Page 4 of Alpha’s Secret Baby Girl (Nightfall Island Alphas #1)

Randall Buchanan had always performed his duties from his office in his home.

The house, therefore, had to be spotless at all times, and young Rafael and even younger Michael couldn’t do anything that might reflect badly on them.

They were never allowed to exhibit age-appropriate behaviors, whether that was playing too loudly or having sleep-deprived meltdowns.

No, they were both meant to be pillars of society from the moment they were born.

After he became Alpha, the first thing Rafael did was to renovate the old town hall and add a second story to it, where he could have an office space away from his living space.

While in college, he came to realize that having clear boundaries in life allowed him to perform his duties more efficiently and to greater benefit.

Today, he, Michael, and Joshua Woods, Rafael’s best friend, were in his town hall offices.

Rafael had been in the city attending to various business investments, but he had returned to the island late last night.

His muscles were tense and sore from a lack of sleep, but he kept his dark hair combed neatly, and there was nary a wrinkle to be found in his suit.

He could have stayed in the city overnight, but he always hated it there.

The island, with its soothing stillness, was much preferable.

“Dr. Vera Green got back to my email,” Joshua was saying as he drummed his fingers on the large oak table. “She wants to meet with us to discuss the initiative more. She thinks it has promise, but wants more information about our plans.”

Joshua’s golden eyes flashed with something, no doubt thinking about how pretty Dr. Green was.

His mouth was set into the same line that it always was, but it was softer than his usual scowl.

His blonde hair was slicked back today. He slouched in his chair, but it did nothing to hide his height.

His t-shirt and jeans clung to his muscular frame.

Rafael nodded. “Michael, can you adjust the presentation that you showed Colonel Byrd to be more tailored for Dr. Green by the weekend?”

“Sure thing.” Michael’s long, dark brown hair was tied at the nape of his neck.

He wore glasses, the sort that had made women at college call him ‘Clark Kent’ and sigh dreamily when he smiled at them.

He wore a suit as well, though his wasn’t a holdover from business meetings.

He just liked to wear suits as his casual dress.

“Let’s fly her out to the island this weekend, then,” Rafael said. “If we can get her on board, then we’ll finally start to move forward.”

It had been a dream of theirs ever since they were kids to create a shifter special ops, dedicated to protecting shifters regardless of what packs they came from.

Now that they had a multi-billion-dollar business, it was only natural to take some of that profit and start creating those operations.

They had already started the recruitment phase.

Ex-military shifters, trackers, and scientists who were experts in their various fields to ensure the safety of their community.

It wasn’t just for their personal pack, but for other packs as well. The special ops would protect shifters from threats, even if that threat were within the pack. There were plenty of evil Alphas out there that traded off their own members for profit.

“Have we gotten back the legal briefs from our lawyers?” Rafael asked Michael. There were a number of considerations to be made with this venture. They didn’t want to open themselves up to lawsuits, so they needed to ensure they had a thorough understanding of the legal ramifications.

Michael shook his head. “Not yet. I’ll get on their asses today.”

“Good.”

Joshua pushed back his chair on two legs. “Anything we need to know from the city?”

Rafael shook his head. “Business was concluded, and I sent an email summing up everything. There shouldn’t be anything that we need to follow up on that front for a while.”

“Ah, good. Because you look like shit,” Joshua said. He thumped his chair back to the floor. “You’re never going to give this pack an heir when you look like that. Seriously. All the women are going to run away, weeping.”

“Fuck off,” Rafael grunted, rolling his eyes. He wasn’t looking to make an heir just yet. He still had plenty of time, and besides, even if he died childless, there was still Michael.

He didn’t think about how he was still young and wasn’t going to die anytime soon.

His father had been young as well. You never knew what was going to happen.

His mind wandered. Joshua, Michael, and he had always been close.

While some brothers couldn’t stand each other, he and Michael were similar enough to understand each other, yet different enough to get along.

Given their close ages—there was barely nine months between them—they had been at very similar stages throughout their entire lives.

They had even gone to college together, thanks to Michael graduating high school a year early.

While in college, they had finally been able to breathe freely for the first time.

Finally, they had been able to work effectively toward their goals.

It had started as a small business, but through tireless hours, they had grown it.

The tech company startup had blossomed, and now it was worth several billion dollars.

It took a lot of work to keep going, that was true. The market was always shifting, and it took all three of them to adjust to the changing tides. But it was worth it; now that they had the funds, they could actually work toward their social-interest goals.

None of them had wanted the extravagant lifestyle that others in their position might have gone for.

No private jets, no garage full of sports cars.

The company itself was worth billions, but Rafael, Michael, and Joshua all capped their personal income.

The surplus was reinvested in the company to support the workers who owed their success to it, or to support charitable causes.

There was a reason all three of them had chosen to return to the island as soon as they had the opportunity.

There was still a lot of work to be done here.

Rafael couldn’t imagine having multiple homes when people in his pack were living in trailers.

As soon as he became the Alpha, he started an extensive town restructuring process.

It was proving to be much more expensive than he’d originally projected, but it was working.

Crime rates had been cut in half, there was very little unemployment, and the overall health of the pack had improved greatly.

Not to mention that their relationship with other packs on the island had also improved.

Overall, Rafael’s plans had been a success. Things had turned around greatly.

It still made his stomach knot when he thought of how things were. Randall’s reign as Alpha had gotten even more toxic after Rafael and Michael went to college. Maybe if he had come back more, he would have been able to curb some of it…

He shook his head sharply. Dwelling on the past never amounted to anything good. He did what he could, and regretting his actions couldn’t change them.

“Was there anything else?” he asked gruffly.

Michael and Joshua both shook their heads.

“Good. I’m going to go home and sleep.” He stood, stretching out his back. His wolf was restless, wanting to run after so many hours sitting still. But gods, he was tired.

They all left the offices then. As Rafael stepped into the cool, clear air, Joshua and Michael went their own way.

He loosened his tie and rolled his shoulders as he turned down the street.

While his father used to drive everywhere, even if it was just a few blocks, Rafael preferred to walk. It kept him humble.

People nodded in polite recognition as he passed, and he nodded back.

And then he saw her. Wavy blonde hair, figure fuller than when he’d last seen her.

But her profile was unmistakable. His breath caught in his lungs as Gwen Parker laughed.

Her hair gleamed gold in the sunlight, and even though she was across the street, he could almost smell her scent.

It had been seven years since he last saw her.

The sting of rejection had morphed over time.

Anger on one side, for not giving him the chance to explain, for taking him at face value when she knew what his father was like.

But on the other hand, a deep well of shame had opened up in him.

He had been her protector, or at least he should have been.

He’d seen the way she was treated, and he thought that the stolen moments they had together were enough.

He couldn’t blame her for running off. For letting her insecurities get the best of her. He publicly rejected her, and that had to have been painful, especially after all the promises he’d made her.

Now, he couldn’t bring himself to cross the street. She didn’t want to see him. If she did, she could have sent a message. How many times had he gone to Kira, begging her to give him Gwen’s number? Kira had always refused.

“She knows your number, Rafael,” Kira had finally told him, sharp and nervous but clearly at her wits’ end. “If she wanted to talk to you, she would reach out. Face it. What you did was cruel, and she is under no obligation to hear your side of the story.”

It was that truth that had made him stop.

He had instead turned to changing himself.

He didn’t want to be the sort of man who casually flung her aside in the face of the pack, even if he had thought it was for her protection at the time.

No, he had to grow up. So he had. He’d stopped hiding in his father’s shadow.

Stopped letting Randall bully him. When his father yelled, he yelled back.

And this startup he’d made, the improvements he’d done to the town, it wasn’t entirely selfless.

He wanted to prove to Gwen, if she ever came back, that he had changed. That he was better.

“It’s beautiful,” Gwen said as she admired the line of statues he’d installed along that side of the road. They were all locally made, and he’d chosen the artists from all walks of life to give them a leg up in their goals.

Hearing her voice made a primal feeling roar through him. His lungs caught, and his wolf growled. He had to fight himself not to march across the street and pull her into his arms. She wouldn’t like it, but the word rang in his mind. Mate. She was his true mate, and he needed her.

“This one is my favorite,” the woman with Gwen gushed. It took Rafael a moment to realize it was Kira. Not because she was unrecognizable, but because his attention was so focused on Gwen.

They moved around one of the statues to face his side of the street.

And Rafael, reverting to the shy kid who had kept his crush secret for years before admitting his feelings for Gwen, actually hid.

He dodged into a nearby store and peered through the glass, obstructed by the large, golden letters that were decaled on the wall.

“Alpha,” the clerk behind the desk chirped brightly. “Can I help you?”

Rafael turned. He had come into a bookstore, one he frequented often. Forcing a smile onto his face, he collected a few books from the window display. “Do you have any of these elsewhere?”

The clerk’s eyes widened at his selections, but he nodded. “In the back. I’ll get them for you.”

As the clerk scurried off, Rafael turned back to watch Gwen and Kira. The wind picked up, blowing a curl into Gwen’s eyes. She pulled it away with the same impatience he knew too well. A small smile played about his lips.

The wealth he had accumulated wasn’t just for the good of the pack.

While he dedicated plenty of it to worthy causes, he wasn’t reckless.

It provided him with resources and freedom for himself as well.

If it ever came to it, he could make a life anywhere he wanted.

But money wasn’t everything. It bought him security, but it couldn’t make him happy.

“It’s beautiful,” Gwen’s voice came, clear despite the distance between them. “This place has changed so much.”

Kira nodded. “We are doing very well. All those old tenement buildings were torn down and replaced by new apartments. The Alpha has done a lot of good work here.”

Rafael noted that she didn’t use his name.

Even the word ‘Alpha’ was spoken with a slight hesitation, a caution, like she wasn’t sure how Gwen would take the praise.

He found himself holding his breath, as silly as it was.

He wanted her to be proud of him. He wanted her to see the work he’d done and for her to realize this place wasn’t the same town as the one she had fled from.

“He really has,” Gwen murmured. She put her arms around herself and turned to Kira. “And… you said that he hasn’t taken a mate?”

Was that a note of hope in her voice?

The clerk cleared his throat behind Rafael.

He turned, fighting back the urge to snap.

The clerk held out a bag of books, and Rafael took it.

He paid with a handful of bills, probably too much, but didn’t wait for his change.

Instead, as Gwen and Kira were heading down Main Street, he stepped from the store.

Maybe Gwen didn’t want anything to do with him. But she was here. He was Alpha.

He jogged across the street, his gaze locked on her. He wasn’t going to let her leave without talking to him. Not again.