Mated To My Step-Father

“You know if you end up with one of those really rich and hot Alphas that are nice you could get your teeth fixed and some really nice outfits!” Joseline rudely points out as she slobbers all over the red popsicle in her hand that was dripping down her arm and onto the grass.

The warm air blew over us and I flipped the book page in my hand, pretending to be completely absorbed into what I was reading and ignoring her as I usually did. I’d rather chew grass and drink dirt than feed into the nonsense. I didn’t want any Alpha to be breathing all over me. Screw them all. Sweat trickled down my neck and I huffed in frustration. My t-shirt was already soaked. I hated the heat.

I glanced at the skimpy halter top and mini skirt Joseline wore that left little to the imagination. Goddess, she was a nuisance, but she was so smart. The summer was broiling and this wasn’t even the worst of it. We should be in the cool shades of the forests, not on the side of the streets like strays. My wolf would do anything to bathe in a lake of fresh cool water right now. Anything. Joseline cleared her throat and I realized I’d been sidetracked, she was waiting for some kind of answer from me.

“Uh huh” I replied dryly, hoping she’d drop it but it only aggravated her.

She adjusts her large breasts in her striped halter top before she sits up in frustration and narrows her blue eyes at me in annoyance. I exhaled loudly and subconsciously rubbed my tongue over my gapped teeth. They weren’t that bad. Sure, a few of my teeth were scattered and chucked together but they did what they needed to.

“You’re not listening.” she points out after which she rolls her eyes dramatically. It was hard to take Joseline seriously when her entire mouth was cherry red.

Joseline was already eighteen and basically a woman, her birthday arrived a few weeks before mine. She celebrated it by keeping a giving up her virginity party and that she did. While others lived life one step at a time, she went full throttle ahead. She had a night of sex to ring in being a woman and now every day I have to attend sex ed sessions with her so I can live vicariously through her. Now she was ready to risk it all to find a mate who was willing to take on a girl like her so she could be placed in a good pack and essentially have a better life. But the chances were slim, very slim. It was much easier for a male wolf to pick a pack girl they knew from their beloved pack than a trailer trash. Also male wolves were hypocritical pricks. They wanted to whore around and mate virgins. But she might get lucky if she meets the one.

Joseline, my slightly chubby, bright eyed, freckled eighteen-year-old best friend, believed that a short leather mini skirt and a low-cut top could now solve all of her problems. With her body it probably could. I on the other hand looked underdeveloped. I was too skinny for my age, too doe eyed and plain. My hair was long but paper thin so I hid it in a ponytail daily. I was a plank of board with mostly teeth, bones and forehead. I wasn’t getting off the market any time soon. I wasn’t anything to look at and my personality wasn’t all that great either. I wasn’t a great conversationalist and I just didn’t mesh well with other people. I had problems looking everyone in the eye and I fell over my words every time I opened my mouth. It just never came out the way my brain formulated it. I am a certified idiot through and through.

“You’re not taking this seriously Pumpkin!” Joseline shouts in indignation and I look at her in anger. I wish she would change the topic to something more productive like getting a job.

It was a dead dream they fed to the brain less. I looked over at the worn out ruins of the trailer park a few feet from us, inhaled the smell of the polluted lake water and listened to the rustle of the trees around us.

Joseline and I were born in a beat-up trailer park, a wolf trailer park that was parked on the dirty edge of the lake. We were rogue wolves, lost in the wind with no pack and hardly any money. We were barely getting by as it is. I didn’t have time for daydreaming. I’d rather try to figure out how many more shifts I could get down at Busby’s. I needed money, that’s what I needed. I could see how that would benefit me, not a tired fantasy that I’d waste my entire life on. It was all the rogue wolves in this park dreamed of and I was sick of it. The human world is our best hope.

I knew it was in desperation to belong to a pack that they believed a mate would come and sweep them off of their feet, but I believed in seeing life for what it was and making the best of it. It made no sense to waste time crying over a wolf or well.. mate. The best I could make out of my life was to find a good paying server job and buy my own trailer. I’d park it next to my mom’s.

I’d also make sure not to procreate so that no child of mine would have to grow up in this hell I’d been dumped in. Why everyone couldn’t be so practical was beyond me. I shifted on the lump of leaves beneath my head and tried not to give Joseline any attention. She got high of these fantasies and delusions. I couldn’t even blame her. It gave her something to look forward to.

“If your mother gets you out of here.” she whispers conspiratorially. “Then you have the chance to mate with somebody decent. You get to live a better life and take me with you. The guy she’s seeing now looks very promising. I hear he’s the hot shit.”

I scrunch my brows in irritation, anger pooling in my veins despite my efforts to levelheaded. I clutched the book so tightly the pages started to crinkle. It was just us, my mother and I. It’s always been just us. We could survive, just the two of us but she wanted more. She wanted to bring a man into the equation. Men ruined everything.

She met Boone at her bartending job and they’ve been going out on dates ever since. He didn’t seem put off by the trailer yet or he just hasn’t gotten what he wants. They usually disappear after that. A few nights in bed and they’d pack up and leave along with their promises and declarations of love. This is the longest any male wolf has stuck around. I swallowed the lump in my throat.

Somehow, I felt betrayed. He was messing up the routine of our lives. It was all she would talk about these days. She even burnt breakfast a few mornings now. I had to resort to cereal. We could make it on our own. But if he mated and marked her then we would have to join a pack and I didn’t want a pack. Screw all packs. I hated that Joseline had gotten under my skin and I was doing a poor job at pretending to read. I hadn’t skipped the page since she started babbling.

“You don’t have to look so excited.” Joseline comments with a dry laugh as she looks at me worriedly. “I hear your mother’s date is really something to look at, like really look at. Your mom is really lucky you know that they even consider her, age and all.”

I look at Joseline puzzled now because for all the dates my mother has been on, I’ve never met or seen him before. Boone was a complete mystery to me, and I had tuned my mother out when she would rave about him and their nights together. I tried to remove myself and not be seen. It didn’t make any sense for me to kill the mood as the plus one teenage daughter. It worked better for her if he wasn’t constantly reminded it was a two for one deal.

I made sure to make myself very unavailable whenever he was coming around which wasn’t hard because Busby gave me the evening shifts in the kitchen at the bar whenever I asked for extra time during the weekends. There also wasn’t any space in the cramped trailer and I had to give my mother space in case they wanted to feel each other up. I scrunch my face in disgust, even though he didn’t seem interested in ever lingering around.

“What’s wrong?” Joseline asks and I shake my head, trying to purge it of the image of my mother and her date naked.

“Nothing.” I shake my head.

Joseline narrows her eyes at me before she quickly grabs the book from my hand and slaps my arm.

“Pumpkin!” she screams.

“Ouch!” I respond, rubbing my bruised arm and throwing my anger at her.

“You’ve never met or seen the man that your own mother is dating?!”

“I’ve been busy and keep your voice down!” I demand.

“You bitch! No wonder you’ve been at the bar so much!” she screams in indignation and holds my book out of reach. “What if she gets kidnapped or something? How will you know who to look for?!”

My mouth dried. It was very irresponsible of me but it was also my way of protesting against her dating. Guilt starts to eat me alive as the weight of her words settle in on me. I haven’t been the best daughter lately. Sure, I didn’t have to like him but I could try to be there for my mother in case something happens. My mind starts to whirl around Joseline’s words about my mother’s age and all. I started to worry about what he really wanted. I refused however to let Joseline know she was right. I bottle my regrets as I dread the stranger I hadn’t paid any mind that was creeping into our lives. I really was an idiot.

“The entire trailer park knows what he looks like.” she lets me know and I turn to look at her. “It’s a good thing I’m nosey. You know what it’s like around here Pumpkin. It’s every wolf for themselves.”

It was true, no one owned you anything, no loyalty or protection. You had to fend for yourself and be on the look out always. The good thing is that our trailer park wasn’t so bad. Sure, there were times it got pretty violent but it could be worse.

“You can’t do selfish shit like this. If something happens to me I need to know you’ll come looking for me Pumpkin!” Joseline begs and I was offended she’d take it this far. “What if I go out on a date and a wolf thinks I’m a trailer trash so no one would come looking for me and goes haywire.”

My heart skipped a beat at her words. I wanted to beg her to forget this fantasy of hers, but she would never listen to me. She was too strong willed and filled with optimism for that. Instead, I take a deep breath and hope for the best.

“Duh!” I tell her “Of course, I’ll come looking for you! You know I’d search the ends of the Earth for you Joss. You’re practically my sister.”

Her words made me realize just how dangerous this dream of hers was. I couldn’t lose her. Aside from my mother she was all I had. She kept me sane and grounded.

“Aww you love me!” she croons.

She hands me my book to lie down beside me and cuddle into my arm. I enjoy her warmth and candy sugar perfume. We’ve been attached at the hips since we were young.

“So, what does he look like?” I ask her softly, breaking the silence.

“A god!” she starts and I roll my eyes wishing I’d never asked. "Breathtaking! He’s everything you could ever dream of. I swear Pumpkin you will change your mind about men if you ever saw him.”

I listened as she went on and on. I vowed to never be man crazy but I also vowed to try and get a good look at this mysterious stranger the next time he took my mother out.

A/N

Welcome to a new book and a new world. I know very scandalous but we love to start chaos over here. This book will be short and to the point. It will not be more than twenty chapters if it even gets that far. It will also not be free until completion. I look forward to reading the comments and reviews.