Chapter 1
-Ethan-
“No, are you serious?” A giggle to my left made me turn my head. There was Cecilia on the balcony, her phone in one hand and a cigarette in the other, fully engrossed in some meaningless conversation. I shook my head in disapproval at my step-cousin’s behavior. I had been concerned for her for a while now, and I knew I wasn’t the only one, but she seemed impervious to my or her brother’s advice. Nevertheless, I moved closer to her, hearing another giggle before she sensed someone behind her.
“Oh, fuck,” she muttered, quickly hiding the cigarette behind her back and lowering her phone. I could still hear the conversation going on, but Cecilia wasn’t responding.
“Ethan!” she exclaimed innocently.
“What are you doing?” I questioned, leaning against the doorframe.
“Just talking,” she replied casually.
“About?”
“Why is that any of your business?” she shot back.
“Because the last time you were ‘just talking’, Ryker and I had to come get you from some sketchy neighborhood while you were drunk out of your mind,” I reminded her.
“I was just having fun.”
“No, you got yourself in trouble. Again,” I pointed out.
“I’m not a kid. I’m 24, and you don’t get to rule over me just because you’re going to be the next king with Ryker,” she snapped.
Cecilia’s behavior was getting worse, and so was her temper, as she seemed determined to challenge every alpha she could find. I stepped forward, grabbing the arm that held the cigarette, and she smiled innocently at me. I extinguished the cigarette.
“Come on! It’s just one.”
“Really?” I asked, then sniffed her and recoiled. “You smell like an ashtray.”
“I do not!”
“Yes, you do, and you know what happens if my mom catches you.”
Cecilia grew pale, well aware of how much my adoptive mother hated that she smoked so much.
“Don’t tell Aunt Octavia,” she pleaded.
“If you start quitting like you promised. Otherwise, you might as well change your clothes and start running,” I taunted.
“You’re such an ass!”
“No, I’m an alpha,” I mocked her, crossing my arms.
“Yes, an alphahole! So annoying!” she growled before stepping around me and returning to her call.
“Quit smoking!” I yelled after her.
“Bite my pretty ass!”
I rolled my eyes, wondering what we were going to do with her, before I was distracted by a call through the mate bond. I smiled and followed the call to my dad’s office. I opened the door, seeing Ryker sitting in his uncle’s chair, with a playful smile on his face as he threw his arms out, relishing the idea of being the next king.
“Tell me how good I look in this chair,” he teased me, making me chuckle as I stepped in and closed the door.
It wasn’t the first time Ryker had come here to sit in the chair and get a feel for what it meant to be the next king. His playful behavior only made me love him more, and I stepped closer, sitting down in front of him.
“You look good,” I told him.
“Now with more feeling. I look freaking amazing, and my mate should appreciate the handsomeness in front of him,” Ryker teased me.
I shook my head, leaning to the side, but Cecilia was still on my mind.
“What is it?” he questioned. “Usually, you don’t mind showering me with compliments.”
“No, I don’t, but I am concerned about Cecilia. She is acting stranger and stranger.”
“Yeah, she has gotten out of control. I don’t know what to do. Every time I try to talk to her or Dad does, it always ends in a fight. Our mom is too lenient. She never scolds Cecilia and just uses her own upbringing to justify her ‘liberation’.”
I nodded, understanding Aunt Selene’s reasons. She came from such a strict environment that it wasn’t surprising she didn’t want to impose restrictions on her daughter. However, that didn’t mean it wasn’t a cause for concern.
“We need to make her realize that her behavior is leading her down a dangerous path,” I pointed out.
“If you have any suggestions, I’m all ears,” Ryker replied.
I leaned back, pondering the situation, but I couldn’t come up with any new ideas.
“My dad thinks finding a mate will calm her down,” Ryker informed me.
“Then we just need to help her find one.”
“As if mates grow on trees,” he chuckled. “It’s too bad she didn’t find one here in the pack like you and me.”
“We knew from when we were young teens,” I reminded him.
He smiled at me, his love for me evident in his eyes, and the tension between us grew as we locked gazes. Just as I was about to move from my seat, the door swung open, and in walked Melody. Her heavy leather boots thudded on the floorboards, and the black lipstick she wore stretched as she turned to face us.
“Hello, boys!” she teased us. Although she was over a decade older than us, she would become the next beta once Ryker assumed the leading position.
I groaned and shook my head, while Ryker chuckled.
“Hello, girl,” he playfully retorted.
Melody laughed, taking her seat and turning to us with an expression that clearly said, “I had a great morning in bed.”
“How’s Bea?” I inquired.
“Still in resting from all the orgasms I gave her,” Melody replied nonchalantly.
“Ah!”
“Come on!” I exclaimed.
Melody chuckled, finding herself amusing as she talked about pleasuring her mate. Ryker and I shook our heads. Nevertheless, the energy was relaxing, and it was good to just be the three of us.
“So, what are we talking about?” Melody asked, crossing one leg over the other and facing us. Her sidecut hairstyle made half her face hidden from my angle unless she turned her head.
“Cecilia,” I replied.
“Oh, Goddess. What is it this time? Drugs? Partying? Guys all over her?” Melody inquired.
“Probably all of it,” I sighed.
“She just needs to find her place. With time, it will come,” Melody assured us. “She’s only 24.”
“Yeah? Weren’t you the best female warrior in the pack by 24?” I pointed out.
Melody shrugged, looking quite pleased with herself. “Perhaps.”
“Cecilia is probably the wildest wolf in this pack, and I don’t like it,” I said.
“Me neither.”
“Well, you can’t really tie her up,” Melody said. “So you just need to let her make her mistakes and hopefully she’ll learn.”
“Or,” Ryker began, and we both looked intrigued at him. “I could enact a law that my twin sister isn’t allowed to leave my sight.”
Melody and I exchanged worried glances before refocusing on Ryker.
“I see you’re already abusing your power before even becoming king,” she teased.
Ryker smiled, leaned back again, and looked satisfied. “I think it’s brilliant. Don’t you, Ethan?”
“While I’m all for keeping Cecilia safe, I don’t think that’s the way to go about it.”
Ryker sighed, rubbing his eyes. “Then give me an idea.”
“Let her have her fun and keep her safe when you can. She will learn,” Melody assured us.
“I’m not so sure,” I whispered.
We all fell into silence, contemplating Cecilia’s behavior when the door behind us opened once more. In walked my dad, the King of the Werewolves. He looked puzzled at the group before his eyes landed on Ryker, who was sitting in his seat. My dad was massive, and as he approached Ryker, he cast a shadow over his nephew.
“You’re in my seat, boy,” my dad teased.
“I look better in it, uncle, admit it.”
My dad shook his head, then physically removed Ryker from the seat like a disobedient pup and placed him beside it so he could sit down. Ryker sulked the moment he wasn’t in the big chair anymore, crossing his arms. I chuckled a little before meeting my dad’s yellow eyes, the same eyes that Ryker and Cecilia possessed. I didn’t share that bloodline, as I wasn’t related to any of them by blood, but it didn’t make us any less of a family.
