His new stepsister His biggest threat (Claire and Elijah) novel Chapter 210

Chapter 210

Chapter 210

Claire’s POV

Elijah slept for exactly forty-six minutes before becoming unbearable again.

I knew this because I timed it.

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At first, it was the good kind of sleep-the quiet, heavy breathing kind where his shoulders finally dropped and his wolf settled enough that the room felt calmer just by existing in it. I stayed where I was, barely turning pages of my book, afraid that even shifting would wake him.

Then his foot twitched.

Then his jaw clenched.

Then came the sigh.

A long, dramatic exhale that belonged to someone deeply offended by unconsciousness.

“Elijah,” I said gently, not looking up yet. “If you’re about to complain about being bored, I will remind you that you’re on medical rest and threaten to read you my chemistry notes out loud.”

One eye cracked open. “That’s cruel and unusual punishment.”

“You woke yourself up,” I pointed out. “I didn’t do anything.”

He frowned at the ceiling. “My body did it. My body is betraying me. This is what happens when you tell an Alpha to sit still.”

“You’re not Alpha yet,” I reminded him lightly.

His gaze slid to me, sharp despite the brace. “That’s not what everyone else thinks.”

The mood shifted-not dramatically, just enough that I felt it in my chest. I closed my book and set it aside, uncurling from the chair.

“Who talked to you?” I asked.

“My dad,” he said after a pause. “And my uncle. Separately. Which somehow made it worse.”

I moved closer, sitting on the edge of the recliner near his legs. “What did they say?”

He flexed his fingers against the armrest, frustration contained but obvious. “That the rival pack is ‘testing boundaries. That me being off the ice looks like weakness. That if this had happened six months later, the consequences would’ve been…… different,”

My stomach tightened. “Different how?”

He met my eyes. “Permanent.”

I didn’t like how calmly he said it.

“You nearly broke your spine,” I said, keeping my voice steady. “ou’re allowed to recover without it turning into some political statement.”

“Try explaining that to wolves who think healing equals hesitation.”

I reached out without thinking, resting my hand over his wrist. His pulse was steady now, strong, and that alone grounded

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Chapter 210

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“You don’t owe them your bones,” I said quietly. “You don’t owe hem pain.”

His mouth curved slightly. “You should run for Alpha. You’d be rrifying.”

“I’d be ethical,” I corrected. “Which is apparently worse.”

That earned a real smile, brief but genuine.

There was a knock at the door before either of us could settle back into quiet.

Felix stuck his head in, holding his phone like it personally offended him. “Okay, so I have good news and annoying news, and they are unfortunately the same thing.”

Elijah groaned. “If it’s about the banner-”

“It’s about the pack council,” Felix cut in. “They’re doing a ‘wellness check.”

I stiffened. “Here?”

“In an hour,” Felix said. “They’re calling it supportive. I’m calling it invasive.”

Elijah closed his eyes. “Of course they are.”

“I’ll tell them you’re asleep,” I offered.

“They’ll just sniff me,” he said dryly. “And then ask questions anyway.”

Felix leaned against the doorframe, watching him more carefully now. “You don’t have to perform, you know. You’re allowed to be injured.”

“That’s not how this works.”

“It should be.”

I squeezed Elijah’s wrist once before standing. “I’ll make tea,” I said. “The calming kind.”

“Elijah hates calming tea,” Felix said.

“I hate feeling like a liability more,” Elijah muttered.

The hour crawled.

By the time the council members arrived-three of them, all older, all carrying that polite sharpness that came from years of power-Elijah looked exhausted again. He sat straighter anyway, spine aligned, expression carefully neutral.

I hovered near the doorway, pretending to be busy while listening to every word.

They asked about the injury. The recovery timeline. The rival pack’s movements. They asked how he felt.

“I feel impatient,” Elijah replied evenly. “And alive.”

That earned him approving nods.

Then one of them-Marla, sharp-eyed and unsmiling-looked st him and directly at me.

“You’ve been spending a lot of time here,” she observed.

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Chapter 210

My pulse jumped, but I kept my expression pleasant. “We’re fan ly.”

Her gaze lingered a moment too long. “Yes. You are.”

Elijah’s hand tightened on the armrest.

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The meeting ended shortly after, all reassurances and thinly veiled expectations. When the door finally closed behind them, the house exhaled.

“That,” Felix said immediately, “was gross.”

“I handled it,” Elijah said, though his voice lacked conviction.

I crossed the room and stood in front of him. “You did. But you don’t have to do everything alone.”

His eyes softened. “You always say that.”

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