Somehow, her mouth opened even wider. She looked away and my heart dropped to the base of my stomach. “Wyatt, you can’t just –”
“Yes, I can. I have to. I need to know. Tell me you love me, and I’ll let the rest of it go. Tell me you love me like I love you and I’ll learn to live with everything else.”
She met my eyes again and, in her gaze, I saw the answer there, and it wasn’t the one I’d been hoping for. She blinked over and over but said nothing, and that spoke volumes.
My heart felt like it was actually breaking in two as I watched the love of my life balk at the thought of telling me she loved me too. Maybe I’d been delusional all this time. Maybe all those moments I’d thought were love were nothing more than infatuation and lust. Maybe I was a fucking idiot.
I closed my eyes for a single moment before nodding once and turning around. “That’s what I thought,” I said softly, but it echoed in the quiet room.
I snatched my clothes off her floor and walked to the window for the last time. I wanted so badly to look at her again. Just one more glance so I could study her face and find the deep emotion I prayed was really there, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t take the chance it really wasn’t there, so like a coward, I kept my back turned to her.
I swung her window open and crawled out without another word. She didn’t say anything either and she didn’t try to stop me, which should have told me all I needed to know. I landed on the covered porch on the ground floor and then jumped to the grass, all the while waiting to hear her call after me.
But she never did.
***
“All right, Alpha. I’m on my way.”
Wes tucked his cell in his pocket and turned to me. “I’m heading downtown to Callie’s new office. You comin’ with?”
Fuck no was what came to mind, but what I said out loud was, “I’m good.” I wondered why the alpha was calling him down there, but knew I shouldn’t care, so I didn’t ask.
I’m not sure if it was unfortunate or fortunate that my brother was chatty, because he kept talking. “He told me to bring Aubrey and some cleaning supplies but didn’t say what for. He sounded really upset though. I wonder what’s going on.”
I shrugged and flipped the page of my magazine. “Guess you’ll find out when you get there.”
My brother was quiet for a minute as I worked to ignore him. Unfortunately, that didn’t last.
“What’s going on with you, bro? You’re being a moody shit again and it’s getting on my nerves.”
I shrugged again. “Feel free to fuck off then.”
He stomped over and ripped the magazine from my hands. “I’m serious. You were even short with Mom last night and you know that shit’s not cool.”
Shame burst to life inside my chest because I knew he was right. Mom had tried to have a similar conversation with me the night before and I’d been kind of an asshole. But was it my fault it was the fifth time that day she’d had the same talk with me? I didn’t want to discuss it, but no one would listen.
“I already apologized to her. We’re good.”
“Well, I’m not. And since when do you not want to see Callie? Something’s going on down there and you don’t even want to find out what that is?”
“I’m sure I’ll hear about it eventually.”
My brother sighed heavily and shoved my feet off the ottoman before planting his ass there instead. He dipped his head until he caught my gaze. “I’m serious, Wy. What’s up. I’m your brother. I deserve to know.”
Didn’t we all deserve shit we weren’t going to get?
“I really don’t wanna talk about it.”
“Well, tough nuts. We’re talking about it. And I have about five minutes before I gotta haul ass downtown, so get to talking.”
I blew out a deep breath and let my head fall back on the cushion behind me. I really didn’t want to have this conversation, but if it had to be with anyone, I guess the dude I shared a womb with wasn’t a bad choice.
“I had a fight with Callie, okay?”
He squinted his eyes at me, their depths suspicious. “You’re still fucking her, aren’t you?”
“Well, not currently.”
Wes smirked and leaned back. “Obviously not, fuck face. But, I mean, that’s the problem, right? Y’all were jamming the clam and now you’re not, you’ve got your balls in a twist.”
My brother was so fucking eloquent.
“It wasn’t like that.”
“Then what’s it like?”
“I told you I really don’t wanna talk about it.”
“And I told you tough nuts.”
“Wes, this really isn’t the time to push me.”
He squinted at me again as he studied me. Suddenly, his jaw fell open and his eyes widened. “You fell in love, didn’t you, you sorry son of a bitch.”
I shrugged, not willing to answer, but also not willing to lie about it.
“Aw, man, Wy. What the fuck were you thinking? She’s the alpha’s sister!”
“Yeah, so?”
He shook his head and sighed. “Wy, you know how it is just as well as I do. They’re on another level than us. They’re not for us, brother.”
The anger that was always close to the surface these days began to bubble as I fisted my hands. “If you’re trying to say she’s too good for me, I’m well aware. Why do you think I’m here with your sorry ass instead of in her bed? Now can we please drop it?”
“I wish we could, but as long as you’re being a
