Hey, guys! No, I am not dead. And no, I do not have three chapters for you. Lol Nice try, though. HOWEVER, Alpha's Daughter is nominated to be in the Top 10 Completed Fics for June! The site is www . twifanfictionrecs . com (If you can't see the website here, PM me and I'll see if it'll work through there. Apparently voting is open until July 31. When you get to the website, if you scroll down a little there's a panel with a picture that says vote for top ten. Click it and go vote lol. I'm so excited for yet another nomination. You guys are so amazing!

And now, here is your update! Don't kill me! I've got people who want me to live.

Please Enjoy!


JulesPOV

Blowing a curl out of my face, I squinted at two pictures that were nearly identical.

"Are you going to do this all night or am I going to get some time with you?" Bray asked playfully from the bathroom.

With the angle I was sitting at on our new bed, I could see him give me a look in the mirror from the master bathroom. He was scrubbing the oil and grease from his hands all the way up to his elbows. He'd just gotten off a shift at the shop with Dad.

Sighing, I slumped down and put the pictures back on the bed. "Sorry. You're right."

Finally done scrubbing, he flicked his hands into the sink before grabbing a towel and coming out of the bathroom. "Nothing to be sorry for, baby. I know you want to get everything mapped out so we can get married. Believe me, I want us married, too."

"Yeah, I know," I said cuddling against him when he sat down on the edge of the bed next to me. "But I should be able to put this away. I'm just so close. Ash and Cole really helped out today."

"Oh, yeah?" he asked as he kissed my forehead. "How so?"

"Ash suggested we use the bridge by Grama and Grampa's cottage and that we could use the cottage to get ready. And Cole offered up photographer advice. I've already talked to Grama and Aunt Rosalie. Grama said she'd love it if we used the cottage, and my aunt is working on collecting disposable cameras." Sighing, I looked at all the papers spread out on the bed. "Honestly, we're so close. Basically it's the finer details now of decorations and getting everyone fitted."

Bray reached up to brush my bangs back, which didn't actually do anything since they swung right back into place. "I'm sure it's going to be perfect. But remember, we're not that bridezilla couple, alright? I don't care if everything is precisely perfect. I just want to be married to you."

Taking a deep, happy breath, I leaned onto his shoulder, cuddling up against his arm. "You're the best."

Warmth radiated over my back as his hand rubbed over it. "Yeah, I'm aware," he said before kissing my temple. Then he suddenly stood up, toppling me over.

"Oof." I managed to get my hands under me before face-planting.

Bray grinned while I glared up at him playfully.

"Jerk. What was that for?"

He took my hands and pulled me off the bed. "Let's go paint."

My eyes went wide. "What? It's eight o'clock at night."

Giving me a look, he pulled me down the hallway of Hunter's old house. "So? It'll get you away from all that stuff for a while. We don't want your head exploding."

The house was two bedrooms and two baths. There was a bedroom on either end of the hall. In the middle, there was a doorway that opened up into the living room. To the left was the kitchen. The fireplace was on the right. Straight ahead was the front door.

Bray and I had decided to move in only a couple months ago. We'd agreed on us fixing it up together and decorating it the way we wanted, so most of our stuff was still packed up. Our new furniture – a gift from our parents – was covered with plastic drop cloths. We'd already finished the kitchen in a harvest gold and rust red. Bray had picked dark greens and browns for the living room, which was fine with me. We weren't yet done but so far it was warm and cozy. Our room was done in a sapphire blue, which was pretty dark, but with accent lighting, it was perfect. The extra room we'd decided on a neutral grey and accented using things the same color as the harvest gold paint in the kitchen. The guest bathroom in the hall was also the grey and yellow combo. My and Bray's bathroom was done up in beach colors like cool purples and pleasant peaches, fiery yellows. The house was a bit mismatched, but we both loved it. We didn't want to unpack until everything was painted. The living room was all we had left. Just one more coat of the green, clean up the trim, and then we could officially start to move in. I was glad we were getting it done before the wedding because as soon as the party was over, we were getting shipped off to the Bahamas for a couple weeks. Our parents had decided we needed a normal honeymoon, which meant a giant resort/water park. I was so stoked it wasn't even funny. Everything was paid for, being charged directly to Grampa Edward's account. I knew Mom and Aunt Shelby had set everything up so I was worried about the cost of everything, but when I'd mentioned it, they'd both glared at me. Hard.

"My little girl is going to have the best, most worry-free honeymoon," Mom had said. "Don't you worry about a thing. Just enjoy it all."

I'd sighed and gone home to research the place. Paling as the prices had gone up, I'd slammed my laptop shut.

But I kept reminding myself that my family was stupidly loaded, and I was considering this a gift from everyone. Because make no mistake, my family would want nothing but the best for us. But Mom and Aunt Shelby had asked us what kind of settings we preferred. With that, I was pretty sure I knew what all they'd booked, so it wasn't the priciest stuff. Thank goodness.

Now, tonight, Bray and I, while still getting the walls painted, chased each other with brushes and rollers. I had green paint all down one leg from my thigh to my heel. Bray had a smear from my fingers on his cheek and jaw. There were several other marks on us before the painting was through, and we had to take a shower together just to scrape it all off where we couldn't reach ourselves.

It was one in the morning before we stepped out of the shower.

Standing naked in front of the mirror, I used my towel to squeeze the water out of my hair while Bray wrapped a towel around his waist. Water still beaded on the skin of his chest and neck, sliding down from his hair. I watched him behind me from the mirror, letting my eyes travel his body. There wasn't an ounce of fat on his muscular frame despite the amount of food he put away on a daily basis. He spent his days either in the shop, running patrols, or running around with me, making love to me in our bed. The skin over all that muscle was taut, russet, and utterly lickable. Bray moved like the graceful predator he was, all that muscle shifting and sliding into place under that pretty skin. Compared to me, he was all dark, forest-y tones.

I was all jewel tones with my sun-kissed skin, copper and black hair, and my aqua eyes. Where Bray looked like he belonged in forest, I looked like I should come from warm ocean waters on a tropical coast somewhere.

When I looked back up into the mirror, I saw Bray watching me, his emerald eyes darkening as they took in my reflection.

Slowly, he walked up behind me and wrapped his arms around me. One arm went low, covering the juncture of my thighs while the other went over my breasts, his hands gripping my hip and shoulder. His arms were my clothing. I could feel his body, warm and comforting, against the back of mine, cradling me. He was hard pressed between my ass and his own hips, but the towel was trapped between our bodies so it was just a feeling, no action.

Keeping our gazes connected in the mirror, Bray lowered his head until his lips touched my neck. Eyes closing, he let out a contented sigh. "You're beautiful," he whispered.

I turned to rest my forehead against his. "Thank you."

I wasn't aware of how close we were until his eyes opened again and I could see myself reflected there. Reaching up, I ran the tips of my fingers over his lips before leaning in to kiss them. Bray leaned into the kiss and I turned in his arms, our skin sliding easily together the way clean skin can. My hands slid over the muscles in his arms, slipping into the dips and molding to the curves, until I got to his neck and could bury my fingers in his hair. Eagerly, my body pressed against his without needing a command from my brain to consciously do so. The towel was still there, the terry cloth rubbing against my hips and thighs.

Bray wrapped me up in his arms tightly, and it was times like this that I was reminded how small I actually was compared to him. He'd, impossibly, grown just a couple more inches, and those inches made me feel short. But it wasn't just height. My frame was slender and lithe compared to his bulk. He could wrap both hands on my waist and nearly touch his fingers together, but I also had an hourglass figure. My hips flared out and my breasts had filled out just a bit more. But for the most part, I was small against him, especially when he held me the way he was now, encompassing me in his warmth and the raw masculine power he exuded. It wasn't just being a dominant werewolf; it was the kind of man he was. I was his woman, and even though I was Alpha over him in the pack, I was still soft and feminine in everyday social situations. He liked that, the feeling of being the man, being able to speak for both of us because he knew me so well. He just wanted to take care of me, to flash his colors to let other men know that he could be dangerous if any of them came near me in a manner other than friendship. But when I was needed as leader of our pack, he was willing to step back to let me do what I needed to do. That part of our relationship had started out rough, but we were finally riding smooth.

It didn't take long until the towel had disappeared and Bray had walked us to our bed. Neither of us cared that we'd just taken a shower. Stupid excuses like that were what made the passion go out of a relationship. Bray and I swore that we would never let that happen. After all, both of us could live for a very long time and we wanted to stay together. Divorce was not going to be an option, or living separately. He was mine, and I was his.

That's how it was going to stay.

ColePOV

The next morning, I woke to Ash flung all over me. He was on his stomach, one arm hanging over my chest and a thigh between mine. His head was on my shoulder. Mouth open, he was snoring slightly. His black hair was stuck up in every direction from both sleep and my fingers from last night. Against my outer thigh, his morning erection was hard and pulsing. Since we'd started living and sleeping in our own private space, he'd started to move more during sleep. Most mornings, I'd wake up with him half on top of me just like today. Of course, I was splayed out under him, half curled around his body.

Chuckling, I kissed the space between his eyes and wriggled out from under him. Frowning, he grumbled and grabbed my pillow, pressing his face into it.

Shaking my head affectionately, I went to hop in the shower. I was meeting Victoria for breakfast down on the rez. Apparently our parents were heading into Port Angeles for a bit which was why she'd wanted to meet up with me as soon as possible.

Out in the room, putting on my clothes as quietly as I could, I still had issues coming to terms with the fact that she was pregnant. That was exactly what she wanted to talk about but I didn't know why.

In the bathroom again, I was about to fire up the toothbrush when a voice behind me said, "Why are you nervous?"

Jumping because I hadn't heard Ash moving around, I squirted out more toothpaste than I really needed.

"Jesus," I said under my breath. "You scared the shit out of me."

He chuckled while I washed the useless paste down the drain. "Sorry."

"No worries," I assured him with a smile in the mirror.

His reflection smiled back as he crossed his arms and leaned in the doorway. "But seriously, why are you nervous?"

Taking a deep breath, I shoved the toothbrush in my mouth and scrubbed while I thought about the answer. Close to two minutes and a rinse later, I wiped my mouth with a towel and turned to face him. "How'd you know?"

He gave me a look. "Really? Do you honestly think I don't know you well enough after four years? Come on, Cole. Not to mention, I can smell it."

"Oh. Right. Sorry." Sighing, I leaned back against the counter and rubbed the back of my neck. "I don't know. I guess I'm worried it might be a trap to get me to face my parents, which actually needs to happen. Or that it's going to be a huge joke where she tells me she's pregnant and laughs in my face saying I can't be near my own nephew. Which, granted, would be within her rights since I practically disowned all of them. But it'll still hurt."

Ash gave me a considering look. "You really think she'd do that?"

I couldn't answer that with a definitive but I knew I didn't have that feeling. Slowly, I shook my head, eyes on my shoes. "No. Something's telling me that she's scared. I always looked after her. She always came to me when she needed something or when she was scared."

"You were her big brother."

I nodded. "Yeah. I guess my fraternal feelings aren't going to go away any time soon."

"Of course not." Ash pushed away from the door to come stand in front of me. He was in his boxers, the blue ones with paw prints on them that I'd gotten him, and no shirt. He took my hands in his, unfolding my arms from my chest. "Some part of her knows and remembers that you're her brother, Cole. She can't hate you that much if she's asking to talk to you, to see you."

Taking a deep breath, I nodded and blew it out. "Yeah, you're right."

"I can go with you if you want."

Shaking my head, I looked up at the clock. "I think I need to see her alone. She might freak out we go together."

He nodded. "Alright, but call me if you need to. I'll keep my phone close."

"You're the best," I said before I gave him a quick kiss and started to walk out.

But he grabbed my hands again to pull me back, giving me a serious gaze. "Just be you, Cole. Okay? Be the man you've become. Don't let her tear you down." Then he pulled me against him so that he could give me a solid, deep kiss. When he pulled back, his breathing wasn't as harsh as mine. He was controlling himself, being dominant, commanding. "Now go or you'll be late."

Even though I was older, he was the alpha werewolf. And damn it was sexy.

Still having a little trouble breathing, I swallowed hard and nodded.

After a wobbly walk to the car and a twenty minute drive, I finally made it to the café where Victoria had told me to meet her. It was busy with men and women in business suits grabbing a cup of coffee on their way to work, but I still saw my sister at a table in the corner where there weren't any windows. As I made my way over to her, I could see how nervous she was, her eyes flitting around the room, trying to see if anyone noticed her or me. I was surprised to find two cups on the table. Hers was filled with either apple cider or tea. The other cup sat in front of the seat across from her. It was filled to the brim with steaming coffee the color of caramel. She still remembered how I liked my coffee.

I sat down across from her. "For me?" I asked motioning to the cup.

She nodded but didn't say anything.

"Thanks," I said. The first sip hit my soul and sang through my body. It was perfect.

She nodded again but didn't meet my eyes. Instead, she nervously sipped her own drink. I took the moment to study my sister, a girl I hadn't seen in close to three years.

Her dark blonde hair was shorter than I remembered, cut just above her shoulders. She'd gained some weight but I suspected that was from the pregnancy. And with that thought, my eyes went to her clothes. The light blue shirt was loose and flowy, hiding her torso. But I thought I could still see the edge of the baby bump. She had to be at least three months along maybe more.

The longer I watched her, the less nervous she was. The fear was peeking through as her lip and hands trembled.

Reaching out, I took her cup from her before she spilled all over herself and set it down the table. I held her trembling hand in mine. "Toria, you know you can talk to me about anything. Anything at all. I won't judge."

Her eyes were shiny when they finally met mine. "Even after-?"

"Even after."

"So you got my letter."

I nodded. "And what came with it."

She took a deep breath and put her free hand on her belly. When the shirt molded to her, I realized she was further along than I thought. Not that I knew much about women's bodies when they were pregnant, but it seemed like she was more than just three months along.

"I can't keep him," she said abruptly.

I blinked. "What?"

She pulled her hand out of mine and straightened her posture. It was a façade, I could tell. But it still surprised me. "The baby, I can't keep him. I don't want him."

My gaze narrowed. "Okay? So why tell me? Why not get in touch with an adoption agency? Unless that's what you want my help with. I'm sure Ash could find something."

Toria cleared her throat and pushed her hair out of her eyes. "No," she said with superiority. "I want you to take him."

"Excuse me?" I spluttered, eyes bugging out of my head.

Her nondescript brown eyes met mine. "I won't send him off the reservation."

"Why not?" I demanded incredulously. I honestly couldn't believe she was asking me to raise her kid.

Exasperated, she crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair. "First of all, the rez doesn't have a huge population. I doubt Jacob Black would want one of his tribe shipped out. And second, his fa-," Cutting off, she looked away and blinked fast, her mouth pressing into a hard line.

Before I spoke next, I thought about her reasons and came to a conclusion. "It's not that you won't; it's that you can't," I said confidently. "The baby has pack blood, doesn't he? His father is a member of the pack."

Her stern demeanor faded, the worry seeping through again, as she turned back to me. "Even if I could set him up for adoption away from here, what if he phases? The world would end up finding out about us. He could be hurt or shunned. Despite how I acted toward you years ago, I never agreed with Dad that the pack was bad for this place. It's our history, our ancestry. It's who we are. Look, I may not want to keep him, but that doesn't mean I don't care. I need to know he's taken care of, Cole. You're his blood. You'd never let anything happen to him and he'd never know you weren't his dad. You could say he's yours from a previous relationship."

Mind racing, I shook my head hard and fast as I leaned. "Are you hearing yourself, Victoria? You want me, your gay brother that you find disgusting, to raise your child as my son. Furthermore, you want me to raise him on a lie. I'd have to tell so many lies that I'd have to write them down. Either lie about his age or tell him I cheated on Ash, or come up with a whole different lie on how long I've been with Ash. And I won't do that to the man I love. Besides, I'm really gay, Toria. Nobody would ever believe I slept with a woman. I could barely even touch the girls I dated for Dad's benefit when I was in school. Why not just find a family here?"

While she looked at me, her eyes shimmered. "Because I want to know he's being taken care of by family, by his own blood. I couldn't live with myself knowing the people he was with weren't his own blood. He'll look different; he'll know he's not fully Quileute."

"What about the father?"

Now she rolled her eyes in irritation, but it wasn't at me. "That bastard can rot," she said bitterly. "Right after I told him I was pregnant, he took off."

"What?" I demanded, anger rising up.

"He told Jacob he didn't want to be pack, that he wouldn't phase anymore, and wanted to leave. Jacob let him."

I crossed my arms. "Believe it or not, I'm close to Jacob. He never mentioned this," I said, motioning to her with a hand before crossing my arms again.

She sighed. "Yeah because I doubt Preston said anything about the baby. He just wanted to get gone."

"Preston?" I nearly shouted. When she shushed me, I leaned in and hissed, "Preston? You slept with Preston?!" I'd hated him in high school. He'd been my competition and had done everything he could to get me to fail at my classes and football.

Toria glared at me. "He told me I was his imprint," she hissed back.

"And you weren't," I said scathingly.

"Obviously. Dumbass," she murmured. I wasn't sure if she was referring to me or Preston. Probably both. Then she looked back at me with desperation. "Please, Cole. Just consider it. You can tell him I was a surrogate for you and Ash so you could have a baby."

"Why couldn't I just tell him that you're his mother? I mean you are. I could tell him that you're his mother but couldn't handle a child so I raised him. What would it matter if I did tell him that? You wouldn't be a part of his life."

My sister watched me for a moment before looking down at her fingers rubbing the edge of the mug. "What if I wanted to be?" she asked softly.

I blinked, shocked into silence for a moment. "What?"

"What if I wanted to be in his life?" she repeated.

Stunned, I sat back and stared at her. "Wouldn't that be hard for you? You made this baby, gave birth to him, and just handed him over. What about maternal instinct? Could you really just sit back and watch me parent your child?"

Her gaze was downcast. "He'd be yours. Your son. And Ash's. We could tell him that you and Ash wanted a biological child, so I agreed to get fertilized by Ash. Invitro. I am your sister. It would explain his looks if he turned out blond or at least a little less Native-like. I mean, of course, if Ash could be okay with knowing he actually isn't biologically related to the boy."

Giving her a stern look, I crossed my arms again. "I'll ask again, Victoria. You'd be okay with two men raising him?"

"Yes," she said softly.

"Why?" I countered immediately. "And why care about what Ash would think? You think our relationship is wrong and disgusting. I do believe I remember you calling me a fag quite a few times."

She gave me a sad look and held her hand out to me, palm up. "Things change," she whispered. "I've missed you. So much. And I'm so scared. Mom and Dad loathe me but I couldn't get an abortion. I refused. Mom agreed, of course. But the way they look at me…Cole, I'm terrified. I can't keep this baby. He's illegitimate. They wouldn't treat him right. And I am so sorry for how I treated you. Right now, I wish I had somebody that cared enough to save me. I wish I had somebody who loved me the way Ash loves you, the way you love him." Half crying, she rubbed her belly with her other hand and laughed. "It's all in perspective for me now, and I can't understand how Mom and Dad could treat you the way they did, how I could have treated you like that."

Getting up, I moved my chair around the table and took her hand. "Hey," I said, putting a napkin to her tears. "It's alright, Toria. Don't be scared. I won't let anything happen to you. You're still my little sister. I still love you."

She gave me a watery smile.

A great wave of anger at our parents swelled up inside me and I said, without thought, "Come home with me."

She looked up in surprise from wiping her face. "What?"

"Come stay with me and Ash. Get away from Mom and Dad."

"I can't," she said, shaking her head. "I can't face them."

"You won't have to. I'll deal with our parents."

She shook her head hastily. "Not them. I mean the pack. Ash. Dox. I can't face them, not after what I did. How I treated you."

I cupped her cheek. "For now, just Ash. He and I live together. We'll go get some of your stuff, just the things you really want. We can get whatever else you need later. And I'll take you home. I have a spare bedroom. Two actually. And where our house is, Mom and Dad can't get to you. We'd have to go today though."

Her eyes widened.

Scooting in, I lowered my voice. "Toria, you have to know that there are people in here who talk to Dad. They've seen us. They'll tell him you talked to me. Or he'll find out. Please. Come home with me."

She studied me for a moment, the fear and uncertainty plain in her eyes. "You'll take the baby?"

I shook my head. "I have to talk to Ash. He's my partner. But if not, we'll figure something out. I promise that the baby will be taken care of."

Her hand tightened on mine. "I'm scared," she whispered.

"I know. But I'm here. Let me help you."

Her wary brown eyes studied me for a few heartbeats. Then her eyes went around the small café taking in all the potential tattlers. When her gaze came back to me, she swallowed hard. "Are you sure it's okay?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Come with me."

She thought just a moment longer before nodding. "Okay."

#######

It only took about ten minutes to pack a couple bags of her stuff that she wanted, things that couldn't really be replaced for the sentimental value. We were in and out without a problem, and it wasn't long before I was turning onto the turnoff to the compound. The deeper into the compound we went, passing groups of wolves and humans, I noticed that Victoria became more and more nervous. Her small hands clutched at the seat under her or flexed on her thighs as she looked around.

I reached over to hold her hand, stilling it. "It's okay, Toria."

She blew out a harsh breath. "I can't believe I let myself get into this mess."

I squeezed her fingers. "You made a mistake, but you're doing what you can. I mean, you lost Trent. You loved him; he loved you. Even I could see you two belonged together."

At the mention of him, she sniffed and looked out the window. "The witches killed him because he fought them. If he would have just-,"

"It wasn't in his nature not to fight," I said, cutting her off. "I'm sure he was protecting the others. As well as trying to get back to you. I'm sorry, Toria."

She scrubbed at her eyes with her free hand. "Ugh. And now I'm pregnant with some douchebag's baby."

I laughed. "It's not the baby's fault. And it's not yours. But we'll figure something out." I pulled the car into the drive, put it in park, and turned it off. Turning toward her, I lifted her fingers to kiss them. "Do you trust me?"

Her hand gripped mine and she nodded a little. "Yeah."

"We're gonna go in there and face Ash. But I need to ask again, are you sure that you're okay with me and Ash? I mean, our relationship? I just keep flashing back-."

She shook her head and gripped my hand. "No, I'm good. It's a different tune, I know. But these past three years have been hard. You were always there, and then suddenly you weren't. I guess I just figured out that I don't really care who you love as long as they love you back. I really am sorry that I was so horrid, that I let Dad just beat you like that. I couldn't watch him do it, but I should have done something, called someone."

"It's okay-,"

This time the head shake was frantic. "No, it's really not okay, Cole. I have so much to atone for."

"No, you don't. I know that neither of us are particularly religious, so you're talking about my forgiveness. The only thing is, I never blamed you for anything to begin with. You don't need to earn my forgiveness because you didn't do anything that needs forgiving, not in my eyes."

Closing her eyes, she sighed as if relieved. "I've missed you so much."

"And I've missed you. Now, why don't we go get this over with? Ash won't be too harsh. He knows about the baby. Hell, he knew before I did because he opened the letter."

"He did?"

I nodded. "Yeah. I couldn't do it. He said one of us should know what it said. I'm glad we did."

She smiled a little. "Me, too."

I squeezed her hand. "Are you ready?"

Taking a deep breath, she nodded.

AshPOV

I was flipping through the movie channels when I heard the squeak of Cole's tires on the carport. But he didn't get out immediately, which was odd. Even though he could be taking a moment to collect himself from the visit. He tended to do that when he didn't want me to see his emotions.

But then I heard two doors close instead of just one. I was suspicious but then he could have just picked up someone.

When the side door opened, I asked, "So how did it…," then I looked over, my eyes going wide. "Go?"

Victoria was hiding behind the bulk of her brother, looking at me from around his arm. But her gaze lowered to the floor every couple seconds.

When Cole met my eyes stubbornly, I raised an eyebrow. "I have a feeling we need to talk."

Cole bent over to put Victoria's bag on the ground against the wall. "Yeah. We do."

Turning off the TV, I stood up and walked into the kitchen. Toria was still avoiding looking at me, shame clear in her expression. When she finally met my eyes again, I pulled out a chair at the table for her. "Please, sit down. You look tired."

Surprise widened her eyes. She looked up at Cole, who nodded. "Thank you," she said quietly as she came to sit down. I carefully pushed the chair under her.

Over her head, I gave Cole a look. The look he gave me back said this was even more complicated than I was thinking.

"Would you like something to drink?"

Toria started to shake her head. "No, that's-,"

"Tea," Cole said. "She'd like some tea."

Okay, then. I went to the counter and whipped up a cup of tea while everyone stayed quiet and awkward.

When I set the cup in front of her and sat down, I looked at them. "So, what's going on? I didn't expect-,"

"I'm sorry," Toria said softly.

I looked at Cole in surprise. He nodded, so I leaned in. "What was that?"

She wrapped her small, shaking hands around the mug. "I said I'm sorry, Ash. For every fucking thing I did or said against you or Cole. I don't care if you're gay and fucking each other's brains out. I just know that I was wrong, and I love my brother." She lifted her eyes to mine. "You've always helped him take care of me; you've never done anything to hurt me. And I betrayed you both. Like I told Cole, I should have done something when Dad beat him, when Mom cursed him."

She was about to talk herself into a tizzy, so I reached out to touch her shoulder. "It's alright, Toria. It's clear you're sorry. And since I know Cole has already forgiven you, I do, too. Don't stress."

After a moment, she took a soothing breath and smiled at me. "You're such a good person, Ash. I'm glad my brother has you and your family."

"Toria," Cole said in a serious tone. "Tell the rest. Tell him what you want us to do."

I frowned. "What's he talking about?"

Shaking her head a little, she just licked her lips.

Sighing, Cole leaned forward, his hands gripped together. "She's asking us to raise the baby, as our son."

My eyebrows shot into my hairline. "Wait, you and me?"

He nodded. "To keep the lies at a minimum, the only explanation we could think of would be that you and I wanted a biological child so she offered to be a surrogate for us."

"Okay? And what about a father?"

My mate stared hard at me. "That's the tricky part. Either we could say a random donor or the lie."

"What lie?"

"The one where we say you were the donor since we'd want a biological child."

My head was spinning. "Why can't we just say adoption?"

Cole looked at his sister, who was still staring at the table. "She wants to be a part of his life. She doesn't want him to know that she didn't want him. And adoption would be a no go either way. She doesn't want him with anyone other than his own blood. And he can't be sent off the rez. His father was pack."

"What?" I demanded sharply. "Then why isn't he involved in this?"

Cole gave me a very direct, angry look. "Because he's gone. It's Preston."

Now I was angry, my blood almost boiling. "Fucking Preston," I cursed.

"He told me I was his imprint," Toria said, finally talking. "When I told him I was pregnant, he wouldn't talk to me and went to your dad the next day."

I sat back heavily in the chair. "Yeah, I remember when he came to my dad. He was pissed about something when he asked to take off and swore never to phase again. Never mentioned the baby, which is probably the reason for the no phasing. He didn't want to be ordered back when we found out."

"You think he'll keep to that?" Cole asked.

I scrubbed my jaw. "It's possible. Our telepathy doesn't have limits. Dad once ran all the way to northern Canada and could still talk to the pack. Phasing is second nature to us so he could slip up, but I've been wrong before." I looked at her. "You really want us to do this?"

When she looked up at me, there was a fierce light in her eyes. "I will not let my parents have him, and Cole is the only other blood I have. I can't have a baby, Ash. I fucked up and made a mistake, but I refuse to let this baby pay for it."

Quickly, I took her hands. "Okay, okay. Cole and I really need to talk about this. How far along are you?"

"Five months."

"What doctor are you seeing?"

When she gave me the name, I wrote it down.

"Okay. I'll have Grampa Carlisle call the office. Do you want to leave that doctor or stay?"

"I don't know. I think I'd feel better if I was with a doctor who works closer with pack pregnancies."

I nodded. "Well, with our pack, pregnancies are pretty normal. But I'll talk to my grandfather. He might have noticed differences now that the pack is active."

"What about medical bills?"

"I'll take care of them," Cole said. He looked at me. "We need to tell that office to send the bills here. And we'll figure out something about insurance."

I nodded.

"Wait," Toria said. "I can't ask you to pay all those bills."

He turned to her and cupped her cheek. "I've still got a lot of money saved up. It'll take care of them."

"But-,"

"Stop," Cole ordered. "Just stop. You're gonna stay here and go see Carlisle tomorrow. I want to know for myself that you're okay. You're gonna let us deal with Mom and Dad. I want you to stay off the rez."

She stared at him like she had no idea who he was. Over the past couple years, he'd gotten more and more demanding and dominant. "What about my job? And my friends?"

"You can still talk to them, Toria. I'm not gonna take away your phone. If you want to keep working, okay." He turned to me. "I'd like for one of the pack to stay with her."

I nodded. "I agree. If you're going to be on the rez, I'll ask Walker and Jason if there's an enforcer to spare. When's the next time you work?"

"Next week. I'm a receptionist. The owners are on vacation so they shut it down until they come back."

"Okay, that'll give me enough time to talk to them and for you to see Carlisle."

Sighing, she looked from one to the other of us with affection. "No use arguing, is there?"

Both Cole and I shook our heads.

She held her hands out, one to each of us. We took them. "Thank you."

Cole lifted her hand up to kiss it. "You're my baby sister. I love you."

"And I love Cole," I said. "You seem genuinely apologetic for what happened. We'll move on from here. Now, why don't you go get settled into one of the rooms and rest? I'll start on lunch."

Smiling, she gripped my fingers and kissed my cheek. "You really are the best, Ash." After giving her brother the same kiss on the cheek, she picked up her bag and walked back to a room, wandering around until she found one of the guest rooms.

Once I heard the door click shut, I looked at Cole. "What happened?"

He sat down heavily and put his head in his hands. "I told you. She said she didn't want the baby, that she wanted us to take him."

I went to sit down next to him. "Why not have another family take him?"

"That's what I said," he said, his words muffled. "She refuses. She wants him to stay with family because she still wants him taken care of."

Reaching out, I took one of his hands away from his face so I could hold it. "Are you okay with that? It's a lot of pressure on both of us."

"I want to help her, Ash. She's my baby sister. I just think that once she stays away from Mom and Dad, and she realizes she has support, she'll want to keep him. None of us need to make a solid plan yet until closer to the birth, or even after. Even if we decide we'll be willing, we can't all get our hopes up. Things – feelings – change."

I kissed the back of his hand. "I know."

Looking over at me, he asked, "Would you be willing to do that? I mean, I agree that if she stays in the baby's life, I wouldn't want him to grow up knowing his own mom would rather be his aunt."

"You'd want to go along with the story."

"Only if you'd be okay with it. If not, we'll figure something else out." His brown eyes were so serious and somber that I wanted to say yes right then and there, give him everything.

But I couldn't. This wasn't something to decide on the fly.

Leaning in, I carefully kissed his lips. "Let me think about it for a couple days. Until then, we need to tell Mom and Dad plus Walker that she's here and staying. They need to know to expect retaliation from your parents."

He nodded and leaned in for another kiss. "Thank you."

I ran my hand through his hair and smiled. "Anything for you, Cole. When are you going to accept that 'anything' literally means anything? All you have to do is ask." Standing up, I kissed the top of his head. "I'm going to make some food. Then we can go talk to Walker. You might wanna call Dad. He's at the shop right now."

Cole nodded and took his phone out. "Good idea."

With heavy internal sigh, I went about making lunch.


Hmmm so much happening. How cute would it be for those two to be dads? And what do we think of Victoria? Let me know, lovelies! I love you guys! xoxoxoxo