Alpha's Regret: The Seventh Time was Forever

Chapter 134 – Heartless

Seraphine had never really understood what people meant when they talked about dating, like it was some kind of shared language everyone else spoke fluently while she stood on the outside, watching, trying to piece together rules that never made sense to her.

All her life, her world had revolved around one man, her attention fixed so completely on him that she never once stopped to consider the feelings of anyone else, never once cared about the hearts quietly breaking in the background, even when the one she loved gave her nothing in return.

Now that it was over in a way that left no room for illusion, something inside her had shut down, locked itself away behind walls she had no intention of lowering anytime soon.

Still, she wasn’t blind to what it felt like to love alone, to pour everything into someone who would never give the same back, and that understanding stirred a quiet, reluctant sympathy in her chest when she looked at Augustine.

But sympathy wasn’t enough, and she knew it never would be.

If anything, her own experience had taught her that dragging out something one-sided only made the eventual collapse worse, that it was kinder to end things before they even had the chance to grow into something fragile and false, which would only shatter under the weight of reality later on.

A faint, nervous smile curled her lips as she gently slipped her hand out of his, the warmth of his touch lingering for just a second longer than she wanted it to. She reached for her napkin, dabbing the corner of her lips more as a way to steady herself than anything else.

"August," she said softly, her tone careful but unyielding, "my answer hasn’t changed, and I need you to believe me when I say it’s not about you. I just don’t want to go down that road again."

Her words were calm, respectful, wrapped in a softness that didn’t take away from their finality, and she watched the change in his expression as something dimmed behind his eyes, like a light slowly being turned off.

"What is it about Alpha Ravyn?" he asked, his voice tightening despite his effort to keep it steady, frustration bleeding through in ways he couldn’t fully hide. "I could understand if it was Alpha Voren, at least that would make sense, but Ravyn?"

if even saying the name left a

to look away. "I’ve loved you for years, Sera, longer than you

again, but this time it felt different, thinner, like something held

quietly, her eyes steady on his, "it’s that loving someone doesn’t guarantee they’ll ever

just honesty, the kind that didn’t soften

her tone turning more serious, grounded. "What if we switch places, and I end up being to you what Ravyn was

paused for a moment, letting that sink in before continuing, her

I’m standing against him

that night, and she saw the immediate change in Augustine, the confusion, the tension, the way his brows

do you mean, what he did to your child?" he asked, his voice edged with disbelief. "I don’t understand, because from everything I’ve

as something deeper flickered beneath it. "He

soften it, didn’t try

Corvine the order to kill my daughter," she said, her gaze unwavering, "but I’m only telling you this because I trust you as a friend. Corvine didn’t

felt heavier than

in a way that was impossible to hide, the weight of her words hitting him all at once, leaving him staring at her like he was seeing her pain for the first

earlier frustration gone completely, replaced by

voice gentler now, "I’ll wait for you, Sera. However long it takes, I’ll wait until

she shook her head slightly, cutting

for misunderstanding. "Don’t wait for