Chapter 6

Elara's POV 

It comes to a stop in front of me, and the driver’s door opens. A lanky, brown-haired man gets out, and the corner of his eyes crease when he sees me.

“Elara!”

Before I can say anything, he bounces past the front of the car and wraps his arms around me.

“It’s been weeks!”

I laugh, returning the hug. 

“Two weeks, yes. You look good.”

When he pulls back, his sweet, brown eyes make my heart flutter just enough.

Andrew Crew is a human male in his early twenties, just a couple years younger than me. Normally, humans are not allowed to know about the existence of wolf shifters, but I saved Andrew’s life several years ago. He had been searching for the exact herbs that are now in my knapsack when he was attacked by a shadow bear. Fortunately, I was nearby and managed to save him, risking my own life in the process.

What started off as a hesitant friendship turned into a deep affection.

“Two weeks is a long time,” he complains, his arms settling around my waist. “Why don’t you just come back with me to Turnville? It’s not like you belong here anyway.”

He pulls me over to the hood of his car and takes a seat beside me.

“If I leave, how will you get these herbs?” I question him, smiling.

He always makes me smile. Being in his presence warms my battered heart.

I know Andrew cares for me. He has made it clear plenty of times, offering to take me away from here. As tempting as that is, it’s not possible. Typically, if a shifter mates a human, that human enters the pack. But for shifters like me, with latent wolves, while we are allowed to leave the pack, we can only do so if we marry a human. Andrew has never proposed marriage to me. And I have too much pride to ask him.

“Actually, I’ve been thinking about it,” Andrew says, his voice taking on a more serious tone. “About you coming to Turnville with me.”

I raise an eyebrow, studying his earnest expression.

“Andrew—”

“Hear me out,” he interrupts, his hands gesturing excitedly. “I’ve been expanding the shop. Business is booming. People are desperate for natural remedies that actually work better than half the stuff the regular doctors push.”

My heart skips a beat at the excitement in his voice. Andrew runs an herbal medicine shop in Turnville, specializing in non-traditional healing methods. It’s how we met, really. It’s why he’d been searching for those special plants when that shadow bear attacked him.

“And you—well, you know more about herbs than anyone I’ve ever met. The way you prepare them, the combinations you create… It’s incredible.” His eyes light up with passion. “We could be partners, Elara. You could work with me at the shop. We could help people together.”

I feel warmth spread through my chest at his praise, something I’m not used to receiving.

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying you wouldn’t have to risk your life in those damn woods anymore. No more shadow bears, no more dealing with people who treat you like garbage.”

He takes my hands in his, his thumb tracing circles on my skin.

“We could build something real together.”

The offer is tempting—more tempting than I want to admit. But reality crashes down on me like a cold wave.

“Andrew, it’s not that simple,” I say, pulling my hands away. “I can’t just leave.”

“Why not?” His voice rises in frustration. “What’s keeping you here? A pack that doesn’t value you? People who would rather see you dead than appreciate what you do for them? We both know how dangerous the woods are at night. They still send you into them. You’re the most vulnerable person in your pack, Elara. Nobody cares about you there.”

“Leaving isn’t as easy as you think.”

I take a deep breath, and the words come tumbling out before I can stop them.

“A shifter like me—one without a wolf—can only leave this world if they marry someone outside of it. A human.”

A silence stretches between us, and I can feel Andrew’s gaze burning the top of my head. When I finally look up, his expression is unreadable.

“Marriage,” he says slowly.

“It’s stupid, I know. An archaic rule that—”

“Elara.”

Something in his voice makes me stop talking. He slides off the hood of the car and stands in front of me, his hands coming to rest on either side of my thighs.

“Would you marry me?”

The world tilts sideways.

“What?”

“Would you marry me?” he repeats, his voice steady and sure. “Because I’ve been wanting to ask you for months. I just didn’t know how to bring it up.”

“Andrew, you don’t understand—”

“I understand perfectly.” His hands cup my face, forcing me to meet his eyes. “I understand that you’re the kindest, most courageous person I’ve ever met. I understand that every time I see you, you make my whole world brighter.”

My heart hammers against my ribs.

“You’re just saying that because—”

“Because what? Because you think I pity you?” His voice is gentle but firm. “Elara, I’ve been in love with you since the day you saved my life. We’ve known each other for five years now, and I’ve been completely in love with you for all of them.”

“You don’t know what you’re saying,” I whisper, but my voice wavers.

“I know exactly what I’m saying.”

He leans closer, and his forehead touches mine.

“I’m saying I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I’m saying I want to wake up next to you every morning and work beside you every day. I’m saying I want us to build something beautiful together.”

Tears prick at the corners of my eyes.

“But I—I won’t be able to give you children, Andrew. I won’t be allowed to have children if I leave the pack for a human.”

“I don’t need children,” he says fiercely. “I just want you. Wolf or no wolf, you’re perfect to me. You’re the prettiest girl I’ve ever met. And the kindest.”

I stare at him, searching his face for any sign of deception, any hint that this is some elaborate joke. But all I see is sincerity—and what he says is love.

“I don’t know what love is supposed to feel like,” I admit quietly.

“That’s okay,” he says, his fingers wiping away tears I didn’t realize had fallen down my cheek. “We can figure it out together.”