Alle Kapitel von Taking a Chance with the Crippled Alpha: Kapitel 41 – Kapitel 50

Elara's POVI tossed and turned in my tent for what felt like hours.The ground was too hard. The blanket was too thin. The sounds of the forest—the hooting owls, the rustling leaves, the distant howl of nocturnal predators—were too loud. Every time I closed my eyes, my mind started racing again.“Stop it”, I yelled at myself. “Stop thinking about anything.”But I couldn't. No matter how hard I tried, Dustan's eyes kept invading my thoughts. I sat up abruptly, throwing off the blanket. This was ridiculous. I needed to sleep. I needed to be sharp tomorrow. I needed to stop acting like a lovesick puppy. I was not in love- love with Dustan. I mean, we are mates, we had sex and that was it. I crawled out of my tent, careful not to make any noise. The fire had died down to embers, casting a dim orange glow across the clearing. Everyone else was asleep—Ruth's tent was dark, Dustan's was dark, and Cassian was supposed to be on watch somewhere nearby.I stretched my arms above my head, roll

Elara's POVI drifted off again but woke up to the sound of voices outside the tent.Dustan's arm was still draped across my waist, his body warm against mine. For a moment, I just lay there, watching the morning light filter through the canvas, listening to the murmur of conversation.Ruth's voice came in followed by Cassian's voice. They were laughing about something.I should have felt embarrassed, ashamed not melting into his embrace.But all I felt was... content.“This is a problem”, I thought. “A very big problem.”Dustan stirred beside me, his arm tightening around my waist. His breath was warm on my neck, and I could feel the steady rhythm of his heartbeat against my back."Morning," he murmured, his voice rough with sleep.I didn't respond. I couldn't. My throat had closed up, my heart pounding too fast for words.He pressed a kiss to my shoulder, then pulled away. The loss of his warmth was immediate. My wolf, my body, didn't want him to go. "We should get up," he said. "R

Elara's POVThe silence stretched between us.It was comfortable at first, but then it turned into something else entirely.I could feel him watching me, his eyes reflecting the firelight. Could feel the weight of everything unspoken pressing down on us like a physical force. The air grew thick. It was heavy with tension, and I found myself hyperaware of every small movement he made. The way his fingers drummed against the armrest of his chair. The way his chest rose and fell with each breath. The way his gaze seemed to burn a path across my skin.“This is too much”, I thought. “I can't do this…why was everything so complicated?”I stood abruptly. My motion was jerky and graceless."I think I'll take a walk," I said, my voice coming out too fast. "I need some air."Dustan's expression flickered—something that looked almost like hurt crossing his features before he masked it. He said nothing, just nodded once, and then he was wheeling himself towards his tent without another word.I w

Elara’s POVConsciousness returned in fragments.First came the smell—woodsmoke, wet earth, and something metallic that coated the back of my throat. Campfire…I was near a campfire. The familiar scent triggered a flicker of relief. Dustan must have found me. Cassian must have brought me back. I was safe.Then the pain arrived.It started as a dull throb in my leg, but it spread quickly, radiating through my entire body like wildfire. My head pounded. My shoulders screamed. Every nerve ending felt raw and exposed, as if my skin had been peeled back and left to the elements.I tried to open my eyes.The world swam before me—a blur of shadows and light that refused to coalesce into anything recognizable. I blinked, once, twice, willing my vision to sharpen.But then the realisation dawned… Why is everything upside down?The thought came slowly, sluggishly, as if my brain was wading through honey. I tried to move my arms, but they wouldn't respond. Tried to lift my head, but it lolled us

Elara’s POVI stared at the wolf, my breath caught in my throat.It was enormous with fur so black it seemed to absorb the pale light of the approaching dawn. Its eyes glowed like molten gold, fixed on me with an intensity that made my heart stutter.This wolf… ? Was it the same one who had rescued me that day too? The same one from before? The one that had saved me from the rogues in the inn. The one that had appeared out of nowhere and vanished just as quickly.Was he… had he come again? I'd thought I'd imagined it. Thought the stress and fear had conjured some hallucination to help me survive.But here it was. Real. Solid. Watching me.The two rogues lay motionless at its feet, their bodies twisted at unnatural angles. The wolf paid them no mind. Its attention was entirely on me.Something strange happened in my chest. A warmth that had nothing to do with the cold morning air. There was this flicker of recognition that made no logical sense.Slowly, carefully, I pushed myself up o