Page 2 of The Alpha Wolf’s Secret Baby Boy

I had no idea that he remembered me from high school, or noticed my measly existence at all. An unexpected friendship turned to something else when, on my nineteenth birthday, he gave me a gold bracelet and a kiss that turned into a promise that once Dorian became the alpha of Valley Walker, our relationship would become public, and the next gift I’d receive was a ring to match my necklace.

I’d been clinging to hope that soon became a fine thread when Dorian left. Damian has been under immense pressure, and I felt the difference the moment he found out his brother had abandoned the pack.

The only hope I have left is that Damian will honor his promise. Our relationship has been under so much strain that I’ve been so afraid of losing him, even when he assured me a few weeks ago that he still loved me.

I’ve never doubted him in the past, and I shouldn’t doubt him now.

“Pregnancy jitters…” I murmur with amusement under my breath as I head out of my cabin and make my way to the pack hall. My confidence feels reignited enough to face the dreadful wolves who usually mock me for being an omega.

It’s not like my status ever stopped Damian from being with me.

My chin held high with dignity, I enter the hall, the steady chatter and soft piano notes mingling to create the ambiance of tonight’s celebration. Even if this is bittersweet for Damian and his family, who, for years, expected Dorian to be the one taking over for Alpha Chester when he retired, the pack has been highly anticipating the next era of leadership from Alpha Chester and Luna Diane’s heir.

Avidly ignoring the skeptical looks of scrutiny and scorn from the bitter pack members, who seem to still have time to pay me any attention—even if it’s negative—I make my way to the back row of benches. I’m safer at the back, out of sight, knowing that only one pair of eyes matters to me.

“Hey, Poppy!” Simone, the only girl in Valley Walker whom I consider a friend, comes shuffling down the row, panting as if she ran a mile to reach the hall. Her face is flushed, and her pupils are blown out, and I giggle in a cupped hand as she takes a seat beside me.

She’s been seeing one of the soldiers who trains regularly with Damian, and that’s been my alibi for going anywhere near the training arena for months—I get to ogle Damian while pretending I’m there to accompany Simone.

“Hello, Simone…” I drawl, wiggling my brows suggestively. “Where have you been?”

She blushes as her eyes widen at me, but that’s when she notices my dress. She reaches out and runs her fingers across the frills framing the neckline.

“You look pretty tonight,” she says with a satisfied hum as she nods thoughtfully. “I wonder why. Or rather, who you’re dressed up for.”

“No one,” I say, and I’m the one blushing this time. I tap her on the wrist when silence falls over the hall, and even the pianist stops playing.

But Simone doesn’t stop prying. She leans in just as my attention goes to the front of the hall, where Alpha Chester and Luna Diane walk in, followed by their guards, before Damian and his guards enter.

My heart stops beating for a second, which is long enough for our eyes to meet, and that’s when I realize I’m holding my breath, excitement bubbling in the pit of my belly like a lovesick fool who loses her composure at a second’s glance with her lover.

His blue eyes sparkle like the azure of a clear sky. Gone are my anxieties, my worries about our future, and my chest tightens with the love that remains a certainty between us.

I smile coyly as Simone whispers, “I know you have a thing for the future alpha. That’s why you look so beautiful on his special night.”

My smile deepens as I turn to her and say, “Don’t be ridiculous, Simone. I’m only an omega. I could never dream of it.”

Simone arches one brow, and I giggle internally, mischievously, because I can’t wait for the day Damian announces me as his mate. I know Simone won’t be surprised, because she’s always been suspicious. But I’ve never confirmed her suspicions, just for my own safety.

What I wasn’t counting on was being overheard, and I gasp when a mouthy, pointed arrow is aimed at me.

“You’re damn right you shouldn’t even be dreaming about it, Omega,” Charlotte, one of the wolves who works with us in the pack center, cuts in. She never misses a beat, making it known that she doesn’t like me because of my status.

“Everyone knows the future alpha will be taking Roxanne as his mate and luna,” Charlotte continues, and my gut twists with horror.

It’s not like this is new information. When Dorian left, gossip circles turned toward Damian with the rumors that he was going to pick his father’s beta’s daughter as his luna. Of course, Damian extinguished those rumors when we first began seeing each other, and I had no reason to doubt him.

But the knot in my gut tightens the moment Roxanne and her family join the Walkers on stage. The reminder of what the pack believes is true reignites the flames of my fears, my dread, and instinctively, I place a hand on my belly where my child’s—our child’s—heartbeat can be felt. The beating is faint, but it’s present enough to bring back my doubts when I’m growing our pup in my womb, but I’m nowhere near the father, nowhere near the commencement of the ceremony that officially names Damian Walker as the alpha of the Valley Walker Pack. There’s the most distance between us, with him in front on the stage, and me hiding in the furthest corner in the back.

The difference between us is evident, and even I can’t ignore the whispers anymore when Alpha Chester’s beta is called up to pass his torch to Damian’s chosen beta, and he does so with Roxanne at his side.

My heart hammers in my chest, dread filling my ears like a deafening sound.

The rest of the ceremony becomes a blur as I’m filled with insecurity, watching the leaders of the pack and their families exchange words, oblivious to my mere existence.

And when the crown is placed upon Damian’s head, and the priest slices his palm to draw blood for the sacred skull of the Walker ancestor, Roxanne steps forward to do the honors. First with Damian’s chosen beta, and then with Damian himself.

The priest steps forward and nods to the redhead, who returns the skull to him and steps back to join her father. Deep down, I know I shouldn’t be reading too much into everything I’m seeing. I mean, if Dorian were still around, it would have been Damian performing the rites alongside the priest, not Roxanne.