Alpha's Private Plaything (Elsa and Drake Stone) novel Chapter 192

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as I waited for the hammer to fall.

“It’s extremely viable,” the lead executive said finally. “Our

engineering team has reviewed it thoroughly. The approach could

save us not just five percent as initially projected, but potentially up

to twelve percent if implemented correctly.”

I blinked in surprise, relief washing over me like a cool wave. A small

smile tugged at the corners of my mouth before I could suppress it.

The executive from Moon Shadow Industries leaned forward, studying

me with newfound interest. “You have quite the mind or this, Ms.

Hale. Seems rather wasted in an assistant position, if you don’t mind

my saying so.”

Pride bloomed in my chest, warm and unfamiliar. For once, I was being recognized not for my relationship with Drake or my status as an Omega, but for my actual abilities. For my mind. I sat up taller, a

slow smile spreading across my face.

“Thank you,” I said simply, allowing myself a moment of satisfaction.

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Chapter 192

“What do you want from me?” My voice was a ragged whisper, thick

with unshed tears. “After all these years… what the fuck are you

trying to do?”

He paused, his back to me, shoulders tensing beneath his tailored

suit. I could see his fingers tighten around the door handle, knuckles

whitening.

“Go to sleep, Elsa,” he said finally, not turning around.

As the door closed behind him, my feverish mind sed further into delirium, my fingers clutching at the sheets as if searching for an

anchor.

“Lucas,” I murmured to the empty room, a single tear sliding down my

temple and into my hair, “what are you trying to do?”

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In my dreams, I ran through a forest that straddled the border between Black Obsidian and Moon Shadow territories. The trees were

taller than I remembered, the moonlight filtering through the branches to create dappled patterns on the forest floor.

Ahead of me, I could see Lucas’s back, his sun–kissed hair gleaming in the sparse light. He was young again, maybe sixteen, the way he had been when we first met at the boundary creek where both our packs

came to collect fresh water.

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Chapter 192

“Lucas!” I called, my voice echoing strangely in the dreamscape,

desperation clawing at my throat. “Wait for me, damn it!”

He didn’t turn, continuing to run with the easy loping stride of a born

wolf. I pushed myself harder, my lungs burning with the effort, my

muscles screaming in protest, but the distance between us never

decreased.

“Please,” I begged, reaching out until my shoulder ached. “Just look at

me.”

The forest began to shift around us, transforming into the sleek

chrome and glass of a modern office building, then back to

wilderness, then to a moonlit clearing where wolves gathered for the

seasonal ceremonies. We passed through landscapes from our shared

past, but Lucas never slowed, never turned to face me.

“Why won’t you look at me?” I cried, stumbling over exposed roots and fallen branches, my hands scraped and bleeding. “What did I do

wrong?”

Finally, we reached the boundary stone that marked the official division between our territories. Lucas stopped, his back still to me, one foot in Black Obsidian territory, one in Moon Shadow lands.

“We can never truly be together,” he said, his voice both familiar and

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