Kat’s dark brown hair glowed in the morning sun, glints of copper shining through. Alex had spent the last half-hour staring down at her peaceful, sleeping form, astounded that she’d spent the night with him. Her impossible beauty staggered him, and he was powerless to tear his gaze away.

In a perfect world, he’d lie next to her until she awoke on her own. She’d smile that perfect smile of hers, they’d joke about having morning breath, her laugh would send ripples through his body, and they’d make love again. After that, he’d tell her all his secrets.

Secrets…

Something tickled the back of his brain. Something Kat had said as he was falling asleep. Or had it been a dream? No, he was certain she’d spoken, but he couldn’t quite…

It hit him like a Mack truck loaded with explosives. Even better than I always heard it would be.

Idiot!

He should have known. He should have realized. The innocence that had rolled off her when they bumped into each other in the lobby — so refreshing after hours locked in a room full of lawyers — had been real. The way she’d been so hesitant and tentative at the beginning of their lovemaking should have tipped him off.

Idiot!

Until last night, Kat had been a virgin. In the clear light of day, it was all so obvious. He’d been out for one last night of fun before getting married, while she had trusted him with her virginity.

Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!

In another universe, another life, he would have been quite satisfied with this turn of events. He could easily imagine giving this woman his heart as she had given him her innocence — but his heart wasn’t his to give. In a week, he’d be standing in front of a huge gathering of bears, pledging himself to a lifetime with another woman.

He flopped back on the bed, clutching at his unruly hair. What have I done? What do I do now?

Deep down, he knew the answer. He hated the thought — hated himself — but it was the only way. It would be fast and brutal, but he had to rip off the bandage. As much as he wanted to spend every waking moment between now and the wedding with Kat, he couldn’t do that to her. Better for them both to feel the sting of rejection after one wild night than suffer the pain of a broken heart after falling in love, which he had no doubt would happen.

No, he had to make her hate him. The idea stabbed him in the heart, but it was nothing more than he deserved. He drank her in, committing every line of her face and every curve of her body to memory because he’d never see her again after this day.

He was nearly dressed by the time she woke up, sleepy-eyed and smiling softly. He watched in his full-length mirror as she stretched awake, the sheet falling away and exposing one beautiful breast. The hardest thing he’d ever had to do was tear his gaze away from her.

That’s nothing compared to what’s coming…

“Hey you,” she said, her voice raspy from slumber.

Alex wanted nothing more than to crawl back into bed with her and snuggle — among other things — the day away, but he forced himself to stay the awful, cruel, painful course.

“Morning.” His tone was crisp, without a hint of warmth, and he kept his focus on his reflection as he straightened his tie.

“Last night night was amazing,” Kat said as she sat up and wrapped her arms around her knees, her hair a sexy mess.

He couldn’t tell her the truth — that last night had been the best night of his entire life, and he had no doubt it would remain so until the day he died. Instead, he spat out, “Yeah, it was fun.”

Alex shrugged into his coat and made a show of checking his watch. “I need to get to work. There’s coffee, if you want it, but I’m afraid I don’t have much in the way of food.”

His heart cracked at her confused expression.

“We… Aren’t we going to have breakfast together?”

“Sorry,” he said as he swept out of the room. “No time.”

He could hear her getting out of bed and following him. The swish of what he guessed was the sheet wrapped around her luscious body echoed in the silent apartment.

“When you’re ready to leave, just press ‘three’ on the panel next to the door. My driver will take you where ever you need to go.”

“Um, okay.”

Alex dug his fingernails into the palms of his hands as he walked to the door to stop himself from turning around, gathering her in his arms, and kissing away the pain he heard in her voice.

“Will you call me?” she asked quietly as she followed him.

He stopped with his hand on the door knob, and finally turned to her. “You know, I don’t think I ever got your number.”

That left her speechless, and he took the opportunity to press a kiss to her forehead — anything to avoid those mesmerizing amber eyes — and swing the door open wide.

“Besides, it probably wouldn’t be a good idea. I can’t believe I forgot to mention it, but I’m getting married in a few days. Might make things awkward.”

Without another word, he walked out the door and closed it softly behind him.

Alex had done a fair amount in his life to be ashamed of, but he’d never hated himself more. Hopefully, Kat hated him too.

* * *

Alex had intended to spend the morning alone in his office, but his father was waiting for him when he arrived. The older man approached him with a smile that faded quickly as Alex neared. Even after the shower, Katrina’s scent clung to him. An alpha bear such as his father, even in human form, would notice it.

“Do I need to remind you,” Tier Fairchild hissed, after closing Alex’s office door, “that you’re getting married in a week?”

Alex couldn’t meet his father’s eyes. “Yes, I’m getting bonded for all eternity in one week. That being the case, I thought I deserved to enjoy myself one last time. One very last time.”

His father stepped close to him, anger etched across his strong features. “Do you have any idea how important this union is, Alex? Do you realize what one misstep could mean for the entire clan? Both clans?”

“You don’t think I know that?” he snapped. Claws sprouted from his fingers and his teeth sharpened. “Do you think I would have agreed to this…this nightmare, if I didn’t know what it meant for my people?”

“Nightmare!” Tier Fairchild’s shout turned into a roar as his face became more animal than human. “You don’t know nightmare! Nightmare is watching your family struck down by war! Hearing screams during the night raids, knowing you don’t have enough bears to fight back! Watching cubs starve because you sent their parents off to die!”

“Yes,” Alex growled, his body growing and clothes tearing as he struggled to control his rage. No doubt misplaced rage, but rage nonetheless. “And I have sacrificed myself to end it.”

“Sacrifice!” His sire’s growl was disgusted, his glare entirely inhuman. “You know nothing of sacrifice.”

The two half-bears circled each other, their shredded suits dangling from their bodies in bits and pieces. Alex had never fought his father before — never thought of it — but his body and soul still ached over what he’d had to do to Kat for the sake of his clan. How dare his father say he didn’t know sacrifice?

For one insane moment, he considered rushing the older bear, using claws and teeth against him, but under the alpha bear’s steady gaze, the desire slowly faded. This was his father. His Tier. He didn’t have to agree with him, didn’t even have to like him, but he had to obey him.

Alex’s head dropped in a gesture of submission, and just like that, the altercation was over. The Tier’s bear withdrew, as did Alex’s, and the men walked to the closet to pull out fresh suits. A bear’s clothing budget was pretty hefty.

“It’s not forever,” Tier Fairchild said as he dressed. “The ceremony’s less than a week away. In a year or two, you’ll have an heir and a spare, then you can return to your mistress, or find a better one.”

At his father’s unwitting words, Alex almost shifted fully to his bear form and tore the man’s head from his shoulders. She wasn’t even his mate, yet Alex felt a fierce protectiveness for Kat — even if the ‘threat’ was only an inadvertent insult. His father had no idea no other woman could compare to Kat, not even his future wife.

And he’d just left her behind.