My Best Friend Bought Me a Cursed Life Chapter 04

My Best Friend Bought Me a Cursed Life Chapter 04 The Veterinarian

The first thing I did with the money was get out of there.

I rented a high–security penthouse in downtown Kingsbridge. The Astors couldn’t touch me.

Bella followed, tethered to me like a ghost on a leash. She watched me spend the money–designer clothes, spa days, Michel dinners–and her jealousy curdled. The air around her turned sharp with menace.

“Don’t get too comfortable, Ella,” she hissed. “Richard won’t forget this. He’s a snake”

“I know.”

I was at a pet store, buying cat food.

If Bella hadn’t become a stray cat yet, I’d adopt one.

“What are you doing?” she asked suspiciously.

“Finding company.”

I pointed to a scruffy black stray huddled in a cage. The spitting image of the cat I used to be.

I took it to a nearby veterinary clinic.

The bell above the door chimed.

The front desk was empty. From the exam room, a warm voice: “Easy now. Hold still.”

My heart seized in my chest.

I knew that voice.

Julian Hawke.

The vet who’d taken me in last time. The man who’d held me while I slept, read to me by the fire, made me feel safe for the first time in either of my lives.

The curtain parted, and he stepped out. Tall and broad–shoukiered, his wire–rimmed glasses catching the light, a gentle smile playing on his lips.

“Hi there,” he said. “New patient?”

I stared at him. A hundred lifetimes flickered behind my eyes.

Last time, I was a cat, and he was a man. This time, we were both human.

“I found a stray,” i said, holding up the carrier. “Needs a checkup.”

Julian took the carrier, his long fingers gentle against the wire “Poor little guy. Come out back.”

During the exam, his brow furrowed slightly, every movement precise and deliberate as he worked, I drank in the quiet intensity of him, unable to look away.

Bella’s ghost shrieked behind me.

“JULIAN! It’s Julian! NO why do you get to meet him?! That should’ve been me!”

She snarled and lunged at him, translucent fingers outstretched to wrap around his neck–only to pass right through him, her turning into a guttural sob.

Julian shivered, wrapping my arms around myself. “Feels cold all of a sudden.”

He smiled. “This cat’s malnourished and has some skin issues. It needs to stay for a few days.”

“Whatever you say, Doctor.”

At checkout, I “accidentally” left my ID on the counter.

“Miss Astor?” Julian hurried after me. “You forgot this.”

I turned and smiled. “Thanks, Dr. Hawke. How about dinner? A thank–you.”

His ears went pink. “I–that’s not necessary-”

“Then please give me your number. So I can check on the cat.”

He couldn’t refuse.

After I saved his number in my phone, I practically floated out of the clinic.

Bella was having a meltdown.

“You shameless–Julian is MINE! I saw him first! In the last life,

“Yours?” I laughed. “You cursed me to never be human again. And now you’re crying because I got his number?”

“You don’t understand!” she screamed. “Julian isn’t just an ordinary vet! He’s the lost heir of the Hawke family! Billionaires! I saw him on TV after I died–he inherited everything! THAT’S why I cursed you! I wanted him!”

My feet froze mid–step.

So that was it. Bella hadn’t just seen me in his arms when she jumped. She’d also seen the news breaking bout his true identity

That was why she’d set this whole trap. She wanted me to drown in the Astor nightmare, while she found a way to claim Julian

Too bad for her–she was a ghost. And I was human.

This time, I was writing the script.

Nice to meet you again, Julian.