"I-I...I...um...I-I." This was a really humiliating situation. As my face heated and my ears became a bright crimson, I was at a loss for words and could only say "I." It felt almost as if blood were spilling out of my ears from the pressure. Why did he all of a sudden move in so close to where I was standing?!

But I should have known better than to expect him to give up on me so quickly. I couldn't help but laugh as I felt a warm breath across my ears, which caused the blood to rush to my cheeks.

Oh... get out of my sight! I would die of shame! Even though it had only been a few hours since I made the decision to take the mating process seriously, this man didn't need to make things so difficult for me! I haven't given in to my attraction to him yet, but there is still a shroud of doubt that hangs over my heart because of this man

But I was well aware that I was just making excuses for myself. Already, I could feel my heart beating against my chest more forcefully than it ever had before. If Asta were to approach me any more closely, he would be able to plainly hear my pulse.

Then all of a sudden, he turned toward the girl, and in a voice that was a little bit icy, he stated, "I believe that you need to go. You are making a nuisance of yourself on the first day after the wedding."

When I realized that there was a visitor at my house, I couldn't help but feel my cheeks heating up with blush, and I couldn't help but recall that there was a visitor. This was really awkward to say the least! However, the young lady was livid with rage. The rage had caused her cheeks to flush crimson. She gave me the evil eye before storming out of the building without turning around to look behind her.

After she left, just Asta and I were left inside the building. The way he behaved made it impossible for me to avoid feeling anxious. Instantaneously, I got to my feet and started heading toward the bedroom. "I'm going to take a long, relaxing soak!" My tone was so hurried that it sounded not like I was going to take a bath but rather like I was going to miss a train.

I was still not in my right mind as I stumbled to the restroom, and my mental condition was not stable at all. Those pictures came before my eyes as I was reddening up and rapidly taking off all of my clothing before running into the bathroom to get into the shower. My thoughts was completely blank. The sound of my chest thumping loudly continued even as the water began to settle me down. Because I was in such a rush, I completely forgot to lock the door to the restroom.

A quarter of an hour later, I heard the sound of the door knob being turned, and then, all of a sudden, I heard a click in my ears, which caused me to become completely still.

"Are you still." When he finally stopped moving, Asta had just begun to speak. I was still in a haze from what had transpired earlier in the living room, so you might say that I was still daydreaming when the door to the restroom was unlocked. Therefore, I even neglected to shut the curtains to the shower.

As a direct consequence of this, my behind was exposed to him in its entirety. When I understood this, my eyes widened and I let out a scream that was so loud that it pierced my ears. "What the heck are you doing in this place?!!" And pulled the drapes over the window in an instant.

My heart was pounding so hard against my chest that it seemed like it wanted to burst out of my body at any moment, and my cheeks had a hint of a pinkish flush on them.

Embarrassing! Never before in my life have I been in such a humiliating situation as I was today. I let out a deep sigh before covering my face. The room was so silent that you could hear a pin drop, and I couldn't help but wonder what was going on.

"Asta?" I said while sticking my head out from behind the drapes.

Then, it seemed as if my words had roused Asta from his sleep, and he formed a thin line with his lips. As he took a step back, his face darkened for a brief period, and he gave the impression that he was trying to exert some kind of control over himself. After that, he exhaled deeply and quickly bolted the door behind him. He didn't completely shut the door, but he left a gap in it and told me to get dressed since we were going out to eat tonight. He continued after a little pause in the conversation. "Also, please dress appropriately."

"Are you going to take us into town?" 'Are you confused?' I questioned Asta as he drove his automobile in the direction of a known location, namely my hometown. Because it was the location that was physically closest to Asta's pack, getting there required just one hour of driving in the automobile.

He only nodded and resumed driving without making any more comment. Then, it seemed as if he suddenly recalled something to himself. "Do you need the purchase of anything? Even if I had previously placed an order for some clothing for you, you and I may still go shopping together."

When I thought back to it, I couldn't help but redden. After finishing my shower, I was abruptly struck by the realization that I had not brought a rucksack with me when I got here the previous evening. What should I put on after I have finished using the restroom? At that point, Asta gave the door a second knock before hanging a bathrobe on the door handle and leaving in a gentlemanly manner after making sure to shut the door behind him.

Was this the same individual about whom rumors circulated that they were really cruel? Not only did he make me feel at home after the mating ritual, but even before I came, he went shopping for clothing for me! Who exactly was this dude? Why would people say such terrible things about him if he wasn't the person the stories claim he was? Who exactly was the girl from earlier in the day?

I wanted to ask a lot of questions, but instead I kept my mouth shut and leant against the glass while I watched the trees go past outside. Before we reached the closest eatery, we were silent for the whole of the preceding hour. It seemed as if Asta had already made reservations for all of us at the hotel. The manager came out to greet him and shake his hand as soon as we entered the opulent restaurant that was packed with families consisting of a large number of people. "You are always welcome here, Mr. Moore. Are you in this for the job opportunities? Should I make a reservation for the standard room for you?"

"No, it's not public knowledge," was the response. After he finished speaking, he reached out and grabbed my arm, drawing me in closer.

When the manager turned around and spotted me at that moment, he was taken aback. He seemed to instantly see what she was getting at, as shown by the broad grin that appeared on his lips. He indicated with a nod and then said something in the waiter's ears. Following that, they led us to a separate room that had a circular table in front of a window that was covered with crimson curtains and seats set on both sides of the table. A number of candles were arranged in a cluster in the geographic center of the table. The left side of the room had a huge sofa with enough space for five or six people, a flat-screen television mounted on the wall, and a music system to the side of the couch.

"One of our most romantic accommodations for couples may be found here." After that, he rubbed his fingers together and smirked at Asta while looking at her as if he was trying to get credit for something he had done. "Please enjoy."

Only the waiter remained in the room with us after everyone else had departed. After Asta had provided us with dinner, you were once again left alone with him. In a state of extreme anxiety, I couldn't help but twitch my fingers. He reached behind him, grabbed a chair, and dragged it back while smiling at me the same time. "Please have a seat."

After we had taken our seats, my mind started to wander to the woman I had encountered earlier in the day. It was impossible for me to contain my interest, and I blurted it out. Who was she exactly?

It was clear that Asta was familiar with the topic. "She was someone who had dated me for a long," he replied while pursing his lips and making an impassive expression.

That means they had a romantic connection in the past. That woman most likely wasn't trying to mislead us in any way. But-

"If you had dated her in the past and broken up with her, then why would she come claiming on our doorsteps that she's still your girlfriend?" "If you had broken up with her in the past, then why would she come claiming that she's still your girlfriend?" It was as if all of a sudden I had transformed into a police officer and was conducting an investigation of a suspect.

Before continuing, Asta exhibited an uncharacteristic pause for a while "To be quite honest, I never did tell her that we had ended our relationship. It was impossible for me to win."

When I heard it, my eyes became so big. So what happened to her was she simply abandoned like that? I cocked my head to the side. It did not seem as if Asta was the kind of person who would date anybody for no apparent reason. He did not give off the impression of being the typical playboy kind of guy. Instead, he gave off the impression of being a callous and merciless someone who might severely punish you if you disobeyed him and did not listen to what he had to say. He swiftly added that before I could even begin to have any reservations about him in my heart.

"It was important to me to begin my search for a mate inside my own pack rather than with an outsider. After that, I used a ball to pick an appropriate companion. Everyone was thrilled, but they were clueless about my objectives with regard to it. After giving each female great consideration, I decided to go with Abby, whom you have now met." When she saw the look on my face, Asta let out a sigh of helplessness and added, "It never occurred to me that this girl was a cunning chameleon who kept a lot of secrets; I had no reason to suspect otherwise. I despise individuals like them."

"What was it that she did?" As he glanced at him, my interest was stirred for some reason. She must have done something wrong for Asta to simply up and rush off to the camp where the mating ritual was taking place.

"We went out for a total of two years. I got the constant impression that this girl wasn't typical, but I convinced myself that it must be a mistake on my part. I investigated her history on many occasions and even had others shadow her throughout the day. Then, however, only two days before the mating ceremony, something took place that caused me to reconsider my position." As he recalled something upsetting, he scrunched up his eyes and became indifferent as his attitude changed. "When I was in her place, I eavesdropped on her conversation with her buddy. I heard every word. She made a statement that sounded something like, "I finally trapped the tiger, and I would soon become a Goddess of this pack, and dominate everyone!" Then she continued on and on about how clever she was to behave precisely like a girl I wanted to marry, and then she added something that was even stranger than that."

In all candor, I had never before heard Asta speak such a great deal following the mating ritual. On the other hand, barely a day had passed since they had met. This individual was completely unknown to me. "Okay, so what was that strange occurrence?" I inquired as to when I had once again seen Asta hesitating in an odd manner.

"She was aware in some way of my plans to organize the ball that we were going to attend. Her dearest buddy had been working as one of the chefs at the event, and she had found out about it by an unfortunate accident." He then went on with a puckering of his lips. "I despise individuals like them who constantly plot against you behind your back. That rubbed me the wrong way, so I completely disregarded her for the next two days until I showed up to the mating ceremony and met you."

And the rest is a part of our past. Nevertheless, I couldn't help but wonder what drew him to her as a prospective partner. After he had made his decision about her, what were his next steps? Consuming just until this point? The reason for this was that throughout their time together, he never did anything else than that one thing. Why didn't he simply plan a mating ceremony for her? It seems like the obvious thing to do. Because as soon as this concept came into my head, I blurted it out, my interest was far more than I had anticipated. "I don't understand why you didn't immediately engage in a mating ritual with her as you did with me." When I got to the final line, I couldn't help but redden.

When he spotted my look, a little smile tugged at the corners of his lips. "It's possible that when I was with her, I couldn't fathom the thought of her preparing meals for me, sleeping next to me, or producing puppies for me. My gut feelings told me it wasn't the ideal moment to engage in the mating ritual with her, and it turned out that my intuition was spot on. She was not the kind of person who should have gotten married."

"Then, what kind of plans do you have?" Why was I acting so strangely? After spending a whole day with this person, did I emerge more brazen than before? I persisted in asking questions of this kind, and much to my astonishment, he answered them honestly. The more I thought about it, the more certain I became that the rumors about him were not accurate.

"We will go out on dates for a week, continue getting to know more about one other, and then within a month I will get you pregnant."

In a lot of different ways, I had seen us being here tonight. When Asta became intoxicated, my initial idea was that he would end up pressing me against the wall and that would be the end of me. After that, I had the impression that we were going to have a fight over something, and that it would finish with me sobbing hopelessly.

But I had no reason to believe that I would wind up getting drunk instead and making so much problems for Asta that he would probably have a headache as a result of our interaction. Everything began when we started talking about what his intentions were for the two of us once we were married.

When I first heard the words that he intended to mate me within a week, I got the impression that my soul had been taken away from me. My pupils were so large that it seemed as if they were about to burst out of their sockets. I hurriedly buried myself before Asta could even see me, and thank goodness he didn't appear to understand what I was trying to convey with my look. I pushed my hair back behind my ears and focused my attention on the surface of the table in front of me.

Within a week of each other! The whole idea made my face go hot and bothered!

I didn't speak to him over the course of the dinner and instead focused on processing what he had said until the waiter brought the wine. And after that, I was completely unable to control my movements; in fact, I nearly fell while trying to retrieve the wine and compose myself so that I could deal with Asta in an appropriate manner.

Who would have known, though, that I would be the source of so much trouble? I turned out to be an entirely different person than I had been!

After what seemed like just a few minutes had passed, I found myself strewn on the sofa and babbling incoherently.

"Why did you have to choose me out of everyone else?! At that time, my life at home was going swimmingly!" After that, I awkwardly stopped, and then I chuckled about the past. "Huh? You're meant to be a cruel person, Asta, aren't you? Then I don't understand why you're treating me with such kindness. Do you realize that I may develop feelings for you?" And I just couldn't stop talking; I had no self-control whatsoever in that regard. "I really miss having access to Kelly! I long for my stuffed animal."

At that that moment, Asta seemed to be massaging his head in an attempt to shake off his excessive fatigue by pressing his fingers into his scalp. Listening to a woman go on and on for an hour on anything and everything is certain to wear a person out. That evening, I spoke incoherently and God knows what I rambled on about. Maybe I had accidentally let everyone in on my little secret! Not that I had anything to hide behind your back with.

"All right, it's time for us to go." After putting the money on the table's surface, he grabbed my arm and continued. I recognized the window of opportunity, so I leaned on him and rubbed my face on the back of his neck.

"What gives you that warm feeling?"

It appeared as if he was undecided on how to approach me. He gripped my arms awkwardly as they were running across his body, and he pulled me gently. "Let's go home. You really shouldn't have had so much alcohol."