CHAPTER 3

Arlo Donovan got home thinking about Lune, he wanted to get things done faster that's why we went to meet her parents for her hand in marriage.

She was his mate and he found out that since she was born, he always hated the wrath that humans have to be their mate. They are too fragile and if not handled with care, they'd be broken. He has been watching her since birth every single day and waiting for the perfect age time to have her for himself. Arlo Donovan had always been a man of control, precision, and patience—qualities that had earned him his reputation as a ruthless billionaire in the world of business. But there was one thing in his life that had shaken the foundations of his calculated existence: Lune. From the moment she was born, she became his obsession, the one thing he couldn’t control, yet couldn’t live without.

It had started on a night that seemed like any other. Arlo had been a young man at the time, powerful but still rising, his empire just beginning to stretch its claws into the business world. But beneath his cool exterior, Arlo carried a secret that no one in his circle of elites could have ever guessed—he was not entirely human. Arlo belonged to an ancient line of beings who, though outwardly indistinguishable from humans, were something more. They were destined to find one person, their mate, the one person who would complete them, the one they were fated to protect, love, and possess.

For years, Arlo had resisted the pull of his nature, content to focus on his ambitions. But on the night Lune was born, everything changed. He felt it deep inside him, a shift as if the very fabric of his world had been altered. He didn’t know her name at the time, didn’t know who she was, but he knew that somewhere, his mate had entered the world.

From that moment on, Arlo kept a close, silent watch over Lune. He knew her parents, though they were unaware of his interest, and he made it his business to ensure that their family was protected, always from the shadows. He watched Lune grow from a distance, resisting the primal urge to claim her, to make her his. She was too young, too innocent, and he knew the time had to be right.

Still, he couldn’t help himself from watching. When Lune was a child, he would occasionally visit the small town under the guise of business, his presence barely noticed. He’d observe her playing in the park or walking to school, her laughter and spirit drawing him in more than anything else in his life. Every year that passed only made his connection to her stronger, though he kept his distance, knowing the time had not yet come.

But as Lune entered her teenage years, Arlo’s restraint was tested like never before. She blossomed into a beautiful young woman, her innocence slowly fading as she grew older, and he could feel the pull to her becoming almost unbearable. He had watched over her for so long that she was already a part of him, though she had no idea of his existence. Arlo continued to build his empire, his power and wealth growing with each passing year, but it all paled in comparison to the thought of her—his mate, the woman who would one day be his.

Arlo knew he had to wait until she was ready until she was of age and fully capable of understanding the bond they shared. But he couldn’t deny the growing impatience that gnawed at him. He was a man used to getting what he wanted, and the fact that he couldn’t have her yet drove him to the edge of his sanity.

He kept an eye on her as she entered adulthood, making sure no one came too close, and no man tried to claim what was his. The few boyfriends she had over the years never lasted long. Arlo saw to that. A subtle conversation here, a career opportunity there, and they were gone before they could become a threat. Lune never noticed, but Arlo’s presence loomed over her life like an invisible guardian, shaping her path without her ever knowing.

Finally, the time came when Lune’s family fell into financial ruin. Her father’s business ventures had failed, and they were drowning in debt. Arlo knew this was the moment he had been waiting for, the perfect opportunity to step in and claim what had always been his.

Lune’s parents sat at the old wooden table, the weight of Arlo Donovan’s offer hanging heavily in the air between them. The dim light of the kitchen flickered softly, but it did little to brighten the suffocating atmosphere. Her father, Gerald, stared blankly at the sheet of paper in front of him—the contract that Arlo had sent earlier that day. It was an offer that would wipe away all of their debts, lift them from the crushing weight of financial ruin, and secure their future in ways they hadn’t dared dream about for years. Yet, as appealing as the solution was on the surface, there was an undeniable darkness underneath.

Evelyn, Lune’s mother, sat across from him, her fingers nervously tracing the rim of her coffee cup. She hadn’t said a word since they’d opened the letter, but the tears welling in her eyes spoke volumes. She had known this day would come; she had sensed something lurking for years—something wrong about the way Arlo seemed to circle their lives, always from a distance but never too far away.

“This is wrong, Gerald,” Evelyn whispered, her voice cracking with emotion. “I can’t... we can’t do this to her.”

Gerald sighed, his tired eyes shifting from the paper to his wife’s anguished face. “What choice do we have? Do you think I want this? Do you think I want to hand our daughter over to him like she’s some... commodity?”

“But she doesn’t even know him!” Evelyn’s voice broke, her words spilling out in a rush of desperation. “We’ve kept her away from men like him all her life, and now, because we’re drowning in debt, we’re supposed to give her to him? A man who’s—” She stopped herself, the rest of her sentence stuck in her throat, but they both knew what she was going to say. A man who’s dangerous.

Gerald ran a hand through his thinning hair, his face lined with exhaustion and regret. “Arlo made it clear, Evelyn. If we don’t accept this offer...”

“I don’t care about the money,” she snapped, her eyes flashing with anger. “I care about Lune. He’s not doing this to save us, Gerald. He’s doing this to take her, to trap her in his world. You’ve seen how ruthless he is. Do you really think she’ll be happy with a man like that?”

“No,” Gerald admitted, his voice quiet and heavy. “But what if we don’t agree? Do you really think Arlo will walk away? He’s been circling us for years. He’s been watching her for years. He’s not going to give up on this, and if we refuse, who knows what he’ll do?”

Evelyn’s breath caught, and her tears spilled over. She had sensed it too—the way Arlo had always seemed to have a hand in their lives without ever being too direct. The business deals that went sour after Lune’s boyfriends entered the picture, the sudden, subtle changes in their fortunes whenever Lune was involved. Arlo had always been there, lurking, waiting. He wasn’t a man who accepted no for an answer.

“But Lune will never forgive us,” Evelyn said softly, her voice thick with grief. “How can we look her in the eye and tell her we’ve promised her to a man like him? She’ll hate us, Gerald. She’ll hate us forever.”

Gerald’s hands clenched into fists on the table, the weight of his failure as a father settling deep in his chest. “I know,” he said bitterly, his voice shaking. “But what am I supposed to do? We’re out of options. Arlo’s offer comes with conditions—conditions we can’t refuse. He won’t let us fall, but only if we give him what he wants. And we both know what he wants.”

Evelyn wiped her eyes with trembling hands, her mind racing with thoughts of Lune—her sweet, innocent Lune, who had no idea what lay ahead of her. She had always wanted more for her daughter than the life they had given her. She had dreamed of Lune finding love on her own terms, of her being free to choose her own path, not to be bound by the ruthless desires of a man like Arlo Donovan.

“We can’t stop this, can we?” Evelyn asked in a voice so small it almost disappeared into the silence of the room.

Gerald shook his head. “No. We can’t.”

They sat there in heartbroken silence, the reality of the decision they had made settling in. They both knew that this wasn’t just about money or survival. It was about Arlo’s obsession—an obsession that had started the moment Lune was born. Arlo had been waiting for this moment for years, watching her from the shadows, and now, he had finally made his move.

“I never wanted this for her,” Evelyn whispered, her voice thick with sorrow. “She deserves better than a man who thinks he can buy her.”

“She does,” Gerald agreed, his heart heavy with guilt. “But I don’t think we have the power to stop him. Not anymore.”

In the end, they both knew they were helpless. Arlo Donovan was a man who always got what he wanted, and this time, what he wanted was their daughter.