Mated to My Fiancé’s Alpha King Brother

Damien’s POV

The quarterly reports blurred together on my computer screen. Numbers that should have meant something, Profit margins. Projected

growth. Territory expansion.

None of it fucking mattered.

I rubbed my eyes, the ache behind them pulsing in time with my heartbeat. Three months. Three months since Sera had walked out that

door, and I still couldn’t concentrate for more than five minutes without my mind drifting to her.

*Where is she? Is she safe? Is she eating enough?*

I slammed the laptop shut harder than necessary. The sound echoed through my empty office like a gunshot.

“Alpha?”

I looked up to find Lucas standing in my doorway, concern etched across his face. When had he knocked? How long had he been

standing there?

“What?” The word came out sharper than I intended.

“Board meeting in ten minutes.” Lucas stepped inside, closing the door behind him. “You forgot, didn’t you?”

Had I? I glanced at my calendar. Tuesday, 2 PM. Quarterly review with the pack’s business council.

“I didn’t forget,” I lied.

Lucas’s expression said he knew better, but he was kind enough not to call me on it. Instead, he settled into the chair across from my

desk with that easy confidence that used to irritate me. Now it was just… familiar. Comforting, even.

“You look like shit,” he said bluntly.

“Thanks for the pep talk.”

serious, man.” He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “When’s the

jaw clenched.

Riley you always scream when you sleep.” Lucas’s voice was gentle

blow. My son. My five–year–old son was

said, but

where I’m standing, you’re barely functioning. You’re running the pack on autopilot. You

stretched between us like

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172 Chapter 172

apart,” I said

you call this?” Lucas gestured at me, at my office, at everything, “You come in before dawn. You leave after midnight. You barely eat. You don’t shift anymore. When’s the last time you let Alex out

couldn’t remember. Weeks? Maybe

me

to not

doing my

for a long moment. Then he shook his head

to find me when you’re ready to stop being an asshole,” he said,

door closed with a soft click that felt louder than

slam.

silence, staring at the closed door,

board meeting was a blur of voices and presentations I didn’t

budgets and

feeling like

couldn’t take it anymore. I left early, ignoring Emma’s surprised expression as I walked

another moment to think about Sera. Every familiar landmark another reminder that

complaining about traffic or

unfairness of it made my chest burn with rage and helplessness

same as always.

put both kids to bed. Stories for Adrian. A bottle for Lily. The usual routine that felt

at the moon rising over the trees. Full and

closing my eyes. Somewhere out there, she was living her life without

sleeping better