All Chapters of The Sleeping Alpha’s Mate: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

ISADORA'S POVShe considered me for a moment before giving a quiet hum. “Well, it wouldn't hurt if something did.”I stared at her in disbelief, and Helena laughed softly before her expression became more serious.“Especially considering the one who is supposed to be your Alpha seems more interested in a hunt and some cave that was found than the fact that his Luna disappeared, returned with an injured leg and had apparently spent hours somewhere in those woods,” she said.I didn't immediately know what to say.The words had landed somewhere much deeper than her teasing had, because beneath all the amusement in Helena's voice was something I had not expected from her: genuine concern. She had noticed that I had been missing. She had noticed that I had returned injured. More importantly, she had noticed that Caelen had not come rushing toward me with the kind of concern I might have expected from the man who was supposed to stand beside me.For the first time that evening, I felt as th

ISADORA’S POVBy the time Lily and I made it upstairs, the exhaustion of the day had finally begun catching up with me. My ankle was still aching despite the healer's treatment, and Lily had become quieter as the evening wore on, her earlier excitement fading into the sleepy movements of a child who had spent too much of the day awake. I helped her get comfortable, changed into something more suitable for bed and stayed beside her until her breathing became slow and even.I had intended to remain awake a little longer, if only to make sure she was settled properly, but sometime after that, I must have fallen asleep too.The first thing that woke me was a sound from somewhere downstairs.I opened my eyes slowly, confused for a moment by the darkness around me before I remembered where I was. Lily was still beside me, curled beneath the covers with one hand tucked beneath her cheek, and for a few seconds I simply watched her to make sure she was asleep.Then another sound travelled thro

ISADORA’S POVBy late afternoon, the pack house had begun preparing for the final dinner.Most of the visiting families would be leaving the following morning, and Luna Iris had decided that they should have one proper dinner together before everyone departed. It was supposed to be a simple gesture of hospitality, something that would leave the guests with a better memory of their stay than the chaos that had followed the hunt, but by the time I entered the kitchen, it was already clear that nothing involving a house this large could ever be as simple as it sounded.The kitchen was crowded with people moving in different directions, trays being carried from one counter to another and the chefs calling out instructions over the noise. Someone was slicing vegetables near the island while another maid was arranging dishes on a long preparation table, and the smell of spices, roasted meat and freshly baked bread filled the entire room.I stood at the entrance for a moment, looking around.

ISADORA'S POVThe person carrying me reached a door and pushed it open, and I barely registered the room before he crossed it and lowered me onto the bed. The moment my body touched the mattress, panic took over again. I scrambled backward, dragging myself toward the headboard despite the sharp protest from my injured ankle. The pain barely registered beneath the fear rushing through me as I clutched the torn fabric of my clothes against my body with one hand while the other searched blindly behind me for something, anything, I could use if I had to defend myself again.“Don't come any closer.”My voice shook so badly that I hated how frightened I sounded, but I couldn't control it. The man stopped, and I finally forced myself to look up.For a moment, everything inside me seemed to go completely still until I recognized who it was.Caelen.I stared at him without saying anything, trying to make sense of what I was seeing. He stood beside the bed with his chest rising and falling more

ISADORA'S POVBy late morning, the pack house had finally begun to settle into something that resembled an ordinary day, although I knew better than to trust the quiet. There were still more guards around the entrances than there had been before the hunt, servants moving through the corridors with an unusual sense of purpose, and the occasional murmur from the lower halls whenever someone mentioned the events of the previous days. Even without asking, I could tell that the household was still adjusting to everything that had happened, and perhaps that was why I had been determined to spend the morning doing something useful rather than sitting in my room and allowing everyone else's whispers to become louder than my own thoughts.My ankle still ached whenever I put too much weight on it, but the healer had already made it clear that I would not be confined to bed, and I had no intention of behaving as though I were. I had spent enough time being told where I could and could not go. Wh