Alpha's Regret: The Seventh Time was Forever

Chapter 68 – Damon, I need a favor from you

Over the weeks, Damon had done exactly what he had set out to do, and he had done it with the kind of precision that came from a man who never allowed emotions to outrun strategy.

He had built something steady with Daisy, something that looked harmless on the surface and even felt warm at times, but beneath it all he kept a clear, deliberate line drawn in his mind, bold and unshakable, a boundary he refused to cross no matter how tempting or convenient the moment became.

There were times she tested that boundary without even realizing she was doing it. Like the afternoon she had appeared at his door in a fitted dress that hugged her curves a little too well, her back turned to him as she asked in a soft, almost shy tone if he could help zip her up because she could not quite reach.

He had stepped forward, careful not to let his fingers linger longer than necessary, the scent of her perfume brushing against his senses while his wolf stirred with awareness.

He had finished the task quickly, muttered something neutral, and stepped away before the air between them thickened into something unwelcoming.

Another time, she had invited him into her room under the excuse of choosing a dress for an event, holding up different fabrics against her body and asking for his opinion with that wide-eyed look that made her seem innocent.

Damon had stood there with his arms folded, keeping his gaze respectfully above her neckline, offering measured responses like a consultant rather than a man.

He did not like her, not in the way a man liked a woman he wanted to claim, and even if he had felt the faintest pull of attraction, he would never, under any circumstance, pursue a woman who already belonged to another man.

That was a line carved into his principles long before this pack, long before this mess, and certainly long before Daisy.

His principles, combined with the delicate situation he found himself in, made it easier to keep his mind sharp and focused. He was here for a purpose, for Seraphine, so everything else was noise.

Still, he understood that if he wanted Daisy exactly where he needed her, he could not appear distant. So he invested just enough. He trained with her when she struggled with her battle skills, correcting her stance, adjusting her grip, pushing her to sharpen her reflexes while maintaining that calm, encouraging tone that built trust.

matters with her when she looked overwhelmed, guiding her through reports and logistics as if he genuinely

showed weakness, and slowly, steadily, Daisy

She warmed up to him not just as a friend, but as a quiet alternative,

see it in the way her eyes lingered sometimes, in the way her voice softened when she spoke to him, in the subtle comparison she must have been making in

he had been the one taking care of Bryan while the boy recovered. In a time when leadership felt stretched thin and attention divided, Damon had filled the gaps effortlessly, and that kind of

the busy rhythm of city life, pack activities had grown simpler, quieter, stripped of their former

finally breathe. He could feel his wolf fully, not just as a restless presence beneath his skin but as a living force that took over a ran

runs in wolf form were liberating, the wind slicing through his fur, the earth solid and honest beneath his paws, the trees whispering ancient secrets as he sprinted beneath their

freedom, and the fact that he was here for Seraphine’s sake, were the only reasons he did not feel the urge

said one afternoon, his

the documents

aware that co-Luna Daisy has withdrawn a total of

from recalibration. The numbers echoed in his mind, heavy and slow.

assessed as timid, almost mouselike in her hesitance, suddenly transformed in his perception, no longer a

me, Bright," Damon replied smoothly, his voice steady, betraying nothing of the

before speaking again, as though weighing whether he should

was here, we always had more money coming in than going out.

If anything, it confirmed what he had already suspected. Seraphine must have been quietly supporting the pack with

funds and apparently treated them as though they were

worry," Damon said calmly. "Next time, inform me before