2: Family

Elena

My heart skips a beat. I am not THAT girl. I don’t fawn over guys when they throw a seductive smirk my way. Besides, it’s pointless to show any interest. He's a werewolf and I am wolf less. He has a mate somewhere and with no wolf that will never be me, plus I don’t even know who he is.

“I am Ryder James, you brother’s best friend and Beta heir,” the raven haired man drawls.

“Er-hm! Step brother,” the other man corrects with a cough.

 “Elena, I am Noah. Pleased to meet you,” my devastatingly handsome stepbrother says after rounding the truck he just got out of to shake my hand and pull me into an awkward hug.

Noah Wyld…my stepbrother. He has brunette hair like his mother and our half sister. But his eyes are a warm brown and his face looks like it belongs on a superstar. His demeanor is relaxed and his style matches. He is wearing jeans and a flannel shirt with a brown corduroy jacket. His eyes are heavy lidded and he wears a soft half smile. You wouldn’t know it to look at him but this guy is supposed to be a top fighter. He looks more like a stoner.

“Welcome home, Elena!” My stepmother, Allison, greets.

I try not to roll my eyes too hard as I reply, “it’s hard to think of somewhere I haven’t been before as home.”

“We are hoping you will view this place as home sooner or later,” Adam, my father, says. 

“Maybe,” I sigh. “And you must be my half sister, Olivia. Now I have met the entire family. Can I just see my room and whatever.”

I don’t want to seem ungrateful or rude, but I didn’t want to come here and I don’t really want to be here.

“I’ll take you to school on Monday with Olivia and register you for classes,” my father says. “And this might be a sensitive subject but I have made an appointment with the pack doctor for next week about your condition.”

Condition? I don’t have a wolf…how is that a condition?

I follow him down the hallway to a small bedroom where he pushes the door open and says, “It isn’t much, but I knew you would want privacy.”

“Thanks,” I grumble.

I just want to get all these people off my back so I can call mom in peace. 

Ryder places my bag in my room then he touches my arm and looks into my eyes as he says, “if you need help unpacking or anything, I’ll be right next door with Noah.”

“So you are staying here again tonight, I take it?” My father asks.

“Yeah, it’s peaceful here. Much better than dealing with the drama between my sister and our future Alpha,” Ryder says.

“They have broken up again or are they back together again?” My father asks.

“It’s hard to tell with them sometimes. Either way it’s drama,” Noah chuckles. “Welcome to the family and the pack, Ellie. Really, if you need anything, just ask. My bedroom is right next door and Ryder and I are always up to hang out, listen, chat, kick some asses, whatever you need. We’ll leave you to settle in and unpack, unless you want us to help with that?”

He raises his eyebrow and that half smile turns into an adorable smirk. Something tells me my stepbrother is a major flirt. Please don’t tell me he is one of THOSE guys! You know the type? They flirt with every girl. They know they are hot and they sleep around. Gross!

Ryder walks out then nudges Noah with his elbow and they head to the room next door together.

“My room is right across the hall from his,” Olivia says. “And the same stands, especially if you need a girl to talk with. These boys don’t always get it!”

“Don’t I need to do something to become a pack member?” I ask.

“Normally, yes, but you don’t have your wolf yet and are part of the Delta family, so you should feel the pack link click in once your wolf manifests,” my father explains.

“Please don’t hesitate to ask for anything, sweetie,” my step mother, Allison, says. “Your father and I will be in the living room for now, but our bedroom is the door at the end of the hall. The bathroom for your room adjoins Noah's room. I hope that is okay. I would have had him switch with Olivia, but they are both so used to their spaces.”

Oh!

“I don’t mind,” I reply, flatly despite the slight uptick in my heart rate over our shared bathroom. 

When the door closes, I sink onto the double bed and let it all wash over me then I pick up my phone and dial her number.

“Mom! I miss you already,” I sniffle.

“Is something wrong, honey?” She asks.

“Everything is wrong,” I cry.

“Did someone do something mean?”

“No. They have all been great so far, but…It’s cold, it’s strange and I really miss you and the warmth of California,” I sniffle.

“Give it time, honey. They are your family. The instant I called Adam with the news he wanted to meet you. He’s a good man. Just let him have a chance to be your father and things will fall into place. I promise,” she says, but I can hear how tired she sounds and then she starts coughing. “I decided to try the medicine, like I promised, honey. But it’s making me feel more sick.”

“Mom, please…” I cry but any other words get stuck in my throat as I cry. 

After a few moments, she breaks the silence and says, “I shouldn’t have kept you away so long. You belong with your own kind. Take care of yourself and give it time. I need to rest.”

When she disconnects I bury my face in my hands and let the tears fall. How am I going to do this? 

I promised mom I'd try and I will, but I don’t have to like it. I wipe away my tears for the hundredth time today and unpack my carryon and then move on to the first box. 

The carryon is mostly full of my essential clothes, the book I’m reading and my journal. The first box I open has an album of photos from my friends Kaliope, Jasper and Aimon. The framed concert tickets from my friend Jaxon are next. We all went to our first big concert together last summer. I find a nail already in the wall where I can hang the tickets on the wall and I place the photo album on my bedside table.

The rest of that box is clothing, which I put away before going and asking my father and stepmother about a towel to shower.

“Let me show you where the linen closet is,” Allison says and she gets up from the sofa to show me a closet in the hallway stocked with clean towels. “Do you need any other supplies, sweetie?”

“No. I’m fine,” I reply, flatly.

I take my towel and knock to be sure no one is in the bathroom before getting in the shower and letting the warm water wash over me. If I could wash away all the pain of losing the only life I had known, I would.

Instead, I wash my body and my hair and watch the water run down the drain as I contemplate this new life.

I don’t know how I am going to do this.