Alpha's Regret: The Seventh Time was Forever

Chapter 374: Chapter 374 - As long as we’re together, nothing else matters

What Oriana had left unsaid was that she and Vladimir had already met with the Alpha King in private long before any of this blew up.

They’d sworn their full support for the marriage alliance and had planned to show up at Athaliah’s dinner party with Voren, and ready to find Jasmine a strong match, hoping it would make up for letting her down so badly.

Back then, everything had felt straightforward and easy to control. Voren would step up and do what was expected, the alliance would lock into place, and their family’s power and reputation would stay rock solid.

But nothing had played out the way they’d imagined. Voren had shut the whole thing down without a second thought, making it brutally clear that no one was going to map out his future for him.

Even after that hard rejection, Oriana and Vladimir had still clung to the hope that they could fix things through Jasmine. Then Seraphine walked in, and everything shattered.

Jasmine wasn’t the same. Voren wasn’t the same. All those careful plans they’d spent months weaving together started unraveling piece by painful piece.

Now Oriana felt completely trapped by the promises she’d made. As a Luna, she’d built her whole life around keeping her word. She didn’t throw promises around lightly, and the idea of breaking them filled her with deep shame.

Showing up at that dinner party just to admit that none of what she’d guaranteed was actually going to happen? The humiliation burned in her chest like acid.

That was the real reason accepting Seraphine had torn her up inside. It was never just about the girl herself. It was about all the secrets, the hidden schemes, and the commitments they’d made behind Voren’s back while thinking they were shielding him.

Even Kael had been kept completely in the dark because of how fiercely loyal he was to Voren.

Oriana knew her son better than anyone. Once Voren set his mind on something, the whole world could line up against him and he still wouldn’t budge an inch.

It was just as when he decided on dating that human girl. No amount of words could stop him until for whatever reason, he broke things off himself, only to return with a child from her.

Oriana’s eyes shimmered with raw disappointment as she stared at Seraphine, the weight of it all pressing down on her heart.

”You’ve already turned my son against me,” she said, her voice thick with hurt. ”Nothing I say even matters anymore.”

The words hung heavy in the air between them. Her gaze lingered on Voren one final time, a flash of deep pain twisting across her face before she shoved it down.

”I hope she’s worth every bit of this sacrifice, Voren. Just like that human girl you almost married, Seraphine could also walk away from you tomorrow, run straight into another man’s arms after breaking you all over again... but you’re my only child.”

Her fingers gripped the edge of her cloak so tightly the fabric bunched up. For a moment it looked like she might pour out even more of the storm raging inside her, but instead she pulled her hood up, hiding her face.

Without giving them any chance to respond, Oriana turned and walked out. The door clicked shut behind her, soft but final.

A heavy silence crashed over the room. Voren stood there frozen for a long moment, his jaw locked so tight the muscles in his face jumped and twitched with the strain.

Then he closed the distance in a few urgent strides and pulled Seraphine into his arms. He held her with fierce strength, protective and almost desperate, like he was afraid the world might try to rip her away from him right then and there.

”I’m so sorry, Sera,” he murmured, his voice rough and lower than usual, cracking with emotion. ”I had no clue she was going to show up like that.” He swallowed hard. ”I left you a note. Did you see it?”

Seraphine pressed her cheek against his chest, listening to the wild, frantic thud of his heartbeat. ”She was already in the room before I even woke up,” she whispered, her fingers curling tightly into his shirt. ”There wasn’t time to check for anything.”

As she spoke, a strange feeling hit her. At first she brushed it off as her imagination, but then it came again, clearer this time. Her brows pulled together in concern. Even though he was holding her so tightly, his body wasn’t steady at all.

”V...” She lifted her head to look at him. ”You’re trembling.”

The realization twisted her stomach into a painful knot. Voren buried his face in the crook of her neck, dropping every wall he usually kept up.

This wasn’t the fearless Alpha the rest of the world saw, and he wasn’t hiding a single thing from her right now. His arms tightened around her waist as if she were his only anchor.

”I swore no one would ever hurt you,” he said, the words coming out strained and raw, full of guilt that cut deep. ”But I couldn’t stop this from happening.” His breathing turned uneven, shaky. ”I feel so damn guilty.”

Hearing that raw vulnerability in the voice of a man who always carried himself with unbreakable confidence and power absolutely broke her heart.

”Please, Sera,” Voren begged, pulling her even closer. ”Don’t leave me because of my parents, okay?”

The Alpha who could command armies and face down any threat sounded genuinely scared, his fear bleeding through every word. ”We can start a whole new pack anywhere you want. As long as we’re together, nothing else matters.”

Seraphine let out a soft, aching sigh. The fear in his voice hurt her far worse than anything Oriana had said. Slowly, she eased back from him, not because she wanted space, but because she needed him to really see her.

His dark eyes locked onto hers immediately, swirling with worry, fear, and a love so intense it took her breath away. Every emotion was right there on his face, open and unguarded.

Without a word, she took his hand and gently guided him over to one of the chairs by the dining table. Confusion flickered across his features, but he let her push him down into the seat.

The second he was settled, she carefully climbed onto his lap, swinging one leg over each of his thighs. The movement was a little awkward, and a sharp ache suddenly flared through her body.

”Ouch,” she winced, her face scrunching up in pain.

Voren grimaced instantly, all the fear drained away, replaced by pure, protective concern. His hands moved straight to her waist, drawing her closer as his eyes searched her face with desperate worry. ”What happened?”