Piss Off, Alpha! You Lost Me Forever

SOPHIA’S POV

The hospital garden was quiet, but the silence didn’t feel peaceful.

There was tension here. I could feel it

George stood with the nurse’s support. Lance stood across from him.

George studied Lance again, then nodded slowly.

“You’re a capable young man,” he said. “You carry yourself well. A man like you should think carefully about his future.”

Lance smiled politely. “I try to think carefully about most things.”

George seemed pleased by the answer. He adjusted his robe slightly.

“Then let me give you advice,” he said. “Marry wisely, not for feelings. Feelings fade. Marry into strength, money, and influence. Join yourself to a wealthy family and secure your future.”

I stiffened immediately. My wolf let out a low growl inside me.

Lance’s expression remained calm, but I noticed the small change him. He had heard every word clearly. George continued as if he were discussing weather and not someone’s life.

“Love is unstable,” George said. “Partnership is what matters. Security is what lasts.”

Lance slipped one hand into his pocket and answered “I appreciate your advice, sir, but I don’t agree.”

George frowned “You don’t?”

“No,” Lance replied “I won’t marry for money or strategy. If I marry, it will be because I choose the person.”

George chuckled “That sounds noble when you’re young. Life teaches different lessons later.”

Lance didn’t move.

“Maybe,” he said. “But I’d rather learn my own lessons than live someone else’s.”

I looked at him then. There was no arrogance in his voice. He wasn’t trying to impress anyone. He was just honest.

George’s expression changed into something harder. He wasn’t used to being contradicted.

“A stubborn man,” he muttered.

Lance smiled “Sometimes.”

I stepped forward before George could continue. Things were already getting too awkward.

“Grandpa,” I said gently, “you should sit down.”

But my eyes moved to Lance.

“Don’t mind him,” I added softly. “He thinks everyone should live the way he did.”

George heard me. His brows lifted.

“And what is wrong with the way I lived?” he asked.

I forced a small smile. “You survived. That’s not the same as being right.”

The nurse looked uncomfortable. Lance glanced away as if hiding a laugh. My wolf actually approved.

George huffed, but he said nothing more

-

A few minutes later, the nurse guided George to a bench. Lance and I stood a little farther away under the trees.

Lance looked at me carefully. “You’re tired,”

I sighed, shaking my head “I am,”

“And angry.” Lance teased

I laughed dryly. “That too.”

He nodded, then lowered his voice. “How did the divorce filing go?”

“There’s a cooling-off period. It’s a mandatory delay before it can be finalized.”

“That means it’s moving forward,”

I nodded. “Yes.”

He let out a slow breath. The expression on his face was a relieved one, like he was happy for me.

“I’m glad,” he said quietly.

I tilted my head as I looked at him “You’re relieved.”

“Yes,”

My wolf stirred. She was curious to know.

“Why?” I asked.

Lance looked into my eyes as he spoke. “Because you deserve a real chance to breathe, and because some doors only open when others finally close.”

The words touched something deep inside me.

I didn’t know what to say, so I looked away first.

“Sophia” a voice called. It was George.

I turned.

He was staring at us with an annoyed expression.

“Sophia,” he said. “Come here.”

I walked over slowly. George looked from me to Lance and back again.

“You are still married,” he said bluntly. “Why are you standing alone with another man like this?”

I felt myself felt irritated. Why is this family so controlling, anyway? I wasn’t doing anything wrong. Damien was the one with a mistress yet nobody spoke to him about it.

“We were talking.” I said through gritted teeth.

“You should not be,” he snapped.

The nurse pretended not to hear. Lance remained where he was. I could tell that he could hear us.

George lifted his chin.

“When I was a young man, I respected my marriage,” he said. “Even when things were difficult, there were lines that were not crossed.”

I almost laughed at the irony.

My chest went tight with a different kind of pain. This was how he loved - through control, through rules, through demanding sacrifice from others.

“You think respect means isolation?” I asked.

“I think a wife should know boundaries,”

“And a husband?” I asked quietly.

He paused. “That is different.”

Of course, it was.

My wolf snarled openly now. She was offended by the hypocrisy.

Inside, I thought what I would never say aloud to a sick old man: Your love is selfish. You love people most when they obey you.

But I only smiled at him.

“I heard you,” I said.

George narrowed his eyes, knowing I didn’t agree with him..

Behind him, near the garden entrance, I noticed Damien standing still. He had come outside quietly and was watching everything.

He was watching me, watching Lance, watching George.

He said nothing.

-

We returned to the ward not long after.

George was tired from being outside, even though he refused to admit it. Once back in bed, he continued giving instructions to everyone as if he wasn’t sick. Damien humored him with short answers. I adjusted the blanket and poured water because it was easier than arguing.

Eventually, the medication made George drowsy.

His voice slowed. His eyes closed in then finally he fell asleep.

The room became quiet except for the soft sounds of machines and footsteps in the corridor.

I stood near the window, feeling grateful for the silence.

My shoulders were tense, and I rolled them slowly. My wolf hadn’t rested all evening. She disliked hospitals, lies, Damien’s scent, George’s demands, all of it.

I didn’t hear Damien approach. I only felt him.

All of a sudden, I felt warmth at my back, then arms around my waist.

My entire body stiffened.

Damien had wrapped himself around me from behind. His chest was against my back as he held me.

What was he doing?

“Let go,” I said quietly.

“No,” he murmured near my hair.

My wolf reacted instantly. She felt confused and angry. She knew this body. She remembered this man but hated what he did to us.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

He was silent for a moment.

Then he asked, very softly, “Sophia... what is love?”

I froze.

Of all the things I expected from Damien, that question was not one of them.

I turned my head slightly, though I didn’t look at him. I almost laughed out loud.

“You’re asking me?” I asked.

“Yes.”

I let out a deep breath “Why now?”

“Because I don’t know anymore,”

Those words should have moved me once. Now they only made me tired.

I gently removed his hands from my waist and stepped forward, turning to face him.

He looked serious. His eyes were fixed on mine, like the answer mattered more than anything.

So, I gave him the simplest truth I had.

“Think about how you feel when Tiffany cries,” I said. “How quickly you go to her, how you defend her before anyone asks. How her pain changes your mood.”

His jaw tightened. That clearly wasn’t what he wanted to hear. But, I continued.

“How you always make space for her” I spoke “Think of how you choose her again and again, even when you pretend you’re neutral.”

He stared at me.

“That feeling,” I said quietly, “is love.”

The room felt still.

“And what about what I felt for you?” he asked after a long pause.

I looked at him calmly.

“That was convenience mixed with habit,” I said. “Maybe guilt later.”

I saw the pain in his eyes before he hid it.

-

Hours passed.

I sat in the chair near George’s bed while Damien remained on the sofa. The lights were a bit dim. Outside the windows, the city had gone dark. My wolf was finally relaxing a bit.

Then George suddenly spoke.

“Why is everyone sleeping like strangers at a bus station?”

I jerked awake. Damien sat upright instantly.

George was staring at us, fully awake. He looked irritated.

“You scared me,” I said, pressing a hand to my chest.

“Good,” he muttered. “Maybe now you’ll listen.”

He reached for the water, and Damien handed it to him. After drinking, George cleared his throat.

“There is a charity banquet this Saturday,” he said. “I was meant to attend.”

Damien frowned. “You need rest.”

“I know that,” George snapped. “Which is why you two will go for me.”

I blinked. “What?”

“You heard me,” he said. “You will attend as my representatives, together.”

My wolf woke instantly and hated the idea.

“Grandpa,” I began carefully, “that may not be necessary.”

“It is necessary,” he said. “People expect the family to show face. They must see unity.”

Damien said nothing. George pointed a finger between us.

“You will dress properly. You will arrive together. You will behave like a married couple with sense.”

My chest tightened. This was another performance, another lie.

I looked at Damien, expecting him to refuse. I expected him to say something. Instead, he was watching me with unreadable eyes.

“Fine,” he said.

I stared at him in shock.

George nodded with a smile “Good. Then it is settled.”

He lay back down, looking very satisfied..

I remained in my chair, feeling angry and irritated. My wolf paced circles inside me.

Saturday. This would be another night beside Damien, another act.

And somehow, I already knew nothing about it would be simple.