Page 26 of The Way We Were(wolf)

“I loved Carrie!” he shouted, his voice booming so loudly it shook the ground more than the thunder that cracked moments ago.

Eric turned slowly, heat spreading through his body. “What?”

“I loved Carrie.” His arms hung at his sides, his shoulders rounded and dropped. “I know

this goes against everything you think about me, but it was easier than admitting the truth.”

“Which is?”

“That I put my heart on the line. Carrie didn’t ‘find out’ we were werewolves. Itold

her. Because I was in love with her. Because, like you, I believed that love would cure me. And instead, she threatened to kill me because I was a monster.” He raised his hands out to the side as he shrugged. “Maybe now you’ll understand why we moved from town to town, why I stayed away from humans, why I advised you to do the same.”

Eric looked down at the ground, letting the words wash over him like the sheets of rain that now pummeled his skin. “No.”

“No?

“I don’t believe you,” Eric croaked between breaths he forced his body to take as hislungs restricted. “I can’t believe you.”

Nathan offered a sad smile as he moved closer, squeezing his shoulder as he looked him in the eye. “I know this isn’t what you wanted to hear, but things will get bett—”

“No!” Eric shouted, pushing Nathan’s hand off his shoulder with more force than was necessary. “This can’t be. I couldn’t have come all this way to find her and just…I won’t.”

“You don’t have a choice, Eric.”

“I never used to. But I do now.” Even as he said it, the anger bubbled inside him. No, he would not let his fury overtake him. He had to gain control of himself before he proved Nathan’s point.

“You never did, and you never will! Why don’t you understand that?”

The once steady breeze now kicked up to sharp gusts, picking up leaves and small twigs and pelting Eric’s body as the rain poured buckets of cold water over his head, a temperature that he hoped would cool him down, help him relax a little before he reached the point of no return. “You can’t keep me away from her.”

“You’re right. I can’t. But you’ll do a good enough job of that on your own,” Nathan prodded, knowing exactly what to say to get to his sibling. Like he knew just the mere mention of not seeing Lucy would automatically start a slideshow of their best moments over the past few weeks in Eric’s mind. Like when she’d bowled a strike at the bowling alley and her smile knocked the wind out of him. Or when he’d hugged her in front of the mural she’d painted. Or when he’d chased down that pumpkin, and she looked at him like he’d hung the moon. “I guess it really comes down to how much you love this woman.”

“I love her with everything I have.”

Nathan shrugged, like the comment was hardly worth a reaction. And then he leaned in, his face closer than Eric would have liked. “But do you love her enough to walk away?”

Eric’s breathing picked up, each inhale sounding more like a growl as his muscles tensed. Instead of bringing him immense joy, that momentary walk down memory lane brought him extreme pain. A wound even he couldn’t fix because all the hope he’d held onto with the promise of the love spell had vanished like tonight’s sunset had at the hands of this storm. But he needed to fight. Not just for him but for her.

He closed his eyes as he tipped his head to the sky, letting the rain wash over his face. His nails bit into his palms, but if that was the price he had to pay for keeping his anger at bay, so be it. Except, his fingernails usually didn’t hurt this much.

Raising his hands to his face, he saw what he’d prayed he wouldn’t—claws poking out of hands covered in fur.

“Give up, Eric. It’s too late. There’s no shame in being what you truly are. And we both know you’re a—”

“Don’t say it,” he growled with a bark as thick fur popped up from his forearms.

“I don’t have to…because we both know what you are.” He picked up a large twig off the ground and flung it Eric’s way. His newly strengthened legs propelled him into the air, where he caught it in his mouth before his feet touched the grass.

As he ran into the woods, he willed his legs to move faster. Fast enough to keep Lucy from seeing him.

And fast enough to outrun the memory of her.

ChapterEleven

Lucy didn’t have the Midas touch. Lately, everything she touched turned to…whatever the opposite of gold was.

She thought things were finally turning around for her. She’d settled into her job, helped put together an amazing window display that was sure to take home the top prize, and she’d even started painting again—something that had seemed as daunting as walking past Mountain Brew andnotbuying a slice of pumpkin roll. With Eric’s support—and some of his inspiration—she’d even finished the painting she’d started a few nights ago.

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