Page 22 of Alpha's Secret Baby Girl
Chapter 9 - Gwen
The next morning, Rafael gave Gwen a new cellphone since she didn’t want to give him her number. It was a pointless rebellion, she knew, since her life was completely changed regardless of whether or not he knew her cellphone number. The new one was a top-of-the-line, brand-new release from his company.
“I don’t actually need this,” she told him, stuttering when she realized what she was holding in her hand.
“It’s not for you, then. It’s for me, so I can get in touch with you whenever I need you. And this has a great camera on it, so I expect you to send me all the pictures you take of Lianne,” he added, glaring at the floor.
Gwen’s heart twinged. Was that a subtle crack at her? Or was he being gruff for a different reason? Either way, she hesitantly laid her hand on his arm. She’d come into this arrangement telling herself she wasn’t going to accept anything from him, but in truth, it wasn’t a line she cared about holding. Remembering how things used to be, he never used gifts as a means to manipulate her. She wanted to believe that he hadn’t started any nasty habits now.
“Did you have any plans with Kira and Chelsey?” he asked, still gruff.
Gwen hesitated before she sighed and shook her head. “No. They both had to work today. I was thinking that I would start putting away my boxes.”
All of her and Lianne’s belongings had shown up in the house the previous day. They were piled neatly in the living room, and Rafael told her to ask anyone for help if she wanted it. There was an unsettling feeling about having her life transportedhere without her. She hoped that he’d sent women to pack her clothes, but even then she didn’t like the idea of a stranger pawing through her underwear.
After learning about the demons, though, she had to admit that Rafael was right about one thing. It was safer for Lianne with him around. She just wished he hadn’t been such an asshole about it.
“Good.” Rafael lifted his head and grinned. The change was remarkable. Brooding, he was handsome. Smiling, he was devastating. “Then we’re going to have a picnic.”
Her stomach swooped. Desperately, she tried to hold onto the distrust. He was keeping her against her will! And yet with his dark eyes sparkling at her like that, she suddenly found it very, very difficult to care. He was trying to do the right thing. He hadn’t insisted on anything else, and he really was doing right by the pack.
“It was going to be for me and Lianne, but…” Rafael ducked his head, his smile still in place but softer now. “I want you to come with us. I was going to take her to the pond, and I remember how you used to love it.”
She did. The problem was, you couldn’t just drive to it. “That’s too far for Lianne to walk.”
“I have a child harness for my wolf form.”
Which meant… “I haven’t shifted in years.” The admission was bitter on her tongue, like she was telling him she had forgotten how to ride a bike. Honestly, it would be less embarrassing if that were the case.
“I’ll go slow,” he promised. His dark eyes lingered on hers, full of gentle promise. He waited, patient, for her reply.
A soft feeling stirred in her chest. It had been a long time since she had last felt her wolf. She wasn’t sure it was a good idea, or if she could even still shift. It had always been difficult. And yet, she found herself wanting to try. Maybe it was being back on the island. Perhaps it was because this was an olive branch, and she didn’t want to throw it back in Rafael’s face.
“Okay,” she agreed hesitantly. “Let’s go.”
***
Lianne clapped her hands and squealed when Rafael changed into a wolf. Gwen had made him do it in the back yard and come back around to get the child harness put on his back. He was a large, brown wolf with sharp teeth and a white streak across his muzzle.
“You’re beautiful!” Lianne cooed.
Gwen strapped on the child harness and then helped Lianne into it. They trotted around the yard a few times for Lianne to learn how to balance herself, then Gwen crept around back. She stripped and, taking a deep breath, reached inward for her wolf. She felt it stirring, but it stayed stubbornly away. Frustration started to swell through her, but Gwen took another deep breath to calm herself. She coaxed it, sending images of running through the forest.
Her wolf emerged slowly, painfully. Fur sprouted along her skin, and sharp bursts of pain ratcheted through her joints as they snapped and reformed. Finally, she was fully in her wolf form and trotted back to the front yard. In this form, she was less than half the size of Rafael. While his coat was thick, with strong muscles beneath, her wolf form was thin, with coarse, tufted fur.
Nobody knew why the witch-descendants had such small, unkempt wolves. The leading theory was that their magic wasincompatible with being a shifter. For many generations, they were born either with magic or a wolf, not both.
“Oh, Mommy!” Lianne clapped her hands, nearly unbalancing herself. “You’re so pretty!”
Gwen wagged her tail hesitantly. Rafael’s longue lolled out in a wolfish grin as he nodded toward the road. She nodded in response, and they headed out together. The trail up the pond was just at the end of the street. It felt strange—but good—to stretch these muscles again. Rafael set a mindful pace, and soon Lianne started singing as they moved down the beach and into the forest.
They ended up needing to take a few breaks, which embarrassed Gwen. Rafael was carrying Lianne as well as the food, but he was able to keep going. But they made it to the pond, and Gwen hid in the bushes to shift back to human form, which was easier than moving to wolf form. Once she was dressed, she went back to help Liane down and took off the harness for Rafael.
The picnic was delightful. The long trek had made her hungry, and Lianne was excited to explore everything. Rafael made her laugh several times during lunch, and when she went to catch ‘tap-olds’ in a plastic jar, Rafael leaned back and stretched his arms over his head.
“I forgot how good you look after a hike,” he said.
“What do you mean by that?” Gwen blurted. The words came out like an accusation, but really, she was just startled.
