Page 122 of What a Wolf's Heart Decides

Oh yeah. Because she was kneeling on broken glass.

And Bard lay broken on the ground, the same as the vision.

He gazed up at her, a lifetime’s worth of pain in his blue eye. “Are you all right?” he rasped.

No. She wasn’t all right. Nothing was all right. She opened her mouth but no words would come.

He inhaled a deep breath. “I’m impotent, Haley. I can’t claim you. Can’t complete the lux catena. The same wound that took my leg took that part of my life. My opponent’s claws severed my nerves and damaged my tissue. It was part of the curse. You broke it, but I’m still broken.”

Tears burned her eyes. “I don’t care,” she whispered.

“Maybe not now, but you will someday.” When she started to protest, he put a hand on her cheek, his touch achingly gentle. “You deserve a real mate. Someone who can give you a child.”

“That might not happen anyway. Our birth rates—”

“You have to try. You have to link your life to another.”

“I want to link my life to yours!” She grabbed his hand, anger stirring in her chest. “Don’t you understand? It’s you I want. I’ve already chosen you.”

“It’s the wrong choice.”

“You don’t get to make that decision for me.”

“I do when you’re making a mistake.”

Her temper rose. “I’m not making a mistake.”

“Yes, you are. You have so much love to give, sweetheart. Give it to someone who deserves it.”

Now she yelled. “Stop being so noble!”

“Stop being so stubborn!”

“I love you, you ass!”

“I love you, too, but we can’t—”

She grabbed his face and kissed him. He gasped against her mouth, his breath mingling with hers. Then he kissed her back.

Time stilled. The conservatory fell away. The others disappeared.

His hand cupped the back of her head, pulling her closer. She stretched over him until her heart beat directly atop his. Then they seemed to beat in sync.

Glass shattered.

Haley didn’t care. Shards could rain down on her. Cut her into a thousand pieces. It didn’t matter. All that mattered was the male beneath her, his tongue stroking against hers. His big palm moved through her hair, his fingers threading through the strands. Sprawled over him like she was, his borrowed coat rode up, exposing her bare backside.

She didn’t care about that, either.

More glass shattered.

He sucked on her lower lip.

She moaned and angled her head more to one side, giving him better access. He plunged his tongue into her mouth like he couldn’t get enough of her. How much time passed, she couldn’t say. She gave herself over to sensation, reveling in the firm lips against hers, the strong heart beating the same rhythm as her own, and the gentle fingers stroking her curls.

He was warm. Every part of him was warm. His chest, his hands, his mouth. His skin was so hot against hers.

Too hot.

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