Page 2 of The Alpha's Bargain
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“Iknewwe shouldn’t have renovated.” My father looked down at the papers on his desk, his hands feathered through his dark hair and his brow arched in worry. “That’s what dragged us downsofar.”
He was right. Our pack owned two bars on the Breed side of town where the shifters resided. Each one gave a different feel to accommodate everyone. Howls was more upscale compared to The Grey Wolf where you’d find peanut shells all over thefloor.
The Grey Wolf had been shut down now for four months for renovations that cost a mint. Alone, Howls could hold its own and then some, but with The Grey Wolf shut down and the amount of money going out to fix the place up, we werefalling.
“How much longer before Grey will be open?” I asked, hoping beyond measure he’d say tomorrow. Hope was a powerfulthing.
“We have about two more months.” He rubbed his hand over his face and sucked in a breath. “Fuck, I don’t want to go to the bank foraloan.”
Breed had their own banks. That wasn’t the problem. The problem lay in other packs deeming you as weak because you needed to take out the money and not have it on point. Nothing was ever kept secret, it seemed, and word would get out that my father couldn’t handle his pack or businesses. It would create a rift and look bad on all of us. It could cause some to possibly challenge my father for his seat as alpha of the pack, which was a fight to thedeath.
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered, feeling the ache in my chest grow tighter. The guilt of not hacking it rode me so brutally it hurt like a physical pain squeezing the life outofme.
My father’s head popped up. “What do you have to be sorry for, Cal? You did everything exactly as it should be done. There are noI’s undottedorT’s left uncrossed here. You’ve done nothingwrong.”
My words came out in a choke, hearing my father, yet still feeling like a disappointment. “I leteveryonedown.”
“Nonsense. It’s just more money going out than coming in. It’s business, and you can’t get all worked up because of it. I’ll figure itout,Cal.”
“What canIdo?”
“Right now, nothing. Give me some time, and I’ll get itworkedout.”
I had no idea how he would do that, considering we were more than a hundred thousand dollars in the hole after moving it from savings, but he’s my pack leader and I put my trustinhim.
My father rose from his chair behind his desk. “Comehere.”
I strode into his arms where he wrapped me in his warmth and kissed the top ofmyhead.
“Next time, you bring this to me right away, Cal, and we’ll figureitout.”
Inodded.
“Loveyou.”
“Loveyou,too.”
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ChapterTwo
The guiltstill clung to me like stale cigarette smoke on clothes after a night at the bar. What my father had said was true, but I couldn’t help feeling like I had failed in more waysthanone.
“You know what you need? A night out! Let’s go to Howls,” my best friend Sage said from next to me as we lay on the bedupsidedown.
Looking up at the ceiling, nothing had changed. The fan still spun around and around, never stopping, just like life. No matter the ups and downs, it was never-ending.
“You do realize that, if I go there, that means I’ll have to work instead of having any funwhatsoever.”
Working as a waitress there wasn’t a dream job by any means, but in our pack, everyone pitched in. While I did the finances, serving up drinks and bar food was also part of it. Not that I minded. Family was family, and we did anything for family. The problem lay in the fact that yes, by working there, I saved the pack money from hiring outside sources, but I wasn’t technically bringing any newmoneyin.
“No, you won’t,” Sage said, rolling over and looking me in the eye, giving me the shut-the-hell-up look. “I’ll make sure you justhavefun.”
“Sage, would you want to go to work on anightoff?”
She shifted, moving the bed with her. “No, but I work at the bank. There’s a huge difference.” While this was true, she wasn’t getting my point. “And you’re down in the dumps. Like, majorly. What’sgoingon?”
