Accept

Ava Wilson POV

I can't believe what I'm hearing. How dare he give me commands? It's me who made him Alpha. How dare he treat me with such an attitude?

"But what can you do? He has already accepted this girl as his mate and now he's the Alpha. A man you love with all your heart. How are you going to decide now?" My inner voice taunted me.

It's painfully true. I can't fight him. I can't let him go. I love him. He's the beginning and end of my life. This isn't like me. I can't do this to myself.

Everything is overwhelming me. I can't handle it anymore.

"Please trust me. You need to believe we can get through this. You're still the person I love the most. Ariana is my mate. She's weak and needs me. How can I leave her?" He settled Ariana on the bed again and came to me, holding me in his arms. But today, I feel nothing.

My heart doesn't beat with a sense of calm; it fills me with more anxiety than before. It's not me, it's just my mind screaming how he's trying to manipulate me by using his so-called fake love for me.

"Believe me," he said, softly placing his hands on my cheeks, making me melt in his arms. This is my weakness. He knows how much I love him, and that weakness cannot justify my actions.

This man has power over my thoughts and everything. He makes me listen to his words and surrender my heart.

"Don't do this," I said, weakly trying to gather my words.

"You can't do this to us, Ava. You've known me for years. How can you just leave me like this?" He tried to portray himself as the victim, making it seem like I'm the one causing harm to him and his mate.

"How can you do this to me, Austin? We've already discussed this before. How can you expect me to accept your mate when I never wanted this? If you truly love me, why not reject her? And if it's about her protection, don't worry. We can send her to a pack with whom we have a peace treaty." Tears rolled down my cheeks, expressing the immense pain I feel in this moment. He is my man, or at least that's what I've believed for the past five years. I can't leave him because of this.

Everything will be fine once this woman is out of our relationship. We can forget what happened today. I know Austin still loves me, and I am the only person he needs in his life.

"I can't, Ava. She's too weak to be left alone. How can we do something bad to her when she hasn't done anything wrong to us?" He justified his decision.

"How hasn't she done anything bad to us? She's literally ruining our relationship?" I asked with a hoarse voice. What was Austin even thinking? His mind seems empty, and he's just spilling nonsense that I don't want to believe in.

"I already said this is my final decision in this matter, Ava. You have to step down from the Luna position." His words shocked me even more. He doesn't just want to make her his mate; he also wants me to give up the thing that was originally mine.

I already stepped down from the position of being an Alpha to make Austin the Alpha because I was so happy to be his Luna. Now he's spilling all this nonsense. Can I tolerate it? Can I?

"Nothing will change. She's an Omega, and if she needs to live here without facing any bullying, she needs this position more than you, baby. Trust me, it won't change anything. You're already powerful, and no one will harm you. We both know that." Austin spoke more, and the pain within me grew. How easily he wants me to accept that he will make another man his Luna. I don't even care about that. If I can step down from the Alpha position, then the Luna position isn't any different for me. But the fact that he will mark this woman when I am his marked wife hurts more than anything.

"You say you love me. Can't you do this for me, baby? I'll never leave you, and you know that. It doesn't matter if Ariana is Luna or not because you're the first woman in my life," he said softly, caressing my cheeks, trying to soothe my tears.

"This is no big deal." I asked myself. How is this not a big deal? But my mind isn't functioning properly. I can't let go of the man I love, yet I can't accept this nonsense either. I don't even know how to react other than to cry my eyes out.