Page 3 of Cruel Alpha Daddy

Tobias.

A growl slips out from between my lips, and I swallow it quickly. Tobias is one of the most evil creatures I have ever encountered, and I’ve known some monsters. I expected him to challenge me for leadership right after the battle with Bailey’s pack, but he didn’t.

I know that fight is inevitable, though. All I want is to make sure the innocents are protected before it happens.

If I die, if they kill me and the other good men here—what will they do to the women and children?

I shake my head, forcing my thoughts away from the bloody, painful images that flash through my mind. I pick up my pace a bit, intending to get all my loyal brothers together so we can talk about the situation, maybe even prepare for whatever trouble Tobias is going to bring back with him this time.

As I come through the thick trees, the wind flutters the leaves above me and seems to speak. Closing my eyes, I stop and tune all my senses to the forest.

It’s almost as if I’ve caught a familiar scent. One I can’t consciously remember, but something inside me knows it. I draw a few hard breaths, holding them in to examine the crisp, early morning air, but all I can smell is an array of scents from the forest itself.

When I open my eyes, I see the camp ahead of me, drenched in sunlight. Lilah is walking along in front of the tents, carrying baby Todd as she walks with Donny, her mate. The family scene touches me to the core, and the emotions that rise in me threaten to break down a huge barrier of memories from my past.

I have no mate.

I thought I did, once. A long time ago, before I joined Sawpit Pack. I was just a drifter, wandering from town to town, barely surviving. She showed me kindness and cared for me, and for a while, I believed in the power of love to heal all wounds.

But she betrayed me. Just like everyone always does.

It was a loss that drove me into Sawpit Pack, which turned me into a violent, bloody monster. For a short while, I thought Kyle was my chance at redemption, but he left me, too.

My only solace now is to protect my pack. To make sure none of them ever have to feel lost, abandoned, or betrayed.

I raise my nose to the wind again, looking for the scent that triggered me before. It was just a hint on the wind, a whisper of vanilla and honey.

It was probably just some wild jasmine, combined with my overactive imagination.

I hurry into the camp, calling out to the others to meet me at the main bonfire. I’m barely halfway into the camp when Ihear high-pitched screams of laughter and wild barking from the north end of the forest.

Tobias.

My heart falls as I head towards the tree line to greet them. My more loyal pack members begin to gather around me, all of us sharing looks of worry.

What have they done now?

The breeze drifts by my face, and for the briefest moment, I can smell sweet vanilla right under my nose. I open my mouth a little, letting it fall against my tongue.

Don’t think about this now!

But how can I not? Even when I am trying desperately not to think about her, she is right there behind all my conscious thoughts, living under my skin.

Fiona.

Chapter 2 - Fiona

Going for an early morning run is not something I regularly do. I much prefer to be in at the bakery by 5 am at the latest, firing up the ovens, setting dough for bread, and getting started making biscuits and cakes to feed the hungry Silver Meadows Pack.

But for some reason, today is different. I’m uneasy and restless when I wake in the pitch dark. I can’t settle my mind to focus on my usual routine. Even though I make some coffee and go over the orders for the day, my usual passion and creativity are impossible to summon.

I leave a note for my roommate, Lucy, and check in on my son, Caleb, before I go out. He’s in a deep sleep, muttering away in his dreams. I give him a light kiss on the forehead before I tip-toe through the house and slip out the back door.

We live near the center of town, so I can’t just shift out in the open. I jog down the street towards the nearest camping area, keeping a casual pace. Most of the pack prefer the outskirts so they are close to the woods, but I like being within walking distance of the school and my shop.

Even though I am close with Carla, our luna’s mother, I don’t have much to do with pack business. Things have been pretty scary the last couple of years, and I’m more than happy to keep my son and me out of it. I crave a simple life, and my only desire is to provide Caleb with a safe environment to grow up in.

As I get close to the outer edges of town, I pick up my pace. The forest seems to reach out to me with long, dark fingers as shadows stretch towards me, pushed by the rising sun. The sky is slowly tinting from black to gray, and any minute now, it will explode into spectacular pink and orange.

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