What are you going to do with me

Lyra's eyes fluttered as she noticed Cassian's gaze drifting to her lips. A tight knot of anxiety formed in her stomach. She wanted to object, but the fear that another word from her would push him to claim her lips kept her frozen in place.

Keeping her eyes on him, she saw his gaze linger on hers, and like an obedient pet, she nodded in silent resignation.

"That's a good girl." Cassian's lips curled into a victorious smile, his voice carrying a strange softness. He swiftly picked up the food plate and placed it between them.

"You should consider yourself lucky that I'm feeding you," he added, his tone gentle enough to soothe the fear gnawing at Lyra's chest.

Without making a fuss, Lyra opened her mouth, accepting the food from him. She didn't trust herself to speak, not with the unsettling mixture of tenderness and authority in his actions.

"How come you're so quiet? I was expecting you to curse me by now," Cassian remarked, his eyes glinting with amusement as she shot him a seething glare.

The sight of her flushed face made him chuckle. "Stubborn," he muttered softly, bringing another bite toward her lips.

Lyra swallowed the water from the glass and passed it back to him, her hand trembling slightly. She had expected him to be a monster, relentless in his pursuit of control, but this softer side… it made her wonder if she had been wrong about him.

"You need to rest or the wound on your back won't heal," Cassian said quietly, causing her brow to furrow.

Lyra had almost forgotten about the wound the rogue had inflicted on her. But at his words, a sharp hiss escaped her lips, the sting of the injury making itself known again.

Her breath caught when she heard Cassian chuckle, and for the first time, she noticed the subtle warmth in the sound. The Alpha, whom she had heard countless stories about—fearsome, cold, unapproachable—was capable of smiling. It was almost unsettling, and yet, it stirred something inside her.

She blinked, surprised by the gentleness he showed. It didn't align with the man she had been warned about.

"What are you going to do with me now that you bought me?" she asked before she could stop herself, her voice trembling slightly.

Cassian's eyes bored into hers, the weight of his gaze heavy. His lips parted slightly as if he hadn't expected the question, and for a brief moment, there was an uncomfortable silence between them.

The silence in the room stretched between them, the air thick with unspoken words. Cassian's eyes bore into hers, a depth in his gaze that Lyra hadn't seen before. It wasn't just the usual cold, commanding stare. There was something else—something darker, but also more vulnerable.

He didn't answer her immediately. Instead, he studied her, his jaw clenched as if considering her question deeply. The soft flicker of light from the window illuminated his features, making him appear almost human. For a moment, it felt as though the terrifying Alpha—the feared leader of his pack—was just a man, caught in a storm of emotions he didn't know how to navigate.

Lyra felt herself drawn to the way his expression shifted, the vulnerability in his eyes momentarily replacing the hardness she had come to expect from him. She almost couldn't believe it, but it was there—flickering in the shadows of his gaze. Was he… torn?

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Cassian exhaled, the weight of the question settling between them. "What do you think I'll do with you, Lyra?" he asked, his voice lower than before, the edge of authority still present, but tinged with something else. A soft curiosity? Or perhaps uncertainty?

Lyra's heart skipped a beat. She had expected anger, perhaps even more forceful claims. But instead, he wasn't commanding her with that terrifying dominance. No, there was a strange gentleness now in the way he spoke.

"I don't know," she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. The realization struck her hard. She didn't know. She had spent so much time fearing him, thinking of him as nothing more than a cold, heartless monster, but now…

Now, something about the way he was looking at her—something almost tender—was cracking open the walls she had built around herself.

Cassian watched her carefully, his brows furrowing slightly, as though he was weighing something in his mind. "I didn't want this," he murmured, the words a startling admission. "I didn't want to bring you here, to force you into this life. But you…" He hesitated, and the words hung in the air for a moment, heavy and raw. "You came to me, and I didn't know what to do with you. I don't know what to do with you."

Lyra blinked, stunned by the vulnerability in his words. This wasn't the Alpha she had heard of in the stories—the one who ruled with an iron fist, who crushed those beneath him without a second thought. No, this Cassian seemed… human. He seemed to struggle with the decisions he had made, with what his responsibilities as an Alpha meant for her—and her place in his life.

"You're right," he continued, a touch of bitterness seeping into his tone. "I didn't buy you because I wanted a mate. I didn't want any mate at all after losing her."

The mention of his lost mate sent a sharp pang through Lyra's chest. She had heard the rumors, of course. Cassian's grief had been legendary. But hearing him admit it so openly, so painfully… It made her heart ache for him, for the man who had seemed so untouchable.

"So, what are you going to do with me now?" she asked again, her voice still trembling but stronger this time, as if she were finally beginning to understand the complexity of the situation.

Cassian's lips parted as if to answer, but then his expression shifted, and for a moment, he looked almost lost—as though the question itself was something he wasn't sure he could answer. His shoulders dropped slightly, and his gaze flicked away, as though avoiding her.

"I don't know," he repeated softly. "I don't know what to do with you, Lyra."

His admission hung in the air between them, the tension now replaced by an uncomfortable honesty. Cassian, the Alpha, the feared leader, was uncertain. For the first time since she had met him, Lyra saw him—truly saw him—not as an Alpha she had to fear, but as a man in turmoil.

And in that moment, Lyra realized something she hadn't allowed herself to consider before: Cassian wasn't just a monster. He was a man broken by grief.

For the first time since she had been brought into his world, she didn't feel like just an object. She didn't feel like a prize to be won, or a possession to be controlled. She felt like a person in a room with another person, both navigating a fragile, uncertain path ahead.

But the uncertainty in his eyes made her question everything. What if he was right? What if he didn't want her here at all?