บททั้งหมดของ THE ALPHA’S PUBLIC REJECTION : บทที่ 81 - บทที่ 90

DRAKE POVI closed the door to Elara’s guest chambers and leaned against it for a moment as the last grain of picture of her hopeful smile faded from my vision. Every moment with her was like a performance, a draining exercise in maintaining a facade. All I wanted was the silence and solitude of my own study, and a very large bottle of whiskey.I pushed open the door to my study and found Lucas already there, lounging in my favorite armchair with a wide, annoying grin plastered on his face.“Get out,” I grumbled and headed straight for the bottle of whiskey. “I am not in the mood for your jokes today.”Lucas just chuckled lightly with amusement in his eyes. “Oh, I have no doubt. I just had to see it for myself. The mighty Alpha, returned from his courtship walk. Tell me, brother, how does it feel to be living every she wolf’s dream?”I poured out two drops of the amber liquid and gulped it down in one go, welcoming the searing burn in my chest. “It feels like a life sentence. And if y

DRAKE POV I stared at the boarder maps until the parchment turns blurry, but the silent threat of the Eastern Pack’s ‘Plan B’ was like a warning, etched on paper. Then a knock sounded on my study door, which I appreciated. “Enter.” Andre stepped inside, with an even grimmer expression than when he had left earlier on his face. “Drake. We have a situation. Sharon is in the pack house.” My look up in shock. “Sharon?” What in the moons’s name is she doing here? She knows she is not welcome at the main house.” A cold sweat ran down my spine. “Is she here for Lillian? After all this time, is she still trying to harass her?” Andre tightened his jaw. “I considered that. It is a valid suspicion. She has always blamed Lillian for your disinterest. But no, I don’t think that is her target today. My gut tells me she is aiming for a much bigger, more dramatic encounter. “What prize could be bigger than tormenting Lillian?” I demanded. “The new Luna,” Andre replied flatly. “Thi

LILLIAN POVThe three of us were gathered in my room, which was a little sanctuary from the storm of gossip and tension floating through the pack house. Salome was fuming at Sharon’s audacity bitterly while Lydia listened with her eyes wide open.“I just can’t believe she had the nerve to go straight to Elara,” Salome shook her head angrily and began to pace. “The annoying balls of that woman!”“It is Sharon,” I sighed, my body feeling very tired to my bones. “Gall is among her personality trait.”A sharp knock at the door cut off our conversation. A young messenger stood there, looking nervous. “Healer Lillian? A message from the clinic. The patient, Baron….he is insisting. He will not let anyone else change his dressings. He is asking for you, specifically.”I was instantly overwhelmed with concern, mixed with a strange sense of relief at having a professional task. “Of course,” I said and stood up immediately. “Tell him I am on my way.”As the messenger hurried off, I moved to gath

DRAKE POVDinner with Alpha Kael and princess Elara was a special kind of torture. Every morsel of food tasted like ash in my mouth. Alpha Kael sat up straight and hissed at our border patrol strategies with the aura of a man who had already considered himself half in charge.“Your northern posts are too far apart,” he said, with a knowing look in his eyes. “A small, skilled force could easily slip between them undetected. You should consider.”Andre, who was seated on my right, kept his tone neutral, but I could feel the tension rolling off him. “A valid observation, Alpha Kael. However, spreading them thinner allows for a wider net. It is a balance between the whole perimeter of the coverage.”While on my left, Elara had linked her arm tightly with mine, her touch feeling heavy on my skin. “I am sure my father is just trying to help, my love,” she whispered affectionately. “He only wants what is best for our future.”Our future. The words felt like a cage.The doors to the dining ha

ANDRE POVI slammed the door to my chambers so hard that the frame shook violently. The image of Drake’s face, so adamant, so dismissive of my pain, burned into the back of my skull. ‘My heart still beats for Lillian.’ The words were like a brand, a burn, damaging any lingering hope I had.I poured a whiskey with shaking fingers…not with fear, but fury, and it was so overwhelming that I could barely grip the glass. I only succeeded when the door opened with a knock. I did not bother to turn around for only one person would dare.Lucas leaned against the doorframe with a somber expression on his face. “Well, that went about as well as a bomb. How are you holding up?”I did not look at him. “What do you think?” I snarled, the words dripping with venom. “I think my best friend, my Alpha, just looked me in the eye and told me he is choosing his own happiness over the stability of this pack and over any chance I have at a future with the woman I love. So, I am just fantastic, Lucas. Never