Chapter forty-one

Alpha Damon couldn't sleep. He wrestles with a tumultuous sea of emotions as he recalls his last conversation with Lana.

“Don't fall for me. I know it'll be challenging given our relationship as mates, but give it your best shot. I don't know how to reciprocate such feelings, and I wouldn't want you to get hurt.”

Her gentle murmur of his name elicits a groan from him, and a heavy sigh escapes his lips. “Perhaps it's the right choice. If she doesn't love me, she won't feel obligated to endure my company, especially if I become more unbearable to her.”

His mind wanders to the past, and the memories of his parents’ rough relationship replay like a reel. His father’s maltreatment of his mother is a painful reminder of a love tainted by manipulation and mistreatment. His mother, driven by her misguided devotion, had stayed. She’d endured every one of his father’s abusive love and had even loved being used by him.

These haunting thoughts stir a fear within Damon. He fears he isn't any be