Her Second Chance

Chapter 5

Anthony Starr's POV

TW: Mentions of Alcohol Consumption/Dependence

**Two Years Ago**

I woke up with a start to the smell of something cooking. It smelled amazing, until I sit up and my head throbbed in pain.

Bits and pieces of last night came to me. I remembered going to the tiki bar I've frequented about every weekend the last sixteen years. I vaguely recollected chatting up with the publican Murphy, another fellow Irishman who found himself in the Caribbean. Chunks of the night came back to me, dancing with a busty brunette and then it hit me...

There is a strange woman in my apartment. I took her home for some fun and told her she had to be gone when I woke up.

And she's still here. Cooking me breakfast.

"I hope you like pancakes!" She screeched cheerily. Jesus her voice is like nails in my head! How did I not realize how annoying her voice was last night? Then again after a night of Cruzan and who knows how many shots, it's a wonder I even made it home.

"I thought I made myself clear last night. This was a one-time thing and I fully expected you to be gone when I woke up!" I felt my fairy side getting ready to come forth. This woman's a wolf and I'm not worried, but still.

"But Anthony, I had such an amazing time and judging from last night you did too! You were even talking about moving me in here for more nights like last night!" I highly doubted that.

"To be honest, you were just an easy f**k and I'm having a hard time remembering your name." Normally I'm not an arsehole. But sometimes, I have to be. Plus this woman needs to leave so I can get through this hangover.

The woman's blue eyes darkened and narrowed. She held a spatula in her hand and the next thing I know, it went flying and narrowly missed my face.

"My NAME is Lauren! How dare you treat my like this!" She hissed and crouched, appearing to get ready to shift. I really don't want her destroying my apartment and decide to try to reason with her.

"Lauren, this is how I like my life. It wouldn't work with us. I'm a fairy, you are a wolf. I travel all the time. I don't want tie downs. I don't want a woman in my life except for the occasional romp in the sack. I don't want you or anyone else. Now please, leave."

Lauren stared at me, hurt and fury in her eyes. "Anthony, I felt a connection with you last night. Didn't you feel it to?" She pleaded.

"I didn't feel anything but lust, my dear. And that has definitely worn off." I was feeling sick to my stomach. This is going to be one horrible hangover. Thank the Heavens it's the weekend.

"Anthony, please, just give me a chance. I don't want this to end! Last night was the best night I've had in years, and I want us to have more of them together!"

"Drunk I may have been, but I know I did not mislead you, Lauren. I know for a fact I told you like I've told all the others before you. It's one night, you have to be gone by morning. That's all I want, and you need to leave." Please dear sweet Jesus, let me get through to her.

Lauren let out a wail and started to cry, pulling at her hair and then suddenly scratching her face. Panic set in hard and fast. It's clear just how much I have messed up bringing this woman to my home. Not taking my eyes off her, I made my way to the intercom by my front door.

"Jordan, it's Anthony in 50A. I need you to get security to my room immediately."

"NO DON'T!" Lauren let out a bloodcurdling scream.

"Lauren, I asked you already twice now to leave. Our security team will take you back to where you need to go." I told her softly. This isn't the first time I've had to throw a woman out of my apartment. But this one is the most unstable one I've had to throw out to date.

Jordan came up to my apartment within a minute. There is a reason I chose this complex to live. Jordan is at least seven feet tall and built like a wall. He and his team of guards are all supernaturals. They will not hesitate to put someone out and make sure they don't return. He looked at the woman sitting on my floor wailing with contempt.

"Young lady, this gentleman asked you to leave his apartment. Why haven't you complied?" He asked her.

"This is just a misunderstanding! Anthony, we are meant to be together can't you see that!?"

F**K. Not only is she delusional she's unstable as hell!!

"Don't you DARE even try to insinuate we are mates, Lauren! I may be a fairy, but I would've felt the bond with your wolf immediately and I felt nothing like that last night!! Also, I already had a mate and I rejected her after she f****d someone else! And you know what I did to her lover? I KILLED HIM!" Lauren gaped at me in shock.

"So you see Lauren, I've been down the mate road before. My fairy goddess will not give me another mate let alone one that is another supernatural. That is my punishment for my crime even though among my kind, I acted in self-defense! This will be my life, Lauren. One-night stands, nothing more. What happened between us last night was nothing more than that which I was upfront with you about from the beginning! Whatever narrative you have spun about last night is your own doing!" I spat at her.

Lauren tried to lunge at me but Jordan held her back. "You don't know what you want right now, but you will be mine Anthony Starr! You mark my words!"

"OK sweetheart, out you go!" Jordan lifted a screaming Lauren over his massive shoulder and escorted her out. I sat down on my couch shaken by the events that just took place here in my apartment. Jordan came back up within a couple of minutes.

"You better watch out for that one, she's one of those obsessive psychos. I hope you used protection last night or something because I can see her imagining a baby in a month or so." I glared at Jordan's attempt at a joke.

"Do not allow that woman back in this complex. Make the other single men here aware of her too." I told him.

"Done." He left and I began to pick up my apartment. I picked up a picture that Lauren knocked off my side table and stared at it. Two smiling young people stared back at me and suddenly I was back there, in Key West, with my mate before everything went bad. I hurled the picture at the wall and screamed in rage.

Everything I told that crazy woman this morning was the absolute truth. I will never have another mate. I have long accepted this as my penance for taking a fellow fairy life. Even though my ex-mate almost took mine.

My ex-mate is Mindi Deveaux, who became Mindi Starr when she became mine. I found her in a gutter in New Orleans about to jump in the water and be no more. Never had I seen anything so beautiful as Mindi. Her dark brown hair and bright blue eyes still haunt my sleep sometimes, though not as much as they did years ago. When I found her, I really thought we would last until our final days.

But Mindi betrayed me and our child she carried inside her when she cheated on me repeatedly with my good friend at the time, Finn West. I felt it every time they were together. Infidelity pain is well known to kill fairies, and it's a wonder I'm still alive as often as those two were together. But Mindi and Finn were sneaky. It took some time before I finally caught them. When I did, I went into such a rage that I killed Finn. The only reason I didn't touch Mindi was because she was carrying our child. I rejected her on the spot, making it clear I would take care of our daughter. Which Mindi did not take well at all.

Mindi immediately went to King Arlen and lied through her teeth. She told the King she was not my mate and Finn was her true mate. King Arlen couldn't force her to show her my mark on her body because Mindi is human and Finn was dead, so he couldn't confirm her story. King Arlen had a murdered fairy on his hands and since I had done a number on Finn, King Arlen banished me to this island. Everything worked out for me in the end, though. I started over in this paradise and made my fortune in real estate.

Ever since my daughter's birth, I have sent Mindi money to take care of our child. Her selfish a** has never sent me one picture of my daughter. I know nothing about my girl other than her name, Jade. And it kills me.

Mindi always b*****d about money when we were together and how I didn't make enough of it. It wasn't that I didn't make enough, she spent money faster than I could make it. The real reason she ended up screwing around with Finn was to get more of it. I am still furious at my Goddess for mating me with that horrible woman. So much that I drink and carouse bars and women. Money I may have, but it doesn't heal a broken heart.

I went to pick up the picture, taking care not to cut myself on the broken glass. I took the picture out and contemplated throwing it into the fireplace to burn it but decided not to. After I cleaned up the mess, I set the picture aside and went to the bathroom. I took a good long look at myself in the mirror. How is it I'm only 37 and look much older? I'm handsome enough, many tell me I look like Colin Farrell. Which amuses me because I'm from Ireland.

A realization hit me. Jade just turned 16 last week. My daughter is now old enough to drive a car. I looked down then looked back up at the man in the mirror, not liking what I was seeing much at all.

"Look you arsehole, in about two years that girl will start trying to find you and will want to ask you some hard questions. Is this the man you want answering those questions? No? I didn't think so. Stop wallowing in alcohol and get your shite together!"

I hopped in the shower and cleaned myself up. After I got dressed, I made my way to the kitchen and grabbed all the liquor and beer from my cabinets and fridge. I took my haul down to the security office and placed them in front of a shocked Jordan and a couple of other guards.

"Have some fun on me, mates!" I smiled at them. I went to my car and pulled out my phone, doing a quick search. Within a second I dialed the number and was greeted by a soft voice on the other line.

"Good morning, my name is Anthony Starr. I have a problem with alcohol and need help to stop drinking. I would like to know where you have your meetings."