Enzo’s POV
I placed her gently onto the bed, my chest aching as I pulled the heavy duvet over her shivering body.
I should have walked away.
I should have left her alone in the room and gone to sit in my study until morning.
But looking at her pale, tear-stained face, my wolf flatly refused to leave her side.
I climbed onto the mattress right next to her, not even bothering to change out of my damp, unzipped jeans.
Sliding close, I wrapped a massive arm around her tiny waist, hauling her back flush against my chest and locking her securely in place against my heat.
The moment my skin hit hers, she tried to wiggle away, her small hands pushing weakly against my arm.
“Stop moving,” I growled low into her wet hair, my voice rough with a warning I didn’t truly mean.
“Stay still and sleep, Rebecca.”
She stiffened against me, finally freezing in my grip.
I felt the tiny, rhythmic tremors of her body as she began to cry silently into my pillows.
It was pure emotional torment for her, and I knew it.
She was being held like my most prized possession, completely enveloped in my scent, her bare ass pressed right against my hardening length through my clothes—all while carrying the devastating weight of believing I thought she was a monster.
As her breathing finally slowed, signaling she had drifted into an exhausted sleep, the suffocating silence of the room closed in on me.
I stared at the back of her head, my heart breaking into a million pieces.
I know you’re innocent, Rebecca, I spoke softly to myself in the quiet depths of my mind.
You can be wild, you can be stubborn, but you are definitely not capable of trying to kill your own sister.
I know the truth.
I know you, my perfect girl.
But I have to pretend, I thought, a bitter, agonizing tightness wrapping around my throat.
I have to pretend that I don’t believe a single word you say.
That is the only way it’s easier for me to be cold to you.
That is the only way I can force you to hate me before my time is up.
I leaned down, pressing a lingering, passionate kiss into her soft hair, inhaling the sweet scent of her that I would only get to keep for a little while longer.
God, Rebecca…
I love you so much.
I closed my eyes tight, pulling her just a little closer into my arms, wishing I could freeze time forever.
I found it hard to sleep.
Actually, it was completely impossible.
Not with Rebecca’s soft, bare ass poking directly into my groin with every tiny breath she took.
For hours, I just lay there in the dark, my body tightly wound like a spring, fighting the vicious urges of my wolf.
I stayed awake until the clock on my nightstand finally read 5:00 AM—the exact time the warriors would be heading out to the yard to train.
I slowly and carefully pulled my arm from around her waist, making sure not to wake her.
Leaning over, I pressed one last, lingering kiss against the top of her head.
”I love you, Becca,” I whispered into the quiet dark, my voice cracking.
“Please forgive me.”
I slid out of the bed, my damp jeans heavy against my legs, and walked into the master bathroom.
I took a long, hot shower, washing away the scent of the liquor and the heavy, intoxicating aroma of our midnight grinding.
When I walked back into the bedroom with a towel around my waist, I stopped at the edge of the bed.
Rebecca had rolled over.
She was sleeping with her legs completely spread out across the mattress, taking up almost the entire bed.
A small, genuine smile cracked through my cold expression.
Becca still sleeps like a kid.
I suddenly recalled a night two years ago when she had a terrible nightmare and insisted on sleeping in my room.
She had kicked, rolled, and almost completely pushed me out of my own bed.
It was absolutely hectic trying to get any rest with her back then, too.
Shaking my head to clear the memories, I forced my smile down.
I got dressed in my fresh warrior leathers, strapping my dagger to my belt, and left the room before the sun could fully rise.
As I walked down the grand corridors of the mansion, the early morning staff were already awake, scrubbing the floors and preparing breakfast.
They quickly bowed their heads to me as I passed.
I gave them a stiff nod, keeping my face blank, and marched straight out to the training yard.
The cool morning air hit my face, but it didn’t do anything to cool the tension in my chest.
Standing near the weapon racks, looking out at the foggy field, was Ryan.
I walked right up to him, my shadow falling over him.
“We need to talk.”
Ryan turned around, slowly folding his arms across his broad chest.
His hazel eyes were hard, lacking their usual friendly warmth.
“Indeed, we need to talk, Alpha.”
He stepped closer, his jaw tight.
“You are the one who told me to go for Rebecca,” he reminded me, his frown deepening.
“So what the hell was that stunt you pulled last night in the courtyard?”
I glared at him.
“She was drunk.”
Ryan scoffed, his eyes flashing with sudden anger.
“You think I was taking advantage of her?
You think I wanted to fuck her in her drunken state?” He shook his head sharply, stepping right into my space.
“Hell no, Enzo!
I was trying to stop her from doing something she would regret,” Ryan snapped, his chest heaving with frustration.
“She came out there completely out of her mind, begging me to touch her just to get back at you.
I would never take advantage of her like that, and you know it.”
My jaw clenched so tight a sharp pain shot up my temple.
The image of her hands on his face, her lips pressing against his, flashed in my mind and made my inner wolf roar with pure territorial fury.
”You know what?” I spat.
“She is off-limits.”
”Why?” Ryan demanded, stepping even closer.
“You were the one who begged me to go after her.”
”And I am changing that now, Ryan,” I growled, trying to keep my voice low so other warriors won’t eavesdrop.
“Just listen to me.
Don’t go for her again.
Stay away from her.”
Ryan let out a harsh, bitter scoff, shaking his head in disbelief.
“What kind of twisted game is this?”
”She is my wife,” I blurted out, the words slipping past my defense before I could stop them.
I took a sharp breath and spoke again.
“Just hold on.
Wait until the marriage is over in one year.
When that year is up…
then you can pursue her.
But until then, stay away.”
Ryan stared at me for a long, silent moment.
The anger in his hazel eyes slowly melted into a deep, heavy pity that made me want to hit him.
He didn’t back down.
Instead, he reached out and placed a heavy, firm hand on my shoulder, looking at me not as his Alpha, but as the boy who had grown up alongside me.
He knew there was something much bigger going on behind my cold eyes, something desperate that I was hiding from the entire world.
”Enzo,” Ryan said softly, his voice dropping into a serious, heavy tone.
“Just tell her the truth.
Stop deceiving yourself.”
I tried to pull away, but his grip on my leather jacket tightened, forcing me to stand there and listen to the truth I was trying so hard to ignore.
”Look at me,” Ryan pushed, shaking my shoulder slightly.
“You can tell yourself whatever lies you want about waiting a year or letting her go.
But we both know the truth.
Whether it’s right now, or in one year, or even in the next five years…
you will never let go of Rebecca.
You are completely consumed by her, Enzo.
And this wall you’re building between you two is only going to destroy you.”