Todos os capítulos de Forbidden: My Stepbrother, My Mate: Capítulo 41 - Capítulo 50

Ella.I couldn't move.Dad's question hung in the air between us like smoke. What have you done? But he didn't wait for an answer. He just turned and walked upstairs. His footsteps were heavy on the stairs. Deliberate. Like each step took effort.The bedroom door slammed.I stood alone in the living room, my legs shaking. The bond pulsed in my chest, frantic and confused. Kyle was sending waves of concern through it, but I couldn't respond. Couldn't think. Couldn't breathe.My phone buzzed.Kyle: Are you okay?I stared at the message. My fingers wouldn't work.Kyle: Ella, please answer me.Me: He hates me.I turned off my phone after that. I couldn't handle more questions. Couldn't explain what I didn't understand myself.I went upstairs. Passed Dad's closed door. Heard nothing from inside. He was probably sitting on his bed, staring at the wall, trying to process the fact that his daughter was bonded to a werewolf.His future stepson.I locked myself in my room and collapsed on the b

Ella.My heart hammered. "Fine, Dad. Just getting ready for bed.""Alright. Good night.""Night."His footsteps retreated down the hall. I heard his bedroom door close. Heard the springs of his mattress creak as he settled in.I went to the window. Kyle was already on the ground, looking up at me. Even in the darkness, I could see the longing in his expression. The separation felt like tearing off skin, raw and painful.Through the bond, his voice echoed in my mind, clear as if he were standing beside me. "Tomorrow. I'll see you tomorrow."I nodded, pressing my hand against the glass.He disappeared into the darkness, moving with impossible speed. One moment he was there, the next he was gone like he'd never existed.I closed the window and leaned against it, my heart racing. My lips still tingled from his kisses. My skin still burned where he'd touched me. The bond was already aching again. Already pulling me toward him with relentless insistence.This couldn't continue. We couldn't

Kyle.The wolfsbane was wearing off.I could feel it in my bones, in the way my wolf clawed at the edges of my consciousness. Three days of that poison in my system to keep me calm enough for this meeting. Three days of feeling half-dead so Thomas Morrison wouldn't see me as the threat I actually was.Marcus stood beside me in the clearing, his hand on my shoulder. A warning. A reminder to keep control."He's here," Marcus said quietly.Headlights cut through the darkness. Thomas's car pulled up to the edge of the clearing, and he stepped out. Alone. Brave or stupid, I couldn't tell which.The Elders waited near the center. Elder Samuel with his white beard and stern expression. Elder Katrina, sharp-eyed and calculating. Elder Logan, the youngest of the three, but no less intimidating.Jason emerged from the tree line on the opposite side. Neutral territory meant both packs had to approach from different directions. He caught my eye and nodded once. Professional. Cold. Like we weren't

Ella.The coffee shop smelled like burned beans and desperation.I sat across from Kyle at a small corner table, my hands wrapped around a cup I hadn't touched. Three tables away, Dad pretended to read a newspaper like some character from a bad spy movie. His eyes flicked toward us every few seconds.Kyle looked terrible.Dark circles shadowed his eyes. His hair stuck up in different directions like he'd been running his hands through it all night. His jaw covered in stubble."You look like death," I said."Thanks." His voice was rough. "I feel worse.""When did you last sleep?""What day is it?""Thursday.""Then three days ago. Maybe four. It all blurs together."I reached across the table before I could stop myself. My fingers brushed his knuckles. The contact sent a jolt through my entire body. Relief. Need. Hunger. Everything I'd been holding back for days crashed over me like a wave.Kyle's hand flipped over and grabbed mine. His grip was tight. Almost painful.The bond flooded

Ella.The woods swallowed us whole.One moment we were at the tree line behind my house, the next we were deep in shadow and silence. Kyle moved like he could see in the dark, his hand steady in mine as he guided me over roots and around low branches."How much farther?" I whispered."Not far. Maybe ten more minutes."My foot caught on something. I stumbled. Kyle caught me before I hit the ground, his arm sliding around my waist."Careful.""I can't see anything.""I can. Trust me."I did. Completely. The bond made doubt impossible.We walked in silence. The forest was alive around us. Rustling leaves. Distant animal calls. The crunch of our footsteps on dead vegetation. Then Kyle stopped."We're here."The clearing opened before us. Moonlight poured through a gap in the canopy, illuminating a circle of grass surrounded by ancient trees. It looked beautiful. Sacred.Kyle turned to face me. In the moonlight, his eyes glowed faintly. His wolf just beneath his skin."Ella."That was all