Chapter 76: He Needed a Little Motivation

BOOK TWO: BEHOLDE

**Piper**

The portal spit me and Sophie out directly in front of our house. I landed on my hands and knees, and I didn't bother to get up. Rocks dug into my palms, and the remnants of a recent rainstorm seeped through my jeans. But that discomfort was nothing compared to the anguish tearing my heart apart.

I left him.

The man I loved more than anything in the world.

Jax. My cranky vampire. My lover.

My soulmate.

And I'd just walked away like he hadn't meant a thing to me. What had I done? Would he ever recover from this? But I already knew the answer to that. Knowing he was now destined to be alone for eternity only made this whole thing so much worse. How could I have done this to him? I was a terrible person, undeserving of his love.

"Oh, God," I wailed.