A soft wind blew around Iris and Maverick as they stood silently. Maverick felt his heart miss a beat when he told her the truth, but he also felt relief. His eyes never left Iris, who stood still; her eyes never once blinked. "I-Iris, please say something."
Iris's body slowly trembled as she covered her lips; she began to giggle. Her giggle slowly turned into a laugh. Her laughs echoed throughout the forest; Maverick was stunned. That was when he realized that Iris didn't believe him. Iris slowly calmed down. "V-Very funny, Maverick. I-I was worried that it was something more serious!"
Maverick sighed as he massaged the back of his neck. "You don't believe me. I should have expected this." He then slowly began to take his shirt off, exposing his muscular body. Iris stilled when she saw his upper body. There was no denying he had a mouthwatering body, but Iris couldn't help but look away out of respect. "M-Maverick, wh-what are you doing?"
The Beta kept his pants since he didn't want to give her the wrong impression. "Please look at me, Iris." The young woman slowly did what she was told and looked at him. "Since you don't believe me, I must show you the truth." Maverick's body began to tremble, cracks echoed, and fur slowly grew from his body.
Iris was aghast with the sight. His arms, legs, and nails grew. His face and body changed as he grew; his pants ripped. Maverick was no longer in his human form; he was in his wolf form. In his wolf form, Maverick shook his fur and stood in his spot to try not to frighten Iris. Shock overwhelmed Iris as she looked at Maverick. Her mind was overwhelmed with many emotions, but eventually, one thing came to mind. A memory came to her when she realized that Maverick was the wolf she saw in the forest and her dream. "It-It was you...you were the one I saw in the forest."
Maverick lowered his head and let out a low whimper. "Please, don't get scared of me," he said to himself. He saw Iris standing still; her eyes were motionless. After what seemed like an eternity, Iris began to swerve back and forth. She fell to the ground; she fainted. Maverick slowly walked to her and gently moved her with the tip of the nose. There was no movement, and he immediately changed into his human form; he was naked. His pants were ripped; he wanted to get to his house as soon as possible before anyone saw him naked. The Beta gently carried Iris bridal style and immediately ran to his house before she woke up. Once inside his home, he went to the guest room and put his mate on the bed, covering her with the bedsheets.
He then went to his room and changed into dark blue jeans and a black T-shirt. Once done, Maverick slowly walked to the guest room, where Iris lay in bed. He sat on a chair by the mirror while looking at his mate. Maverick was angry with himself that he made Iris faint, but he had to show her his identity to make him believable, or she would have believed that he was insane. His biggest fear was that Iris would fear and leave him. The thought of her leaving made him want to go insane. Ofelia and their unborn child were gone; he didn't think that he could survive being left alone again.
Two hours eventually passed, but Maverick didn't leave the room. The wait felt torturous; anxiety overwhelmed him that he thought he would pass out. Then, Iris began to groan and move. She slowly opened her eyes while looking at her surroundings; her eyes stopped on Maverick, who sat in his chair. Her eyes widened, and she backed toward the wall. It made Maverick's let out a wolfish groan of pain. It made his heart break that Iris feared him. "Iris, please, don't fear me. I would never hurt you." Iris was slowly breathing heavily; tears gradually formed. "Iris, please take deep breaths. I know all this is a shock, but please remember, I'm still me."
He waited for Iris to control her anxiety and breathing, which she eventually did. She still kept her distance as she wrapped her arms around herself. "You're a werewolf."
"Yes, I am. I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want you to fear me. I wanted you to know me first before I told you the truth. I'm sorry."
Iris bit her lower lip; she couldn't look at him. She was still shocked since she thought werewolves were nothing but legends and fantasy. Seeing Maverick change into a werewolf, she no longer knew what to think. However, there was one thing that plagued her mind. "A-Are you close to me because I am your mate?"
Her question was unexpected, but Maverick felt that he shouldn't have been too surprised since the topic of werewolves was popular. "Yes, you are my second chance mate."
"Second chance mate?" Iris asked as she looked at Maverick. "Wait, wasn't your first wife your first mate? Was she a human?"
"My deceased wife, Ofelia, was a werewolf. Once she passed, she communicated with the Moon Goddess to give me a second chance mate or, more precisely, a second chance in life." The Beta noticed the confusion in Iris' face. "Mates are very important to a werewolf; they are a werewolf's other half and their reason to live. When a mate dies, a werewolf becomes depressed and may have no reason to live."
Iris looked at Maverick. "So, that time I stopped you from committing suicide, you...?"
Maverick nodded. "Yes, I was in such pain, but a new hope came to me when I smelled your heavenly scent. Although I was confused, I was overjoyed that I was given a second chance. I was blessed to have met you."
The young woman then looked away. Everything was too much, but there was something that she was afraid to ask, but she felt she had to. "So you only were with me because some goddess made you want me?" Iris tried hard to keep her tears at bay, but her body betrayed her. Tears dripped as her body trembled. "You didn't like me because you wanted to. You liked me because you were forced to."
Iris was then forced to turn; Maverick wrapped his arms around her. "No, Iris. A werewolf can choose whether or not they want their mate or not." He felt that Iris was trying to push him away, but he didn't let her be away from him. "Even if I wasn't a werewolf, I would have fallen for you. The Moon Goddess didn't make you be at the park that day. The Moon Goddess didn't make you stop me from taking my life. It was you. You were there because of you. I could have rejected you because I would have felt that I was betraying Ofelia, but when I felt your kindness and warmth, I couldn't. I wanted to know you and when I did, I-I..." He was about to say something that he never thought he would say. "I fell in love with you."
Iris's tears dripped on Maverick's shirt, and she stopped pushing him. Those words made her cry: "D-Don't..."
Maverick made her look at him; his eyes were filled with gentleness and sadness. "No, I will say it. I love you, Iris." He then cupped her face, lowered his face and lips onto hers, and kissed her.
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