Page 39 of Bully Alpha's Secret Baby

“Mama, look! Damien got me a new toy wolf!” Penny’s voice is bright, and her face practically glows as she holds up the small plush wolf, showing it off like it’s the greatest treasure on earth.

I glance at her, and there’s that familiar tug in my chest of equal parts joy and anxiety. Joy because Penny looks so happy with her little face lit up with pure excitement, and anxietybecause Damien’s standing right there, watching the whole thing unfold with a proud smile that chips at my nerves in the worst way.

“Isn’t it cool, Mama? Damien said it’s just like the wolves we see in the forest!”

My eyes dart to Damien, who’s leaning casually against the front desk with his gaze locked on Penny like she’s the center of his universe. “She wouldn’t let me leave the store without it,” he says with a shrug.

“That’s nice,” I comment, trying to keep my tone neutral. “But remember, we don’t need to spoil her, Damien.”

He chuckles and argues, “It’s just a stuffed animal, Jade. Hardly spoiling.”

Penny, completely oblivious to the tension between us, cuddles her new toy close. “I’m going to name him Shadow!” she declares before darting off to play in the small corner of the reception area I’ve managed to make her “camp.”

Damien watches her go, and his eyes soften in a way I don’t expect. It’s… disarming, seeing him like this. Like a real dad. Like someone who genuinely cares. The Damien I remember would never have been so attentive, so thoughtful. But now? He’s different.

And that’s the problem.

He’s making it hard—really hard—to stick to my original plan of keeping him at arm’s length. I came back here with my walls firmly in place, determined to keep Penny safe from his influence. I still remember the Damien who hurt me, the one who made me feel small, like I didn’t matter. But now… he’s making it impossible to reconcile that memory with the man standing in front of me.

“Look, Jade,” his voice snaps me out of my thoughts. “I know we have… history, but I’m trying to be better. For Penny.”

“Better? That’s a pretty low bar, considering where you started.” I know, I know. But I can’t help myself.

He winces but doesn’t argue. “Yeah, I was a jerk back then. I know that. But things have changed. I’ve changed.”

“Maybe, but I’m not ready to just forget everything that happened.”

“I’m not asking you to forget,” he replies. “I just want a chance to prove I’m not that guy anymore.”

I don’t answer right away. Part of me wants to believe him—God, it would be so easy to just believe that he’s changed for the better. But the other part of me, the part that still remembers the hurt, the betrayal, isn’t so quick to let go.

“You say that now,” I finally say, “but how do I know it’ll stick? How do I know you won’t just go back to being the same Damien once things get hard?”

“Because I have more to lose now.”

The weight of the truth in that statement is crushing, and I can feel my defenses cracking just a little. He’s right. He does have more to lose—Penny. And maybe that’s enough to keep him on the straight and narrow. But it still doesn’t erase everything that happened before.

Before I can respond, Penny skips back over, clutching her new wolf toy in her small hands. “Damien, are you staying for lunch?”

Damien kneels down to her level. “Not today, sweetheart. I have to head up to my office.”

Penny pouts, her big eyes widening in that way only a two-year-old can pull off. “But I wanted to show you how I make Shadow do flips!”

He chuckles, ruffling her hair. “Next time, I promise.”

As he stands, I see the flash of disappointment on Penny’s face, but she quickly hides it and turns back to her toy. Damien’s not perfect—far from it—but damn if he isn’t trying. And that’s what makes this so hard.

I watch him stand, and his eyes linger on Penny for a moment longer before he turns back to me. “If you need anything, just let me know,” he says. His voice is low, like it’s meant just for me.

I don’t know what to say to that, so I just nod, feeling a strange mix of emotions swirling in my chest. Anger, confusion, maybe even… hope?

No, I push that thought away quickly. I can’t let myself go there. Not yet. Maybe not ever.

Damien doesn’t say anything else as he heads toward the elevator. I watch him go, and my heart is doing that stupid thing where it flutters for no reason. Damn him.

As the elevator doors close behind him, I let out a long breath I didn’t realize I was holding. My eyes drift to Penny, who’s now completely absorbed in making her new toy “fight” the other stuffed animals she’s collected over the past few months. She’s so innocent, so blissfully unaware of the complications in the world around her.

And that’s the thing, isn’t it? Penny deserves a father who’s present, who cares. And maybe Damien is trying to be that man now. But it’s hard to forget the Damien who hurt me.The Damien who made me feel like I was nothing more than a conquest.

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