Page 51 of Forbidden Love

Brock’s expression darkened, but he remained silent.

“He must’ve done a hell of a lot of digging to find out I lived among Shifters,” she said bitterly. “He used me, Brock. Gained my trust, made me think the worst about everyone around me. He turned me against the people who had allowed us to stay in this Shifter town after our grandfather died—against a community I should’ve protected.”

Her voice cracked. “And the worst part? I believed him. I believed the things he fed me. I turned my back on people who never deserved it.”

She swallowed hard. “Then one day, a woman showed up at my door—hiswife.”

Brock flinched. “He was married?”

“Yeah,” she said, her voice barely a whisper. “And worse—he was already planning to go public. To expose Shifters to the world. He took things I’d told him—conversations, details, personal things I never should’ve shared—and twisted them into some disgusting exposé. He published it. Worldwide.”

Brock’s fists clenched at his sides.

Deb met his eyes. “I helped him, Brock. Not knowingly, but I did. I gave him fuel, even if I didn’t mean to. All the lies and promises not kept, as well as the secrets I had to keep, just made me bitter and angry against everyone. And now I’ve been trying to makeup for that ever since. You are the only person I’ve ever told this to. Not even Emily knows.”

She stepped back, emotion bubbling just beneath the surface. “So now maybe you understand why I can’t be what you want me to be. I’m not just damaged. I’m a liability.”

Brock was quiet for a moment, but the intensity in his eyes never wavered.

“You were manipulated by someone who knew exactly how to prey on your trust,” he said, his voice low but steady. “That’s not weakness, Deb. That’s being human.”

“No, that’s being stupid and naive.” She shook her head, but he stepped closer.

“We all have a past,” Brock said, his eyes shifting away from hers. “I killed an innocent man. A good man.”

Deb stilled. He didn’t look at her, not right away. His jaw clenched, a muscle ticking as he stared into the distance.

“His name was Jimmie. He was a quiet guy who took care of his grandmother. Never asked for more than his fair share. The Pack liked him.Iliked him.”

Brock exhaled harshly through his nose. “But someone I trusted told me Jimmie was planning to challenge me for leadership. Said he was stirring whispers, gathering support in secret. I’d just become Alpha. I was younger, cocky, always on edge. I couldn’t risk letting even a rumor fester.”

He finally looked at Deb, pain raw in his eyes. “So, I confronted him. He denied it. I didn’t believe him. I challenged him. And I beat him. Hard. Too hard. By the time I realized he hadn’t even shifted to fight back, it was too late.”

Deb swallowed hard, her heart cracking at the pain in his voice.

“Later,” Brock said, voice hoarse, “I found out the one who’d spread the lie had been trying to divide the Pack. Jimmie wasn’t a threat. He never had been.”

There was a long pause.

“I stepped down not long after,” Brock added. “I told everyone it was for the good of the Pack, but the truth is—I couldn’t look them in the eye anymore. Especially not his grandmother. She hugged me at his funeral and said she forgave me. That was the day I knew my life needed to change.”

Deb’s throat tightened as she reached out, placing her hand gently over his. He looked down at her hand on his and nodded slowly. “I’m not proud of who I was. I let fear and pride guide my hand. And I’ve spent every day since trying to be the kind of man Jimmie deserved.”

“You are,” Deb whispered. “You are that man now.”

Their eyes met, two broken souls sitting in the shadows of their pasts—finally,finallyseeing the light in each other.

“And for the record,” he added, “I don’t want perfect. I wantyou.Mess and all. And I would trust you with Ben’s life.”

CHAPTER 22

His words hit something so deep inside Deb that it shattered the last wall she’d been holding up.

She didn’t just tear up—her hand flew to her mouth as a sob ripped out of her throat. And then another. Until they just kept coming, wave after wave of uncontrollable emotion.

To think that after everything she had just confessed—after what she’d said about Janna and her babies, about how her mistakes had nearly exposed an entire community—he would still trust her. Not just with anything… but withBen. Hisnephew. A child. The most innocent and precious thing left in Tammy’s broken world.

Her knees buckled, but Brock’s strong arms kept her from going down. He gripped her chin, lifting her face to his. “Whatever happens, we have each other, Deb. Never again will you have to face anything alone. I will never deceive you.” Brock stared into her eyes, and she saw the truth behind his golden stare. “You are mine, and I am yours.”

---