Page 35 of Bella and Her Beast
"I've never been so sure of anything in my life. She holds the key to my heart and ultimately this curse."
"Then I suggest you go to her. Tell her everything and leave nothing out. Hope she's willing to test out her fears and face them with you by her side."
"What if she won't see me or speak to me?"
"Then you would've said your piece and there is nothing more to be done. The ball would be in her court."
I hold my head in my palms and think about what he has said. After a few deep breaths, I come to a decision. "Fuck it. What more can I stand to lose?"
I rise, preparing to head back up to the main level. "Russ, for what it's worth, you're the closest to a father figure I've ever known and I know I couldn't have done this without you. Thank you, dad."
Reality hits when the thought of my impending doom penetrates my mind. I figure if I'm gonna tell everyone how I feel, he may as well hear it, too.
"Sir, it's been my honor. And not to make this too weird, you too, have been like a son to me."
I give him a hug, fighting back the tears that are threatening.
I clear my throat. "I guess I'll be going. Be back after a while." I trot upstairs and open the front door.
She's standing there twiddling her hands obviously riddled with nerves.
I smile from ear to ear letting out a sigh of relief when I see her. "Bella, you're here."
"Greyson, I love you. I know you probably don't believe me, or right now may even hate me, but it's true. I do love you. I'm sorry. I’m scared and shit. I've never dealt with anything like this before and I don't know how to handle all of this."
I pull her to my chest, enveloping her in my embrace. "We'll navigate this together."
She lays her head against my chest, just over my heart. "I don't want you to be a wolf for the rest of your life, I want you to be with me, as a man, always."
I pull away slightly, tilt her head up to meet my gaze, taking her face between my palms. “I want forever with you, too,” I say. Taking her mouth with mine, I give her a modest kiss on the lips before parting them with my tongue, dipping deep into her mouth and tasting my ever-after. She is receptive to my advance, wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling me into her space.
I pick her up and on instinct she wraps her legs around my waist as I cup her ass with my hands. We stroll back inside and to my room where I lay her on the bed.
She kicks off her shoes, and I take off my shirt, leaving on my jeans.
“I’ve been waiting the past three weeks to do this,” I say to her.
“Me, too. I’ve been wanting it ever since the first time.”
I crawl over to meet her in the middle of the bed, lay down and put my arm around her bringing her closer to me.
She reaches over me and opens my bedside table, removing the content, and lies onto her back snuggled under my arm.
I open the book to where we last left off and finish readingThe Canterbury Tales.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
ISABELLA
September 30th, the full moon is tonight, and we will know if this curse is broken. For the past seven days, we have been near inseparable. We’ve spent every amount of free time together and he even came to the library and had lunch with me twice. Especially, on the nights I was closing. We would make out in the mystical section, but that’s about as far as it got. I didn’t want things to get too wild, and I’d have to explain why bookshelves were knocked over. Needless to say, we went back to my place to finish what we started.
Greyson’s birthday is in two days, but I have to work. I tried to celebrate early but he’s not in a celebratory mood, anyway; citing it's hard to celebrate when he’s so unsure of where his future is headed. I tried hard to convince him, even entice, but he still moped around like all hope was abandoned. No matter how many times I assure him and tell him I love him, he is still somewhat withdrawn and feels it won’t be enough.
His fears range from; it’s been wrong all these years and the curse will never be broken, to he’ll be cured, but it will afflict our children.
That all stops today. I took the next few days off to celebrate my man’s birthday, regardless of his request and to be with him over the impending next twelve hours. Wolf or not, he’s mine and I will be by his side. There’s also a part of me that feels Zelda would want to be here to witness the curse’s end. I send her a message and advised a driver will pick her up. I understand our family line is taught to not practice magic any longer, but I feel she deserves to be here and may still know a thing or two.
“Okay, food is ready, wine is chilled, eating utensils, plates, and glasses are packed,” I say aloud as I go through my mental checklist. Thinking of a few items I have yet to gather, I retrieve them from their space and add them to a separate bag which contains things used for entertainment.
