Alpha's Regret: The Seventh Time was Forever

Chapter 199 – Whatever charm she has, don’t let it distract you

At first, it had seemed almost harmless, subtle, even—how Seraphine had gradually pushed him into a role he never imagined himself playing, turning him from a commanding Alpha into someone who had to worry about things as ordinary as meals, routines, and whether a child had eaten enough to stay full through the night.

No matter how much Ravyn tried to convince himself that he could handle both worlds without friction, the truth was that balancing that unexpected responsibility with the weight of leading an entire pack had been anything but easy.

Because being an Alpha demanded control, authority, and a certain distance that kept emotions from interfering with decisions, while Bryan... Bryan required patience, presence, and a kind of softness Ravyn had never been taught to carry.

And now, somehow, Seraphine had taken things even further. Not only reshaping his role but quietly forcing him out of the picture altogether, as though his presence alone was something she refused to acknowledge, let alone tolerate.

"Dad," Ravyn said into the phone, his voice tight despite his effort to keep it level, "she’s coming to the pack, and she wants to deal only with my Beta."

The words didn’t sit well with him, not in the slightest, because no matter how much he tried to rationalize it, the arrangement felt wrong in a way he couldn’t easily dismiss.

Seraphine might have been his ex-wife, but she wasn’t just that anymore, not after everything she had built, everything she had become, everything that now made her someone people sought out rather than overlooked, and what Ravyn wanted, despite everything that had happened between them, was something simple enough to seem almost unreasonable.

Friendship. A peaceful one that could earn him a few favors. So these conditions, felt like an absolute rejection.

"Do I really have to hide from her?" he asked, a trace of bitterness slipping into his voice before he could stop it, his frustration threading through his words. "At this rate, it feels like she’ll eventually ask me to step down as Alpha too."

"Ravyn!"

Humphrey’s voice snapped through the line sharply, carrying a warning that left no room for argument.

"You’re the one who asked for her help," his father continued, his patience clearly worn thin. "If you don’t like her conditions, then find someone else, and don’t involve me again."

The words hung there, heavy and final, forcing Ravyn into a silence that stretched just long enough for the weight of reality to settle over him before he finally exhaled, the resistance in his chest giving way to reluctant acceptance.

though no less firm. "I’ll agree to her conditions, and I’ll make

simply chosen the easier path, but inside, his thoughts were already in motion, searching for a way to bridge the distance she had intentionally created, because no matter how things had ended between them, Ravyn wasn’t ready

And Bryan...

the

tone easing now that Ravyn had stopped pushing back. "Let your Beta contact her and

The way men responded to Seraphine, the way their attention lingered, drawn toward her like she

And Damon...

if he

her within reach in a way Ravyn himself no longer had access

there with more thoughts than he was willing to admit, his gaze drifting toward Damon

he said, his tone steady

his eyes narrowing just enough to

she has... don’t let it distract you. The

curved faintly, the reaction subtle enough to pass unnoticed if Ravyn wasn’t paying close attention, but inside, amusement flickered quietly, controlled and

broke through the tension, drawing their attention toward Bryan, who had dropped his fork, his small face lit with something that immediately

Mommy coming

landed harder than anything

Ravyn felt something tighten painfully in his chest, something he wasn’t prepared for, something

answer, but before he

"Who is coming back?"

voice came from upstairs, cutting into the moment with just enough sharpness to break whatever

his expression smoothing over as he

the victims," he said, "Sera

long enough for his next

you stay out of