The Betrayed Princess Rising (Lylah and Ezra) novel Chapter 98

Chapter 98

3rd Person’s POV

His voice broke through her daze.

Lylah blinked, startled back to herself.

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“Sorry! I’ll remove them. Just hold on a moment!”

Flustered, she hurried to remove the needles, carefully disinfecting each point afterward. “Ezra, you should’ve told me if it hurt. I would’ve stopped.”

She reached for a tissue, then stepped closer, rising onto her toes to dab the sweat at his temple.

Guilt twisted faintly in his chest.

This closeness made Ezra hold his breath. His wolf stirred restlessly beneath his skin, reacting on instinct whenever she came this near.

He forced it down, steadying himself.

“It didn’t hurt,” he said, flexing his fingers and rolling his wrist. “Just a bit uncomfortable.” His eyes flicked to her. “And fortunately you did it quickly, I’m not sure how much longer I could’ve survived being at your mercy like that.”

His tone was light, teasing–meant to ease the worry written all over her face.

Once she packed the needles away and helped him pull his shirt back on, they moved to the couch and sat facing each other.

“Thank you for helping me,” Lylah said, her smile bright and unguarded. Then she hesitated. “And sorry 1 came home late without telling you. I stopped by a friend’s house. I also ran into Damon outside.”

The memory of what the Beta had told her surfaced in her mind.

“Ezra,” she said, watching him carefully, “Damon told me you were in a bad mood.”

“I was,” the Alpha admitted “But I’m not anymore.”

“What happened? Was it something with Moonclaw? Or work?”

“Neither. Don’t worry about it, it’s nothing you need to burden yourself with.”

She had expected that answer.

Lylah sighed softly. “You’re always there when something’s wrong, and you even solve my problems,” she said. “But when it’s you, you keep everything to your self.” Her lips pressed together. “I want to be there for you too. Even if I can’t fix it… at least let me be someone you can share it with.”

Her words struck him deeper than she realized, stirring a warmth in his chest he wasn’t prepared for.

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Chapter 98

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“Besides,” she continued, her voice quieter now, “we’re mates now.”

The word felt fragile and powerful all at once.

She had never said it aloud to him before. Not like this. But right now, she wanted it to mean something.

“Please tell me.”

Mate.

The word stirred his wolf instantly.

Ezra’s fingers curled slowly into his palm, his jaw tightening as he battled the primal urge surging through him–the instinct to pull her into his arms, to claim her, to mark her as his and his alone.

“I didn’t like that Rowan showed up at Lunar Grace,” he said, his voice low and tense. “That he dared to threaten you.” His eyes darkened. “And that he actually believed fate would bend in his favor and break our bond.”

Lylah remembered the threat too.

But it no longer held any power over her.

Once, she would have clung to every word Rowan spoke, treating it like sacred truth, bending herself to his will without question. Now… his words were nothing but bitter, hollow noise–poisoned syllables stripped of any power, worthy only of contempt.

“Rowan is always spouting nonsense. And earlier, it was no different,” Lylah said with a small chuckle. “Ezra, we’re not going to waste our energy over the words of someone clearly out of their mind.”

He smiled faintly, the expression barely there.

“You’re not upset with me?” he asked. “I had my men watching over you today, Damon had other matters to attend to, so I assigned someone else to guard you from a distance. Does that anger you?”

“Not at all.” She shook her head without hesitation. “You never hid it from me. And they never crossed a line or intruded on my privacy. Just like you, they treated me with respect. They were simply there to

make sure I was safe.”

Her voice softened.

“So no Ezra, I’m not angry.” She held his gaze. “I trust you.”

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The Betrayed Princess Rising