Page 3 of Secret Wolf Baby

“I don’t know how we’re going to tell Mira,” I confessed. “Do you think she’ll understand?”

He didn’t say anything. An unreadable expression had come over his face.

“I didn’t think you would be that stumped for ideas,” I teased. “I know I’m smart, but I can’t be the only smart one in the relationship.”

He swallowed hard. “Audrey, you are incredible.”

I gave a lazy smile. “Please, continue singing my praises. I like hearing it.”

He didn’t smirk back. My smile vanished, and a small pebble of uncertainty and dread settled in my stomach. Something was wrong. I pushed myself away from him, staring at him with a creeping dread.

“Jackson?” I asked.

He sighed, pushing himself up so his back leaned against the headstand. I watched uneasily as he chewed his lip. Eventually, he rubbed his face.

“Fuck,” he muttered. Before I could properly register the word, he was already talking again. “You’re incredible,” he repeated, but this time, the words sounded more like an ominous warning than any sort of compliment. “But I don’tthink this is going to work out. I don’t think it’s a good idea, especially right now.”

My world crashed around me as the words rang in my ears.

“You don’t…” I stammered.

“This was great,” he said. “But I don’t think a relationship is a good idea.”

I squeezed my eyes shut, my mind racing. Something constricted around my chest, and I couldn’t breathe. All I could do was stare at him in disbelief.

“So you’re saying you don’t feel anything?” I asked when I finally regained my voice.

He licked his lips as he ran his fingers through his hair. “No, I’m not saying that. I do feel something. And I don’t think you’re wrong about the mating bond, either. I’ve felt some sort of connection basically since you arrived in town.”

“Then why are you rejecting it? Rejecting me?” I demanded.

“That’s not fair. I’m not rejecting—”

“You just told me you didn’t want anything else. That’s the definition of rejection. The least you could do was admit it.”

He didn’t answer.

“Oh my God,” I said. “I’m such a fucking idiot.”

I scrambled out of the bed, head still swimming as I found my clothes and shoved them on hurriedly, my hands trembling as I tried to process what had just happened, because it didn’t seem possible. How had what had seemed like a perfect moment turned into this?

“You’re not an idiot.” Jackson got out of bed and walked over to me. He took my shoulder and gently tried to move me to look at him. “You’re amazing. I just—”

I jerked my arm away from him and stepped back, glaring at him. “Don’t touch me,” I spat.

“Audrey—”

“So, what? I open my heart to you, and you decide you’ll just take advantage of that and then run? You got what you wanted, and that’s it?”

“It’s not like that,” he said, a hint of a growl entering his voice. His features softened again. “I like you, Audrey. You’re smart, gorgeous, feisty—”

“Touch me again, and you’ll see how feisty I actually am,” I snarled, though internally, my heart was breaking, tears threatening to spill out as I desperately tried to keep myself composed. I wasn’t going to show him how much I was hurting.

His hand fell to his side. “It’s nothing to do with you,” he insisted. “It’s me. I promise. I want to go into the military, to go into special ops. I don’t want to have someone waiting and worrying about me while I’m out doing dangerous things, and I don’t want to have to worry about putting someone I care about at risk. You have to understand.”

“I don’t,” I snarled. “I don’t have to do anything. You yourself said you thought you felt something. So that was a lie?”

“No! Of course not. I’m being honest. I just don’t want to put you in a position where you could get hurt.”

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