Page 38 of Impregnated By the Alpha

“And you think that’s really going to happen, like some kind of fairy tale? He waltzes in, says sorry, buys you the shop of your dreams, and you two live happily ever after?”

Vera snorted a laugh. When she put it like that, Moira’s doubts seemed to double in size. She was just beginning to believe that Jonah had changed, but what if she was being naive? In the end, she could go through all of this just for Jonah to bail on his half of the deal. Her face burned when she thought of his cold laughter, still so vivid in her memory. He could be deceiving her even now.

“I’m not an idiot,” Moira ground out, tamping down on her runaway doubts. “He’s going to buy the bakery. We made a deal, and I’ll hold him to it.”

“Great. Even best-case scenario, you’re tied to this place in this shit hole. It’ll be an anchor around your neck, Moira, dragging you down with it. “ Vera slapped her hand on the counter, punctuating her words.

Hands shaking with anger, Moira poured the dry ingredients into the wet and started to mix, making a new batch of the cookies she’d ruined. “Can’t you just let me have my dream, even if it doesn’t match up with the one you have for me? I’m happy here. Happy doing this. It’s enough for me.”

Her sister’s eyes rolled with disdain. “I just know you’re capable of so much more. I love you, and I want what’s best for you. I want more than this for you.”

Moira sighed, frustrated. They’d had this conversation too many times over the years for her to believe that it was going to go anywhere new. Her sister just couldn’t let go. It was driving a wedge between them that she feared would be too big to patch up someday.

“Can we just not talk about this? I have my opinions, and you have yours. I don’t butt into your life, and I’d appreciate it if you didn’t butt into mine.” Moira matched her sister's glare for glare, unflinching.

“Fine. I’ll keep my mouth shut, but don’t expect me to bail you out when this crashes and burns.” Vera threw her hands in the air.

It was all Moira could ask for. “Thanks. I appreciate that. And I won’t ask for you to rescue me if that happens, I promise. I just want the chance to make this work.”

And she was willing to take a risk with Jonah to make it happen. She was going to meet with Mrs. Alden later that week to make her proposal with Jonah’s check in her pocket, and the thought buoyed her even in her darkest moments.

“But you’re not going to actually fall for him, right?” Vera asked, with a too-knowing look in her eye.

Moira dropped her face to hide it, not trusting herself to hide her feelings. Vera’s words struck too close to the truth. Ever since that night with Jonah, the way he’d held her in his arms until the storm eased, walked her home in the sunrise, she’d felt something take root inside of her. Something that grew each time he stopped by with a mocha just for her or a book he wanted her to read. Something she couldn’t kill.

“No, of course not,” Moira said, pushing the tray of cookies into the oven. “Don’t be ridiculous. It’s just a business deal.”

Maybe it would have been true if she had said it enough times. Vera nodded, tight-lipped, and Moira knew this wasn’t the last she was going to hear about it.

“If you say so,” she said at last.

“Why don’t we talk about your love life for once?” Moira asked, trying to steer the conversation away from her own personal problems.

“Maybe because I don’t have one. I have work, I have the pack, I have you. There’s no time for romance, and I don’t want it anyway. A man would just mean one more thing to be responsible for.” Vera wrinkled her nose.

She’d never been a romantic, though she’d dated off and on throughout the years, calling it off whenever it seemed to be getting serious. Allergic to commitment, they’d joked.

“You might find someone that wants to take care of you, for a change. Someone that could help take a load off your shoulders,” Moira pushed. If her sister got involved with someone it would take her attention off of Moira for a bit, give her some breathing room.

Vera gave her a warning glare. “Don’t even think about it. Don’t try to set me up with anyone, and don’t give anyone my number. I’m not interested.”

There goes that plan. Moira relented, waving her hand. “Fine, fine.”

“I have to go,” Vera said. “Don’t forget, they’re expecting you tonight at the meeting to talk about the vandal. Bring some cookies that don’t taste like I baked them, okay?”

Moira sighed in relief when the door swung shut behind Vera, slumping against the counter. At least tonight, her sister would have something else to focus on. In the month after the incident at the lighthouse, the vandal had ramped up their efforts against the two packs, sowing discord and suspicion between them. She knew without a doubt that it wasn’t Jonah; after all, she’d been with him during the lighthouse incident.

She packed up a box of mixed cookies and set it aside to bring to the meeting, then settled in to work on the wedding cake. Another two orders had come in, one for an elaborate six-tier cake and the other a simpler, two-tier affair. The tasting with the first bride was scheduled for next week and she wanted to have all of her flavors perfect by then.

When the chime above the door rang a few hours later, Moira looked up to find Jonah in the doorway. He’d made it a habit to walk her home. It was sweet, if unnecessary—she hadn’t had any other personal interactions with the vandal since the lighthouse, and whoever they were, they seemed more interested in destroying property than harming people. But she liked his eager smile whenever he set eyes on her, as if she lit up his whole day.

And maybe, just maybe, he lit up hers as well. “Try these,” she said, sliding him a tray of each flavor she’d baked up that day, notepad ready to jot down his comments. “And be brutally honest.”

“Hey Moira, how was your day?” He teased, grabbing the fork. “Mine was good too, thanks for asking.”

She bit her cheek to keep from smiling and tapped her pen against the pad of paper. “Focus. This is serious business. I need these cakes to wow everyone who tastes them.”

He nodded somberly and took his first bite. “Perfect. So fluffy and flavorful.”

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