Alpha's Second Chance (Second Chance Book 2)

17

Jackson (surprise!)

Getting off the phone with Evan was one of the hardest things I had to do. He sounded so defeated! I knew I had to get over there to see him, but the problem would be convincing my stubborn mate to come with me!

I had a couple ideas of how to go about doing it.

I decided to first talk to Papa about what was going on, and see what his take on the situation was.

I knocked on Papa's door, and when he said I could, I opened the door, shutting it behind me.

"Jackie, it's nice to see you again! Is there something I can help you with? Or do you just want to talk and catch up?" Emerson Hayes asked jovially.

I smiled. Papa was the only one who had ever dared to give me a nickname like that, and honestly, I liked it because it was special.

The smile faded when I sat down on the chair next to his, and he put down the newspaper he had been reading. The look on my face must've clued him in on the nature of my visit, because his expression and posture did a full 180 and he gave me a serious look.

"What's going on, Jackson? Is something wrong?"

I took a moment to gather my thoughts before attempting to speak.

"It's about Dean..." I started.

Papa frowned. He didn't like my ex-mate, and I couldn't exactly blame him. He'd caused me a lot of pain in the past, but I also couldn't hate Dean either. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have my beautiful girls, and Clayton and I wouldn't have met.

"What about that good-for-nothing Alpha? I heard he was banished from his pack and forced to become a lone wolf. He wasn't even welcomed in any nearby packs or even human towns and had to travel a long way. I haven't heard anything about him recently though." The last part was mumbled, and I was grateful he hadn't heard anything lately.

"Well, he called a couple weeks ago, actually."

Papa raised his eyebrows and stayed silent, wanting me to explain further. I went into detail about what the conversation had been about, and what I told Dean to do for his mate.

Papa was silent for a few minutes as he thought. Finally he gave me an approving look, which I didn't quite understand.

"I'm glad that Alpha-hole decided to change for the better," he said. "And I hope he actually took your advice on it all. Otherwise he will never truly change."

"Actually, he did. I just got off the phone with his mate, Evan. He told me Dean did everything, got flowers that had the meanings he wanted to say, and even continued to do so after they finally marked each other."

"Then why did you come in here looking so serious? Don't tell me you plan to go visit them or some crazy bullshit like that."

I rubbed the back of my head. He hit the nail on the head. But I hadn't had the opportunity yet to tell him why Evan had called.

Before I could, there was a knock on the door. Clayton walked in, two toddlers hanging off his legs, giggling the entire time, as he held a small boy in his arm.

"Did Jackson come in here by any chance?" Clayton asked.

I giggled at the sight of my big, strong alpha being held captive by two giggling three-year-olds with pigtails.

The sound got their attention, as well as their daddy's. Jordan and Jocelyn removed themselves form Clayton's legs and ran to me, screaming, "Papa!"