Why you can't be my woman

Rebecca’s POV

​Shock flashed across his face. Then guilt. Then something colder.

​“Rebecca,” he said sharply.

​I couldn’t breathe. Sasha turned to look at me confused, but Enzo never moved away from her. He didn’t push her off or cover himself. If anything, he glared at me, like he wanted this moment burned into my memory—like he needed me to finally understand that I didn’t belong in his world.

​“Enzo…” My voice cracked helplessly.

​“Get out!”

​“I…” My words failed me.

​His jaw clenched. “Get out!” His voice came out rough and deep. My chest hurt so badly I thought I might collapse right there.

​"I..." My voice broke. I looked at Sasha’s flushed face, then back at Enzo’s cold, hard expression.

​"Get out," he ordered. He didn't sound sorry. He sounded angry that I was interrupting him. He leaned forward, pressing his weight into the woman again, making her let out a low, breathless moan that felt like a slap to my face. "Leave, Rebecca. Now."

​The cruelty in his eyes was worse than the sight of him with someone else. He was showing me exactly what he thought of my "love." To him, I was a child. To him, this was what a real woman looked like.

​The worst part wasn’t seeing another woman beneath him. It was realizing he could touch someone with so much hunger… and had never once touched me that way.

​I was unable to move, and my stillness annoyed him. Frustrated, he began to slam into her again—showing me that this could never happen between us.

​Unable to stand it, I ran out of the room. My vision was blurred with tears. I didn't know where I was going; I just kept running. I ran blindly through the pack house. My chest hurt so badly it felt like someone had ripped my heart out and crushed it beneath their feet.

​I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. All I could see was Enzo—his hands on her, his body moving against hers, the cold look in his eyes as he told me to get out.

​I stumbled down the back steps of the pack house and into the forest behind it, choking on broken sobs. Branches scratched against my skin as I pushed deeper between the trees, not caring where I was going. I just needed to get away. Away from him. Away from the humiliation.

​My lungs burned painfully, but I kept running until my legs finally gave out near the cliff behind the waterfall. The same cliff Enzo used to warn me about when I was younger.

​“Stay away from the edge, little wolf,” he would say while carrying me on his back. “One wrong step and you’ll fall.”

​A bitter laugh escaped my lips. Little wolf. Little sister. Little girl. That was all I would ever be to him.

​I slowly walked toward the edge of the cliff, trembling violently as tears streamed down my face. The drop below was endless—dark rocks and raging water. One step. That was all it would take. Maybe then this pain would stop. Maybe then I wouldn’t have to remember the way he looked at another woman. Maybe then my stupid heart would finally stop loving him.

​I wrapped my arms around myself shakily as another sob escaped my throat.

​“Becca!”

​My entire body froze. Slowly, I turned around. Enzo stood several feet away between the trees, breathing heavily like he had been searching everywhere for me. His dark hair was messy, his shirt was half-buttoned, and his green eyes were locked completely on me.

​But it wasn’t anger on his face anymore. It was fear. Real fear. His gaze dropped to how close I stood to the edge, and all the color drained from his face instantly.

​“Step away from there,” he said quietly.

​I laughed brokenly, wiping tears from my cheeks. “Why? So you can go back and finish fucking her?” I spat, taking a step closer to the drop.

​Enzo flinched in visible panic.

​“You are scaring me,” he said hoarsely.

​“Scaring you?” My voice cracked. “The almighty Beta Enzo is scared?”

​He took one careful step toward me. “Becca. Come here.”

​I shook my head. “No.”

​Instead, I decided to do something reckless and took two steps further.

​“Rebecca!”

​Terror ripped through Enzo’s face as my body disappeared over the edge.

​Everything happened so fast. Just before I crashed against the rocks, a giant wolf twisted and fell before me, forcing his own body against the sharp stone while mine landed against the thick warmth of his fur instead. A loud crack of bones echoed through the air. The wolf let out a savage howl of pain.

​“Enzo!” I screamed.

​I didn't understand how it was possible, but he had moved faster than the wind to get beneath me. Blood splattered across the rocks beneath him instantly. His massive body trembled violently under mine, but he still pushed himself to his feet despite the obvious agony tearing through him.

I stared in horror at the deep wounds ripped across his side where the rocks had cut into him. He had used his own body to protect mine.

​The giant black wolf lowered himself slightly, nudging me upward with his nose. I realized what he wanted immediately. Tears blurred my vision as I climbed weakly onto his back. The moment I settled there, Enzo forced himself upright again with a pained growl.

​Then, he began climbing. Every movement looked agonizing. Blood dripped from his body onto the rocks while his breathing grew heavier with every step, but he never stopped. Not once. Even injured, he carried me carefully on his back the entire way up the cliff.

​By the time we finally reached the top, his legs were shaking violently. Several warriors rushed toward us in a panic. “Beta!”

​The massive wolf stumbled forward before collapsing heavily onto the ground. Then, the shifting began. Bones cracked. Black fur slowly disappeared. Suddenly, Enzo was there instead—naked, bleeding, and breathing harshly through obvious pain.

​A broken groan escaped his lips as he curled onto his side. Blood covered his shoulder, ribs, and back where the rocks had torn into him. My chest tightened painfully; I couldn't breathe.

​One of the warriors immediately pulled off his shirt and covered Enzo’s lower body while the others carefully lifted him from the ground. Enzo hissed sharply the moment they touched his injured side. “Careful!” another warrior snapped urgently.

​I stumbled after them, my face wet with tears. “Enzo…”

​His eyes slowly lifted to mine. For a second, the coldness was gone. All I saw was a deep, crushing sadness. His lips moved, whispering words so low I could barely hear them.

​“See, Becca?” he rasped, his eyes closing in pain. “This is why... this is why I can’t be with you.”

​He coughed, and a small trail of blood leaked from the corner of his mouth. His grip on the warrior’s shoulder tightened as he forced himself to look at me one last time.

​"You are reckless and impulsive... such a person cannot be my woman..."

​He paused, his chest heaving as he fought for air. A dark, hard look returned to his eyes, masking the love that had been there a second before.

​"Just stay the hell away from me, Rebecca. Before you get us both killed."