Page 17 of Abel

As he made his way to the door, Mika whispered, “You’re welcome.”

“Good luck,” Zap added as he left them behind in his office to track down his mate and get the answers he was starting to regret looking for.

CHAPTER9

Abel enteredthe castle and stormed up the stairs.Nyc intercepted him and held up his hands.“Listen, man.Don’t do this.Don’t hurt her more.”

“Hurt her?”Abel felt his wolf roar inside him in response.“There’s been a simple way out of this contract the whole time, and yet she has to be stubborn and take the hard way.”

“It’s not like that.”Nyc gripped Abel’s shoulder.“Please, I’m begging you, don’t do this, don’t put my sister through this sort of pain.”

“Pain?Pain?Well, maybe she’s not the only one experiencing a little pain.”

Abel marched down the hallway.His heavy boots echoing through the corridor.He stopped at her door, taking a deep breath before throwing it open and stepping inside Esme’s room.He could feel the tension in the air.Esme was sitting on her bed, staring intently at her hands.Not showing an ounce of care that he’d just invaded her space.

“We need to talk,” Abel heard his voice quiver as he held in his anger and tried to be gentle with her.

She looked up at him, her eyes filled with sadness and uncertainty.He could see it in her face, she knew what this conversation was about.

“What do you want to talk about?”He heard the quiver in her voice as she asked the question.

“The contract,” Abel replied, his voice cold and hard.

Esme bit her lip.She rubbed her hands together and refused to meet his gaze.“What about it?”

“Don’t do that.Don’t treat me like I’m an idiot.”

Esme blew out a heavy breath.“Fine, let’s do this.”

“You had a simple way out of this contract the whole time.Why didn’t you just take it?”

She arched a brow.“And what simple way do you think I had?”

“It says it right there in black and white.You had to be married and produce an heir, or you have to marry Remus.We are mates, why would you choose him over having children with me?”

Tears began to gather at the corners of her eyes, and she sat for what felt like an eternity before she finally muttered.“It’s not that simple.”

“Why?”Abel narrowed his eyes at her.“It seems pretty simple to me.”

“Well,” She wiped away a wayward tear.“It’s not.”

“I swear to Lucifer if you don’t start telling the truth—”

“What will you do?”She whispered.“There’s nothing you can do that will hurt me more than I am hurting right now.”

“What the fuck does that even mean?”He demanded.

Her head shot up, her eyes on fire as she looked at him.“I can’t have children, Abel.”

He shook his head.“Sure you can.We just have to go through with accepting each other’s bond.”

“No, Abel.I’m infertile.I cannot have children.There is no way out of the contract.”

Abel blinked.The air rushed from his lungs as if he’d just been punched in the gut.“You…” His brain couldn’t even process the information.Of course, she could have children.That’s what was supposed to happen.How?How would the gods let this happen?She always wanted kids, she wanted a big family.He swallowed hard past the lump in his throat.“I don’t understand.”

She gave him a pitying look.“That’s why marrying you wouldn’t change anything.I’m barren.I can’t do the one thing that women are supposed to do.”

He shook his head.“Don’t say that, Es.Your value isn’t wrapped up in having children.I’ve never seen you like that, you’re not a birthing machine.”

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