Page 17 of A Secret Baby By the Alpha

Sienna waved goodbye, and I headed out the back of the pack house, where I was greeted by a flurry of activity. Some pack members carried lumber and tools, while others were hard at work. The young wolf I had run into a few days ago was there. He waved as he rushed over to greet me.

“Hey! It’s you,” Harry greeted.

“Sure is. What are you guys doing?” I asked.

“Building an extension. We’ve been growing in numbers, and Alpha Colson wanted to make sure our pack house could still hold everyone when we all get together. Are you here to help?”

“Just tell me what to do,” I offered.

Harry set me to work with a group of wolves who were nailing together supports that would later be inserted into the walls of the houses. It wasn’t difficult work, but it felt good to be doing something besides being cooped up in Colson’s house. I felt myself begin to relax, but that feeling dissipated when Colson himself arrived. His mood was tense, and my first thought was that something had happened to Jenny.

“What happened? What is it?” I demanded.

“You need to come with me,” he told me in a low tone.

“Not until you tell me what’s going on,” I demanded.

I crossed my arms, but he ignored my protest. Colson grabbed my elbow and forcibly pulled me through the pack house.

“Hey! Cut it out!” I protested.

Members of the pack were looking at us, but no one stepped in.

Did you expect them to?Cassia asked.

I guess not,I conceded.

Colson continued to drag me until we reached his home, where he flung me through the front door.

“What the fuck, Colson?” I shouted. “Do you honestly think you’re acting like a respectable person right now? Like analpha?”

“I’m done, Christa,” he said, his chest heaving with emotion. “I don’t care what you think of me right now. I’m done with your lies and deceit.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but the way you are treating me is awful. I’m not going to stand for it.”

“Jenny,” he began.

“Jenny?” I asked, my tone changing from anger to worry in an instant. “Did something happen to her? I told her to stay in the house. Is she here? Jenny!”

I started to walk toward our bedroom, but Colson followed hot on my heels.

“She’s fine, Christa. I sent her to play with some of the pack kids down at the school,” he said.

“Why would you do that?” I demanded, whirling toward him. “I’m her mother, and I told her to stay in the house. I don’t trust your pack, and I don’t want her out there without me.”

Colson cornered me against the doorframe of the bedroom, towering over me as he leaned one arm over my head. I gave a sharp intake of breath at how close he was. Despite living in the same house for days, we hadn’t been eye to eye like this before.

“I sent her to play with the other children when I found her in the forest alone,” he explained. “You’re lucky it was me who found her, not one of the other Dark Alphas. Did you really think telling her to stay in the house would work?”

I swallowed, choking down my emotions as I stared into his deep brown eyes. “What was she doing in the forest?”

“She said she felt more in touch with herself when she was in nature,” Colson said, leaning even closer to me. “She also mentioned how upset she is that she hasn’t gotten her wolf yet, considering that her father is a powerful werewolf. Odd, don’t you think? I distinctly remember you telling me that her father was a human.”

My heart skipped a beat, realizing I hadn’t explained to Jenny that she should keep information about her father a secret. Not that she had much, but I had made a mistake in not bringing her in on my lie.

“She must have been mistaken,” I offered.

“Cut the shit, Chris,” Colson commanded. “Just admit it: I’m Jenny’s father.”

---