Page 11 of Alpha's Secret Baby Girl
“It’s… stop shouting,” she groaned. “Vision.”
She closed her eyes, hunching in on herself. Her shoulders shook, and she held that position for some time before slowly starting to relax. Rafael rubbed her back soothingly. He started to stand to get her water, but she clung to his sleeve. After several moments, she sagged back against the couch. Her eyes opened, but she looked drained and exhausted. She lifted her head. When she saw his hand still on her waist, she pushed it off.
“What was it?” Rafael demanded, trying not to be hurt.
“Same vision. Stronger.” She shuddered. “I have to leave. The vision is here. Lianne is in danger here.”
“Or she’s just in danger. What happens if you’re back out there, alone, and something happens?” he cupped her face in one hand and tilted her chin up, making her look at him. “You’re staying here. Nobody is going to hurt her as long as I’m around.”
Gwen bit her lip, searching his face. “I understand what you’re saying. But what if the danger is the island itself? What if by keeping us here, you’re the one putting her in danger?”
“I won’t let anything happen to her.”
Gwen slumped back. She pulled her fingers through her wavy hair, her skin greyish from her exhaustion. Her lips pressed together as she thought it through. Finally, she nodded once. “Fine. You’re probably right, it’s safer here in the pack than it is isolated on the mainland. I’ll have to let Kelly know I won’t need her for babysitting…”
“That settles it, then.” Rafael stood, nodding his satisfaction.
“No.” Gwen straightened. Her eyes cut back to Rafael, and she shook her head. “No, that’s not settled. I’ll stay on the island and I’ll even live in your house. It will be safer for Lianne here than if I were to live with Kira and Chelsey. But I’m not going to marry you.”
Rafael’s jaw tightened. Didn’t she remember what it was like here for unwed mothers? Didn’t she know what people would say about her and Lianne if they found out she’d had his baby outside of marriage? Their town wasn’t kind to anyone who stepped out of line. Marriage was one of those lines.
“You act as though marriage is a death threat,” he said slowly. “But you do realize that by marrying me, you automatically become entitled to half of my shares of the company?”
“I don’t want half of your shares of the company. Besides, if it came to a divorce, how could I possibly fight you in court? I wouldn’t get anything.” She folded her arms, glaring.
Rafael frowned. “We could draw up a prenup if you’re worried about me being fair.”
“It’s not fair to force me into marriage,” she shot back without hesitation. “If you’re making me marry you, why would I think divorce would ever be a possibility? And once I’m your wife, that’s it. I don’t get anything for myself. You’llownme.”
He wanted to make up for the mistakes of his past. Couldn’t she see that? He hated her accusation, as though he was trying to punish her with marriage. “That’s not fair. Especially since it’s been you who kept me from my daughter for the past seven years.”
Gwen shot to her feet. Her hand lifted, and for a second, he thought she was going to hit him. But she was only gripping her own hair. “My daughter. Lianne is my daughter, Rafael. You have no right to her. Go find someone else to play with if you’rebored.”
The reminder of his words from so long ago was a sucker punch. He winced, gasping slightly. His mouth opened to explain, to apologize, but he snapped it back down. She had chosen those words because she knew they would hurt him. It was to remind him of his past sins without any consideration as to why he had done what he did.
Fine. If she didn’t want to hear his reasons, then she didn’t have to. If she wanted to assume the worst of him, let her. He wasn’t going to fight this anymore.
“This isn’t up for discussion,” he told her coldly. “We are going to be married and that’s all there is to it. I’m not going to have my daughter called a bastard.”
It was Gwen’s turn to wince. “Rafael—”
“I will draw up a prenup. You get to keep everything you came into the marriage with, and I will provide for you in the case of a divorce, provided we’ve been married for at least a year.” His voice was cold as he spoke.
Gwen wrapped her arms around herself. “I don’t need you to provide for me. I’ve been taking care of myself just fine.”
“Like it or not, you’re part of the pack,” he said, getting fed up with her resistance. “You are staying here, and you are marrying me. I’m going to take care of you and Lianne, regardless of your feelings on the matter. I have said my piece, and you are not going to keep fighting me over this. Like I said, I will not have my daughter called a bastard. My child will not be looked down on because you hid her, and she will not be raised in poverty.”
“And you think that forcing me to marry you is the solution? You think that… that abducting me makes you a good man?” She lifted her chin, her jaw clenched. “You know what I think? I think maybe you’re the danger I saw in my visions. Maybe you’re the one putting Lianne in danger in the first place.”
If he weren’t already so angry, maybe he would have listened to what she was saying. But what right did she have to talk to him like that when she had kept something like this from him? She was acting like he was some sort of monster for wanting to ensure she and his daughter were taken care of and safe? It wasn’t just the money that was an issue. Social protections were just as important.
“I’m sorry you feel that way,” he told her coldly, not sorry at all. “But this is what is happening.”
Gwen’s lips pressed together. “And what exactly do you expect from me in this marriage?”
The question caught him off guard. What was she talking about? He stared at her for a long moment before he realized. There were certain expectations when it came to an Alpha. He had a daughter, but the packs generally went from father toson. His own father had insisted on having two children by his mother, despite the pregnancies being hard on her. If he orMichael had been girls, Randall would have probably insisted that Isabel go through even more pregnancies until he had two sons. The heir and the spare.
“I expect that you won’t shit talk me,” he said, because it wasn’t true; he had no expectations at all. “I want you to acknowledge me as your husband and Alpha. I want you to let Lianne know I am her biological father when the time is right.”
