Chapter 26 My Family
My Family
JESSICA
EIGHT YEARS AGO:
Alpha Kings Mansion
Two hard bodies—Justin and Jeremy—crash into me.
Why does she think she’s in trouble? I hear Jeremy ask in my head.
You’re not in trouble. You don’t need to hide, Justin reassures me. You’re our sister now. Everyone here is your family. Jeremy assesses me, seeking reassurance that I won’t run. “Come meet everyone. We’re all excited that you’re here!” Justin smiles.
I hesitate, glancing at Anders, who nods in approval. I smile at the twins. I’m still uneasy and itch with the need to run, but with my two…
Wait. They said… sister? I frown and turn toward Elias.
“Little One, I want to introduce you to my family. You already know my oldest, Ean.” I nod. “This is my beautiful mate, Faith.” He wraps his arms around a tall, beautiful woman with long dark hair and kind eyes. Her face is round and feminine.
She quickly pulls me into a hug. “I’m so happy you’re doing well.” She squeezes me before letting me go. “You also know Liam. He is the newest member of our little family. We unofficially adopted him a few years ago.”
Liam stands next to Ean, smiling at me.
“Elijah is our youngest.”
Not nearly as tall as Ean, Elijah has the same dark hair and dark eyes. His features are softer, not as broad as Elias’s and Ean’s. He takes more after his mother. I offer a little wave, and he jerks his chin in greeting.
“Why am I introduced last? You even introduced Liam before me. It’s because I’m a girl, isn’t it?
” A mirror image of her mother steps around Elias.
“I’m Emily. I’m not the youngest—I’m actually older than Elijah by like two years.
I wanted to visit when I first heard about you, but Ean wouldn’t let me.
It’s not like I would bother you. I go to the private school in the city so I’m only home on the weekends.
” She quickly pulls me into a crushing hug.
“Oh, wow. We need to work on finding you some better clothes.”
I grimace and look back at the twins.
“Don’t worry. Between Sixes and I, we’ll have you looking so good, the boys will have to lock you up. Do you talk? No? Not much? That’s okay. Elijah doesn’t talk much either, and everyone knows I can talk enough for every—”
Ean clamps a hand over Emily’s mouth. “He doesn’t talk because you don’t let him. Geez, calm down. You’re going to… Ouch! Did you just bite me?”
Everyone in the room laughs, and I cover my own to stifle my raspy wheeze.
Emily winks and whispers, “You and I are going to be the best of friends.” She gives me another hug, and just as she releases me, I’m dragged over toward Chris.
“My turn,” he claims with a smile. “Little One, this is my beautiful mate, Tater.” Chris’s mate is not as tall as Faith or Emily, but she is just as beautiful, with dark blonde hair and big hazel eyes.
“I’m also the head of the household staff. If you need anything, you can usually find me in the kitchen.”
I smile and nod. She also hugs me. So many hugs!
“This is my daughter, Sixes. She also works here, and I personally assigned her to you. If you need absolutely anything, don’t hesitate to let us know.”
“Yes, Emily is right. We need to do something about your style. Not to worry. You’re in good hands,” she declares with a wide smile.
I glance down at my baggy outfit. This is as good as it gets.
“Give it a rest, you two. She’s not a doll,” Charlie teases, winking at me. “She looks perfectly fine, just the way she is.”
Chris clears his throat, giving Charlie a sideways look. “You’ve already met Charlie. Tater and I have four more girls. Two of them are away at school. And the other two had prior commitments, but you’ll see them around.”
I smile and nod. I guess I will be smiling and nodding a lot as my words are so limited.
“This old man is my father, Duck. He’s also the main ranch hand and manages the dairy.” I look up at an elderly man with dull gray hair and kind green eyes. His skin is deeply tanned and slightly leathery, likely from working out in the sun, his smile reaches his eyes.
“Hello, Little One. It is a pleasure to finally meet you.” He reaches out to shake my hand.
Instead of clasping his, though, I turn his over. They are large, weathered, and callused. I rub my palm over his fingers.
“I hear you’re learning how to play the guitar?”
I nod enthusiastically.
“If Charlie gets too busy to work with you, I don’t mind stepping in. Some of the dairy hands and I put together what we call a garage band. We would love to have you come around and maybe one day join us.”
I lunge forward to give him a hug. Chuckling, he pats my back.
“Dad, maybe you can take her to visit the ladies when she’s settled,” Chris suggests.
Ladies? I look to the twins, and they laugh.
“He means the cows,” Jeremy explains.
I blush. Please tell him I would love that. Justin interprets for me.
Scanning the room, I find Shakti next to a regal man of at least six foot five. My eyebrows raise. He looks exactly like Chris. Are they twins?
Justin chuckles. “You’ve already met our mother. This is our father. No, he and Chris are not twins—they’re cousins. Duck and our grandfather were twin brothers.”
I peruse the room. I don’t see another elderly man anywhere.
Where’s your grandfather? I ask Justin through our link.
He passed away before we were born.
I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to ask.
It’s okay. We would have told you eventually. You’re family now, Jeremy declares.
The regal man wears dark jeans and a long-sleeved, plaid shirt. His energy is so huge, powerful, very… My eyes widen, and I step back. My mind whirls.
I am in the biggest house in the territory. The two lead guards are family. I take another step back. The twins said sister. I’m their sister. No, no, no… He’s the Alpha King. And Shakti… is the Luna Queen.
Anders places a warm hand on my shoulder. “It’s okay. You’re not in trouble,” he whispers in my ear.
I shake my head. I don’t deserve this. What if I’m a bad person? What if I was attacked because I did something wrong? What if… What if whoever did it comes after me and hurts the Alpha King and his family? I can’t stay here! My glasses fog, and tears spill from my eyes.
Anders spins me so I face him. Chris and Elias stand on either side of him.
I can’t put the Alpha King and the Lunar Queen’s family in a position that can hurt them. I remove my glasses and openly cry.
“Jessica, look at me. Do you think I would bring you here if I had any doubt that you would put their lives at risk?”
I sniff. You don’t know me. I don’t know me! What if I did something that caused this whole situation? We don’t know anything!
Anders leans forward to meet me at eye level. “I will never let anything happen to you or the royal family. It’s my job to protect them, and that includes you.”
I rub my nose with the back of my hand and shake my head. I don’t deserve this. I don’t deserve to be here.
“Why do you feel you don’t deserve to be here?” Chris asks, rubbing my back.
I just don’t. It’s a feeling deep in my bones.
“Little One, you didn’t deserve what happened to you,” Elias adds. His hand gently squeezes my other shoulder.
“Everyone deserves a second chance,” says a deep voice from behind me. “We want you to be a part of our family, of our pack. Look around you. Everyone here wants to know you and give you a better life, one you deserve.”
Pressure clenches around my heart, and I look at Anders.
“I will never let anything bad happen to you ever again. You are mine to protect, Jessica. You are here because we want you here. I want you here,” Anders confesses.
Tears threaten again at his sincerity.
“As much as I appreciate your concern for me and my family, it is also my job to protect them, as well as you. Besides, there is one other person who feels this is where you belong. If she had anything to say about it, she would have been the one to convince me otherwise.” The Alpha King points to the back of the room.
Sitting in a chair, holding her cane, is Alpha Agnus.
“Well, it’s about damn time I got some attention.
I was beginning to think I made the two-hour drive just to be ignored,” she huffs, and everyone chuckles.
“Jessica, this is where you belong. I know for a fact you’re not a bad person.
What you’ve been through is not because of anything you did.
You were just in the wrong place with the wrong people.
You need everyone in this room, and whether they realize it or not, they need you. ”
The Alpha King laughs. “You better listen to her. She’s a little scary,” he whispers. “Even I’m afraid of her.”
“Now, come give me a hug. Or are you going to just stand there and cry over what-ifs?”
I wipe my face with my sleeve, clean my glasses, and walk over to Alpha Agnus.
“There’s my girl,” she says as I embrace her. “Well, do we get to eat, or will everyone just stand around and watch this poor girl take it all in?”
“You heard her. Let’s eat,” the Alpha King announces to the room.
The room erupts with laughter and talking as everyone gathers around the buffet arranged along one wall.
Shakti wraps her arms around my shoulders from behind. “Thank you for joining our family. I knew you were mine from the moment I met you.” She kisses the top of my head.
The Alpha King speaks with Chris and Anders while they stand in line to fill their plates. When he catches me watching him, he winks and continues his conversation.
I grab Justin’s arm. Can you tell him I’m sorry for making such a fuss? I’m sorry if I embarrassed him. He walks over and repeats what I said to his father.