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Chapter 24
publish date:
2026-05-06 01:34:00
Latest chapter
Rejected by the Prince, Claimed by the Alpha Chapter 88
Darius came back from the western patrol just after dusk, and for once, Elara noticed him before he noticed her.That rarely happened.He entered through the side corridor near the mudroom rather than the main hall, speaking quietly with one of the patrol captains as snow melted from the shoulders of his coat. His hair was wind-tousled, his boots wet, his expression composed as it always was when other wolves were watching.Controlled.Functional.Alpha.Elara had been sitting at the long table near the kitchen with Mara, half-listening to a story about a disastrous council dinner from ten years ago while pretending not to sketch the curve of the windows in the margin of an old receipt.She looked up when the door opened.At first, nothing seemed wrong.Darius nodded to the captain. The captain answered. Someone laughed in the kitchen behind her. A kettle hissed on the stove.Then Darius shifted his weight.Barely.A small adjustment, gone almost as soon as it happened.Elara’s pencil
Rejected by the Prince, Claimed by the Alpha Chapter 87
The question stayed with Elara after the greenhouse. Where would she have gone first? The coast, she’d said, because the answer had come faster than she expected. Not from careful thought or some buried plan. It had simply risen out of her before she could make it smaller.The coast. A place she had never seen.A place that existed in her mind through stolen books, old atlases, and travel journals left forgotten in the back shelves of the Blackwater library. The authors had described tides, salt air, and endless horizons as if they were ordinary things. Like anyone could wake up one morning and decide to go stand at the edge of the world.Elara had read those passages so many times that certain lines still lived in her memory.She thought about them that evening while sitting near the library fire with her sketchbook open on her knees.Outside, snow fell slowly through the dark. Inside, the lodge was warm and quiet, the kind of quiet that made thoughts louder if she wasn’t careful.S
Rejected by the Prince, Claimed by the Alpha Chapter 86
Three days later, Elara found herself thinking about the photograph again. Not intentionally. That was the annoying part. She'd be reading and suddenly remember the lake. She'd be walking through the lodge and think about the expression on Darius's face.Not the smile itself. The ease of it. The complete absence of responsibility. The version of Darius that had existed before territory politics, council disputes, and endless reports became permanent fixtures in his life.By the third day, she was beginning to suspect the photograph wasn't actually the problem. Curiosity was.The greenhouse was quiet that afternoon. Snow drifted steadily beyond the glass, softening the mountains into pale shapes beneath a gray winter sky. The warmth inside fogged portions of the windows while the scent of damp earth lingered comfortably in the air. Elara sat at one of the worktables with a sketchbook open in front of her. The page remained mostly blank. Every time she started drawing, her thoughts wan
Rejected by the Prince, Claimed by the Alpha Chapter 85
Elara should have known Mara wasn't finished. The warning signs had been obvious. The woman had spent most of yesterday dismantling years of carefully maintained Alpha dignity while enjoying herself far too much. Someone like that didn't simply wake up the next morning and decide to behave.Which was why Elara wasn't entirely surprised when she walked into the library after lunch and found Mara carrying a battered storage box beneath one arm.Darius looked up from the reports spread across the coffee table. The moment he saw the box, his expression changed. "No."Mara paused. "I haven't even said anything.""You don't need to.""I could be bringing important territorial documents.""You aren't."Mara looked offended. "That was one time.""It was twelve times."Without another word, she set the box on the coffee table.Elara immediately became suspicious.Darius looked resigned.Neither reaction improved her confidence.Mara removed the lid. Photographs. Stacks of them. Loose photograp
Rejected by the Prince, Claimed by the Alpha Chapter 84
Elara was halfway through a sketch when the library door opened. She didn't look up immediately. Charcoal moved across the page in slow, steady strokes while late afternoon sunlight filtered through the tall windows overlooking the mountains. For the first time in years, drawing didn't feel like work. It felt like breathing.The door closed. A familiar voice sighed, not irritated. Resigned. That got Elara's attention. She glanced up.Darius stood near the entrance. Unfortunately for him, he wasn't alone. The woman beside him paused the moment she spotted Elara.Silver hair.Sharp eyes.The kind of smile that immediately made people nervous.Darius closed his eyes briefly. "Mara.""What?""You have that look.""I don't know what you're talking about.""That's a lie."The woman ignored him completely and crossed the room.Elara barely had time to stand before a hand appeared in front of her."Mara Thorne."Her grip was firm, confident."Territorial advisor. Occasional problem solver. Fu
Rejected by the Prince, Claimed by the Alpha Chapter 83
The problem with realizing something was impossible to ignore was that it remained impossible to ignore afterward. Elara discovered this the next morning while standing in the kitchen pretending to make tea.The tea had been finished for almost five minutes. Elara was still standing there. thinking.which was apparently becoming a serious problem."You're staring at hot water again."Elara looked up.Darius stood in the doorway holding a mug of coffee.His coat was gone. His hair was still slightly damp from a shower. The exhaustion Elara had noticed yesterday had eased somewhat after an actual night's sleep.The sight of him triggered an embarrassing amount of relief.which was exactly the problem."No, I'm not.""You absolutely are.""I was contemplating tea.""That's not how tea works."She narrowed her eyes.Darius looked completely unconcerned.The kitchen was quiet this early. Pale winter sunlight spilled through the windows while snow-covered pines stretched endlessly beyond th
Rejected by the Prince, Claimed by the Alpha Chapter 22
Elara did not realize she was shaking until they reached the car.It waited near the front steps of the pack house, sleek and black beneath the cold wash of moonlight. A driver stood beside the open rear door, his posture straight, his gaze lowered just enough to be respectful without looking afrai
Rejected by the Prince, Claimed by the Alpha Chapter 21
The room did not move after Darius spoke.For one suspended moment, even the air seemed to hold itself still, caught between the words he had said and the meaning no one wanted to touch.She is the warning.Elara stood in the center of the council room with her hands clasped too tightly in front of
Rejected by the Prince, Claimed by the Alpha Chapter 20
By morning, the whole pack knew.Elara learned it before she reached the kitchen.She heard her name in the corridors, tucked into whispers that stopped too quickly when she turned a corner. She saw it in the way people moved away from her, not with the usual dismissal, but with something more care
Rejected by the Prince, Claimed by the Alpha Chapter 19
Elara did not remember leaving the east chamber.She remembered the door opening. She remembered the guards stepping aside. She remembered the priest saying something she did not understand because her ears had filled with a low, distant ringing that made every voice sound too far away.Then she wa
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