Alpha's Regret: The Seventh Time was Forever

Chapter 342: Chapter 342 - Her having my last name changes everything

The helicopter touched down and Voren was already out the door before the blades even slowed, his driver right there waiting exactly like he’d been told.

He’d double-checked before landing that Desmond and Nessa were home. He didn’t pull surprise visits, especially not for something this heavy.

The Stone mansion sat there like old money always does, quiet, rock-solid, completely unbothered by the chaos of the city swirling around it.

Voren had been in places like this his whole life and never once felt the need to impress them. But walking up to that door tonight felt completely different. He wasn’t showing up as some alpha throwing his weight around. He was coming as a man who owed them something real.

He rang the bell and waited, heart pounding harder than he wanted to admit.

Desmond answered the door himself, looking at Voren like he was trying to figure out what category this guy even fell into, not hostile, but definitely guarded, sizing him up.

”Alpha Voren.” His voice stayed even, revealing nothing. ”What brings you here?”

Voren had the gifts ready. He had everything planned, and he wasn’t skipping any steps. Desmond took them without a word, stepped back, and let him inside.

Nessa came out from the sitting room, her face carrying that same careful, neutral mask as her husband’s. Whatever storm was going on in their heads, they weren’t letting it show yet.

Voren didn’t sit down right away. He stood right there in the middle of the room and let out a long breath, chest tight.

”First off, I need to apologize.” He looked Desmond dead in the eyes, because this kind of thing only worked face-to-face with no bullshit.

”I turned investors against you and used my position to make everything harder for you and your business, and I did it all for Ravyn.” His jaw clenched hard at his own words. Saying Ravyn’s name out loud here made the whole mess taste even more bitter.

”I let someone who never deserved my loyalty use me. And you two paid the price. I can’t fix that by pretending it never happened, so I’m here to own it straight to your faces.”

The whole room went dead quiet, tension thick enough to choke on.

Desmond and Nessa shot each other one quick look, the kind of glance couples give after years together when they can have entire conversations without saying a word.

Then Desmond turned back to Voren, and some of the stiffness in his shoulders finally eased up.

”No need for all that.” His voice softened, losing some of that formal edge. ”Seraphine had our backs the whole time. We actually came out stronger than before.”

The corner of his mouth twitched with something almost like dark amusement. ”Truth is, that hit forced us to fix things we’d been dragging our feet on for years. It ended up being a good thing.”

He glanced toward the door like he half-expected someone to walk in. ”Didn’t see Seraphine this morning though. These kids are always too busy.” The warmth in his voice was clear, the affection of a man who’d accepted her as his own.

That one hit Voren like a punch straight to the chest. Guilt sliced through him, sharp and clean, twisting deep.

”Actually,” Voren coughed, voice low, ”that’s the other reason I’m here.”

He finally sat down because what he had to say next wasn’t the kind of thing you dropped while standing. Desmond dropped into the chair across from him. Nessa stayed on her feet a second longer, reading the heavy vibe in the room, then settled right beside her husband.

Voren started from the very beginning.

He laid everything out like he had with Humphrey and Kylie, but even more raw this time because Desmond and Nessa were right in the middle of all this pain.

He told them what he and Seraphine had really been to each other before that cursed spell wrecked everything. He described the memories ripped away from her, all the years they’d both spent lost in the dark without knowing what had been stolen from them. He told them the full truth about even Esperanza.

He didn’t rush any of it, didn’t soften a single blow.

By the time he finished, the room felt like all the oxygen had been sucked out. The weight of it hung heavy in the air.

Desmond sat there with his elbows on his knees, staring hard at some spot on the floor. Nessa hadn’t moved in what felt like forever. They both had that frozen stillness people get when they’ve just been slammed with way too much to process all at once.

Desmond finally looked up. ”You’ve said a lot.” His voice came out slower, heavier. ”Please. Give us a minute.”

Voren was already seated but he got it. He leaned back and gave them the space they needed.

Nessa stood up without a word and headed toward the kitchen. Nobody actually needed tea, but sometimes your hands just had to stay busy while your brain tried to catch up, and making tea was as good as anything.

She took her time in there. Long enough that Voren knew she was using every single second to steady herself.

When she came back, the tray was perfect, cups steaming like she’d had this planned for hours. She set one down in front of Voren and eased back into her seat.

Desmond broke the thick silence first. ”And you’re really gonna turn the full moon festival into something completely different.”

It wasn’t really a question. More like he was repeating it back to himself, trying to make it sink in.

”That’s Seraphine’s plan,” Voren said. ”And it’s a good one.” He picked up the tea, took a sip, and only then realized he hadn’t eaten since early that morning. He’d been running on pure adrenaline, no room for anything else.

”That’s why the wedding’s happening this way, small, private, no big announcement. But the second that festival ends and everything’s out in the open, I’m done hiding. The whole world can know.”

Nessa had stayed mostly quiet through everything, but when she finally spoke, her voice came out soft yet straight to the point. ”You kids are really something else.”

She shook her head, but there was no anger in it. Just pure wonder mixed with exhaustion for everything they’d carried.

”I’ll be real with you. There was a time I thought Corvine and Seraphine made sense. I even hoped for it.” She met Voren’s eyes without flinching. ”But she made herself crystal clear. And Seraphine doesn’t say things she doesn’t mean. If she’s chosen you, then it’s real, and you’ve got everything we’ve got to give.”

Her voice grew firmer, full of quiet strength. ”I just hope nothing rips you two apart again. She’s already been through way too much hell.”

”It won’t.” Voren didn’t say it to comfort them. He said it like a man declaring something he’d already carved in stone. ”That’s part of why I’m pushing the wedding through fast. It’s not just about what I want. Her having my last name changes everything. It gives me more ways to protect her legally, in the pack, everywhere. I can shield her better once it’s done.”

Desmond opened his mouth to respond, but the front door swung open.

Footsteps echoed in the entryway. Two sets, and then Corvine stepped in with Seraphine right behind him.

She froze mid-step. Her face went through a whirlwind, surprise slamming in first, then something that wasn’t quite confusion, landing on raw disbelief mixed with a deep feeling she couldn’t even name yet.

”V.” Her voice came out quieter than she probably meant. ”What are you doing here?”