Why did it have to be her?

Eric fidgeted nervously, causing his tailor to stick him with yet another pin. The Alpha growled, jerking his arm away–and yelped as the motion jabbed another pin into his side. The tailor, a thin man with graying hair, sighed.

"Are you sure that there isn't something else you'd rather be doing?"

"No. Let's just finish with this."

Eric closed his eyes and forced himself to stay still. A good-fitting suit was vital to presenting a good image to this little town. He had chosen it because it was the poorest human-populated settlement in his packlands, down on the northern edge where the pack itself rarely went. He had thought it was the perfect place to start rolling out his community projects to help make such places a little more stable.

He had rented this office space temporarily until his business here was done. It wasn't as large as he would have liked, but he was able to fit in a nice antique oak desk and it would suit him.

He hadn't thought he'd see Kayla here, of all places.

As soon as he laid eyes on her, everything came rushing back. Every kiss, every smile, the way she had brightened his whole world. It had left him frozen and breathless. And when she had left during their meeting, he had wanted to go after her. He wanted to throw her over his shoulder, take her back to his hotel, and worship every inch of her body.

Because she wouldn't be creeped out by that at all.

The door slammed open. The tailor jumped, stabbing Eric again. The Alpha growled, and quickly removed the suit jacket. "We're

done." He turned to greet the person who had just come in. "Quin. Haven't you heard of knocking?"

"I'm your little brother and your beta. Why do I have to knock?" Quin grinned at him, but it quickly faded. "Look, I'm here because we have an emergency. You know that land you just purchased to be the community gardens?"

Eric grunted. Of course he knew about it. He had been the one to purchase it. He stepped behind the makeshift curtain he'd set up for this appointment. He was so busy that he didn't want to waste time going to and from the tailor’s. Maybe he should have just canceled the appointment altogether. It wasn't like he didn't already have great suits.

"What about it?"

"Well… the two old grain elevators that you planned to tear down have vampires living in them."

Eric jerked around so hard that one of the pins still in his trousers stuck him. He ignored the pain as he brushed aside the curtain. "Vampires?"

Quin nodded, looking grim.

"What kind?"

"Not sure. They attacked our crew when we went in. Pitch black inside, so we don't know if they have an aversion to sunlight or are just emo. But they definitely smelled undead, so I think we're dealing with some fairly traditional types."

Eric groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. Vampires, like Shifters, came in different 'types.' With Shifters, it was pretty much limited to various animal species a person could turn into. With vampires, it was a little different.

Some were allergic to the sun, others could play outside in the middle of July without any problems. Some were undead, some just had a super slow heartbeat. Some reproduced through a bite, others the same way humans did. All drank blood. Yet, some were able to sustain themselves on whatever blood they found, while others had to drink it fresh from human veins.

However, all had a particular dislike of Shifters. Probably because they were so much better equipped to kill them than humans.

"Send somebody to the city hall to get information about them and on whatever disappearances or animal deaths there have been around town. And I want you to go to the vampires directly to negotiate some sort of land-sharing agreement. Maybe move them further from the town. See how open they are to talk, in any case."

"I will do that, then." Quin stuck his hands in his pockets as Eric shut the curtain again. "And if the vampires won't negotiate? You will do this community garden thing?"

"Yes."

Relationships between Shifters and humans were a little rocky, especially in small towns like this. Extending his wealth to help out those in need and fostering a sense of community was the first step in improving relationships.

"Oh, by the way…" Quin's voice was light and casual.

Eric tensed. His brother using that tone was never a good sign.

"I ran into Donna earlier today, and I moved your meeting with her and Kayla up. They should be arriving any minute."

Eric, who was just pulling on his pin-free trousers, toppled over. He hit the curtain, ripping it down as he crashed to the floor. His heart jumped to his throat as he struggled to dress, then threw the new suit towards the tailor.

"I will see you later," he said, smoothing his hair. Where was his tie? He looked around wildly for three minutes before remembering he was still wearing it.

The tailor slipped out of the room, leaving the two brothers alone. Quin stood laughing as Eric rushed around, trying to straighten his already-neat office. It wasn't until he shoved a bunch of papers into his desk that he realized he was doing more harm than good.

"I knew it," Quin crowed. "You're still in love with her. For all your insistence that it was just a fling and you both decided to end it—"

"That's enough," Eric snapped, the Alpha growling in his voice.

Quin immediately took a step back and bowed his head in submission – if only for a moment. His head came up again and he opened his mouth. Before he could continue, however, the two expected women appeared in the doorway. Eric's heart somersaulted as his eyes met Kayla's.

She had changed in the three years since they had last seen one another. The first thing he noticed was that she had dyed her hair. Instead of the rich red hair he'd known, it was now a strawberry blonde. Her overall look was more somber than he had known as well: sensible pearl earrings instead of feathers, business suit instead of flowing hippie skirt. Although that might just be because she was working.

But despite these changes, she looked exactly the same as the girl of his dreams.

Quin cleared his throat, making Eric realize he had been staring. An uncomfortable heat flushed his olive cheeks as he finally looked away. "Quin. You need to go do that thing."

His brother gave him a cheeky grin. "What thing?"

"Talk to the city hall and the residents of the grain elevators."

Donna blinked in surprise as she looked between the brothers. "Do the elevators have squatters?"

If the town didn't know about the vampires, that was probably a good sign that they weren't the kind that had to live off human blood. Eric gave Quin a warning look as his brother opened his mouth. "Yes. And I want to work with them in order to find them a new home. My brother was just leaving to—"

"Gosh, darn it!" Donna threw her hands into the air. "I am such a space case today."

Eric stared at the mousy-looking woman in shock. What was she going on about? He glanced at Kayla to find her face as white as a sheet. Why did she look so scared? Eric moved forward instinctively, wanting to reassure her. She shied away from him.

"I forgot to bring our sketches," Donna said with an exaggerated eye-roll. "You two stay here, I'll be right back."

She darted from the room even as Kayla started to protest. Quin hurried out as well, leaving the two of them alone. Eric shifted uncomfortably. What was he meant to do now?

"How have you been doing?" he asked eventually.

"I have a daughter."

Surprise flooded him. Eric struggled to keep the shock and dismay off his face. A quick glance at her left hand showed no wedding ring. But if she had a daughter, that must mean that she was serious with somebody. He fought down the urge to demand who it was. He was not going to be jealous of someone he didn't even know…

"Her name is Mikayla," Kayla continued. "I know. Mikayla. Kayla. I wanted to name her after myself without naming her after myself. But that's… Well, she's a Wolf, too."

A Wolf? His battle with jealousy intensified.

"She's just starting to do the whole Shifting thing. I've been looking for some sort of program to put her into, you know, since I'm not a Shifter, I don't know how to give her the best support with that part of her heritage, and I thought it would be good if she had more contact with other Wolves, and I'm babbling."

Kayla sucked in a deep breath and peered anxiously at Eric. He stared back at her, jaw slack, unable to think of the correct response to it all. She had had a child with a Shifter. That must mean that another Wolf found himself a mate in her.

He lost the battle with his jealousy. It flooded him no matter how much he tried to fight it. But that didn't mean he had to give in. As much as he wanted to track down that Shifter and challenge him for the right to mate her, he very much doubted that she would find it a romantic gesture. More likely she'd hate him for it.

"There are certain programs available," he managed. "I'll send you a few links. I can even get in touch with somebody to come out here and talk to you—"

He cut himself off, frowning. If the father was a Wolf, why couldn’t he help Mikayla with her Shifting? Kayla's eyes widened and she actually stepped back from him.

"Why can't her father help you with all this?

"He doesn't know about her," Kayla whispered, her voice rasping. "At least, he didn't…"

Eric's heart pounded. His body had already figured out what she meant, even as his mind scrambled to understand. "What do you mean?"

"She's your daughter."