Alpha Devotion: Paranormal Romance Collection

by Lola Gabriel

  “No. Lucinda was handling everything quite well,” Wanda replied with a smile. “Speaking of...”

  “Becca! Oh, my gods. Are you okay?”

  Becca turned on her heel, and a smile formed on her lips as Lucinda appeared in the hallway. Dressed in a floral dress, despite the cold weather outside, Lucinda floated towards her.

  “Yes, I am fine,” Becca said, rolled her eyes at her. Being a sorceress, or a witch, Lucinda paid no attention to Becca’s sigh and hugged her.

  “I was worried sick,” Lucinda whispered dramatically.

  “I’m fine. I was just stuck in traffic,” Becca said, “because my alarm didn’t go off, so it fucked up the entire morning.”

  “Oh, I thought you weren’t coming in today because of...” Her eyebrows raised ever so slightly, and Becca knew exactly what she was referring to: the file.

  “No, it’s not that.” Becca shrugged and made her way down the hallway, a concerned Lucinda following closely behind her.

  “Did its contents upset you?”

  Becca entered her small office and turned to Lucinda. “Why would it?”

  “How would I know? The file was sealed.”

  Becca bit her bottom lip and nodded. “I know.”

  “Did you open it?” Lucinda inquired carefully, knowing how delicate situations like this could be.

  Lucinda worked closely with child protective services, as well as the foster care system, so she knew that finding families and information regarding them was a difficult job, but also that if information was found, it could be very overwhelming to whoever was receiving the news. She had spent nearly two years finding records about Becca’s family, dating all the way back to 6000 BC.

  “No,” Becca admitted and turned to Lucinda. “It’s still in my car. I haven’t had the guts to open it yet.”

  It wasn’t the only reason. Ever since she had touched the file, a grim feeling rose up inside her that she hadn’t been able to shake. Every time she thought of what the file could contain, she felt nauseated.

  “I’m sure it’s not as bad as you think it is,” Lucinda pointed out. “What’s the worst that could be in it? Your parents killed a bunch of humans? So what? So did you.”

  “That’s not the point, Luce. I’m just...” Honestly, Becca didn’t even know how to explain it to her best and only friend. “What if there’s something in there that is better left sealed and forgotten?”

  “It took me so long to find it, Becca.”

  “I know, and I’m so incredibly grateful for that,” Becca said, clasping her hands together, “but I don’t know if I can open it. Not yet, anyway.”

  “What are you so afraid of? They can’t be nearly as bad as my relatives,” Lucinda pouted.

  “You’re right about that,” Becca chuckled. “I’ll get to it. I promise.”

  “Okay,” Lucinda said, and a small smile formed on her lips. “He called again.”

  “What did he want this time?”

  “He wouldn’t tell me, of course. He’ll call you back later,” Lucinda cooed and wiggled her eyebrows.

  “Come on, Luce. He’s not my type. Besides, he reminds me of that guy in that prison movie.”

  Lucinda cringed. “Ew, he does.”

  “Right?”

  At that moment, Becca’s office phone rang, and Lucinda smiled. “I bet it’s him.”

  “Shut the door on your way out, please, Luce,” Becca said. Lucinda quickly left the office, and Becca answered the phone as soon as the door closed. “New Horizons, good morning. This is Becca Dillon speaking.”

  “Becca, good morning.”

  Becca smiled immediately when she heard Arlo Veskovic’s deep voice through the receiver. “Good morning, Mr. Veskovic. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

  “How lovely it is to finally speak with you. I left a few messages with your colleague, Lucinda.”

  “Yes, she informed me the moment I stepped through the door. I was just on my way to call you,” Becca replied. “What can I help you with, Mr. Veskovic?”

  “Please, call me Arlo. We are way past these formalities, I believe.”

  “Very well, Arlo.”

  “It is not what you can do for me, Becca, but what I want to do for you.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I host a ball for a select group of people every year. It is a very grand and formal affair. This year, I have decided that I will make it a charity ball, and I wish to make your non-profit organization the beneficiary of all the donations,” Arlo explained.

  Becca’s jaw dropped, and she almost couldn’t believe what she had just heard. Arlo Veskovic’s annual galas and formal events were well known throughout the country, and Becca had secretly dreamed of attending one of them, but never in a million years did she ever think that Arlo Veskovic would host a charity event for her. Well, it was not for her, but for her non-profit organization. She was stunned, even though she knew she had to say something.

  “That is very generous, Arlo,” she managed to say.

  “It is for a worthy cause, and your organization has changed many lives. With the donations, I believe you can do even more good.”

  “Absolutely. We’ve been wanting to open a safe home environment for the children, and—”

  “You can do with the donations as you feel fit, Becca. No explanation is needed,” Arlo interjected before she could tell him any more. “I am certain my guests would love to hear about it at the event.”

  “Very well, Arlo. I suppose you want to meet to discuss things in detail,” Becca suggested.

  “I have arranged with my son to meet with you tomorrow at ten, if that suits you, of course.”

  “Your son?”

  “Yes. He is in charge of the planning of the entire event, as well as discussing the arrangements with you.”

  Becca sighed a breath of relief. “Tomorrow at ten is perfect.”

  “Wonderful. Speak soon, my dear.” Before Becca was able to respond in any way, Arlo ended the call, and she simply listened to the disconnect tone.

  Perfectly on cue, Becca’s office door opened, and Lucinda appeared in the doorway with a beaming smile.

  “You weren’t listening to my conversation, were you?” Becca asked, scribbling her appointment with Arlo’s son in her planner.

  “Of course not,” Lucinda answered. “Like I would do that.”

  Becca gave her a half smirk. “He wants me to meet with his son tomorrow at ten.”

  “Why?”

  “Veskovic hosts an annual ball for a select group of people. Exuberantly rich and powerful people.”

  “I know. I think the whole world knows about it. What does it have to do with you?” Lucinda asked and pulled up a chair.

  Becca took a deep breath to compose herself, still not quite over the fact the conversation she’d just had.

  “You’re looking a little pale there, Becca,” Lucinda said, and the worry returned to her brown eyes. “What’s going on?”

  “Veskovic wants to donate all the proceeds of his charity ball to us,” she struggled to say.

  “What?” Lucinda gasped. “Are you serious?”

  “I am,” Becca replied. “That’s why I am meeting with his son tomorrow. He’s apparently in charge of all the planning and all that.”

  Lucinda stood from her chair and smiled. “Becca, this is amazing. Do you even comprehend what kind of money is raised at events like that? We’re talking millions, if not billions of dollars. Do you know what we could do with all that money?”

  “We can finally open that retreat in the mountains,” Becca said, her eyes swirling with excitement.

  “Exactly,” Lucinda said with a satisfied smile. “Did he say which son?”

  “No, is there more than one?”

  “Becca, where have you been living, under a rock?”

  “No,” she defended.

  “Don’t you watch the news?”

  “I don’t stick around for the tabloid pieces. You know I’m not in
to sensationalism.”

  “They’re not in the tabloids. Well, technically just the one, but everyone knows them,” Lucinda pointed out, pulling out her phone.

  “Why? Because they’re the sons of a billionaire?”

  Lucinda gaped at Becca with an exasperated expression. “Becca, Arlo Veskovic is the Dragon King.”

  Becca’s eyes widened, and she gasped. “What?”

  Lucinda leaned forward in her chair and lowered her voice. “You’re a dragon yourself, Becca. Didn’t you know that?”

  Becca bit her bottom lip briefly and took a deep breath. “I guess I didn’t think that he’d look so...”

  “Amazing.”

  “Normal,” she interjected. “I thought that the Dragon King would be more stringent and show more authority.”

  “Maybe he’s just nicer to you because you’re a dragon, too.”

  Becca’s eyes flashed, and she sat back in her chair. “You don’t think that is why he is being so generous, do you? Because I’m a dragon, too?”

  “Becca,” Lucinda chuckled, “I was joking. He probably doesn’t even know what you are.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “It doesn’t really matter if he knows or not. What matters is that he is willing to donate all the proceeds from his charity event to your organization,” Lucinda answered. “That’s a pretty big deal.”

  “It is, yeah,” Becca said with a nod.

  There was a moment of silence while Lucinda stared down at her phone, searching for something. Becca studied her curiously, but she didn’t say a word.

  “Here.” Lucinda handed Becca her phone.

  There was a photograph of Veskovic standing beside a beautiful woman, whom Becca assumed was his wife, and four younger men. Her eyebrows shot up as she examined them individually and diverted her eyes back to Lucinda.

  “Is that his wife?” Becca avoided the fact that the four Dragon Princes were incredibly attractive.

  “Yes, she’s gorgeous, right? It almost seems wrong for her to be married to someone like him. The princes are hot, aren’t they?”

  “They’re okay,” Becca shrugged and handed Lucinda’s phone back. “How do you know so much about them?”

  “This may come as a surprise to you, Becca, but I enjoy reading about history and what the world was like thousands of years ago.”

  “Well, I’ll be damned,” Becca said and chuckled.

  Luckily, the rest of the day went smoothly, without any accidents or bad luck, much to Becca’s relief.

  When she locked the offices, it was already after six, and everyone had already gone home. The skies were dark, and the icy breeze made Becca shiver. She zipped up her jacket as she walked down the stone steps towards the small parking lot. Her car was the only one still parked out front, and she quickly climbed inside.

  Her gaze fell on the still-sealed file on the passenger seat, and she cringed, throwing her handbag on top of it.

  I don’t have the strength to deal with that right now, she thought to herself.

  The drive to her apartment was uneventful, since she missed the rush-hour traffic. Cars now flowed smoothly, and Becca felt calm for the first time that day.

  The image of Veskovic and his family flashed through her mind, and she wondered which one of the princes she would meet with tomorrow. Her palms started to sweat, and she silently scolded herself for acting like a teenage girl with a crush. She needed to keep it together, be professional at all times. She didn’t want Veskovic to think that she wasn’t focused enough while meeting with his son. She wanted to be taken seriously, so now she had to act like it.

  At a red light, she stopped her car and glanced at the file once again, its corner sticking out from under her handbag. She ran her fingers through her dark brown hair and knew she had to look inside the file sooner or later. Lucinda had made it perfectly clear how long she had struggled to get her hands on the information that was inside, which of course made Becca feel guilty. Lucinda had gone to so much trouble and effort to get a hold of her family records, she was practically forced to open it.

  She noticed the light turn green, and just as she started to pull away, a black Lamborghini sped around the corner, with zero regard for the red light.

  Becca slammed on her brakes and watched in exasperation and disapproval as the Lamborghini sped past her.

  “Oh, my gods! What a jerk!” she exclaimed, her heart pounding in her chest. She slowly pulled away again and drove home.

  Her apartment was warm, and as she cuddled up on her couch after she had dinner, she gazed out the window. The sealed file lay on the coffee table, directly below her line of sight. It was as if she was afraid to look at it for longer than a moment.

  Becca wasn’t exactly sure why she felt this way, but something still made her very uneasy about learning more about her family. Her conversation with Lucinda also replayed in her mind, adding more dread to the situation than there already was.

  What if her family had been a bunch of killers? What if they had been bad people, and it was all there in the file?

  Becca was afraid that her family was the cause of the violence she had been born into but didn’t remember. What if they had caused it? What if they had caused the deaths of so many people and the collapse of so many homes and buildings?

  The uncertainty would drive her crazy, but she was also torn between wanting to know and not wanting to.

  She discarded thoughts of what the file could possibly contain and stood from the couch. She walked to her bedroom, and as she approached the window, she heard screeching tires in the distance. She peered out the window just in time to see the black Lamborghini from earlier whizz down the street.

  “That lunatic is at it again,” she muttered and closed the shades.

  Becca considered reporting the driver for his reckless driving and complete disregard towards the laws, but she wondered whether the police department might think she was being petty.

  How many black Lamborghinis could there possibly be in Vancouver? she thought as she took a shower.

  While getting ready for bed, she remembered her meeting with Veskovic’s son tomorrow morning, and she grabbed her phone. She searched for the Veskovic family and found the picture Lucinda had shown her earlier that day. She couldn’t believe that someone like Veskovic could have such a beautiful wife and four very attractive sons.

  “They definitely take after their mother,” she mumbled to herself. Veskovic wasn’t an unattractive man, but his sons were ridiculously good looking. “I wonder who I’ll be meeting with tomorrow.”

  She found an article online with their names, which were as gorgeous as they were, but since Veskovic didn’t mention the name of his son, it could be any one of the four. It didn’t really matter which one it was, to be honest, because there was no way that any of the princes would give her a second glance.

  Becca didn’t consider herself to be unattractive, but she wasn’t nearly attractive enough for a Dragon Prince to notice her. Men like them were in a completely different league, and she didn’t stand a chance.

  Not that she wanted to stand a chance. Her dating life was less than booming, and the last relationship she had, had ended in tragedy.

  He was a human, and she should have known that it was a relationship doomed from the start. She couldn’t tell him about her being a dragon, and that lie tore them apart—quite literally.

  Sure, it had been almost five centuries ago, but she still remembered it like it was yesterday, and the vision of watching him being trampled to death by another dragon would stay with her forever.

  She still hadn’t forgiven herself for what had happened to him, as it could have been prevented if she had merely told him the truth. She also knew, though, that he would not have believed her.

  Becca fell down against the soft pillows and stared up at the ceiling, hoping that one day she would find the strength to let go of the past and move on with her life.

  3

  Dax’s brow furrowe
d at the building in front of him. His father had told him where the non-profit organization was located, but Dax was convinced he was in the wrong place. It was on the wrong side of town—as he tactlessly referred to it—which was where he never went. He was too busy living the high life to notice that Vancouver had a poorer and less glamorous part.

  He strutted towards the stone steps and slipped his sunglasses off. He opened the wooden door and stepped inside. He was surprised by the size of the offices and casually, very suavely, walked to the small front desk. A middle-aged woman with grey hair and a friendly face glanced at him with a smile and said, “Good morning, sir. May I help you?”

  “I have an appointment with Ms. Dillon,” he answered in his usual low and velvety tone.

  “And your name is?”

  “Veskovic.”

  The woman’s eyes widened slightly, but she remained professional. “Ms. Dillon is on a call at the moment. Let me show you to the meeting room, Mr. Veskovic.”

  “Thank you,” Dax said, flashing her a smile, and he followed the woman down the hallway.

  She opened a paneled door and motioned towards him to enter. Dax stepped into the room and took in his surroundings. It was a simple meeting room, with a large table in the middle and chairs positioned around it. A large window looked over a small concrete courtyard behind the building, and a copy of a Renoir painting he knew very well hung next to the window. His father owned the original, and regrettably, Dax had always hated it.

  “Ms. Dillon will be right with you, Mr. Veskovic. Can I bring you a cup of coffee?”

  “No, thank you. I am fine.”

  The woman nodded and quietly left the room.

  Dax sat in one of the chairs, making himself as comfortable as he could. He stared at the painting again. He should really give this place the benefit of the doubt, because it wasn’t their fault that they had a different taste in art. It was also clear that this organization needed the funds his father was willing to donate to them, although he wondered why exactly his father had chosen this place.