Semua Bab ALPHA PRINCE’S FORBIDDEN DESIRE: Bab 31 - Bab 40

Sophie wasn’t answering my calls. I rubbed a hand over my mouth, staring at my phone—the string of unanswered texts, each one marked as seen. Leave it, I told myself. Give her time. She’ll call you back. Before the thought even settled, I was already pressing the call button again. The phone rang. Once. Twice. Three times. Four— The line went dead. Cursing under my breath, I hung my head, squeezing my eyes shut. Sophie and I hadn’t spoken since the night she broke down at home. Not because I hadn’t tried, but because she didn’t want to. She avoided me at school, ignored my calls, and even when I went to her apartment, she wouldn’t let me in. I spent hours knocking, pleading, trying to get through to her, but nothing. Hell, that was why I was late to school that day—why I ran into Lenora. I’d been outside Sophie’s door for hours, hoping she’d cave. But she didn’t. And since she lived alone and had no friends, I had no one to call to check on her. Cameron was an option,

I should have kept my mouth shut.That was the only thought running through my mind as I attempted to steer our tutoring session back on track after my unsuccessful attempt to pry into Elijah’s family problems.I had seen it—the exact moment the walls slammed into place behind his eyes. The way his jaw clenched, the way his entire posture stiffened, like a fortress locking down. And I had known, then, that pushing any further would get me nowhere. So I hadn’t.Instead, I had asked him to bring his chair closer to mine, turning all my focus to breaking down the basics of his coursework in a way that might actually stick.But dropping the subject didn’t mean I had forgotten. It didn’t mean I wasn’t going to try to help. Because I couldn’t stop myself from wanting to do so. It wasn’t easy, pretending I hadn’t seen the flicker of something in his eyes when I mentioned Sophie. That I hadn’t noticed the way his fingers had curled into fists when I mentioned his family.I had barely made it

I wasn’t sure when I had last gotten a full night’s sleep.I thought the nightmare I had on Friday night was a one and done thing, but I was wrong. What was supposed to be a restful weekend full of nights of proper sleep and relaxation became two to three hours of sleep plagued with nightmares that had me jolting awake before I could even relax in my bed, and because of that, by the time I dragged myself into class Monday morning, exhaustion was clinging to me like a second skin.My body felt sluggish, my thoughts sluggish, and every sound around me was just a little too sharp, a little too grating. The spot where my mark was throbbed and felt like every time my eyes drifted shut, even the slightest bit, I was transported back to that night when Marcus’s fangs slid into my neck.Morgan must have noticed my state because she slid a warm cup into my hands as soon as I slumped into my seat. “You look dead.”I huffed a quiet laugh, curling my fingers around the cup. It smelled like chamom

I swallowed, pushing down the flood of emotions rising in my throat. “Sophie,” I echoed, my voice quieter. She hesitated, shifting on her feet, before meeting my eyes with steely determination. “Can we talk?” Luka’s gaze flickered between us, his jaw tightening like he wanted to say something—particularly to me—but after a long pause, he exhaled sharply. “I’ll give you two some space.” His tone was gruff, but I caught the way he squeezed Sophie’s shoulder as he passed her, a silent reassurance. The door opened, then slammed shut. Then it was just the two of us. I took a step forward, scanning her up and down. “Are you okay?” My voice came out rougher than I intended. “I’m fine.” She didn’t meet my eyes. “You don’t look fine.” I stepped closer, lowering my voice. “Did something happen?” My gaze raked over her, searching for any signs of injury. She was hiding something. I could feel it. She didn’t say anything at first, her head down, her long hair falling over her face.

After our meal, Sophie waved goodbye and left the cafeteria, heading back to her apartment. I remained seated, left to stew over everything she had just revealed. Which, in reality, wasn’t much. She had a mate—Cameron. An omega. That alone was enough to make her father furious, but there was more to it than just Victor’s hatred of weaker ranks. From what I recalled of the screaming match I’d walked in on, Sophie and Cameron had a plan. Something they had attempted and failed. And from what Victor had said at the dining table that night, their failure had led to Elijah taking her punishment for her. I drummed my fingers against the table, absently sipping from the can of soda in front of me, my brows creased in thought. Whatever their plan had been, it had required going directly against Victor. What would drive a child to rebel against their father so drastically? My mind spun with possibilities, each theory more improbable than the last. I wished I had pressed Sophie for more