Imprinted Hearts

Chapter 1: Prick

"Do you believe in love at first sight?"

The pretty blond girl sitting at the counter in front of Ethan fluttered her eyelashes at him in a flirtatious way. She was shapely, had perfectly manicured nails, and the shirt she was wearing clung to her in a way that accentuated her breasts. Ethan could appreciate that much. In fact, a week ago, he would have jumped all over that invitation in a heartbeat. Probably with a line like 'I didn't until I saw you' or 'I think I might have just become a believer'. But right now, his eyes drifted over to the redhead in the restaurant's corner booth sullenly as he sighed with great tragedy.

"No," he murmured, looking back down at the bar he was wiping down and continued his chore.

Harper, Ethan's best friend and confidant since elementary school, snorted behind him as he passed by with a bucket full of dishes he'd just bussed off a table where a family of five had left a mess.

"Ethan," he said. "You just proclaimed last week you'd met your soulmate. And it was a girl you'd never laid eyes on before in your life. You rarely wait that long to get into anyone's pants."

Harper was a tall, lithe boy with strong shoulders and a dark brown skin. His hair was buzzed, and his eyes were bright and shining with mirth. He and Ethan had known each other for longer than they hadn't known each other, and their friendship had only grown stronger over the years. Even with the constant teasing.

"Don't you have some tables to take care of?" Ethan hissed, throwing his towel at Harper.

"You haven't even taken the time to talk to the girl," said Big Joe, the cook who looked at Ethan through the window that peered into the kitchen. His voice was deep and booming, but he tried his best to keep it low so as not to be overheard by the redhead. Big Joe was not only the tallest man in town at six foot eight and four hundred pounds, he was the best cook this side of the Tri-City area. He had a heart of gold and was the most gentle giant you would ever come across.

"There's a reason for that," Ethan said flatly, then added with a hiss, "And since when are you two so interested in my love life?"

"Since you quit sleeping around and started moping over the one that got away," Harper replied. "Or rather, the one you're too terrified to talk to, even though you're obviously crazy about her."

By now, the blond girl had left the bar, feeling rather ignored in this little drama, and the three of them were alone.

"Besides, didn't you say you imprinted on her?" Harper whispered. "At least try talking to her!"

Ethan groaned at himself for having shared that tidbit the day it had happened. He'd been so enraptured in the euphoria of it all, he wanted to shout it from the rooftops. But the very next day, his heart had shattered into a million pieces and he'd crashed back down to earth with a fiery bang.

Being a werebeast wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

The bell on the front door tolled signaling someone had entered, and Ethan looked up as a blond man with long hair down to his shoulders pulled back in a low ponytail entered the restaurant. He was broad shouldered and nearly six and a half feet tall, and was an imposing figure in more ways than one. He looked around the room for a moment before his eyes lit on the redhead typing away at her computer in the corner and smiled broadly before joining her. His smile changed his features from threatening to devastatingly handsome in seconds. It physically pained Ethan to see him smile at her like that. He wanted to throw Harper's bucket of dishes on him and see if that gave him something to smile about.

Prick.

Ethan knew the man was a prick, too. Wearing a cream-colored turtleneck sweater and khakis? Who even dressed like that? Pricks dressed like that. Rich pricks too, from the looks of it. He watched the blond greet the redhead.