This Family of Mine

Scarlett

I step out of the shower, wrapping my towel around myself as I stare at the second door in the bathroom. A door that leads into Elijah's room.

I better start getting into a routine of locking that door. He hasn't been home for nearly two years thanks to him deciding not to come for the summer holidays and I might have just gotten a little too relaxed.

Originally, when we moved into this home after Dad and Mama got married, Elijah had thrown a fit about us coming into his mom's place, and I totally got that. We stumbled on this pack and were given a home, and then the Alpha took an interest in Mama. He had recently lost his mate, and he found some solace with her company, but it wasn't easy for Elijah.

Dad and Mama were two broken souls who became one, but Elijah couldn't understand that, so a few of the rooms in the house have remained locked as Elijah refused to let anyone invade his mother's places. Dad loves Mama, but he will always hold a special place in his heart for Elijah's mother, something that Elijah doesn't seem to see.

Even today, those rooms remain locked. Sometimes I've been curious to see what's inside, to see what she was like, but I never managed to even get a peep. Even the curtains remain drawn.

Because of that, there were only three other rooms spare. Mine, the one he has now with the adjoining bathroom between us and a slightly larger one, which was originally his. But as we got older, Indigo and I began to drift apart. We clashed a lot. The shared bathroom wasn't working, and so Dad had made it clear to Elijah that either he give his room up to one of us or let me have his Mama's old library room. Elijah had then given up his own room and, because it was larger, Indigo had jumped to claim it, and being the spoilt little brat she is, she got it.

And here I am stuck sharing with him. He's been gone for five years aside from the summer holidays, and I've enjoyed having the space to myself.

I step out of the bathroom, enjoying the feel of the plush carpet beneath my feet only to stop, seeing Mama sitting on the bed, her legs crossed. She's tall and slender, her build is more like Indigo's, right down to her black hair and blue eyes, and me… I look like my father.

My stomach churns at the thought of that monster, and I push those thoughts away to a deep corner where they belong, right at the back of my mind. Tightly bolted away in the darkest corner where I don't dare venture. They'll return some nights but that's something I have no control over, but I sure as hell can stop thinking about them during the day.

"Scarlett," Mama says, placing the book she was flipping through down.

Her eyes are full of concern, and she tucks a strand of her straight black hair behind her ear, and I cock a brow.

"What is it?" I ask, going over to my wardrobe and pulling out an oversized hoodie and pulling it on before I grab some panties and put them on. I glance at Mama when she doesn't say anything and raise an eyebrow.

"I know you and Elijah clash, but you need to respect him. He is soon to be the Alpha. Your Alpha."

I glance at her in the mirror, seeing the sadness in her eyes. Despite being the Luna of this pack, I know Mama isn't fully acknowledged by the pack members. It has been years since we joined this pack – eight years to be precise, and near seven since she's become the Luna.

When Elijah's mom, Luna Ella, was killed in a rogue attack, it had left the pack and the Alpha devastated. He was a broken man and when Mama stepped into his life, the pack had mixed emotions.

Some were glad that their Alpha would not go insane after the loss of his Luna, knowing without an alpha the pack would suffer. On the other hand, many were uncertain whether anyone could replace their Alpha's mate, finding Mama entering his life a disrespect to their previous Luna, who truly was loved. Elijah had only been twelve when his mother died.

I roll my eyes. "And I care why?" I question, as I sit down and begin applying some moisturiser to my face. "Scarlett… please," Mama pleads quietly.

I know why she's asking me, because she doesn't want to upset anyone, but in the process, it seems she's ok if it means I have to tolerate crap.

Like always.

"Are we a family or not, Mama? Because if we are then why can't I simply be myself? Just because he's the rightful Alpha he's prioritised?" I ask. I'm eighteen now. How long is she going to try to mould me into the same obedient little woman that she is?

"Of course we are family. Why would you bring that up?" She sounds hurt by my comment. "But Scarlett, your behaviour when he just passed his exam was uncalled for. Since hearing about his return, you're behaving awfully rude."

Yeah, because he messes with my mind. I hate his cerulean eyes that remind me of a dazzling picture-perfect ocean, that angled jaw and those lush curls... I close my eyes, feeling my stomach flutter.

This is why I hate him. He's a dick. Cocky, annoying, and completely sexy.

But the reality is, he's the son of my stepfather, the man I call Dad. He's the future Alpha of this Pack. Although I haven't seen him for two years, I'm scared those feelings will return. That my stupid crush on the biggest fuckboy of our pack hasn't gone away…

"No promises, but I'll try," I respond, wanting her gone. My eyes are defiant when I turn back to her when she doesn't leave.

"Scarlett." There's disappointment in her eyes, and I shake my head.

"Mama, leave," I say quietly. I don't want to upset her, I know how even shouting can trigger her.

"Please, honey-"

"You said what you wanted to say. Your son is returning, save the concern for him," I say, running a comb through my hair roughly.

A light knock on the door makes us both look up to see Dad standing there. "Everything ok, ladies?" he asks, he's holding two mugs of coffee for himself and Mama.

A silence falls, but neither of us answers. If I do, Mama will just get pissed off, anyway. She now stands up and walks over to him. His cerulean eyes are full of concern. They're similar to Elijah's, but not as vibrant. His brown hair is several shades darker than his son's too. He towers over six feet tall, and Mama looks good beside him, at five foot seven.

The thing is they may be in a relationship, but neither can mark one another as they aren't fated mates. Because Luna Ella was his fated mate her mark remains on Dad's neck. If Mama wasn't marked by her fated mate, Dad would have been able to mark her and then she could have marked him back. Unfortunately, she too wears the mark of her fated mate. And the power of those marks remains.

They may be mated by marriage… but their bond was never truly completed. Sometimes I see the sadness in Dad's eyes, but despite it, he loves Mama dearly and she him.

"What were you ladies discussing?" he pushes.

"Nothing," I lie. "I'm tired. Goodnight, guys."

"Good night, dear," Dad replies. Coming over he bends down and kisses my forehead and I smile up at him. Even if Mama doesn't want to upset this pack, Dad has never treated us any differently from Elijah. I'm grateful for that because as far as I'm concerned, he is the only father I have.

They leave the room and I stand up. Switching the light off, I drop onto my bed, staring at the wall. Let the nightmares begin… I close my eyes, not looking forward to sleeping tonight. I can tell tonight will just be one of those nights where my past will return to haunt me…

"Scarlett! Please hurry up, I don't want your brother having to wait for too long!" Mama shouts up the stairs, making me roll my eyes.

"Kk, Mama! I know, relax!" I shout back, shaking my head.

There's enough time, seriously!

I look in the mirror as I apply my trademark red lipstick. I'm pretty good-looking, I'm not blind to that, and I've never shied away from flaunting my looks. But I also know deep down that I'm trying a little harder than normal today.

I stare at my reflection, scrutinising my features. Staring back at me is a beautiful young woman with vibrant shoulder-length hair. I have my natural strawberry blond roots that change to a vivid red shade. I ruffle my hair that I have loosely curled and shake my head. I have plump lips and sage-green eyes… just like his eyes.

But with the make-up and red hair, I'm different enough.

I am not him.

I'm five-foot-two inches tall, a little on the smaller side for a she-wolf. I have put on a black top that fits me like a glove, emphasising my busty chest. I've paired it with blue skinny jeans and black heels.

I look away from the mirror, stand up and grab my car keys. That draws a satisfied smile from me. Being eighteen has its perks. I received a car from Mama and Dad on my birthday a few months ago.

Despite turning eighteen, which is the age that most young werewolves find their mates, I haven't. But then again, I didn't attend the last Blood Moon Ball. But I'm not really bothered. After all, our pack isn't too big.

I mean, my mate could be anywhere in the world. Right now I just want to focus on myself, anyway. I don't want to be tied down to someone just because of a mate bond.

Although I had a feeling a couple of boys had wanted me to turn out to be their mates, I'm relieved I wasn't. Especially since that opinion changed faster than you can say ‘mate' once they saw my wolf.

I had felt her awaken, felt her presence in my mind and when I did shift, I shifted into a magnificent grey wolf. Under the moonlight, her fur is stunning. It looks like a shimmering silver. I won't deny that my wolf is beautiful, but the problem for the boys in the pack is that she is bigger than most wolves in this town. This is something that had caused rumours and unease to spread through the pack.

No one knew Mama's mate was an alpha, but my wolf had been a dead giveaway to that, and it had just made the tension and dislike towards us from some of the pack members, that had finally begun to settle, return once again.

I now rush out of my room, almost bumping into my fourteen-year-old menace of a sister.

"Careful witch," Indigo snaps, as the packet of crisps she was holding scatter across the wooden floorboards. "Can you stop ruining everything?" she grumbles as she bends down, scooping them up.

I glare at her. "Sorry, it's not like I did that on purpose. I'm running late. I have to collect Elijah from the airport," I say, hurrying down the hall.

"Wait, what?! Wasn't Dad going to get him?"

"Something came up!" I shout back.

"But I want to get him! Can I come?!"

"No! You think I'll take you just so the two of you can gang up on me? Yeah, I don't think so!" I shout, running down the stairs, taking two at a time and skipping the last four. My heels hit the dark wooden floor at the bottom with a loud clack and I'm about to run to the door when Mama steps out of the kitchen.

"Scarlett… calm down. Can you be careful in those heels?" Mama says from the kitchen doorway. She's wearing an apron, and her black hair is pulled into a messy bun. From the splashes of flour on her apron and cheek, I can tell she must have been working on another cake order.

Despite being a werewolf, Mama is a well-known and in-demand baker in Stratford-Upon-Avon. It is something that keeps her busy and her mind off things. And yes, we are lucky enough to be so close to the birthplace of Shakespeare himself.

"Make up your mind, Mama, do you want me to hurry or not? You were the one yelling at me to get a move on," I remind her.

"Scarlett…"

"Bye, Mama!" I call, not waiting for a reply. I rush from the mansion, crossing the green lawn, and getting into my parked white Ford Fiesta.

We live in the woods near the beautiful town of Stratford-Upon-Avon, all around our pack grounds are miles and miles of trees. It's a modest-sized protected place, with plenty of open grounds, perfect for our pack and its members.

Most of the pack members live on pack territory, but some do live in the town amongst the humans and come down here, into the woods for a run, training and pack meetings. No one is forced to stay here, but most people prefer to. After all, wolves live in packs, and we prefer company instead of being alone. And it's safer from other packs and rogues.

Our Alpha, Jackson Westwood, my stepfather, owns the area along with several miles of the woods surrounding the pack grounds. He has his own businesses that help support the pack financially. Despite our pack only having around 500 members, he is still a strong and fair alpha. In recent years, our pack has grown a lot, and I heard him saying that it is fast becoming one of the larger packs in the country.

The sun is now high in the sky, and I lower my window slightly, putting on some EDM music as I tap the steering wheel with my freshly painted black nails. It is a roughly fifty-minute drive to Birmingham, the closest airport to our town, and I'm actually grateful that I have that time to mentally prepare to see him again.

Sighing, I lean back in my seat. Elijah Westwood… It was two summers ago when he had visited from his extensive alpha training around the country, that I realised I was crushing on him, on my own stepbrother. Something that still makes me cringe.

When I saw him in nothing but sweatpants as he finished a workout with his friends, glistening with sweat as he poured water over himself… well damn, did I realise. It's not something I'd say out loud, even my best friend doesn't know. Heck, she's already leading the Elijah Westwood Fan Club, and the worst thing is I have to pretend I don't care.

I can't help but feel nervous now, wondering if those feelings would be gone. I sure hope so. I don't want things to be awkward between us. Plus, I doubt alpha training made him any uglier, hours out in the sun, extreme training regimes… Yeah, something tells me he might just turn up even hotter.

Elijah was never the nicest person towards me. He was always teasing, taunting, or trying to embarrass me. I was so glad when he had first left the pack five years ago, thinking ‘good riddance'.

Hell, there's no way I consider him my brother. We really only spent three years together under the same roof. He left at sixteen and now he's returning home permanently. Dad will soon step down as Alpha and Elijah will take that title, something everyone in the pack is excited about.

I always knew that Elijah was an extremely handsome young man, with his delicious chocolate locks that have over time naturally lightened by the sun and those piercing blue eyes…

"Fuck!" I growl with irritation at myself. Do not let yourself go down that train of thought, Scarlett… Not now. Not ever.

I just can't. He is and will always remain my stepbrother and he'll find his mate soon enough.