My Jealous Alpha Stepbrother
Chapter 74

Misha

I can’t relax.

Becky is baking a birthday cake for Josie with my mom, and I’m just staring out into space from a chair. I’m wretched. Why doesn’t Josie want me? Aren’t I strong enough? Ugh…

This is not how I thought replaceing my mate would be. In my dreams, and there has been plenty, Josie looked happy to have me and couldn’t keep her hands off me.

I want her to touch me, k**s me. My heart pounds faster just thinking about it! I want to push her up against a wall and take her so hard she will be ruined for other men. Because thinking about her with someone else makes me want to snarl. I want to be the only one for her!

Though that’s a long-distant dream…

In reality, Josie was defeated when I was revealed as her mate. There was no touching or kissing, which was a brutal wake-up call. Her friend teased her that she found me attractive, but was that even the truth? Josie seemed close to tears when she found out I was her mate. Am I really that terrible? How do I convince her that I’m a good mate?

“Oh wow, you’re so talented, Becky!” my mom praises my vampire best friend and looks at me, all starry-eyed. “Look at the frosting Becky made! It’s so pink! Josie is going to love it! She is the kind of girl that pretends not to like unicorns and glitter, but she does! And she will love your cake, Becky! It’s so gorgeous!”

Becky, who I’ve never seen blush in my entire life, looks flustered. Probably because uncle Damien rarely gives her compliments unless they are battle-related.

“You think so?” Becky sizes up her masterpiece. “I think I could have made the roses of frosting look more realistic…”

“No-uh!” my mom places a hand on her shoulder and smiles. “You did perfectly! I should have figured you were talented. There is just something about pink-haired girls and being good at baking.”

“Oh, you like my hair?”

“Definitely! It suits you!”

Becky giggles and puffs her pink curls. She changes hairstyles to the left and right. “I will color it again soon.”

“I’m excited to see the next change!” My mother beams.

Becky looks teary-eyed. “You’re so nice! Damien never praises my baking or tells me my hair looks nice. I wish I could stay here forever! You’re such a better parent!”

I roll my eyes. How come everyone is living their best life in this house but me? Even Becky is enjoying her stay here!

“So…” Becky looks at me expectantly. “What do YOU think of my cake, Misha? Are you impressed?”

“The cake is amazing, Becky…” I mutter. “Josie is going to be thrilled when she sees it…”

“Hey, what is your problem?” My mom questions. “Why are you in such a bad mood this morning?”

Becky smirks. “Oh, don’t mind, Misha. He is just depressed that a certain hybrid doesn’t want him as their mate. He will get over his heartbreak soon… possibly next year.”

My mom gasps, and I glare at Becky. She shrugs and pretends she hasn’t created a monster, but she has! My mom will tease me all day! And she will also question me until she knows Josie is my mate!

I quickly stand up from my chair, ready to make my escape. “I will go out into the garden—”

“You will do no such thing!” My mom is blocking my path with sparkling eyes. She is absolutely tiny, but a hidden fierceness in her eye makes me shiver, so I sit back down.

“What do you want?” I ask and wonder how to distract her enough to leave me alone.

Unfortunately, my mom beams at me in a way that lets me know she won’t let the subject go. “Tell me her name… or him… it doesn’t matter! I will accept them regardless!”

“It’s a girl.”

I see some relief in my mom’s eyes. Not because she is against people being gay but because she wants grandchildren. I suppose there is adoption for those who are gay, though I’m not going to get technical. All I know is that my mom wants grandchildren.

“I see,” my mom smirks. “And does her name happen to be Josie?”

f**k me! This is a trap! I avert my eyes, but my mom can already tell the answer is yes, and she claps her hands in excitement.

“I knew it!” She exclaims and jumps up and down like a kid. “Josie is going to be carrying my grandpups!”

“Grandpups?!” Is that even a word? Werewolves are so freaking weird! And I can already tell my mom is planning my wedding. I must stop the wheels in her head, so I mutter the truth, “Josie doesn’t want me.”

My words make my mom freeze into a block of ice. Her happy smile diminishes, and her shoulders slump in defeat.

“Oh…” she repeatedly blinks. “Did Josie reject you as her mate?”

“Not yet.”

“What do you mean not yet?!” My mother demands. “Did she or did she not reject you?”

I sigh. “Josie didn’t reject me, but she is going to—”

“If Josie hasn’t rejected you, then you still have a chance to produce grandpups—I mean, you still have a chance of winning Josie’s heart! So why are you sitting here?!” My mom pushes at my shoulder though I hardly feel it. “Get out!”

I stare down at her over my shoulder, half-amused, half-terrified of the angry look on her otherwise sweet motherly face.

“Oh, don’t you smirk at me, Misha!” My mom glares up at me. In her world, it doesn’t matter that I’m a grownup. I will always be her little boy, it seems. “Move your a*s!”

I snort in entertainment. “Why are you pushing me?”

“I’m trying to push you outside and make you stop sulking! You should go buy Josie flowers and fight for her heart! I raised you better, Misha! You might not have lived with me for a couple of years, but I know you’re a charmer like your father!”

“I already gave Josie a gift…” I gave her a piece of me. That ice dragon contains some of my magic that I won’t get back unless the little creature is killed or if it returns to me.

“And you think a girl will complain if there is more?! Go and buy her more things—whoever said you can’t buy happiness is a liar because I’m pretty sure they sell chocolate at the store!”

I snort again. “You’re crazy,” my lips curl into a smile, and I turn around to hug my mom. “But thank you… I will go and buy chocolate.” Do I have a choice? I’m pretty sure my mom would kill me if I didn’t…

My mom steps away from me, but only to grab my cheeks. I frown at her, and she smiles wider. “Buy her flowers and chocolate, and then you talk about how you feel. Tell her that you want her.”

“Amd mahk it hush moar…” my mom releases my cheeks, and I regain the ability to talk like a normal person. “And make it hurt more when she doesn’t want me back?”

My mom sighs. “If she doesn’t want you, then fine. Nothing can be done if she decides to reject you, but you won’t know unless you try, and Josie is worth the effort.”

She is right about that…

Perhaps I should try talking it out with Josie? The question is if it should be done after or before the alpha tournament. After I’ve won against her, maybe she will see the potential in me?

I ponder on this and make it up the stairs. Josie comes out of her room and almost crashes into me. Her eyes travel up my chest, and then she presses herself to her door. I lift an eyebrow at her, amused at the faint red color taking over her cheeks.

“Misha! Just who I wanted to see!” Josie nervously exclaims. The little ice dragon is perched on her shoulder, and her smile is shaky as she studies my face.

Such odd behavior. “You wanted to see me?”

“Yes!” Josie seems to realize she half-yelled at me and grimaces. I say nothing. She is obviously under the influence of the mate-bond, and I’m not spared either. All I can think about right now is kissing her.

“So, what do you need me for?” I ask.

“Oh, um… you know how the mate bond seems to burn stronger when you haven’t mated?”

I blink in shock. “You wish to complete the mating ritual with me?”

I’m shocked, but despite my astonishment, my c**k strains against my jeans, liking the idea of mating with her. My teeth feel sharper too, and if she moves any closer, I’m not sure I will be able to control myself.

I want to taste Josie’s b***d and f**k her with abandon. I don’t care who hears her, but the thought of her moaning underneath me? That mental image makes me absurdly aroused.

“Well, to be honest, I don’t want someone who…” her lips twitch. “No. Never mind…”

“Tell me.”

Her shaky hand goes to her chest, and tears shimmer in her eyes. “I don’t want a mate who would hate me if we had not been mates. So if you only want to finish the mating ritual with me due to the bond, then I don’t know if I want this.”

I hear what she is saying, and sadly, I don’t have a good answer. The mate-bond is the exact reason why I want her. When I first came back to this dimension? I was still butt-hurt about the past.

“You want true love.” It’s not a question but a fact.

She stares down at the ground, nodding. “Yes… but you wouldn’t want me if there wasn’t a mate-bond between us, right?”

I’m not a liar, so I give her the truth. “I don’t know.”

Josie looks even closer to tears. “I figured that was the case, which saddens me because I can’t accept this as my—”

I k**s her before she can utter another sentence. Hard and fast as I push her delicate body against the wall. A muffled mewl gets lost in my mouth, but then she k****s me back with the same amount of passion.

It turns me on, and I lift her off the ground, looping her legs against my waist as I push her against the wall. I’ve longed to do this for so long, and now I’m finally tasting her lips!

A steady thrumming has begun in my chest, and I shove my tongue into Josie’s mouth. I have no clue what I’m doing. I haven’t been with anyone before, but Josie seems to like it.

Her hands are admiring my thick muscular neck first and then my shoulders. When she makes it down to explore my pecs, a choke gets swallowed by her lips, and I can smell the scent of her arousal growing stronger. She likes muscles, huh? It makes me smile against her lips as she k****s me—

“What the f**k is going on?!”

I stop kissing Josie and turn around to see her dad. He looks at me like I’m this criminal who has hurt his beloved daughter, and I let Josie slide down on the floor.

“Dad!” Josie nervously smiles up at her dad. “Um, great news! I’ve found my fated mate!”