Chapter 7 – Tempting the Alpha’s Son

Sasha pov

The packhouse buzzed like a beehive preparing for a festival. Everywhere Ella turned to, hands tugged at her, voices gushed with suggestions—this ribbon, that fabric, the color of flowers to line the hall. The seamstresses cooed over her dress fittings, the cooks argued over menus, and the elders debated which ancient blessing should be recited before the vows.

But Sasha barely let herself see any of it.

She stood by the window in the upper corridor, her arms folded, her gaze fixed on the courtyard below. Ella twirled before Marcus and Mara, her blue dress glittered in the sunlight, her cheeks flushed pink. Laughter floated upward, it was sweet and light, the kind of laughter that made even the wolves sigh in approval. The pack had already begin to adore her, and she hadn’t even be crowned Luna yet.

Sasha’s nails bit into her arms until crescents of blood rose beneath her skin. Every laugh, every approving nod, felt like a knife which turned deeper. She had to find a way to stop it.

Then she spotted Cole, he was leaning against the far wall, his jaw clenched, his hands shoved into his pockets. He looked like a storm which was barely contained, his golden eyes flicked restlessly between Ella and the cobblestones at his feet.

Sasha’s breath steadied. This was her chance.

An hour later, She found him. He was in the training yard where he often went to sulk whenever the pack weighed too heavily on him. He was seated on the low wall, his elbows on his knees, he stared at the dirt as though the answers to his fury lay hidden in the dust.

“You look like someone who has been sentenced to death,” Sasha said, her tone light, playful.

Cole didn’t look up. “Maybe I am.”

Sasha’s lips curved. She slipped closer, she let her hips sway, knowing how his gaze always followed when he thought no one was looking. “A wedding isn’t a death sentence, Cole. Unless you count the boredom.”

He shot her a glare, but it lacked its usual bite. “Do you think this is funny? I’m being forced into marrying her.”

Sasha perched on the wall beside him, their knees nearly touching. “I actually don’t think it’s funny. I think it’s just tragic.” Her voice softened, almost mournful. “The Alpha’s son who is being shackled to a girl he doesn’t even love.”

His jaw ticked. He ran a hand through his hair, in his every movement frustration bled through. “My father believes  it’s fate. He says the bond is sacred. That the Moon Goddess herself—”

Sasha leaned closer, cutting him off with a whisper. “Do you actually believe that?”

Between them, the question lingered, it felt as sharp as a blade.

Cole exhaled, a sound more growl than sigh. “I don’t know anything about what I believe anymore. When I look at her, something actually pulls through. It’s real, Sasha. But it’s not something that I want or something I desire.”

Sasha’s chest clenched, but she forced her expression into looking like sympathy. She laid a hand on his arm, her nails grazing just enough to remind him of every secret night they’d once shared. “Of course it’s real. The bond is actually magic. But magic doesn’t decide who you fall in love with. You are the one who does.”

He finally looked at her, eyes stormy, searching. For a moment, silence stretched, thick with old promises and the weight of forbidden things.

“You chose to love me,” she whispered, the words a tether between them.

His throat worked, but he didn’t bother denying it.

Encouraged, Sasha pressed on, her voice low, intimate. “Whenever I look at you, do you know what I see? You are not some puppet who dances to the tune of the moon Goddess. I see the Alpha you’re born to be. You are Strong and Independent. You are someone who chooses his own path.”

Cole’s gaze dropped to her lips, then jerked away. He shoved to his feet, pacing, dragging a hand down his face. “You actually don’t get it, Sasha. My father will never allow me reject her. He is if the opinion that rejecting a fated mate is blasphemy. If I stand up to him, I could lose everything I hold dear. my position, my right to lead this pack.”

Sasha rose, gliding toward him with deliberate grace. “Then you don’t have to stand up to him, all you have to do is make him stand down.”

His head snapped toward her, suspicion flickering across his eyes. “What are you talking about?”

She touched his chest lightly, over the steady thud of his heart. “Give him a reason. Show him Ella isn’t worthy enough. That she’s weak. That she’s dangerous for the pack. If he believes she’s actually a liability, then he won’t force the union. He’ll allow you to choose differently. To be able to choose me.”

Cole froze, the idea burrowing into his mind like a parasite. His loyalty to his father warred with his rage at the invisible chain tightening around his neck. Sasha could almost see the battle in his eyes.

“I don’t know…” he muttered, shaking his head. “If it gets out that I rejected her, the pack will split. Half of them already adore her.”

Sasha’s smile sharpened. “Packs adore what they’re being told to adore. They cheered for you when you blooded your first hunt, didn’t they? They’ll cheer again when you prove you know what’s best for them. Leaders don’t follow fate—they bend it.”

Her words dripped like honey, thick and irresistible.

---

Cole stared at her, chest rising and falling with uneven breaths. He remembered every stolen kiss shared between them, every night he laid tangled in her arms, every whispered plan about ruling side by side. The bond tugged at him, pulling him toward Ella, but Sasha’s presence tugged harder, it was anchored by years of familiarity and temptation.

Before he could stop it, his hand lifted brushing against Sasha’s cheek. She leaned into the touch, feeling triumphant.

“Promise me,” she murmured. “Promise me you’ll stop this, that you’ll reject her.”

The words hovered on his tongue, it felt dangerous and heavy. He really wanted to say the words, to reclaim control, to erase the helplessness gnawing inside of him.

But then his father’s face flashed in his mind, looking stern and unyielding. Victor, who had raised him based on stories of destiny, who had declared with pride that his son’s mate was a gift to the pack.

Cole dropped his hand, stepping back as if burned. “Not yet.”

Sasha’s smile faltered. “What do you mean by not yet?”

“I need time,” he said, running a hand through his hair again. “If I move too soon, he’ll only crush me. I have to be smart about this.”

Sasha’s nails dug into her palms, but she forced her voice calm. “Then be smart. I can help you do that. I’ll find the cracks in Ella’s perfect little image. All you have to do is just to be ready to act when the moment comes.”

His eyes met hers, conflicted but hungry. “What if I can’t?”

Her lips curved, soft and dangerous. “Then you’ll lose me. And we both know you can’t afford to lose me.”

---

That night, when Sasha returned to her room, her heart pounded with a mix of triumph and fury. Cole hadn’t outrightly promise rejection, but the seed has already been planted. If watered, Seeds grew. And she would be the one to water this seed with every drop of venom she possessed.

At her desk, she pulled out her phone again, messaging her contact.

‘Change of plans. Don’t just smear her. Find something that will make her look dangerous to the pack. Evidence, whether real or faked. I don’t care which’.

The reply which came across was a simple, a thumbs-up.

Sasha leaned back, staring out her window as the moon hanged pale in the sky. Ella might have fate on her side. But Sasha had something that was stronger.

What she had is Determination.

And if it’s requires her drawing blood, she’s prepared to as she isn’t afraid to get to any means to get what she wanted.