Page 80 of His Rejected Fated Mate

I made it to Riley’s pack, and my entire body was shaking. I headed straight for city hall and found a crowd gathered at the front steps. I could see Riley and Janella. I could seepeople surrounding them, but I had no idea who they were surrounding.

I moved closer and spotted Elize. But she didn’t look like herself. Her eyes had darkened, and her face had contorted into someone I didn’t know. She stood at the steps of city hall, and I could see the magic twirling in her hands. A few people already lay around her, bleeding out.

“Elize, stop,” Janella yelled at her, trying to reason with her. “This isn’t you. You have to fight it. You know this is wrong.”

But Elize wasn’t there. I could see she was just like me. A shell of a person, and I couldn’t let the darkness take over. I couldn’t stomach the thought of her changing into someone everyone thought she was.

I moved closer when Riley spotted me. “Troy!”

I kept going, moving closer to Elize. Riley stepped in my way, and I grabbed at him. Janella screamed as she ran toward us, but I threw Riley aside. I moved past him, rushing toward Elize.

Her eyes had snapped to me now, and Janella yelled. “Troy, don’t! Don’t hurt her! Please!”

Elize looked at me with a snarl and pulled her hands up, aiming her magic at me. I grabbed her and pulled her into my arms. Elize pushed against me, and I tightened my hold on her. I looked into her eyes, knowing she had to be in there.

I could hear them running toward us, but the world seemed to stop as I reached up, placing a hand on her face. If I were to lose control now, I wanted to at least tell her how I felt. She deserved to know.

“I love you,” I said softly.

Elize’s eyes wavered, and I felt something deep inside me shift. Suddenly, all the anger, all that rage was gone. It was like someone had taken a flip and turned it on. Elize’s eyes widened, and her arms seemed to freeze, unsure of what to do.

I pulled her tighter against me and cupped her face. “Come back to me. I know you’re in there. I know you can fight this. Please, come back to me.”

Elize’s face relaxed, and I could smell her magic. She started to grow bright, and her skin seemed to shimmer. She leaned against me, her fingers curling tightly around my shirt. “Troy?” Her voice came out gentle, like she was scared. Her eyes softened as she looked at me like she was afraid I’d disappear.

“Is this you? Really, you?”

I softly nodded. “It’s really me.”

I watched tears burst free as she clung to me. I cupped her face and kissed her. I felt the glow growing brighter. It was a warmth that spread over us, and I looked deep into her eyes.

“I mean it. I love you.”

She smiled at the moon. “I love you too. I was going to say it before.”

“I know.” I pressed my forehead against hers. “I know you were.”

Epilogue - Elize

The sound of an alarm went off, and I groaned, hating that it had just woken me from my deep sleep. “Shut it off,” I mumbled, throwing my arm out. “I’m still sleeping.”

“Sorry, I thought I turned it off last night,” Troy whispered as he moved. I could hear the alarm going silent, and I peeled my eyes open.

Troy was lying on his back next to me. His hair was a mess, and I took in his bare chest. My mind traveled to last night and how deep he’d been inside me. I instantly blushed thinking about how we got home.

Troy and I were wasting no time. Since the big love confession a couple of weeks ago, we’d been doing it every chance we got.

I could still remember raking my hands down his chest. Of course, because of his healing abilities, you couldn’t see them now. He looked untouched, while I knew I had hickies that covered my body.

Troy turned his head and gave me a smile that made my stomach flip. “Morning, beautiful.”

I blushed and softly smiled. “Morning.”

He scooted closer to me, reaching a hand up and twirling some of my hair. I stared into his eyes, falling in love with them more each day. “It’s early. You should go back to bed.”

“Says the man who set an alarm.”

“It was an accident.”