Chapter 17
Sarah’s family is…intense. Some of them have been really sweet, especially her youngest sister.
She’s the only other person here who doesn’t seem to have a family or a pack of their own, and we immediately bond over stories of a younger and wilder Sarah, much to my omega’s dismay.
The young alpha seems to be trying to shock me with stories about Sarah’s past, and some of her exploits, but none of it really comes as a surprise.
We’ve only been together for a month, and I already know my girl’s a wild child.
I’ve seen some of the photos, and she was adorable with bubblegum pink hair.
That being said, in the single day we’ve been here, I can see how her family would look down on that.
They seem super straight-laced. There are a few other betas here.
A couple of her mom’s brothers are beta, and two of her siblings’ packs seem to have a beta each too.
But we’re really outnumbered in this house.
And isn’t that just ironic considering we’re the majority of the population?
While I understand that this is a family issue, I’m about two seconds away from packing up Shaggy, tossing Sarah over my shoulder, and driving the fuck home for the night…or maybe a hotel halfway home so we can get some fucking rest.
Her sister, Sasha, is a massive fucking bitch, lying to the whole goddamned family about sex noises—pretty sure there’s no way my snoring could be mistaken for that.
All her dads look like they want to kill me right now—which would be understandable if we did have sex in their house, but we didn’t.
Her sister looks smug as fuck because she knows she fucking lied.
And Sarah is just standing there, taking the dressing down her mom is giving her.
Like she’s actually done anything fucking wrong.
Every fucking interaction I’ve seen her have with her mother just seems to beat her further into the ground.
I’m not great with conflict, and I don’t actually want her family to hate me.
So for now, it’s a waiting game to see if she needs me to step in and say something, just offer emotional support, or if she’s going to speak up.
Honestly, it’s a little disturbing to see her taking this sort of shit from anybody.
My girl is a spitfire, and just in the last month I’ve seen her threaten an alpha twice her size if he didn’t get the hell away from Lily.
Ugh, that situation is a train wreck, but also, not a problem I can think about right now.
Sarah’s shoulders are slumped, and she seems to be curling in on herself. I’m not sure how to ask her if she needs me without coming out and just asking, and I don’t want to make her uncomfortable. The more her mom talks, the more she seems to shrink.
“You know what? That’s fine. You don’t need to find a pack; you can just live with the beta, not even bothering to settle down.
You don’t need kids, you have a rabbit. I don’t need any more grandkids.
Besides, when it dies, you can just get another one.
I know you mentioned that anyway since it’s getting older. ”
I don’t know if it’s the beta or the rabbit comments, but Sarah’s spine snaps straight, and if looks could kill, her mother and sister would be stone dead on the floor right now.
A tear runs down her cheek, but her voice is cold and flat.
“Jesus Fucking Christ on a goddamned rubber crutch! Didn’t we go over this last night?
What, it wasn’t enough, you had to bring Sasha in for backup?
Didn’t hammer the point home enough? First off, you don’t get to fucking talk about Greg.
He’s mine, my scent match. And I’m bonding him as soon as he’s comfortable with it.
Secondly, you don’t fucking listen. I mentioned three years ago about getting Shaggy a playmate.
I know he’s fucking old, but I’m already pressing my luck having one pet at the dorms.”
She glares between her sister and mom. “I don’t even know if I can fucking have children, and how the hell is this about you needing grandkids?
What the actual hell do kids even have to do with anything?
We didn’t fuck in your fucking house. We were asleep.
I don’t know what the fuck Sasha told you, but she’s lying and I am so fucking done with this. ”
Spinning on her heel, she looks surprised to see me standing in the kitchen.
Her bitch of a sister is standing there with her jaw unhinged, and I wonder if this is the first time Sarah’s ever spoken back.
Her mom looks like she wants to say something, but she can fuck all the way off as my girl comes and presses herself against my chest. I can feel her tears soaking through my shirt, but her crying doesn’t make any sound.
I’m seething at the thought that she’s had to learn to cry silently.
My arms wrap around her as her mom finally finds her voice.
“Now, see here, I don’t know where you learned that kind of language.
” Her glare turns to me as Sarah snorts into my shirt.
“But a lady does not curse. If you can’t say something nice, you don’t say anything at all.
And maybe Sasha was just confused about what she heard, but she wouldn’t lie about it.
” The aforementioned liar just smirks like she’s getting away with something…
again. She seems to have come a long way since last night, from “you hate me and my baby so I’m leaving” to this bullshit.
Hell, that’s probably why we’re listening to this tirade.
Sarah rubs her face back and forth, scent-marking me and drying her eyes before she pulls back to look at her mom.
“First of all, yes, she’s lying. She always fucking lies about me, trying to get me in trouble; she has for years.
I don’t even care anymore because I don’t have to see her most of the time.
Secondly, I learned to cuss from the same place you did.
” She leans away from me to look past my shoulder, but her voice isn’t as defeated. “Sorry, Tio Miguel!”
A booming laugh sounds behind me. “Nah, Shortcake. Tha’s ok, it’s true!” An older man steps around me, another big alpha. His hair is iron-grey, and heavy laugh lines crease the corners of his eyes as he smiles down at Sarah. “Hey, nina. Your mom giving you trouble?”
Sarah’s mother sputters like a teakettle. “Miguel, you have always spoiled her. You treat her like one of your boys. It’s no wonder she can’t keep a civil tone.”
“Ah, hermana, you are too hard on this one. She doesn’t have to be a tiny clone of you, or just like her sisters.
Let the girl be. She’ll find her own way, but you can’t force someone into a mold without breaking them.
Besides, the beta obviously cares for her deeply.
She is smart; she won’t let anyone boss her around.
You shouldn’t worry so much.” He wraps his big arms around Sarah’s mom, and low grumbles come from my girl’s three dads as they rapidly fill the room.
It seems like we’ve been forgotten when the grey-haired alpha pulls back, smiling down at his sister.
“So, show me all these grandbabies you are always talking about. I need to see my tiny grandnieces and nephews.” She turns away, starting to jabber on a mile a minute, but he looks over his shoulder, smiling and nodding to Sarah before he follows the animated omega.
Sarah quickly snatches a plate and bowl off the counter—balancing one on top of the other—and grabs my arm, nearly dragging me back upstairs to her room.
Shaggbutt is thumping in irritation in his run, and Sarah hurries over, taking long strips of something green out of the bowl and putting it in his food dish.
“Sorry, little guy, I was trying to hurry. It’s ok.
” She rubs her hand over his nose and down his back and he tosses his head in irritation at the delay in his nightly treat.
She sets the empty bowl and still full plate on the table beside the bed, then presses against my chest until I sit down.
Crawling up onto my lap, she straddles my legs and burrows against my neck.
In another time and place, I would think she was feeling frisky, but her eyes are still red-rimmed and she looks exhausted.
Her voice comes out muffled against my skin.
“I just want to go home. Well, ok, I want to be home. I don’t want to be here anymore.
But I dread the long fucking drive back.
They said I was supposed to come back for the holiday, and I…
I knew Shaggy was gonna be unhappy in the car, but I didn’t realize how much this was gonna suck.
Would you be very mad at me if I asked you to take me home? ”
I wrap one arm under her ass and stand so I can grab our bags, pressing kisses to the top of her head.
I wish again that I could purr for her and help her relax.
“I can be ready to go in ten minutes. Just say the word, and we’re out of here.
You can get some sleep in the car on the way back to campus.
I’m sure Shaggy will be pissy, but he’d probably rather you be happy. ”
We both look over at the disgruntled bun—nibbling away on his evening snack—and simultaneously burst out laughing.
She giggles so hard she snorts against my shoulder, and it takes a while for the snickering to finally wear off enough to talk.
Her voice still isn’t steady as she looks up at me.
“Thank you. No, we’re not leaving now.” Her response is fast as I pull open a drawer and start throwing underwear back into our bag.
She stops me in my tracks. “Thank you for agreeing. I’m…
I’m glad you’re here with me. But we shouldn’t leave yet.
Tomorrow, if things aren’t better, then yes.
Please. Don’t even check with me. Just grab me and Shaggy and get us the hell out of here. Yes?”
Burying my face in her hair, I nod. I’m not sure if I have the words to tell her how much I love her.
How worried I am about her. How much I already don’t like her family for how they treat her.
She means more to me than anything, and I’d face down the hoard of raging alphas downstairs for her if she needed me to.
I just hope it doesn’t come to that. I don’t think they’d survive her wrath if something hurt me or Shaggy.