Alpha's Regret: The Seventh Time was Forever novel Chapter 27

Chapter 27: Chapter 27 – he still craves me

Ravyn froze. The thought had crossed his mind before, more than once, actually. He had lived under the same roof with Seraphine for years without touching her, existing like polite strangers bound only by a marriage certificate. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

It had been a cold, deliberate arrangement, one that would allowed both of them to move through life separately while maintaining appearances.

When he had finally brought up the idea of formalizing that separation, of continuing as husband and wife only on paper, Seraphine had refused.

At the time, Ravyn had been too embarrassed to push. After all, he was the one who had asked for the divorce. Pressing further would have felt hypocritical, almost desperate, and he had swallowed the conversation whole, burying it where pride and regret lived side by side.

Now, standing in front of Daisy, he couldn’t bring himself to say the truth out loud. "Seraphine isn’t stupid. She’ll know I’m doing it for the money."

That wasn’t the answer Daisy had expected. A flicker of disappointment crossed her face before she smoothed it away, her voice calm but calculating. "Then we’ll have to find a way to increase our profits."

Ravyn nodded slowly. "I know. That’s why I have to go to the city."

The weight of everything pressing down on him made his temples throb. Then another thought struck him, sharp and unsettling.

"Daisy," he said, his tone turning businesslike, "you haven’t given me any updates on the medical supplies. And I haven’t seen any movement from the account."

Daisy’s lips pursed. She had already given herself a strict timeline, two weeks. That was all she needed, and was confident that her motivation had been enough to push the doctors toward a breakthrough.

"I’m working on it," she said smoothly. "Trust me, it’ll be ready in two weeks." Then, almost casually, she added, "I had to fire Nicole. She was getting in my nerves ."

Ravyn gently moved her aside, surprise flashing across his face. "You fired Nicole? Why didn’t you tell me?"

She tilted her head, studying him. "You look upset. She disrespected me, insulted my intelligence. I couldn’t let that slide."

"Oh." Relief softened his expression. Anyone who disrespected Daisy deserved consequences. "Still, you should have informed me. If you had, her punishment would have been harsher."

A coy smile curved Daisy’s lips, but before she could respond, a knock sounded at the door. Ravyn went to answer it.

Damon stood there, holding a sleek device. "Alpha, I got you a new phone and inserted your SIM. It’s already beeping, looks like a message."

"Thank you." Ravyn closed the door and checked the screen, the color drained from his face.

"Who approved half a million to the logistics department?" he demanded. "An amount like that requires my authorization."

A chill ran through Daisy. Since Corvine and Seraphine had left, she was the only one signing off on approvals. If it hadn’t been Ravyn, then the blame pointed directly at her.

"I—I’m sorry," she said quickly. "They said it was urgent. I didn’t know—"

Ravyn pressed his fingers to his temple. The headache was pounding now. "So this is how you plan to approve anything labeled urgent?"

"Dad," he asked softly, "when are you coming back?"

"I don’t know, son," Ravyn replied, ruffling his hair before kissing his cheek. "But very soon. There are things that need my attention."

Daisy pouted. "I could still come with you," she said. "Damon gets along well with Bryan."

Ravyn glanced at Damon. The man nodded easily. "I don’t mind watching him. I love kids."

Still, Ravyn couldn’t bring himself to trust Damon fully. He shook his head. "There’s too much to handle within the pack. Let Daisy stay with Bryan and help her train better."

He didn’t miss the way Damon stiffened at the mention of him helping Daisy, but there was no time to probe. He turned and left.

Later, Daisy smiled to herself as she sent the video of their night to Seraphine with the message,

’Do you see that?’ Daisy’s words dripped with cruel satisfaction, every syllable sharpened to wound. ’Eight years of warming his bed, and he still craves me like I’m his favorite meal, the one he can never get enough of. I’m the only woman who makes him feel like a man, something you never could, and never will.’

Her smile was slow, venomous, as she continued typing before pressing the send button. ’You were never attractive to him, Seraphine. Not once, and don’t fool yourself. No Alpha would ever want you. She waited but there was no response.

At first, she was annoyed, then uneasy when it didn’t come. It took a few days for Seraphine’s answer to come, but when it did, it struck with such force that Daisy couldn’t even bring herself to show her face in the pack.