Shifted

10

ALEX POV

"You what?"

Stephanie's presence is a shock, even more so when she finally told me what she wants.

John stood behind me as she sat in front of my desk. I could feel the anger radiating from him and knew it was on behalf of Olivia more than anything else.

That's how it should be.

I wanted to chase after her when she left the dining room with Willow but knew I had to deal with this issue once and for all. My heart was conflicted for a split second when I first saw Stephanie. Happy memories of our short lived relationship played in my mind before I could stop them, confusing my focus.

She has always been able to distract me easily. Something tells me Liv will do everything in her power to work through tough situations. There were fleeting days when I considered building a family with Steph, but in the end she chose to leave.

Olivia will race towards conflict and solve everything as seamlessly as possible with diplomacy and grace. She will stand firm to face whatever needs to be dealt with.  Maybe she needs time alone to process, but that just shows how cautious my mate is.

Exactly like a Luna should be.

Stephanie was nervous as she repeated, "I want to try again. I made a huge mistake leaving you, Alex..."

"Call me Alpha," I commanded, my voice a low growl.

She shrank back and nodded, "I apologize, Alpha. I know I messed up and want to make things right... to be a family, just like you talked about back when I was pregnant." Stephanie snffled then wiped away a tear, her eyes looking to the side, "I miss you."

John scoffed behind me and she glared, quickly snapping from her emotional state to growl at my best friend and Beta.

She's faking it.

This is a disaster and it is my fault. I should have never done a lot of things, but sleeping with Stephanie was top of my list. Maybe part of the reason my defenses were down was the death of my parents as well as being thrust into leadership after tragedy at only 21.  Regardless, I need to accept the consequences of my actions. The contract she signed giving me full physical custody of our daughter is crystal clear.

There is no reason for her to drag up the past except to cause drama. Then again, my ex has always loved drama. She thrives on pulling emotions and manipulating the narrative.

Would I ever consider taking her back?

"No."

The one word answer is as firm and concise as possible.

Stephanie may be a fool for showing up like this but she knows better than to question an Alpha when visiting his territory- especially since she is not welcome here.

"Why are you here now?" John asked, his posture taller as he spoke directly to my ex.

She rolled her eyes and shrugged, so I let out a bit of my aura to show her she needed to respect both of us. Steph always hated John and Callum. She resents the friendship I have with them and would complain daily about how much time I spend "with my boys." Of course, that was not at all the case. I had just become Alpha and was fighting to rebuild our pack, both in repairing homes and training our warriors so they were ready for anything else that may happen.

We lost my parents and about a dozen others in the attack from a few groups of rogue that banded together. The impact was devastating, especially since I had to suddenly make big decisions for hundreds of people while actively grieving the family I lost.