BELLE
The next few weeks were like my own personal hell.
I spent all of my time in the tiny bedroom at the bottom of the packhouse that Grayson had told me to sleep in, only leaving to use the bathroom and quickly grab food from one of the kitchens.
I didn’t see Grayson. I didn’t see anyone.
I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t eat.
And to make it worse, there was a terrible pain spreading throughout my b*dy that I knew was because I was away from Grayson.
I thought many times of just leaving, coming up with plans that consisted of sneaking out in the middle of the night and getting as far away from this place as possible.
It’s not like Grayson would notice if I were gone.
He said that he wanted me here, becoming furious when I threatened to leave but never actually talks to me or checks up on me to make sure that I’m actually here.
It would be beyond easy to sneak out of here, grab a cab with what little money I had left, and go make a new life somewhere else.
But every time I summoned enough courage to finally do it, something would stop me. A tug in my chest would tell me not to give up hope, not to leave Grayson just yet.
One morning, as I tossed and turned after a restless night of no sleep, I heard footsteps outside of my door. I sat up in
confusion.
Nob*dy ever came down here except me.
Especially not this early.
The sun hadn’t even risen yet.
The person hesitated outside the door before the doorknob slowly turned.
As the stranger stepped in, I noticed my b*dy instantly releasing all of its tension.
The dull ache that had been in my b*dy seemed to lift from me.
I couldn’t see who it was but by my b*dy’s reaction to the large figure standing in the doorway, I knew who it
was.
“Grayson?” I asked into the dark.
He approached me without saying a word, acting as if I hadn’t spoken.
He bent down when he had reached the bed I was sitting on and brought me into his arms, lifting me as if I weighed nothing at all.
He began carrying me out of the room and up the stairs nearby, still not speaking.
“Grayson?” I asked again. I hesitated, not sure how to act in this situation. On the one hand, I didn’t want to upset him. But on the other hand, I was a little scared of where this was leading. “What’s going on? Where are we going?”
“Shh,” he replied. “Don’t talk.”
My brows knit together. What the hell was going on?
He brought me to his room, where I hadn’t been in days, and kicked it open. Once inside, he unceremoniously dropped me on the bed and walked back
over to the door to close and lock it.
I stared at him. “Are you going to tell me what’s going on now?” I asked in a quiet voice.
He switched the lights on and approached me. His eyes were pitch black and his hair was messy. I could tell that he had just woken up. He must have gotten dressed and then gotten me right after.
Once he was standing in front of me, he crossed his arms over his chest and looked me over slowly. It felt like his eyes were criticizing every inch of my b*dy.
“Have you gained weight?” He asked.
My jaw dropped. “Excuse me?” Did he really just bring here me just to tell me that I looked fat? If anything, I had lost weight during my time in his pack.
He scowled as he continued to analyze my b*dy. “You look bigger,” he said.
I rose to my feet. “You know what, Alpha?” I spat. “If your only reason for waking me up and bringing me to your room this early in the morning was to criticize my appearance, there’s no way
I’m going to sit here and take it. F*ck you.” I walked past him, trying to keep my composure as I walked to the door.
But before I could leave, a gentle hand wrapped around my arm and pulled me back. I looked back at him. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “That’s
not why I brought you here. The wolf was getting antsy and wanted to be with you.”
My weary mood lifted a bit. Even though his wolf was still a part of Grayson, I had a soft spot for the wolf that lived inside him. He seemed to want me even when Grayson didn’t. “The wolf? Do you mean your wolf?” I asked.
He scowled at me. “Yes, my wolf. What other wolf would I be talking about?”
I dropped my gaze, suddenly feeling embarrassed. For what, I wasn’t sure. “I
don’t know.”
We stayed like that for a few seconds in
silence.
I shifted uncomfortably. “Was it only your wolf who wanted to see me?”
I couldn’t bring myself to look at him as I waited for his response.
I didn’t truly understand why I cared so much if he wanted to see me or not but it felt like my entire life was riding on his response.
At first, he didn’t say anything, but a soft hissing sound came from his chest. I looked at him then. I’d never heard him make that noise before.
“I think it’s time we mate, Belle,” he stated. “I need the power that you are capable of bringing me through the mate bond if we are to face what’s to come.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what I looked like, but I was sure my eyes were about to pop out of my eye sockets from shock.
“What?” I asked.
He hissed again. “I don’t like repeating myself.”
In a flash, faster than I had ever seen Grayson move, he lifted me into his arms and harshly dropped me on the bed.
His l*ps smashed onto mine.
I gasped into the k*ss, too shocked to enjoy the fact that the man I loved was touching me for the first time in weeks.
Dull sparks danced across my skin. I frowned as his l*ps moved down my n*eck. The sparks weren’t nearly as strong as they usually are. In fact, this all felt
wrong.
I pushed on his shoulders lightly. “Grayson, stop.”
He ignored me.
I pushed on him again, harder this time.
“No, I am not doing this again! You do not get to choose when you want to use me! I am not a toy, Grayson!”
I finally grabbed his face and shoved it back with all of my force.
He moved back slightly in shock, lifting his b*dy off mine just enough for me to scramble off the bed. He hissed loudly and made an attempt to grab me and force me back on the bed but I dodged him quickly.
“What the hell is the matter with you?” I screamed. I had finally moved away enough so that he would have to stand if he wanted to get to me. I could feel tears forming in the corners of my eyes but I pushed them down, refusing to cry right now. Grayson only stared at me, seeming surprised by my outbreak.
“You will not speak to me like that,” Grayson spat. “I am your alpha. I demand your respect and cooperation.” He stood
and approached me slowly. I knew he was trying to intimidate me.
I stood my ground. “Well, you know what, Alpha? Ever since we’ve come back to your pack, you’ve treated me like an inconvenience, like I didn’t matter to you at all. The only time you ever talk to me is when it’s forced on you or when you’re in the mood to use my b*dy like some plaything! I thought you loved me.” I took a deep breath, just barely getting past the sob that was rising in my throat. “But now I know that I’m only here to bring you power. You don’t love me and you never have.”
Grayson shrugged. “And what if that’s true? The mate bond will force you to stay with me no matter how I treat you.”
I sucked in a deep breath. That was all the confirmation that I needed. This wasn’t the Grayson that I knew back in Paris. This Grayson didn’t want me. And you know what? I didn’t want him.
I shook my head. The tears were flowing freely down my cheeks at this point as I came to my final conclusion. Keeping intense eye contact with my so–called mate, I said, “I’m done letting the mate bond make decisions for me. I’m leaving. I never want to see you again.”
He didn’t respond at first.
It seemed as though he was having an inner battle with his wolf, showing all of the telltale signs that he was about to shift. His arms sprouted with thick, dark hair, his teeth elongated, and his chest
grew twice its normal size.
His wolf was fighting to come out.
It broke my heart.
But it was ultimately Gryason’s silence that sealed the deal.
The Grayson that I fell in love with would have fought for me and been heartbroken
if I said what I just did. He wouldn’t be fighting his wolf, the only part of him who wanted me for the right reasons.
I nodded in understanding. It was over. “Goodbye, Grayson,” I said through my tears. I turned and walked out the door with my head held high. Grayson was too preoccupied with his inner turmoil to even notice I was leaving.
I left my heart back in that room that day. And I was sure that I would never get it back.