Page 3 of Rejected Plus-Size Mate

Jack told me the whole story one night when he was drunk. How much he loved Lena, but was kept from her because of Decker and Bae. I couldn’t stand to have that happen to me, so I kept my mouth shut.

I hung out around town with Darla a lot, and it doesn’t surprise me at all that people assumed she was my girlfriend. In fact, she’s one of the only pack members who spoke to me like a real human being after I returned. We’re close, and I love her a lot, but it’s not romantic at all.

Or sexual.

Leaves crunch under my feet as I head off the footpath into a less populated area. I cut across a field and into the woods, disappearing into the trees. I’m almost at her house now, and I can feel a fire igniting inside me.

No one, ever, has made me feel this way.

My breath starts coming hard as I trek through the woods, finally seeing her house. The strength of my reaction scares me. This is one of the reasons I have to do this—I’ve been leading the poor girl on. I can’t keep doing it.

If I am that afraid of a permanent connection, the honorable thing to do is make a clean break. I know that Leslie was hoping we could go public with our relationship soon, especially after the success of Jack and Lena, so this will probably be a shock to her.

Still. It’s the right thing to do.

I sneak up the side of the house and knock on the bedroom window. I hear the thump inside as Leslie jumps out of bed. A couple of seconds later, her pretty face appears in the window.

The smile that breaks across her face makes her look absolutely radiant. It lights up her pale gray eyes and makes her cheeks dimple and glow pink. She looks amazing, her light brown hair tumbling in curls across her shoulders and her big, soft curves wrapped in a fuzzy white nightgown.

“Hey, Kyle!” she says, opening the window. “Do you want to go for a run in the forest? Or come in for some… coffee?”

I smile back at her, I can’t help it. She’s used to me coming to the window because we didn’t want anyone seeing me coming and going from her house. But my smile dies on my face as I try to find the words for what I need to say.

“Leslie, look. I’ve got something to say.”

She loses her smile so quickly that it feels like a physical blow. Now she looks fragile, and vulnerable, and I’m the piece of shit that’s going to smash her into tiny pieces.

It’s for the best. You’ll only hurt her more.

“What?” she asks softly.

“I can’t see you anymore,” I say it firmly, with finality, as if that settles everything.

“What?” she asks again, her eyes huge and round.

“You know this hasn’t been perfect,” I snap, feeling like a complete douche. “We’ve been sneaking around, trying not to get caught. It’s getting old.”

“But I thought we could tell everyone soon,” she protests, her voice getting high. When she sniffs back tears, I almost break and take the words back but urge myself to stay strong.

“Lena and Jack are doing so great. I thought both packs would welcome our romance—”

“You don’t know that,” I cut her off. “There’s still a lot of restructuring going on after Peter. Even if we wanted to stay together, there’s no guarantee it would be allowed.”

“I want to stay together,” she whispers, her eyes full of tears. “What are you saying, Kyle?”

“I’ve just been playing around here,” I say. “That’s the truth. I’ve got to go away for a bit, and I wanted to tell you before I go. It’s the decent thing to do.”

“But Kyle—”

“No!” I turn around, waving my hand. “This conversation is over. You’re better off without me, Leslie.”

There. True words, finally.

I hear her start to cry behind me, but I force myself not to look back. My heart is screaming in agony, and my wolf is demanding to be set free, howling in torment in my soul.

This is the most painful thing I’ve ever done, and I’ve done some shit that would curl Alpha Bailey’s hair.

Leslie doesn’t know it yet, but I’ve done her a favor. I’m bad news. Always have been, always will be. I don’t deserve someone like her, and it’s only fitting that I’m going to spy on the savage and brutal Sawpit Pack.

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