“I curse the law that tears people apart and dares to call it destiny!
I curse everyone else!
I curse everything else..” Her voice grew hoarse as another sob escaped her.
“I hate this world…” she whispered, squeezing her eyes shut.
Nathan’s face flashed through her mind, followed by the memory of his desperate voice as he stood before his parents, ‘I still love Lena’.
The memory hurt even more than the betrayal.
“Why…” she whispered brokenly.
“Why did it have to be us?”
The rain swallowed her words, but it could not wash away the ache threatening to tear her apart.
Around her, Pairing Day carried on as though nothing extraordinary had happened.
Some couples laughed with relief as they celebrated compatibility scores that promised perfect futures.
Others stood frozen, staring at strangers they had just been ordered to marry.
Families embraced newly assigned sons- and daughters-in-law while longtime lovers quietly walked away from the people they had once believed they would spend forever with.
Lena wandered amongst them like a ghost, seeing everything without truly seeing anything.
Then suddenly her phone vibrated.
The sharp buzz against her palm brought her to an abrupt halt.
Slowly she lowered her gaze and looked at the screen.
The silver crescent emblem of the National Pairing Authority illuminated her screen, and for several long moments she simply stared at the notification glaring back at her in brightness.
Congratulations.
Your compatibility match has been finalized.
Her fingers trembled so violently she nearly dropped the phone.
“No…” she whispered, and with a shaking hand she tapped the notification.
A government profile immediately filled the screen.
Assigned Partner: Cassian Ashford.
Species: Werewolf.
Occupation: Chief Executive Officer of Ashford Global Holdings.
Compatibility Score: 99.97%.
The color drained from her face immediately looking at that name. This story is hosted at g.com.
Cassian Ashford.
She did not have to be a werewolf to recognize the name.
He was the youngest Alpha ever to build one of the country’s largest corporate empires, the man behind Ashford Global Holdings.
His influence stretched far beyond the corporate world, reaching government chambers, financial institutions, and international markets.
Ruthless in business and terrifyingly decisive, he had dismantled rivals twice his age and built an empire that even the oldest Alpha families treated with caution.
Yet it was not his wealth or power that made people fear him most.
It was the man himself.
Cassian Ashford was notoriously cold, distant, and utterly uninterested in romance.
For years, influential families had tried to place their daughters in his path, hoping to secure an alliance with the Ashford bloodline, but every attempt had ended the same way—with public humiliation, ruined ambitions, and doors permanently closed.
Over time, stories about him took on a life of their own.
Some claimed he despised women.
Others whispered that every woman who had tried to force her way into his life had met a tragic end, though no one could ever prove whether those tales were true or merely legends born from fear.
Whatever the truth, one thing was certain.
The entire country knew him by a single name: the Alpha born without Mercy.
And her heart immediately fell into the pits knowing the fact that she was a human.
If Nathan’s family didn’t want her because she was a human, now imagine Cassian the Alpha…
“This…” Lena murmured, staring numbly at the screen.
“This has to be a mistake…”
Before she could process the first notification, another one appeared.
*Your mandatory three-month Trial Marriage will commence in seventy-two hours.
Failure to report as instructed will constitute a violation of the Compatibility Preservation Act and may result in criminal prosecution.*
The words blurred before her eyes, and the phone suddenly slipped from her trembling fingers, landing on the wet pavement with a dull thud.
Lena’s knees finally gave way, and she sank onto the rain-soaked ground, staring helplessly at the glowing screen lying inches away as the storm poured over her.
A humorless laugh escaped her lips before dissolving into quiet sobs.
“Why him…?” she whispered, feeling even more frightened.
“Out of every man in the country… ”
Why did fate choose Cassian Ashford?
She could not understand any of it.
She could not fight the law.
And she certainly could not fight a man whose name alone carried enough power to shake governments.
How was this supposed to be her future?
*********
Westbrook Apartment
“You all should leave.
I want a moment alone.”
Nathan’s voice was low but firm as he turned away from them and made his way toward the bathroom.
He was still wearing nothing but the towel he had hastily wrapped around his waist while chasing after Lena, his mind too consumed by everything that had happened to care about his appearance.
He needed a cold shower.
Perhaps the water would clear his head enough for him to think.
He had barely reached the bathroom door when his mother’s voice stopped him.
“Your partner has been confirmed, and we expect you at the family estate for dinner tonight.
Evelyn’s family has been invited as well.
We need to discuss the marriage and make the necessary arrangements.
And make sure you collect your marriage certificate.”
Nathan’s steps came to a halt.
In their world, once a pairing was officially confirmed, the process of marriage followed almost automatically.
The government recognized the pairing, and the marriage certificate became the legal confirmation of the union.
He slowly turned his head toward his mother, disbelief and irritation crossing his face.
“Don’t tell me what I’m supposed to do.”
His mother’s expression hardened.
“If you dare embarrass me, I won’t hesitate to kill her and destroy her entire family.”
Nathan froze.
She took a step closer, her voice dropping into a cold warning.
“Don’t ruin this opportunity.
Do you understand what it means to be connected to the Ashfords?
This is your chance to secure our family’s position, and I will not allow you to throw it away because of some misplaced feelings.”