Rebirth: Love me Again

[

BONUS

Chapter

for reaching 200 PS! Thank you all!🤍]

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[EVE]

What the heck was he doing here?!

My shock must have been visible because George frowned and glanced behind him. "Who's this guy?"

Cole ignored him entirely, his eyes locking on mine as if I'd just been caught sneaking out past curfew.

I felt a pang of guilt for some reason.

"Who are you? You're not Franco," one of the guys asked, eyeing Cole suspiciously.

I clamped my lips shut, trying to think of an excuse for Cole, but then I realized something: I wasn't supposed to know who he was right now.

Instead, I settled on glaring at Cole, silently asking,

What on earth are you doing here?

But Cole, unbothered as always, casually replied to the question. "My name's Cole."

My heart did a little backflip. My mouth dropped open.

Did he seriously just give his name?

"Cole? Where's Franco?" the guy asked again, sounding both confused and irritated.

"He's . . .

indisposed

. So he asked me to take his place," Cole answered smoothly.

What did you do to Franco to get here?

I wanted to ask. Knowing Cole, he must have done something on the poor guy.

Then Cole turned to George, who was still seated across from me. "Scoot over," he said.

George frowned, looking both insulted and bewildered. "What? This is my seat. And she's my date."

The air in the room shifted, like someone had opened a freezer door, and Cole's presence grew heavier, his indifferent aura suddenly sharp and suffocating.

"Scoot. Over." His voice was calm, but there was an edge to it that could probably make even lions cower in fear.

George gulped audibly and immediately moved to an empty seat where Franco should have been. The icy tension evaporated just as quickly as it had appeared, leaving everyone unsure if they'd imagined it.

Cole, as if nothing had happened, slid into the seat across from me and casually poured himself some tea. He took a sip, looking completely at ease, like this was a weekly ritual.

Everyone at the table hesitated for a moment before conversations resumed, albeit with an undercurrent of confusion about the seating shuffle.

Riri leaned over and whispered, "Isn't that your bodyguard?"

I pressed my lips tight. She would recognize him, of course, even with the mask. "He's . . ." I glared at Cole, who smirked behind his mask as though he'd heard every word. "Overprotective," I muttered, though

overbearing

felt more accurate.

Riri chuckled softly. "He's intense," she murmured, sneaking a glance at him and beamed.

Cole ignored her completely, though I could tell by the subtle tick of his jaw that he wasn't exactly thrilled with her for dragging me into this mixer in the first place.

I cleared my throat and leaned closer, lowering my voice so only Cole could hear. "What are you doing here?"

Cole raised an eyebrow. "A mixer? Really?"

Suddenly, I felt like the one being interrogated. "What's wrong with me being here?"

"What's wrong?"

That suffocating aura flickered back, but I wasn't about to let him intimidate me. My eyes narrowed. "That's right. What's wrong with me being here? The last time I checked, I'm still single."

Cole let out a dry laugh, the kind that made it clear he was amused, not convinced. "Single? Have you forgotten that you belong to me now?"

I crossed my arms over my chest and leaned back. "Belong to you? The last I checked, I haven't said

yes

to you."

His smirk deepened. "You already did. Remember? Back in the cave. Or have you forgotten that we almost—"

"Stop right there," I interrupted, slamming my glass onto the table with enough force to draw the attention of the others.

I smiled politely at them until they went back to their conversations, then hissed at Cole, "Can you not use

that

as your go-to argument every time? That was a completely different situation."

He shrugged, unfazed by my indignation. "Fine. But if you're really looking for a boyfriend, you don't need mixers. I'm more than enough for you, Eve."

I groaned, leaning my forehead into my hand. "You're insufferable."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Cole took another sip of tea, his smirk still annoyingly in place. "That's part of my charm."

I wasn't sure if I wanted to laugh, cry, or fling a piece of sushi at him. Probably all three.

As the mixer carried on and the liquor was served, I knew the night was nearing its inevitable conclusion. Conversations grew louder, laughter became freer, and shot glasses began making their rounds. My lips twitched in trepidation.

I wasn't much of a drinker—wine, maybe, on special occasions, or a beer here and there. But hard liquor? That wasn't in my usual repertoire. Just the smell made my stomach flip.

Plus, I was determined to stay sober, knowing full well Cole would insist on driving me home, whether I liked it or not.

Still, refusing a single shot felt too uptight, so I reluctantly accepted the glass.

"Cheers!" everyone chimed, raising their drinks.

Cole drained his in one swift motion, his expression as stoic as ever. I followed suit, bringing my glass to my lips, only for Cole to reach over, casually swap our glasses, and down mine too before I even realized what had happened.

I blinked, momentarily stunned. It was such a subtle, almost protective gesture that it caught me off guard.

My chest warmed a little—not from the liquor, but from something else entirely. Not that I'd let him see that, of course.

Before I could dwell on it, a movement caught my eye. One by one, the women at the table started standing.

"We'll be right back!" one of them said with a sweet smile.

Riri grabbed my arm and added in an overly cheery tone, "Come on, Eve! Let's go to the bathroom."

I didn't protest, mostly because the idea of being the only woman left amidst a sea of increasingly tipsy men didn't appeal to me.

Plus, my stomach was starting to churn a little from the earlier drinks, and the break felt timely.