Page 269 of Secret Shifters Next Door

I winced inwardly at his words and the venom with which he spoke. Blayne was right. We needed to put an end to this. But I couldn’t look at him without thinking of the pain I was about to put him through.

I took a breath, and my voice shook when I said, “No. I don’t accept you.”

FIVE

BLAYNE

I squeezed my eyes shut, flinching in anticipation of the pain.

Nothing happened.

I opened one eye, then the other, glancing around furtively. There was nothing—no burning sensation or cramps. I felt exactly the same as I had a moment before.

Had Emily lied to screw with us? Wasn’t there supposed to be agony when the bond was broken?

I shook my head, thinking. Even without the curse, breaking a mating bond was always torturous. Something else must have gone wrong. The guys had been miserable the entire time they waited to claim their mates. I should have been feeling something similar after losing mine.

“Did it work?” Ava asked.

“Uh…hang on. Not sure.”

“Not sure? I thought you said it would be painful?”

Jesus, this woman.“Something must have gone wrong.”

I couldn’t be completely sure about that, though. I still felt nothing but disdain for Ava, and when I looked at her, there were no romantic inclinations on my part. I didn’t even like her. But my panther? That was different. He was still pining for her, still infatuated beyond belief.

A growl of anger and frustration rumbled in my chest. “Maybe you didn’t do it right,” I said.

Ava sent me a blank look. “How else would I have done it? I said, ‘I do not accept you.’ Isn’t that what you said I should do?”

“Well, it obviously didn’t work. It didn’t break the bond. My panther is still drawn to you.” I cocked an eyebrow. “You have to really mean it. You did mean it, didn’t you?”

Guilt flashed across her face, and she averted her gaze. What the fuck did that mean? Was she purposely screwing with me? Did she want me to go through all the pain of unrequited mating?

Oh, God, did she have feelings for me? My skin crawled at the thought.

“Ava? Are you being serious right now? Youdo notaccept me, right?”

She shook her head quickly. “No, no, it’s not what you think.” She twisted her fingers together anxiously. “I have no desire to be with you. But…”

My keen panther sight allowed me to see the heat rising in her cheeks.

“It’ll hurt you, though. I don’t think my conscience will let me knowingly hurt you. Maybe that’s why it didn’t stick?”

Lord. I wiped a hand across my face and turned away from her, looking off into the woods. It was all I could do to keep from screaming. Spinning back around, I jabbed a finger in her direction. “It’s not your concern. I can handle the pain. I’ve dealt with worse over the last ten years. Whatever happens now will be a walk in the park. Now, put your feelings aside and reject me. Now. Do you accept me as your mate?” My voice was thin, my anger punctuating every word. I was almost at my breaking point.

Ava hesitated for a beat. “No. I don’t accept you. I…I reject you.”

Again, nothing happened. I gritted my teeth. “Why do I get the feeling that you’re messing with me?”

“I’m sorry, Blayne. I’m not doing it on purpose. I’m sorry. It’s hard?—”

“Nothing about this is hard,” I said, my voice rising. “What’s really holding you back? Explain it to me.”

She flinched, then recovered and glared at me. “It’s not as easy as you make it sound. You may have forgotten how much Liam loved you, but I haven’t.”

A searing heat that was equal parts sadness and anger tore through my chest. “Don’t do that. Don’t you dare do that. Leave Liam out of this. You do not get to throw his name at me.”

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