The Lone Wolf (Wolf 3)

She slammed her water glass down then came to the door. “Brandon, give me a second.” She grabbed his arm and pulled him away, keeping us separated from each other. Blanketed by his t-shirt, she opened the front door then came face-to-face with me. “Did you bring the papers?”

I came empty-handed—and she knew it.

Her eyes focused on mine, growing more hostile as the seconds trickled by.

I’d come here because I’d had too much to drink. It was an impulsive decision. Now I wished I’d just gone home so I wouldn’t have to see that gray t-shirt drown her petite frame. I wouldn’t have to smell his cologne on her skin. I wouldn’t have to wonder how long she’d been sleeping with him.

“Maverick.” She raised her voice. “Unless you have the papers, you have no business being here. Leave.”

I should walk away, but I didn’t. Rage pounded in my veins, along with an overwhelming sense of jealousy. “Arwen, I’m sorry.” I forced the words out even though it was difficult to say them. Knowing she was already sleeping around gave me a sense of urgency I never would have predicted. I never apologized for my actions, even if I was in the wrong. In my eyes, every decision I made was justifiable. But when I saw my life fall apart right before my eyes, I had to do something.

“You’re sorry?” She cocked her head as well as her eyebrow. Her arms crossed over her chest, and her mood turned even fouler. “What exactly are you sorry about? For being such a coward? For fucking someone else? For fucking two women? For not facing me like a man and having a big-boy conversation?” She stepped closer to me, as if she wanted to slap me like she did before. “I don’t want your apology, Maverick. I just want you to disappear.” She grabbed the door and started to shut it in my face.

I grabbed the wood and pushed it back. “I know I didn’t handle that situation very well. You dropped a bomb on me—”

“Stop making excuses. You knew I loved you. It was so fucking obvious, Maverick. Don’t pretend like you had no idea. All of this happened because you have no idea how to accept someone’s love.” She poked her finger into my chest. “You turned into a coward. I told you I loved you, and you hurt me in the worst way possible. You used to be the man I trusted more than anyone else. Now I realize you’re just weak.”

I was taking punches to the stomach, one fist after another. “I didn’t handle it very well…”

“No, you didn’t. Now we’re done.”

“I said I was sorry.”

“So?” she snapped. “You cheated on me, Maverick. You don’t just apologize and make it better.”

“I didn’t cheat on you—”

She held up her left hand where her wedding ring still sat on her finger. “We were married, Maverick. It was you and me. We had something special. You’re telling me that you regularly bed women without a condom? You take the same girl to bed every night? You risk your life to save someone? No. We were married, Maverick. We were actually husband and wife. Instead of having a fight and sleeping in separate beds for a couple of nights, you took it too far. You did something you can never take back. I forgive you because you did so much for me. But I don’t want you back.”

My entire body stilled when I heard her decision. She was so repulsed by me that she didn’t want me, not even my money or my looks. I was nothing to her, just another man who didn’t deserve her love.

She pulled the ring off her finger and threw it at my chest.

It bounced off my frame and landed on the ground between my shoes.

“Goodbye, Maverick.” She walked inside then slammed the door in my face.

I looked at the diamond ring on the ground. It was the first time I’d ever seen it without her finger slipped through the band. She slept with it on, showered with it on. She had never taken it off since the day I gave it to her.

But now it was lying on the floor…like a piece of trash.

5

Arwen

Brandon buttoned his jeans then pulled his t-shirt over his head, covering his muscled frame with a layer of cotton. His hair was messy from rolling around in my bed all night long, and there was still a sleepy look in his eyes. He walked to the counter and picked up his mug of coffee to take a drink. “So…I didn’t realize you were married.”

He hadn’t mentioned Maverick last night. We went back to bed and pretended it didn’t happen. But now he’d had a change of heart. “Was married.” I was wearing my wedding ring when Brandon approached me after the show. He was with a few associates who complimented me backstage. After flirting back and forth, he invited me out for a drink—and I said yes. He didn’t seem to care about my commitment then.