Chapter 3 3.

Alyna’s POV

After that night at the assembly, I couldn’t stop thinking about him.

Alpha Asher Patterson.

Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the faint curve of his lips, the way his golden eyes had softened for a fraction of a second when he said, “You’re my mate.” I told myself it didn’t matter. I told myself I wouldn’t let the bond rule me. But no matter how I tried to bury it, the feeling lingered — wild, restless, alive.

He was in danger, and yet something in me leaned toward him like a moth to flame.

I didn’t expect to see him again so soon.

The next morning, I woke to the heavy thud of boots outside. Voices — sharp, commanding — echoed through the small wooden house. My father’s, deep and angry. And another — smooth, confident, terrifyingly familiar.

I froze halfway down the stairs when I saw him.

Asher stood in our living room, tall and composed. His golden eyes found mine instantly, and something flickered in them.

My father’s face, however, was pale with barely contained anger. “You can’t just walk in here and demand,'

“I didn’t demand,” Asher interrupted, his tone calm but edged with steel. “I asked.”

“Asked for what?” I whispered, though I already knew.

Asher’s gaze shifted back to me. “For you.”

My knees went weak. “What?”

He took a step closer, commanding, assured, and yet his voice gentled when he spoke again. “I came to ask for your hand in marriage, Alyna.”

“Marriage?”

He nodded, “Yes.”

My father let out a sharp laugh, “You can’t be serious. She’s an omega.”

“I’m aware,” Asher replied.

“Then why her?”

“Because she’s my mate,” Asher said.

My father’s jaw tightened. “You’re making a mistake. She’s weak. Useless. She’ll be a burden.”

The words stung, though I’d heard them before. What I hadn’t expected was Asher’s reaction. His golden eyes darkened, his tone dropping. “You should be careful how you speak about her, David.”

I looked between them helplessly. “This can’t be real,” I murmured.

“It’s real,” Asher said softly, “I don’t waste time on things I don’t mean.”

“You think you can just take her? She’s my daughter—”

Asher cut him off, “I came to ask out of respect, not permission. If Alyna wishes to come with me, I’ll take her. Your approval is a formality.”

The silence that followed was thick and dangerous. My father’s fists clenched at his sides, but Asher’s dominance is even more menacing.

“Alyna.” he got her attention.

“I’ll take care of you. You’ll be safe with me. You won’t be treated like this anymore.”

The words struck something, a longing I hadn’t known I still carried. Safety. Care. Belonging.

“You can’t go with him. You don’t know what you’re walking into.”

I looked at him, startled. “You… you don’t want me to go?”

“He’s an Alpha. You won’t survive in his world. Stay here.”

“Stay here? In a place where I’m treated like dirt? Where even my own father calls me a monster?”

Vivi’s voice was quiet in my mind. “He’s scared. Not for you, but of losing control. But he’s never stopped you before. Why now?”

“I don’t know,” I whispered back, my throat tight. “Maybe he finally realized what it means to lose something.”

“You don’t have to decide right now. But I won’t leave without your answer.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re my mate. That’s reason enough.”

The bond between us hummed again, stronger now, tugging at my chest.

My heart raced. “I don’t even know you.”

“Then know me,” he said simply. “I’ll wait as long as it takes.”

Vivi murmured inside me, “He means it, Alyna. I can feel it.”

“But what if the vision was right?” I whispered silently. “What if he ruins me?”

“Or what if he saves you?”

I looked at Asher again at the strength in his stance, the sincerity in his voice. The man I had feared seemed nothing like the cruel Alpha of my visions. He didn’t look dangerous now. He looked… determined.

But then I turned to my father. His face was drawn, his hands trembling slightly, though he tried to hide it. “Don’t go,” he said again, more quietly this time.

It startled me how raw his voice sounded, as if some small part of him truly cared. For a moment, I saw not the drunk, bitter man I’d grown up with, but a father who didn’t want to lose what little he had left.

I looked back at Asher, then at my father. Both waiting. Both pulling me in opposite directions.

Vivi’s voice trembled inside me. “You have to choose.”

“I know,” I whispered.

“Don’t betray me,” My father said softly. “You’re all I have left.”

Betray him. The word hit me like a blow. He’d never spoken to me like that, never admitted that I mattered.

Asher, my mate, his warmth brushing against me. He didn’t speak again, didn’t pressure me. He just stood there, watching, waiting, trusting that I would chose him.