Seoha’s POV

I hate when I wake up alone.

The heat on my face tells me that it’s morning, and even through my eyelids, I can see the morning sun filtering in through the window.

My eyes fly open, scanning the room for him, and when I don’t see him, my omega starts to whimper.

"Yes, send message, Sooin will be absent for two days" I hear Taesan’s rough voice coming from his balcony and I get out of the bed.

The alpha is leaning on the balcony with his phone in hand, he doesn’t seem to notice my presence until I hug him from behind, pressing my cheek to his back.

Maybe it’s from how long he has been standing under the morning sun, but his body feels comfortably warm.

The call seems to be a very serious and important one, as the alpha keeps talking instead of attending to me.

"Yes, and tell them the plan should be pushed forward" he continues to talk into the phone, and I just feel the vibration of his words through my cheeks.

Deep, low and just perfect.

I’m so in love with him.

"Tell the fabric department to get new ones, and give me feedback soon, that will be all" the alpha says before ending the call.

He shoves his phone into the pocket of the black pair of pants sitting low on his hips before turning around to look at me.

"Hello, little deer" he says and I tilt my head backwards to be able to look into his face.

Kang Taesan is painfully handsome, how good looking he is doesn’t make any sense.

"Did you sleep well?" he asks, placing two fingers under my chin to keep my eyes on him, and I nod once.

I always sleep well when he’s here, I wrap my arms around his waist and press my cheek to his chest.

I like the feel of his bare skin against mine.

My thighs are sore from last night and I can still feel the stretch of him inside me.

He slides his wide hand down my back, cupping my bare ass and pulling me closer to himself.

"How are you today?" he asks in that rough voice and I purr in response; I have no word for how I feel.

Dirty. Washed. Wrong. Perfect. It’s a swirl of different things on the good and on the bad side.

I still feel the dark cloud hovering above my head, but it’s nothing to be compared to the way he’s enveloping me.

He smells like a hint of soap and like himself, like home and comfort, and everything beautiful wrapped in one.

It’s almost easy to forget what he is.

"Dad?" Sooin’s small voice calls from the door of the room and my eyes widen.

Oh no, I’m completely naked and Taesan is the only one dressed, I can’t let the baby see me this way.

"Dad, are you sleeping?" she asks and I can hear her pushing the door.

"Innah? Dad is coming" Taesan calls back, leaving a kiss on my cheek before slightly closing the balcony door as he leaves.

With silent steps, I move forward and try to listen in on their conversation.

The alpha opens his bedroom door to let his little girl in.

"What’s wrong pup?" Taesan asks and I hear a soft sniffle. The small noise is enough to awaken my worried omega side.

And curiously, I peek through the small gap of the balcony door, watching for them through it.

Taesan is carrying his little girl, and her arms are tightly wrapped around his neck.

"I had a bad dream" Sooin says, and I see her shut her eyes.

She looks like she’s trying not to cry, but the tears slip through anyways and she presses her face into the hard line of her dad’s neck.

"What’s wrong, princess?" Taesan asks in a soft voice I’ve never heard before.

I am tempted to come out and hug her too...but this is a moment between father and daughter, it feels wrong to want to interrupt their moment.

So I keep my distance.

"I’m scared, I had a bad dream" Sooin starts to cry and my own eyes moisten with tears.

I slap my hand over my scent gland, hoping that my pheromones don’t affect them both, I am just lucky to be around them.

"What’s it about, hmm, do you want to tell me?" Taesan asks.

He walks to the unkempt bed and places her on the edge, kneeling in front of her and taking her hands.

His tattooed back blocks most of my view, but the sight is powerful in itself, it’s unbelievable that an alpha is kneeling for anyone.

An alpha kneeling for his daughter.

Sooin drops her head on Taesan’s shoulder as she continues to cry.

This is sad.

It sounds like she’s trying to swallow her sadness and keep it to herself, almost like she’s afraid of expressing herself.

A baby like Sooin shouldn’t feel like this, she is too sweet for anything like this.

"It’s okay baby, dad will do anything for you, do I have to send the monsters away?" Taesan asks and Sooin shakes her head.

She is rubbing at her nose, still crying and spreading snot over her face.

"Dad left me in my dream, I don’t want you to leave me" Sooin says and I see Taesan’s shoulders drop.

The tension in the alpha’s body makes me want to run out.

I want to kneel beside him in front of the child, I want to press a kiss to her small palm, I want to tell her how much her dad loves her.

Kang Taesan has been enduring abuse and manipulations for years because of her.

He should have walked away from her long ago, but he didn’t, he has been living and staying strong for her.

I can never picture him walking out on her.

"Princess, I will never leave you" the alpha says and opens her palm, pressing a kiss right there and pressing it to his face.

"Dad will never leave, don’t you know, hmm? I can’t live without you" he says and Sooin throws her arms around him.

"I want you, I want you and daddy, and uncle Junnie and uncle Minnie and aunty Yuki" Sooin keeps crying and I hear Taesan’s sigh.

Of course, Sooin has no idea why Yuki is no longer a part of the close circle that takes care of her.

"Whatever you want, princess" the alpha says softly before patting her back gently.

"Come on, let’s have a fun today, you and me and daddy" Taesan says and Sooin pulls away from the hug.

"Where is daddy?" she asks, eyes scanning the room.

Taesan wipes her tears off with his hand, chuckling softly as he diverts her attention from the balcony door.

"Daddy turned into small bird because he was hungry and no one gave him food" Taesan says and Sooin giggles.

"Don’t lie dad" she says and from here, I can’t hold back my own smile despite the wetness of my eyes.

Sooin’s little face is still wet with tears and snot, but her smile is as bright as the morning; the smile of a child that is reassured of her parent’s love.

I wish I can go back in time just to hear my mom’s declaration of love again.

When I was with her, I would say I love you a hundred times in a day just to hear her say it back.

I needed to be sure that she still loved me.

I knew I wasn’t wanted, I knew I wasn’t an intentional conceived child, I knew my father stayed away from my mother because of me...I just wanted to be loved.

’I love you’ I would tell her every day and night, and it became a habit I had even with Daeshin.

I loved him...but he lied, he took advantage of my vulnerability...

"Hey" Taesan’s voice says loudly and I snap back to reality.

He’s still in the room with Sooin, but my scent is heavy with the pain growing in my chest...saying ’hey’ that loud is an attempt to call me back.

Goddess...I’m floating away easily these days...is soft really strong?

"Let’s make daddy some food, and-and I’ll give daddy a hundred kisses!" Sooin announces and Taesan gasps.

"You like daddy more than me?" he asks and Sooin covers his face with her hands.

"Noooo" she giggles.

"Wow, you betrayer!"

"Sorry, dad, but daddy is pretty than you" she keeps laughing as he tickles her before carrying her out of the room.

Daeshin doesn’t matter, the past doesn’t matter. I have my family now, I have Taesan and Sooin.

When I’m sure that they’ve left, I finally come out from the balcony and rush over to the alpha’s large wardrobe.

I select a large shirt that hits my thighs, and I pick up the pair of pajamas pants I wore last night.

My eyes land on the bags of ’things’ Minjae and I got yesterday during the shopping spree...I guess I’ll show Taesan later.

Today, today will be worry and fear free...I hope.