"Seraphina, I just feel sorry for her. You know she has no pack. I'm only doing this because she was Fenris's mate. He was like a blood-brother to me. He saved my life..."
He scrambled to explain, the words tumbling out with that practiced urgency I'd heard a hundred times before, the voice he used when he needed me to be understanding, to be patient, to be the good mate who swallowed her pain so he could have what he wanted. I cut him off, my expression blank. "I agree. Let's sever the bond."
"Really?"
His eyes lit up. He hadn't expected me to say yes that easily.
And there it was. The truth of it, laid bare in the fraction of a second before he remembered to rearrange his face. Not relief that I understood. Not guilt. Not even surprise, not really. Joy. Pure, uncomplicated joy, bright as a flame in his eyes, there and gone in a heartbeat. The joy of a wolf who had just been handed exactly what he wanted without having to fight for it.