Page 13 of Ensnared By the Werewolf

Jack makes a sound similar to a canine whine.“Bel, beautiful Bel.Please don’t cry.”

I shake my head and press my face into the fur at Jack’s neck.

“Don’t think about it,” Jack says.

But I can’t stop thinking about it.

My sobs are quiet, but Jack holds me tightly.He comforts me while the truth of what happened ricochets through me.

I’ve failed my mate.Jack will have to live with how I’ve disappointed him for the rest of his life.

The pain of that is like a vise around my heart.I push myself out of his arms, trying to breathe through it.We need to talk.I’ve disappointed him, but I need to figure out how to persist past that.But first—

“It didn’t work,” I say.

The shadowy form of my mate shrugs as if it doesn’t matter.“You tried.”

“I was able to get a lot of it.You might not need to worry about passing the curse on to your children,” I mumble.

Jack hesitates.“Belinda, the kind of life with children, isn’t in the cards for me.”

“What kind of life?”I ask.Prickles of unease run over my skin.

The silence grows between us, and icy panic stirs.

“I know this isn’t the answer you were hoping for.”I sniff, scrubbing the tears from my face.

The shadows move and I get the sense that he’s shaking his head.I can practically taste his sadness in the air.I place my hand over the furry knuckles and claws on the armrest, and he pulls away.I’m carefully placed on the chair.Already I miss being held by him.

“We tried, Bel,” he says.“You tried so hard, but...it’s not in the cards for us.”

“No,” I say.The word is choked but so harsh it hurts my throat.

But Jack is pulling away from me.“Bel—I’m so fucking sorry.”

“Don’t go!”I try to grab hold of our future together, but it’s like trying to catch smoke.“I-I thought we were going to go to dinner?”

Stupid, stupid, stupid.He’s not going to want to go out.Not when he’s dealing with the permanency of his curse.

“Bel… that’s not possible.”

I want to throw myself at him, dig my fingers into his fur and make him stay, but I can hardly stand.

“Your glamour—” I try instead.

“Is just a glamour!”Jack shouts.Frustration and grief are clear in his voice and his next words are softer.“I’m still a monster under it.”

“But I want your monster,” I whisper.

Jack steps toward me with a growl.The primal energy coming off him makes me want to run and throw myself at him in equal measure.

“My wolf wants to ravish you, lock you away from the world.”His voice is low, and my attention is rapt.“I’m barely in control as it is.”

“Then let him!We’re mates!”I blurt out what we both know by now.

“We can’t be mates when I’mthis.”

The large, clawed hand gestures to his body.

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