Chapter 154
Ellie POV
Dominic doesn’t exactly leave.
Not completely.
The healers make that very clear.
Almost aggressively clear.
Apparently, after what happened, they’re convinced that if he gets too far away from me, my body might decide to collapse again just to make everyone’s lives more difficult.
Which…
Honestly?
Sounds like something I would do.
So instead, they put him in the room next door.
Close enough that I can still feel him if I focus.
A quiet pull beneath my skin.
A steady hum.
Familiar.
Safe.
And, annoyingly…
Comforting.
I hate that part.
I hear the door close softly through the wall.
A few moments later, I hear the sound of the bed shifting.
Then nothing.
He’s asleep.
Or trying to be.
The silence settles around me.
Heavy.
Strange.
I stare at the ceiling, watching the shadows move slightly from the hospital lights.
My mind keeps replaying everything.
The healer’s words.
Dominic’s offer.
The choice I never wanted to have.
A soft sound pulls me out of my thoughts.
The door opens.
Sarah steps inside.
She doesn’t say anything.
Not immediately.
She just walks over.
And then she hugs me.
Carefully.
Like she’s afraid I’ll break.
Which is strange.
I expected Sarah’s usual reaction.
A joke.
A dramatic sigh.
Maybe flowers.
Instead, she just looks shaken.
Her cheek presses against my shoulder.
My throat tightens.
And this time, it has nothing to do with pain.
“You scared me.”
Her voice is quiet.
“I thought…”
She stops.
Her breath catches.
“I was really worried.”
Her arms tighten slightly.
“They finally let me come back and I just…”
“I know.”
I gently pat her back.
“I’m sorry.”
She pulls away just enough to look at me.
Her eyes are glassy.
“Don’t apologize.”
A small frown crosses her face.
“Just…”
She swallows.
“Don’t do that again.”
I almost laugh.
Almost.
But I know she means it.
Sarah moves to the chair beside my bed.
She tucks one leg underneath herself and studies me.
That look.
The one she gets when she’s trying to understand something complicated.
Something she doesn’t want to accidentally make worse.
“So…”
She tilts her head.
“Want to explain why you almost died because of some terrifying Moon Goddess bond?”
A pause.
“And why did two Alphas almost commit murder in a hospital room?”
A weak laugh escapes me.
“That’s…”
I sigh.
“A very long story.”
She shrugs.
“I have time.”
So I tell her.
Everything.
The bond.
What it’s doing to my body.
The healer’s warning.
The fact that every time I reject Dominic, my body pays the price.
The impossible choice was sitting in front of me.
Then I tell her about Dominic’s offer.
Not the dramatic version.
Not the emotional version.
Just the facts.
A contract.
A marriage.
A Luna title.
Power.
Protection.
A way to save myself without pretending it’s something it isn’t.
Sarah listens.
She doesn’t interrupt once.
Which tells me she’s taking it seriously.
When I finally stop talking, the room feels emptier.
Like I poured out everything inside me and now I don’t know how to put any of it back.
Sarah exhales slowly.
“Okay.”
I look at her.
“First of all…”
She makes a face.
“That’s a nightmare.”
I blink.
“Thank you.”
She ignores that.
“Second…”
She taps her fingers against her knee.
“Dominic offering you a marriage with no romantic expectations, while giving you access to an Alpha family’s power, is…”
She pauses.
“Insane.”
My eyebrows lift.
“Insane bad?”
I hesitate.
“Or insane—”
“Insanely generous.”
She cuts me off.
“Ellie.”
Her expression softens.
“Do you realize how rare that is?”
I look down at my hands.
“Power without strings.”
She counts on her fingers.
“Protection without ownership.”
“Freedom without pretending.”
I stay quiet.
“It’s basically a get-out-of-jail-free card.”
A tiny laugh escapes me.
“You make it sound like a brochure.”
She shrugs.
“I’m just saying.”
She leans back.
“Loveless marriages aren’t exactly unheard of in powerful packs.”
I look at her.
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
She nods.
“Usually they’re political. Alliances. Status. Family connections.”
She pauses.
“Feelings aren’t always the priority.”
That should make me feel better.
It doesn’t.
“I know it’s a good offer.”
My voice lowers.
“An amazing offer.”
I look toward the wall separating us from Dominic.
“I just…”
Sarah nods.
“I know.”
And somehow, that makes it worse.
“You don’t have to decide this second.”
She says it gently.
“But Ellie…”
Her expression turns serious.
“I’d decide soon.”
I look back at her.
“Dominic or Lucas.”
She sighs.
“You need a way out.”
A way to survive.
The words sit between us.
Then Sarah tilts her head.
Studying me.
“But…”
My stomach tightens.
“With Dominic…”
She speaks carefully.
“It wouldn’t be completely loveless, would it?”
The question lands softly.
But it hits harder than anything else.
I don’t answer.
I stare at the wall.
At the invisible line between this room and the next.
I can feel him there.
Quiet.
Steady.
Close.
My body knows something my heart is still terrified to admit.
And that scares me.
Because if I marry Dominic…
Am I just walking back into the same path that nearly destroyed me?
The same bond.
The same expectations.
The same loss of control.
How do I know it won’t happen again?
Every choice feels like another dead end.
A different cage.
And all I want…
Is to live.
To breathe.
To wake up without pain.
To be free.
Sarah doesn’t push.
She doesn’t tell me what to do.
She just watches me.
And somehow, I think she understands anyway.
The silence stretches.
Long.
Heavy.
Marriage or death.
Those are the choices.
I think about both Alphas.
Both offers.
Both paths.
The similarities.
The differences.
My hands curl into fists in my lap.
Because deep down…
I already know.
I know what I have to do.