Chapter 8

Elora’s POV

The moon shone brightly around the castle when I finally found him. The silver lights illuminated the training ground. Dante punched a training bag till it splintered open.

He didn't even flinch as the cuts ran deep to his knuckles. His wolf was angry and restless. I could feel it against my skin, since we're mates.

I should have turned back. I should have walked the other way, swallowed my rage and grief like I always had. But something inside me snapped today, and I knew I could not survive another moment of silence.

“Dante.”

My voice sliced through the night air. He paused, breathing heavily, then turned toward me. His eyes gleamed under the moonlight, molten and feral, but his expression softened the moment it landed on me.

“Elora.” My name came out of his mouth softly. I didn't want to admit it, but I hated that I liked the way it sounded.

I hated the way it made my heart race. I hated the way my wolf stirred at the sound, aching for him even as every bone in my body screamed against it.

I forced myself to ignore it as I raised my voice. “I’m ending this.”

His brows furrowed in confusion. “Ending what?”

“The bond.” I stepped closer, though my knees trembled. “Whatever claim you think you have on me, it ends tonight.”

A flicker of pain crossed his face, gone as quickly as it came. He straightened, towering, his jaw tightening. “You can’t mean that.”

“I can.” My voice shook, but I didn’t let it falter completely. “I don’t want you. I don’t want this. You’ll accept my rejection, Dante, and we’ll both be free.”

His chest rose and fell with sharp, uneven breaths. “Free?” His laugh was low, humorless. “Do you even hear yourself? You’re bound to a man who doesn’t give a damn if you’re in my arms or his, and you call this freedom?”

The words hit hard, too close to the truth. I frowned and tried ignoring the pain. “It doesn’t matter. I’m choosing to reject you.”

I lifted my chin, steadying my breath, and spoke the words that would determine our fates.

“I, Elora, reject you, Dante...”

He moved before I could finish, his hand closing around my wrist, his grip firm but not enough to bruise me. He looked into my eyes, his wolf stirring in anger.

“No.” His voice was stern, commanding.

He is going to have to accept my rejection for it to work. Without it, the bond would not break. The words lodged in my throat. I couldn't bring myself to say it. My wolf howled inside me, the bond stretching thin, tearing, but not severed. The pain ripped through me, burning. It choked me.

I staggered back, clutching my chest, gasping. It felt like my heart was being split open, it made me almost cry.

“Why...” My voice cracked as I fought to breathe. “Why won’t you let me go?”

Dante’s face was a mix of anger, stubbornness, and rage. He stepped toward me, eyes fierce. “Because you don’t want it. Not really. You’re angry. You’re hurt. But you don’t want to be free of me.”

“Don’t tell me what I want!” I shouted, shoving at his chest. The force barely moved him. “You think you know me? You think this bond means you can dictate my choices? I said I don’t want you!”

He caught my hand mid-air when I tried to shove him again, holding it between us. His grip was hot, like he was trying his best not to hurt me.

“Then why...” he said softly, dangerously, “...does your wolf call to me every damn time I’m near? Why do you look at me like you hate yourself for wanting me?”

Tears blurred my vision. I yanked my hand back, wrapping my arms around myself as if I could shield myself from the pain.

“Because I do hate myself,” I whispered, whimpering. “You make me hate myself.”

For a moment, silence stayed between us, as no one spoke.

His shoulders slumped, his gaze dropping, and when he looked up again, the fury in his eyes had shifted to something else. Something unbearably tender.

“Elora,” he said, voice rough, “I don’t love you.”

The words hurt, but strangely, they were also a relief. At least being honest at this point is all I need.

“I don’t love you,” he repeated, stepping closer, “but I can’t reject you. Because I can’t pretend I don’t feel you under my skin every second of the day. I can’t pretend I don’t hear your heartbeat like it’s my own. You can hate me all you want, but I won’t sever this bond.”

My chest ached with every word, my wolf raged inside me, torn between fury and longing.

“You don’t get to decide that,” I whispered.

His eyes locked on mine. “Then finish it. Look me in the eye, and tell me you don’t feel this bond strangling you as much as it strangles me. Tell me you want it gone, and I’ll let go.”

I opened my mouth, but the words wouldn’t come. My wolf howled, my throat burned, but all that escaped was a choked sob.

He saw it, the hesitation, the truth. His expression softened with something that looked dangerously like victory, though his eyes said something else, his jaw clenched.

“You can’t,” he murmured. “Because we’re already bound. Whether you want it or not.”

I shook my head, the tears spilling freely now. “I hate you.”

He took another step closer, so close I could feel the heat radiating off his body, and I could smell the earthy scent coming from him.

“Then hate me,” he said, voice low, a growl rumbling beneath it. “But you’ll still be mine.”

The incomplete rejection stayed between us, a wound left open. Every heartbeat reminded me of it, an ache I couldn’t ignore.

I turned and ran, my sobs catching in the night air, my chest burning with the unbearable truth. I had tried to break the bond, tried to reject him, but instead, I was more in love with him.

And Dante knew it.