Free Shapeshifter Romance: Duty of a Lion (Paranormal Army Hero Navy Seal Shifter Protector Alpha Lion Romance) (Fantasy Military Action Adventure Urban Wolf Romance Short Stories) by J.K. Hudson

other we can–”
    She cut him off, “I’ve made up my mind.  You have your dreams and I have mine.  They don’t work together, and neither do we.  I’m sorry, Roy.”
    Without another word, Brenae fled the café.  She got into her car and left, Roy bursting through the door as she rounded the corner.  She drove aimlessly for a long while, fighting back the tears.  She pulled into a parking lot and cut the engine.  Deep sobs wracked her body as she was overwhelmed by the pain.  I’m doing the right thing.  He deserves a woman who can be exactly who he needs her to be.  Not a woman who’s afraid of horses and manure.”   She gulped desperately for air, trying to calm herself so she could drive the rest of the way home.  Whether or not it was the right decision, her heart was broken in two, and so was his.  She would never forget the look on his face, or that moment when she’d said the words that had crushed her soul. 
    *****
    The cellphone on her desk buzzed, the caller ID showing Roy’s number for the umpteenth time.  Brenae let it go to voicemail.  Her heart was broken, but ending her relationship with Roy was the right thing to do, she just knew it.  They were two very different people, on different paths in their lives.  They would only hold each other back, and that wasn’t good for either of them.  Roy had begged and pleaded with Brenae, his words cutting her to her very soul.  He said that love could conquer anything.  But she wouldn’t give up her dreams to follow him around the country while he competed, and she couldn’t ask him to give up his dreams so that she could follow hers.  The only kind thing, the only logical thing, was for them to go their separate ways. 
    Brenae threw herself into her work, looking for anything to keep her mind off Roy.  She scrolled through her emails, answering a few here and there, but otherwise completely lost in thought.  She’d had her heart broken before. She had recovered then, and she would recover from this, too.  She wasn’t so sure about Roy, though.  The look on his face had been pure and soul-shattering devastation.  He loved her, really loved her.  And she’d rejected him to save her career. 
    A single tear escaped her eye as she sat there trying so hard to convince herself that she’d done the right thing; it was the right thing for both of them, it had to be.  Then why does it feel so wrong?   Why should society get to dictate who she loved?  In what alternate universe did her boss claim the right to tell her that she must stay single if she wanted the position as news anchor?  “The men need to be married because it makes them seem more dependable,” he’d said, “and the girls need to be single because it makes them more approachable.”
    Brenae felt utterly disgusted every time she thought about that conversation.  “Girls”, as if the men were men, but the women were mere children playing in a man’s world.  She slammed her fist down on the desk.  Who was Preston to tell her anything?  She was a grown woman ; a woman who paid her own bills and made her own way in this world.  Why did I let that ignorant fool convince me that I needed to be alone to be successful?  What a load of crap!
    She stood up and gathered her things, headed for her car and her man.  Preston could take a long walk off a short pier for all she cared, she would have her man and her career.  She walked briskly down the hall, her mind made up.  Preston stepped out of his office and stood in the hall.  He opened his mouth to speak, but Brenae cut him off before he could say a word.
    “Preston, I’m going to the Nationals to support my man.  I’m not your possession, I’m an employee and a colleague.  I will date who I want, when I want, and if you don’t like it, that’s your problem.”  She didn’t shorten her stride to give him a chance to move, just continued on without faltering.  Preston was either going to move or