Chapter 90: Unlikely Bond.

Aurora’s POV
“I’m sorry,” I started as I turned to Alessandro.
“I’m sorry you had to experience that.”
He didn’t say anything at first. He just sat there, looking at me with a small smile.
I sighed, shifting on my feet. “I know my relationship with your brother was a mistake, just like you said.
Even though we didn’t listen to you… and now… you were right.” I admitted, playing with my fingers.
Suddenly, Alessandro burst into laughter.
I frowned. “Uh… why are you laughing? I don’t think this is funny.”
He shook his head, still chuckling.
“It’s not funny. It’s just… ironic.”
I crossed my arms. “What’s ironic?”
He leaned back, smirking.
“That you’re standing here, apologizing to me for something I warned you about, when in reality… you don’t owe me anything.”
I blinked. “But I do. You saw this coming, and I was too blinded to see it myself.”
Alessandro’s gaze softened.
“Aurora, love makes people blind. But that doesn’t mean you should beat yourself up over it.”
I stared at Alessandro, shocked by his words. He was the last person I expected to comfort me like this.
Alessandro had never been the friendly type, especially not toward me.
Ever since my mother married his father, Alpha John, and brought me into the pack, he had always made it clear that he didn’t like me.
But now… he seemed different warmer, more approachable. And somehow, without realizing it, I found myself opening up to him.
“You know, I never thought this day would ever come.” I said, sitting down beside him.
He frowned, clearly confused. “Um… which day?”
I turned to look at him. “The day we’d actually sit together like this and talk.
I mean, you were so mean to me before.
You made me feel like I was a problem that needed to be taken care of.
But here you are now… supporting me, encouraging me.
It’s… so… what’s the right word?”
“Surprising?” he finished for me.
I nodded, my gaze locked onto his. “Yeah…”
He scoffed and rolled his eyes.

“Well, a lot of things have happened to me in these past few months that I can’t even explain…”
I shifted a little closer, my curiosity growing.
“Well… I’m all ears, Alessandro.”
He smiled but then looked away, as if unsure whether to continue.
“You know… I just decided I shouldn’t care so much about handling the pack like I used to.”
I frowned slightly, listening intently as he spoke.
“I mean, everything I do, my father never acknowledges me. He always favors my brother over me.
All I’ve ever wanted was for my father to just see me.”
He sighed deeply, his frustration evident.
“But… he never does. So, I guess when I found out he was getting married again, I was pissed at him and took it out on you…”
I nodded in understanding. “Oh… so I became the guinea pig, huh?”
He let out a small chuckle. “Yeah… sorry about that.”
I could tell he meant it. He wasn’t the same Alessandro who used to glare at me from across the room, treating me like an outsider.
This Alessandro was different more vulnerable, more open.
“But now,” he continued, “I’ve come to realize that I shouldn’t try so hard to make my father see me.
I don’t want to care anymore. I’ll do my part as his son, and maybe one day, he’ll realize that and stop treating me like I’ll never be good enough.”
Without thinking, I reached out and placed my hand over his, offering silent comfort.
“No, Alessandro. You are good enough.
Your father is just too blind to see that you’re the one doing more for this pack than even Leonardo.”
He looked at me, his eyes searching mine as I spoke.
“I don’t think you should give up on becoming Alpha. You deserve it.”
His expression softened, almost as if he were seeing himself in a new light.
“Really?
Do you really think I’m worthy of being the next Alpha?”
I nodded without hesitation. “Yes.
You’re meant to be the Alpha of this pack. You take care of everyone.
The pack respects and loves you. You’ve sacrificed more for them than your brothers have.
You, Alessandro, are the true Alpha.”
A slow smile spread across his lips as he held my gaze.
“You know, this is the first time someone has ever said something so… nice to me.”
I smiled back, happy that my words had meant something to him.
Then he added, “I haven’t had time to date or be with anyone before… you know, handling the pack’s affairs and all.
I just never had the time.”
I blinked in surprise. “Wait… you’ve never dated anyone?”
He nodded. “Nope.”
“Like, never?” I asked again, still in disbelief.
He nodded slowly.
“Yeah… I mean, my brothers once tricked me into giving my virginity to some Beta, which I was furious about, but other than that… I’ve never had a mate before.
Just never had the… um… time.”
I stared at him, completely shocked.
Alessandro, the fierce and respected warrior of the pack, had never truly been with anyone?
I didn’t know why, but hearing that made my heart ache for him.
I stared at Alessandro, my mind reeling from his confession. I had always seen him as this strong, confident, almost untouchable warrior someone who had everything figured out.
But now, sitting here with him, I realized that beneath all that strength was someone who had been neglected, overlooked, and used.
“Wow… I never expected that.” I admitted softly.
He scoffed, leaning back against the bench we were sitting on.
“Yeah, well… it’s not exactly something I go around telling people.”
I studied his face, noticing the subtle tension in his jaw, the way his fingers tapped against his knee as if he was uncomfortable with the conversation.
“You know, Alessandro… I think you deserve love too.”
His fingers stopped tapping. His gaze shifted to me, something unreadable flickering in his eyes.
“Love, huh?” He chuckled dryly. “Not sure that’s in the cards for me.”
“Why would you say that?”
He let out a deep sigh, running a hand through his hair.
“Because I’ve spent my entire life trying to prove myself to a father who will never see me.
I dedicated everything to this pack, and yet, I always come second to Leonardo.
Even in love… I mean, look at this situation.” He gestured vaguely, his lips curling bitterly.
“You loved him… and I was the one who told you to stay away from him. And now, here we are.”
I looked down at my hands, his words weighing on me.
“You were right, though.”
He glanced at me, brow furrowing slightly.
“About Leonardo,” I clarified.
“You saw what I didn’t want to see. I thought he would fight for me… but in the end, he cared more about pleasing your father than about loving me.”
Alessandro exhaled sharply.
“Yeah, well… it still doesn’t change the fact that I was a complete ass to you.”
I smirked. “You really were.”
He chuckled, shaking his head. “Wow, you don’t even deny it.”
I nudged him playfully.
“Nope. But… I can also see that you’ve changed.
You’re not the same Alessandro who used to glare at me from across the room like I was some unwanted pest.”
He let out a small laugh.
“Yeah… maybe.” He looked down at our hands, still close from when I had placed mine over his earlier.
“I guess… you changed me too.”
My breath hitched slightly, my heart doing something strange in my chest.
“What do you mean?”
His eyes met mine, something intense and sincere in them.
“You made me realize that I don’t have to be what my father expects me to be.
That I don’t have to chase after approval that will never come. And…” 
He hesitated for a moment before continuing.
“You made me see that maybe… just maybe… I deserve more than what I’ve been given.”
I swallowed hard, my chest tightening. “You do, Alessandro.”
For the first time since I’d known him, Alessandro looked truly vulnerable.
And it made me wonder… had I been so blinded by my feelings for Leonardo that I had never really seen the man in front of me?
Ensnared by My Stepbrothers' Realm
Detail
Share
Font Size
40
Bgcolor