He’d have to beg for forgiveness, and even then…”

Chloe rises from her seat and comes around the desk to hug me. “And even then,” she continues, her

arms wrapping around me, “maybe you shouldn’t let him back in. This is it, Abby, This is the sign you

needed to remind yourself that he’s no good for you.”

I hug her back, finding a semblance of comfort in her words. But the fact of the matter is, it’s just not

that simple. I keep thinking back to my wolf’s sudden appearance and disappearance, and what she

had said to me. Part of me wants to mention that to Chloe. But for right now, I can’t.

Instead, I gently pull away and smile, grateful for my friend’s unwavering support. “Thanks, Chloe.

Thanks for listening to me.”

Chloe grins. “Hey, what else are friends for? And if he shows his face here again, I’ll be sure to give

him a piece of my mind.”

“Get in line,” I say, half-jokingly.

“So, what’s the plan now?” she asks, her tone shifting back to seriousness.

“Right now, my main priority is the restaurant,” I say.

“Good. Focus on yourself and your career, Abby. No one else; especially not men.”

I chuckle. “You’re right. No men. For now, I just need to focus on the cook-off.”

Chloe nods, a grin spreading across her lips. “You’re gonna win, Abby.”

…

Stepping out of the office, my thoughts still whirling, I make my way back to the kitchen. I tie my apron

back on, more to ground myself than anything else. The sizzle of pans and the aroma of cooked herbs

and spices fill the air, and for a moment, I feel normal. But just for a moment.

“Ah, Abby, there you are!” John greets me with a puzzled smile. “I thought you were off for another

day? And have you heard from Karl recently? When is he coming back?”

I suck in a breath, my stomach knotting. The mention of Karl’s name feels like a shard of glass to my

already bruised heart. “Uh, yeah. About that—Karl won’t be coming back to the restaurant.”

John’s eyes widen, visibly taken aback. “Really? But we were just starting to get a good rhythm going.

He was shaping up to be a solid apprentice, you know?”

“I didn’t realize,” I murmur, surprised that Karl was beginning to make such an impression here. It just

adds another layer of complication, another ripple effect of his betrayal. John was actually starting to

like him? I never saw that coming. John rarely takes a liking to people like that, especially not Karl.

“He had a good hand for sauces, and he picked up on the plating techniques faster than I’d expected,” Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

John continues, a note of genuine disappointment in his voice. “It’s a shame he won’t be back. I

could’ve used the extra pair of hands around here.”

“Yeah, it is a shame,” I say softly, my voice tinged with regret, not for the lost apprentice, but for the loss

of something even more, if things had been different. “Look, I’ll find you another cook to help out,

okay?”

John nods, looking a bit forlorn. “Alright, if you say so. Just hope the new one can keep up.”

“In the meantime…” I square my shoulders, feeling a rush of determination. “I’ll be working the line with

you.”

John’s eyes light up, a grin spreading across his face. “Well, well,” he says. “Looks like Boss Lady

Abby is back in business, huh? It’s like the old days.”

I can’t help but smile back. It’s been a while since I’ve consistently worked in the kitchen with John. And

as I slip behind the line and get to work, I make a decision.

Maybe my sous chef for the competition has been right here all along.