Daddy Plus One: A Single Dad Secret Baby Billionaire Romance

by Brooke Valentine

  I was going to have to change and face him like two warriors on the battlefield looking for supremacy.

  Chapter seventeen - Roseanne

  I couldn’t believe they were having a conversation, and I was only able to hear half of it. The bear was menacing, and I recoiled in fear behind my protector. Tom was going to fight for the right to be with me.

  He was facing an insurmountable task with me as the prize when he was finished. He would be licking his wounds, and I would be there to nurse him back to health.

  “We don’t have to do this. My opinion of you wouldn’t change if we ran and never looked back. I know you are a proud man, but don’t let it stand in your way. Think sensibly with a clear head.” I was trying to get through to him, but he wasn’t listening.

  He changed into what I had seen when he faced Jason. They were remarkably similar except for one telltale difference. The Alpha was bigger in size.

  They were circling each other trying to find an opening to capitalize on. I wasn’t sure if he was strong enough to face his nemesis. I had to give Tom an encouraging word and the proper incentive to give him an edge over the competition.

  “You are strong and capable of some amazing things. I know you can do this, even if you have your doubts. Don’t let him get in your head. Treat him like any other enemy.” I could only use my words as a sharpened weapon to fight on his behalf.

  The Alpha was waiting for Tom to make the first move. He wasn’t taking the bait. I had to believe he was listening to me, even if the bear was the one in control. Deep down he heard me and knew I was the voice of reason against his animalistic tendencies.

  “You know what to do. Do I really have to remind you of what happens when he finishes with you? He won’t go easy on me. There is no remorse in his eyes.”

  The beastly form of Tom turned and showed me the fierceness of his determination by growling. His teeth were honed into razor sharpness and it didn’t take much imagination to see how his enemies would be left cowering in his wake. I could vividly recall what he had done to Jason, leaving him to run away like a scolded dog.

  The Alpha was getting overanxious and I could see he could barely sit still. He wasn’t going to be happy to allow his enemy to come to him. He finally had enough. He leaped into action.

  It was easy to see Tom was ready for him. He lifted himself up on two legs and swatted with one beefy looking paw. It was enough to send the Alpha crashing into a cabinet in the corner of the room and rendering it into splinters.

  “Don’t back off. It might sound strange coming from me, but mercy is for the weak.” I was the voice in any boxing movie where the manager would scream for his fighter to come out swinging.

  The Alpha roared and attacked with a speed that didn’t seem possible for somebody of his weight. They went through what was left of the bedroom door and crashed into the railing. Their immense bodies went sailing and plummeted quickly to the floor below.

  I was terrified and cautiously took a few steps until I was standing where they had gone through the railing. My right hand was shaking against my mouth. I wanted to scream but nothing emerged.

  The Alpha was the first one to shake off the impact. Tom was having a problem finding his balance. There was a gash over his eye. A piece of the glass coffee table had attempted to blind him. It wasn’t the injury but more the flow of blood constantly being wiped away that made it hard for him to see.

  The Alpha jumped on top of Tom, and they were swiping their claws hoping to find something to adhere to. They rolled around and there were moments I wasn’t sure which one was which.

  “Use your feet.” I knew he heard me when he propelled the Alpha by bringing his knees up underneath him.

  The Alpha landed awkwardly but was back on his feet like nothing happened. If this was him in a weakened state then I didn’t want to see him at full power. Tom wouldn’t have a chance, but I had to doff my hat to him for being two steps ahead. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to make it a fair fight.

  “Spin with your claws outstretched.” Tom had his back to the Alpha.

  He spun in time to slash across the Alpha’s face. The sickening howl of pain was followed by a bellow of contempt. The Alpha was losing his patience and making mistakes was inevitable. I was another set of eyes in the back of Tom’s head.

  “Don’t let up when you have him on the ropes.” In a mad panic, the Alpha barreled into Tom and they went careening through the island in the kitchen. Their whole bodies slammed into the stainless steel stove.

  I could hear something hissing and realized they had somehow broken the pipe to the propane tank. Tom’s beastly form started to hobble away, but then he stopped. The Alpha was stuck and struggling to remove himself from the twisted wreckage of the stove.

  Tom’s bear body morphed and I could hear his bones breaking, realigning with his human half.

  “Roseanne, I’m grateful for the assistance, but it’s time for you to leave. I’m going to end this and I don’t want you to be here. I don’t know if I’m going to survive, but you will and that is all that matters to me.” I ran downstairs and was about to put my arms around him in a comforting gesture, but he waved me away dismissively.

  There was a pack of matches lying in the shards of glass from the coffee table. He reached down and plucked them from the carnage. The penthouse was going to be turned into a fireball that nobody could survive.

  There was a flicker of recognition in the Alpha’s eyes. He stopped fighting against the inevitable and I thought I saw a smile. The fire would burn at a temperature that would singe the very flesh off of their bones.

  The explosion would blow out the windows alerting first responders to come to the scene as quickly as possible. I could only hope the fire alarm would douse the flames before it had the chance to spread to the rest of the building.

  “I know this is something you have to do. It’s a shame what we had together isn’t going to survive. Be sure this is what you really want to do.” I put my hand on his bare shoulder. I had to choke back the tears threatening to flow freely down my cheeks.

  “This is the only way. I have to do this not only for me but for the other shifters who have suffered at his hand. He can’t be allowed to live to do this to somebody else.” He had extracted one lone match and was prepared to light it with the tip of his finger.

  The Alpha changed back to a human form. “You shouldn’t have involved a pure human female in our world.” With the bear back in its cage, the Alpha was able to pull free of his metal prison.

  “I won’t say anything. I have a lot invested in keeping my mouth shut. You’re obviously going to watch me and know if I have a slip of the tongue. As long as nobody knows then nobody should care if Tom and I are together.” There were no guarantees and the possibility of him coming for us when we least expected it was very much something to think about.

  “I could tell you what you want to hear, but I’m not going to do that. A quick death is too good for the both of you. Go ahead and condemn us to hell, but I don’t think you have it in you to die for any cause. I have no problem dying, knowing you won’t corrupt the shifter line with your bastard children.” The Alpha was goading Tom into making a mistake.

  “I would gladly sacrifice my life to give her a chance to start over without me. I hope you have made peace with your maker. I’m going to give you this one opportunity to say some final words.” He was giving the Alpha a chance to confess his sins before the final bell tolled for him.

  “Unlike you, I don’t have any regrets. Whatever I have done, I would do it again in a heartbeat. People have tried in the past to kill me. It’s not as easy as you might think it is. I will say it was rather ingenious of you to use something I’ve never heard of to weaken me. I didn’t see you as a threat. I didn’t see any reason to end your pitiful life. It’s about time I rectify that.” The Alpha advanced, but Tom was waving the match in his face.

  “I wouldn’t take one more step unless you want to be hauled aw
ay in pieces. Nothing is capable of surviving an explosion courtesy of a propane leak.” He was mocking the Alpha and keeping him at bay.

  “How dare you think you can fight me and win? I can easily take that match out of your hand. I’ve been playing with you like a cat does with a mouse before he consumes his dinner.” They were playing a dangerous game with their lives at stake.

  “I believe I see a chink in your armor of composure. You’re starting to unravel and I do believe you have met your match. Pardon the pun.”

  With one final desperate act of defiance, the Alpha moved with the speed of light to stand within a few inches of where Tom was currently holding him hostage in a stalemate.

  They were soon in a life and death struggle. The Alpha was fighting for the control of the match to make sure Tom wasn’t going to be able to use it. He looked at me and I knew without him saying one thing, it was time to leave.

  I wasn’t going to get trapped in the metal coffin of the elevator. I barely made it to the next floor down when the explosion sent debris flying down on top of me. I shielded myself with my hands and was able to make it six more floors before pulling the fire alarm.

  People began to spill out of the rooms, running for the safety of the street. The whole building was rocked like an earthquake had struck with indifference to the cost of human lives.

  I was soaking wet and following a trail of survivors down the stairs. I kept looking back, hoping to see a sign of him surviving the blast.

  We were met in the lobby by the chief of the fire department. He had his men escort us out of the building where we were to remain until questions were answered.

  “I have no idea what happened… The fire alarms woke me up… I think it came from the penthouse. Do you think it was terror-related? Could it be some kind of leak? I hope I don’t lose everything.” There were a multitude of voices, and they were barely a whisper considering the circumstances.

  A fireman with a mask over his face led me away from the crowd. I tried to protest, but he was rather insistent.

  “It’s me." Two words had never sounded better coming from his lips.

  “How is it possible?” We found a car with the keys still in the ignition and drove away without making a scene.

  “The explosion threw me through the balcony and I was able to change temporarily crashing into the fire escape of the building across from this one. The bear is going to need some time to recuperate, but I’m relatively in one piece.” He was in a bit of pain. The Alpha was no more than a memory.

  “I know this is a strange question, but what now?” I felt a shift in the air and his eyes were no longer yellow. There was a tinge of red. It wasn’t there before.

  “I’m going to take you home.” There was something final about his statement that made me feel like somebody was walking across my grave.

  Chapter eighteen - Tom

  I saw the look on the Alpha’s face when he burst into flames. I knew the only chance for survival was by changing into the bear. The last time I saw the Alpha was when I was airborne and crashing through the doors to the balcony. The oxygen entering the room was enough to feed the fire. I momentarily saw him collapse in the flames, never to be seen again. I was naked when I scrambled down the fire escape in the dark. They were going to find one fireman’s outfit missing from their inventory. I found the first thing to cover-up my dignity.

  “Penny for your thoughts.”

  I couldn’t believe it was over. The bane of my existence hanging over my head like a dark cloud was replaced by the sunshine of her smile. “I know this isn’t the outcome you were hoping for, but we are going to have to stop seeing each other. I’ve learned the hard way being with you might be something that my kind will never understand.” She was the light in my life. I was telling her what we had together couldn’t survive.

  “I believe the explosion might be still ringing in my ears. Could you repeat that? I’m not sure that I really heard you.” She was giving me a chance to take it back with a clean slate, but I wasn’t about to do that.

  “I know you heard me. I’m going to have to answer some questions and I’m not sure how the others are going to respond. I would say for the most part they will be relieved. Things are going to be complicated and you’re only going to get in the way.” I knew the burden of responsibility was going to be on my shoulders. They would look to me to become the Alpha and I would have no choice but to accept. I had inherited his power.

  “We’ve been through too much to let it end like this.”

  I didn’t want her to have the chance to change my mind. The shifter community would find us being together something to unite factions against me. Some with new-age thinking would accept the change better than those clinging to the old ways.

  “I’m not saying it’s going to be forever, but we need to take a step back. I need to figure out my next move without constantly worrying about your safety.” I gazed into her eyes and I could see a well of tears, not to mention complete and utter denial.

  “We have been through hell and you walked through fire to protect what we had together. I’m going to need more than superficial words to convince me of your sincerity. Tell me you don’t want me and I will gladly step aside. I don’t think that you can do that with a straight face and mean it.”

  She was right, but I was going to have to use my best acting skills. “I can’t be what you want me to be. I will always hurt the one I love. People tend to die when they are around me. You are a fragile human being that will break easily. Don’t test my resolve. I’ve made up my mind and nothing is going to change it. This life isn’t for you.” I was trying to let her down easy, but she was standing there looking at me with her eyebrow cocked.

  “It’s not enough to make me stay away. The one thing you haven’t said is that you don’t love me. Say that and we will never have to see each other again. It might be awkward in the office, but I can be professional. It’s entirely your decision.”

  She was going to make me say the words. They would hurt her like a knife cutting through her heart.

  I tried to walk away, but she was not going to let me off that easily. She chased me back to the car and used one hand to push me up against it. We were outside her place in the very spot where Jason had found out his anger was no match for my beastly disposition.

  “I don’t love you and I never have. I’m incapable of that kind of emotion. I was only stringing you along to get close enough to the Alpha to make my move. You now know the truth, and I hope you can live with it.”

  “You can’t mean it. It doesn’t seem possible for you to be this cruel and conniving. I don’t believe you.” She was pushing me into a corner and I was going to have to come out swinging with my best verbal shot.

  “Don’t get me wrong, the sex was phenomenal, but there was nothing of an emotional connection. I can’t believe you could be so gullible to believe I could fall in love with you. It makes me sad and it’s no wonder you gave Jason your heart.” My eyesight was still trying to adjust from the explosion. The street lamps were giving me a headache.

  “I never thought you could be this abusive with your words. I should have known better than to think we had something special. I deluded myself into believing in a happy ending. I got my hopes up, only to have them dashed yet again. I didn’t see this coming and that’s on me.”

  My heart was breaking, but I smiled to give her the idea her words meant nothing to me. “I literally had to beat it into your thick skull. There were moments I thought you were going to see through my ruse and call me out on the carpet. You wanted to believe, and you swallowed everything that I said with a spoon.”

  “You could fire me, but then you would have a litigation nightmare breathing down your neck. I could leave quietly without making a scene, but I would rather make you live in awkward silence when you see me in the hall. You haven’t heard the end of this.” She was going to become a thorn in my side and I deserved worse.

  “There are several movi
ng pieces on the board. The king is dead, leaving those under the umbrella of his power to run around like chickens with their heads cut off.”

  I was going to have to dedicate my time between business and my duties as the new Alpha. I couldn’t afford the distraction of the shifter community raising holy hell about me being with a human female. We had to be united and they would know from the outset I had an open door policy. I was never going to be the kind of ruler to put them underneath my thumb. Their opinions would matter and a new age of trust would be born from the death of the Alpha.

  I didn’t want anything to happen to Roseanne and the best way to avoid that was to get her out of the line of fire. The harsh words weren’t easy to formulate into sentences, but I managed to make her believe in my conviction.

  “I know deep down you don’t mean anything you say, but I hope you can live with being alone. It gets cold at the top, and you won’t have anybody there to warm you up. I hope you find some cold comfort in your vast fortune.” She was making it sound like I was a fool to let her go. A big part of me believed that.

  “I’m through having the same argument. I was hoping to end things on a good note with no hard feelings. I can see how you might feel betrayed by my good intentions. I should leave while we still have a good working relationship. We are destined to make a huge amount of money, and I don’t want to do anything to ruin what could be a very profitable future for this company.”

  Without the Alpha, the money I was paying in dues was no longer something of a concern. His percentage was extravagant. I wasn’t going to handcuff the entrepreneurs in the shifter community with the same outrageous demands.