Jayce: Undercover Alphas, #2

By L.C. Davis

Deep undercover to investigate rumors of embezzlement at one of his family's companies, Jayce Roman finds himself magnetically attracted to his number-one suspect.

Lonely omega Wren Smith is a single father struggling to provide a good life for his hard-of-hearing daughter in an alpha's world. When his mate Travis Mueller was killed in a tragic accident, the wealthy Mueller family refused to acknowledge Wren or Harriet, perceiving them both as a threat to their "perfect" son's legacy. Wren is proud of the life he's built on his own since Travis left them with nothing, and he's grateful to have a job at a company that's willing to employ a single-parent omega, even if it means covering for his smarmy boss. But when a young alpha named Jack Coheed shows up amid rumors of a company audit, Wren finds himself at the center of a high-stakes investigation -- and the dashing alpha's attention. 

With a newly minted Econ degree and a desire to prove himself to his family, Jayce Roman is finally ready to get serious. He wants more out of life than an endless string of modelesque lovers and meaningless flings, and Wren Smith is more in every way. The husky omega is clever and responsible, and seemingly oblivious to the nerdy charm that has Jayce smitten at first sight. Unfortunately for him, Wren isn't at all interested in being swept off his feet by a much younger alpha and all signs point to the omega being at the center of the very corruption Jayce was sent to investigate.

When Jayce's secret identity and Wren's secrets collide, Jayce will have to prove he can step up and be not only a mate to Wren but a father to his daughter as well. The omega's dream of a happily ever after might have been shattered, but this alpha is determined to fit the pieces back together.

This is the second book in the Undercover Alphas series. Readers 18+ only.

• Language: English
• Publisher: L.C. Davis
• Release date: Dec 13, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393371267

Book preview

Chapter 1

Wren

I need that report on my desk by three, my boss said without looking up from his smartphone. I hadn’t even sat down at my desk or shrugged out of my coat yet, but as soon as I came in, Tyler always had something for me to do, as if he was just picking up a conversation we’d left off earlier. Like everyone else in the department, Tyler had been a bundle of nerves ever since the first whispers of an audit reached our floor. 

Tyler was the head of the accounting department for the tech company I’d spent the last five years working for. EraCorp was by far one of the least interesting subsidiaries of the vast Roman Empire, but the pay was decent and the health insurance made putting up with Tyler’s demands worth it. EraCorp was also one of the only companies that had been willing to hire an unmated omega with a child to care for. There were plenty of companies that outright refused to hire omegas with children.

Got it, Mr. Ellis, I said, slipping out of my scarf and jacket, hanging them both on the hook outside my cubicle. It still felt strange to call someone I had gone to high school with mister anything, but Tyler’s dad was the company CEO and despite the fact that he barely made it out of college with a C-minus average, the interview process had been all but a formality. He was an alpha, after all. Advanced degrees in information systems and computer science meant little compared to that. Omegas were supposed to consider ourselves lucky to land any position outside the service or caretaking industries, and I did. This job meant I could take care of my daughter after my not-quite-mate had been killed in a car accident when Harriet was just a few months old. 

Travis had insisted that I quit my last job once I got pregnant. He’d also promised that he would finally stand up to his family and mark me as his mate, but nothing about my life had worked out the way I’d thought it would. Sometimes it got to me, but all it took was one glance at the picture of the blue-eyed imp in my desk to remind me that I wouldn’t trade any of it. Not for her. Not even if it meant putting up with the demands of entitled alphas.

Oh, and one more thing, Tyler said, doubling back to my cubicle. He actually looked up from his phone, so I knew it was serious. There’s a new employee starting tomorrow. He’s a recent Whitaker University grad and they’re expecting good things from him upstairs, so it’s important that he gets a good impression of this department.

Good old Whitaker U, the hallowed halls of academia where rich alphas sent their kids to party for four years. As long as they made fraternity connections they could use to become even richer alphas, anyway. They were always fun to work with. At least now that I was closer to forty than thirty and no longer sporting the six pack I'd had before Travis swept me off my feet, I was invisible to most alphas. They usually spent their charm on the younger secretaries. They still expected me to do most of their work and let them take credit for it, but climbing the rungs of the company ladder wasn’t in my wheelhouse anyway. My strategy was the same as it had been five years ago when I’d taken the job. Keep my head down, work hard, stay employed.

It wasn’t a glamorous life, but it was mine and I intended to keep it that way, even if it meant kissing up to frat boys from time to time. They never lasted long, whether they got canned for harassing the secretaries or simply moved on to more entertaining positions. I’ll do my best, sir.

That seemed to satisfy Tyler. He gave me a curt nod and took off, typing out a message on his phone. I’d never understood how he saw where he was going with that thing in front of his face. Sighing, I sat down at my desk and started answering emails. Three executives had forgotten their passwords again, and one couldn’t figure out why his computer was running slow even though he never shut it down and clicked on every damn email attachment that popped up in his inbox. As I made my usual rounds from one end of the building to the other, I found myself resenting the fact that I didn’t have the body of a marathon runner by now. I was not one of those omegas who’d bounced back into shape after having a kid, though to be fair, the vending machines weren’t helping matters. 

By the time five o’clock rolled around, I was exhausted and I still had a pile of work to catch up on. At least I could work on most of it at home and come in early after I dropped Harriet off at my sister’s. I tucked my company laptop into my computer bag and headed out the door before Tyler could find me and add another one more thing to my to-do list. 

When I pulled up at Susan’s in my less-than-flashy but nevertheless reliable SUV, I could hear the other kids who attended her home daycare shrieking. It sounded like an amusement park, and as much as I adored my kid, the idea of running after ten of them sounded like my own personal hell. I knocked and waited for my sister to appear and she gave me a weary look. You know, you could just come in.

Yeah, but then I’d have to come in.

She rolled her eyes, motioning for Harriet. 

A few seconds later, my daughter popped up at Susan’s side. The neat braids I’d styled her mop of curly red hair into that morning were all but undone, and her shirt was covered in paint. I see it’s art day, I said, giving Susan the side eye. 

Hey, as long as they’re not painting the walls, I consider it a victory.

I cupped my hands inward and pointed at Harriet to sign, How are you?

She pressed her right hand to her mouth and dropped it into her left. Good! She pulled a folded piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to me. The paint was still a bit tacky. Looked like those overalls were going to have to go in the wash, too.

Wow, I said with a big smile, looking over the painting. It featured the two of us and in Harriet’s arms was a small creature with pointed ears and a long tail. Is that a cat?

Her brows furrowed and she patted her hip angrily. Dog!

I winced, forming the letter A with my hand and making a clockwise circle over my chest. Sorry.

She was giving me wide puppy eyes and I began to suspect that she had intentionally painted it that way so I’d end up in the doghouse myself when she signed, Can I have one? Please?

I sighed. No. We’d had the Dog Discussion no less than ten times in the last month, but getting a five-year-old to understand the finer points of lease restrictions was a lost cause.

I held my hand out to Harriet and said goodbye to Susan. By the time we were on the road, Harriet seemed to have moved on from the puppy and lost herself in her book, but I knew it would come up again. With her love for animals, I wouldn’t have been surprised if she became a veterinarian one day, but as much as I didn’t want to risk putting the same pressures on her that had been placed on Travis, part of me hoped she would turn out to be an alpha. There were enough people who would feel entitled to tell her what her limitations were in life as it was, and while I knew I wouldn’t always be able to protect her from that, I could hope. 

Then again, being an alpha hadn’t made it possible for Travis to do what he wanted. To the day he’d died, he had been afraid to claim his mate and his child as his own for fear of what his parents would think. At least, I told myself that was what he wanted. He left us before he could prove it either way.

Chapter 2

Jayce

For the hundred-millionth time, I’ve got this.

As I stood in my living room, my older brother, Gray and his mate, Dylan were both looking at me like I had grown a second head. To be fair, the makeover--or makeunder, in this case--I’d undergone for the mission I was about to take on was nearly as dramatic of a change. After some deep soul searching, I’d finally agreed to the big chop and my once-luscious mane was now your basic Silicone Valley top cut. I felt a bit like Samson after Delilah had gotten to him, but it was worth it. Gray’s undercover mission at one of our dad’s new acquisitions had landed him the omega of his dreams and an adorable kid plus one on the way, so who knew? With a newly minted Econ degree and an abundance of free time on my hands, I’d been trying to convince my dad and brothers to let me take on a more active role in the family business, and this was just the opportunity I needed to prove to them that I was more than the party boy they were used to having to pick up the slack for.

Around the same time that Gray had found his mate, Reece had lost his and he needed to focus on his daughter, Anika, as much as possible. Gray was only slightly better at delegating than our father, and I knew the only reason he was even giving me a shot at this was because Dylan was pregnant again and needed more help at home with their son. Parker was adorable, but he was taking the terrible twos literally. 

I know you think that, but this isn’t just a game of spy, Gray said, somehow seeming not to notice the fact that Parker was pulling on his hair. The stakes are high, and if anyone recognizes you…

They won’t, I said, taking another glance in the mirror I’d brought out from my room for the occasion. Gray and Dylan were supposed to be helping me with my undercover look, but so far, Dylan was doing all the helping while Gray was doing the nagging. Even I didn’t recognize me now that I’d traded my designer bad boy clothes for a modest gray suit and tie. It was slightly unnerving how easy it was to look like every other salaryman alpha, but dorky glasses and a bad haircut could work...wonders?

He’s right, he doesn’t look like himself, Dylan agreed. He almost looks respectable.

I clutched my chest like an arrow had gone through it. Et tu, Brute?

Dylan gave me a mischievous smile. 

You can’t blame us for worrying, Gray muttered. Dad and I have been trying to get you involved in the company for years, but you’ve never shown an interest until now and you don’t have a great track record of following through on things.

You guys never needed me until now, I reminded him. And I finished my degree, didn’t I?

After changing your major what, seven times?

The point is, I picked one and I finished. And what about my charity?

You pay people to manage it for you, show up to a few fundraisers here and there, and pet the dogs.

I scowled. 

Honey, remember what we talked about, Dylan said softly, squeezing his mate’s hand. Everyone grows up.

Gray muttered something under his breath, but while he could be a tyrant in the boardroom, the omega who bore his mark had him wrapped around his finger. You’re right. I just hope he remembers the severity of the matter at hand, he said pointedly, looking straight at me. EraCorp has been hemorrhaging cash and if we don’t find out why, there’s going to be a lot of media attention. That’s the last thing this family needs.

News of Gray’s mating to a former employee of the Cathouse, which was pretty much an omega strip club that happened to serve shitty food, had been all over the papers for a while, catapulting Gray into the spotlight I’d once lived for. Point a few flashbulbs at him, on the other hand, and he started hissing and shrinking back like Nosferatu. Yeah, I got it. Lay low, find out who’s embezzling money, save the family from an embarrassing tabloid scandal. Easy. If I find the love of my life in the process, so be it.

Gray’s face fell. See, this is exactly why I’m worried.

Relax, bro, I’m just messing with you. Mostly. Besides, I finally have a chance to prove I’m more than just a pretty face. You know how good I am with numbers. I’m like that guy in that movie with the math and sunglasses.

Dylan arched an eyebrow. ‘Rain Man’?

Yeah, like that only with math.

Gray and Dylan exchanged a worried look. Maybe we should send Reece, Dylan murmured. 

Guys! Come on, I’ve got this. For the next few months, I’m Jack Coheed, mild-mannered accountant by day, even more boring dude by night.

Jack Coheed? Gray echoed. 

What? Every spy needs a code name.

Just make a note of anything weird and don’t do anything stupid, Gray pleaded. And try not to run the company into the ground, either.

Check, check and obviously check, I said, taking Parker from his arms. You believe in me, don’t ya, buddy?

The kid giggle-snorted and started pulling my hair. Not exactly the ringing endorsement I’d hoped for, but close enough.

Chapter 3

Wren

Of all the mornings I could have chosen to run late on, it had to be the morning the new hire was showing up. Evidently, I’d