The Alpha's Heart

chapter 41

Noah POV

Something's wrong.

I feel my hands twitch as the chicken breast and Alfredo is served around the table.

There's something covered up, something I'm not seeing.

A warm hand lands on mine, sending butterflies through my stomach.

"Are you ok, Noah?" Eliana looks up at me, her doe-eyes filled with concern. I put my hand over hers.

"Yeah, just hungry." I say, she scoffs and nods.

"Tell me in bed, ok?" She says, turning and grabbing the bowl of Alfredo and chicken. I grin.

I'm not surprised she saw right through me.

I still can't help the feeling that something's off in our territory.

Eliana scoops some of the food on my plate.

"I'm surprised you're not taking it for yourself." I joke. She sends me a look.

"Maybe I am, you always give me your food, so I'm making sure you get plenty." She smirks, dropping one last piece of chicken into my small bowl and passing the leftovers into the middle.

"I'll eat everything today, how about that?" I say, picking up my fork and taking a whiff of the food. The seasonings hit my nose and my mouth waters.

How is Eliana even talking to me right now, instead of eating?

"Sure you will." She turns and begins digging in. No mercy. I begin eating as well.

Maybe that feeling from before was nothing. It's probably just a squirrel wandering into our land.

Eliana smirks at me, daring me to eat more. I stuff another bite in my mouth.

Everything's fine.

***

"I told you, you would give me some. I put a lot of pasta in your bowl on purpose." She laughs as I grab the railing heading upstairs.

I'm never eating that much ever again.

"I don't know how you fit all of that inside of you." I groan, reaching the top. She laughs louder next to me.

"Stop being a baby, c'mon. I want to hear what was bothering you downstairs." She says, holding my arm as we continue towards my room.

"It's nothing, just, as Alpha I can feel my territory and the state of it. I can smell everything a lot more here than anywhere else and something's off, I just don't know what." I say, as we enter the bedroom. She holds my arm dragging me over.

"My Alpha doesn't have that." She says. My eyebrows furrow.

"Your pack is weird as fuck already, I'm not surprised." I say, chuckling as I pull her forward, falling in bed on top of me.

"Noah!" She yelps, as I hug her to my chest.

"Let's sleep." I let one of my arms travel under Eliana's pillow and pull out her bonnet. I grab it in both my hands, and slowly put it on her head, she smiles up at me as I laugh trying to push in stray hairs.

"That was cute." She says, leaning in closer to my face. I lay down flat against the mattress and Eliana takes my head in her hands.

"I know." I say, smirking. She presses a kiss against my lips and pulls back, standing back up and heading to the closet. Her warmth leaves a cold breeze flowing down my front.

No warning? I hate pajamas. I love them on her but why does she have to go wear them?

I sigh, taking off my shirt and shoes, throwing them at the laundry basket. I finish undressing and lay in bed waiting for Eliana.

Ever since she slept next to me, the nightmares that would keep me up for hours, have left me. It's weird to sleep and know I'll wake up in the morning with her next to me. It's fun.

"Move over." I flinch as she hops on to bed next to me.

"Why would I? Don't sleep so far away." I grab her arm, moving the covering up and putting us under them as Eliana comes to my side.

"That was all?" She closes her eyes, snuggling into my chest. I wrap my arms around her.

"Yeah, goodnight sleepy head." I say as she yawns and nods.

I know she's been working really hard with Robert and Beth, I won't keep her up tonight.

"Yeah, I love you." She whispers as she falls asleep in my arms.

I smile, looking down as her muscles relax and her lips slightly part.

How adorable.

I hold her tighter to my chest as my heart warms.

Eliana works hard, cares, and is strong enough to stand up for herself. She's kind, sweet, funny. I couldn't tell her all of this, or else she'd get too big of a head.

I chuckle to myself.

She's the perfect Luna. All this time, I thought I could handle being the leader of this pack by myself. I didn't even want a Luna.

I can't get over how dumb I used to sound, purposely driving the people I love away and not letting myself enjoy my youth. 20 years of that gets tiring, but I pretended everything was fine, when I was drowning in my own self-hate.

Maybe, I should try to forgive myself, like what Eliana and my parents are saying.

Would Samantha forgive me? Would she be happier if I let myself embrace life in the moment?

I don't know, but I can try. I can call off the search for the rogues and just accept that my little sister died and I survived.

Admitting that she's dead and there's nothing I can do, is what that would feel like, but there's really nothing I can do.

I press Eliana closer in my chest.

A life with Eliana and our family, without looking for trouble would be great. Taking this burden and putting it to rest doesn't seem right, do I deserve that?

To be care free while the pack that murdered my family is out there? Their children and members perfectly fine after what they did to us?

I clench my teeth and take a deep breath.

It's so easy to keep hating them. I don't want to ever see anyone associated with the rogues. I don't want to hear anything about them.

That's the only way I'll move on. Out of sight, out of mind.

I can do thi-

The window creaks open and I tense.

What the fuck?

Heavy footsteps land in my room and I snap up to see Liam and his father, smirking. A stench comes from them and my eyes widen.

No.

"Oh, you're awake. Good. I told you we'd be back for Eliana. Time to pay up."
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