My Fated Alpha's Cruel Game

Asher’s POV

After getting my heart shattered into pieces, I made myself a promise that love was off the table permanently.

I swore I would never allow anyone to trample all over my feelings again.

My mother used to say I loved too intensely, threw myself headfirst into relationships without holding anything back. I never considered that a flaw.

Not until Bianca chose someone else and ripped my heart straight out of my chest before crushing it under her heel. But I had to handle it with dignity. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

I refused to act like some pathetic fool. I wouldn’t grovel or beg her to stay, not when she clearly wanted to be anywhere but with me.

The only option left was requesting a transfer. So I did exactly that.

And that decision led me directly to Dawn. I couldn’t have planned a better outcome if I tried.

Sure, we haven’t been acquainted for very long, but after last night spent together out in the field, something clicked. She makes me grin in ways Bianca never managed to accomplish.

She’s the one I’ve been waiting for. Every instinct tells me she’s exactly who I’m meant to be with. But I need to keep my cool about it. Coming on too strong will send her running in the opposite direction.

I can’t risk scaring her away. Not her.

I’ll make sure she knows I’m interested, but I won’t overwhelm her with the full intensity of what I’m feeling.

That can’t happen. Not with someone like her.

What really gets my curiosity going is this mystery guy she mentioned. She got completely uncomfortable when she brought up some soldier from her previous base who had shown interest in her, but she shut down the conversation before I could learn more details.

Maybe he played games with her emotions and then left her high and dry, probably embarrassed her in front of everyone.

Whatever happened between them definitely didn’t end well.

I can’t wrap my head around what kind of idiot would mess that up. She’s got more maturity and strength than any woman I’ve encountered. Even Bianca never displayed the level of composure that Dawn shows naturally. And Bianca’s my age while Dawn’s still quite young.

She knows how to have a good time but maintains her focus when it matters.

This obstacle course challenge has proven she can match any guy here step for step, and she’s absolutely determined to outperform Nico.

Watching him struggle to keep pace with her is honestly entertaining as hell.

Koa and I had planned to run through the course again alongside them, but this turned into such an intense head-to-head competition that we decided to step back. Corbin seemed perfectly content having us observe from the sidelines.

So there we stood, watching the entire showdown play out.

Dawn hit some snags on a few obstacles that allowed Nico to close the gap, but he could never maintain his advantage for more than a few seconds.

Corbin kept his eyes glued to them while checking his stopwatch, and I could see genuine excitement building on his face.

He started shouting encouragement at them both, which only pushed Dawn to move even faster.

Since they’d turned this into a full-blown race, neither one was backing down or taking it easy on any section.

They were moving at breakneck speed without any signs of slowing down.

Dawn hit the finish line with Nico barely a breath behind her, and Corbin practically exploded with enthusiasm.

"You actually did it!" Corbin shouted at the top of his lungs. But Dawn collapsed onto the ground immediately, throwing her arms up over her head to expand her chest and pull in as much oxygen as possible.

"What exactly are you talking about?" she gasped out between heavy breaths.

"Just under the record time," Corbin announced with a huge grin. She lifted her head to stare at him in disbelief.

"Are you being completely serious right now? I actually did it? I broke the damn record?" she asked, still struggling to catch her breath.

"Absolutely," Corbin confirmed.

"Once I can breathe like a normal person again, I’m going to be celebrating just as hard as you are right now," she promised, still panting heavily.

I grabbed her towel and water bottle and brought them over to where she was sprawled out. She took a long drink and wiped away the sweat that was dripping down her face.

"He crossed the line right after you did, which means he missed the target time," I told Dawn, and she started laughing as much as her current oxygen-deprived state would allow.

"So does that mean Nico has to keep running laps until he hits the target time?" she asked with a mischievous glint in her eyes despite her exhaustion.

The satisfaction on her face was unmistakable. She’d not only achieved something incredible by breaking the course record, but she’d also managed to beat Nico in the process.

Corbin was still buzzing with excitement over her accomplishment, checking and double-checking his stopwatch as if he couldn’t quite believe the numbers himself.

Nico was bent over with his hands on his knees, trying to recover from the grueling pace they’d both maintained throughout the entire course. He looked frustrated, bending over with his hands on his knees to recover.

Koa clapped me on the shoulder and shook his head with appreciation for what we’d just witnessed.

This was exactly the kind of determination and competitive spirit that made Dawn so different from anyone else I’d known. She didn’t just talk about being tough or capable – she proved it when it counted most.

Watching her push herself to break that record while simultaneously outpacing one of the strongest guys on base only reinforced what I already suspected about her.

She was extraordinary in every possible way.