Desired By My Alpha Stepfather

I want my stepfather

Nina

It was the peak feeling of embarrassment.

One minute I was basking in the applause, my voice cracking, overwhelmed by emotions, and the next, I was a crumpled mess on the stage. The irony.

The emcee's voice, calling for a toast to Mom, felt distant, muffled by the throbbing in my head and the strong desire to melt into the carpet and disappear.

A strong hand gripped my bicep, pulling me up with an effortless strength.

He helped me onto my feet, his fingers brushing lightly against mine. The touch was like a spark. A blush crept up my neck, staining my cheeks an obvious shade of red. I felt exposed, flustered, and strangely exhilarated all at once.

"Easy there," he said, his voice a low rumble that sent shivers down my spine. "Looks like you tripped again."

The sound of his voice, and the slight smile dancing at the corner of his lips, was disarming. I wanted to snap back, to deflect the attention away from my clumsiness, but my voice seemed to have left me. All I managed was a weak nod, feeling foolish under his scrutiny.

Mom rushed onto the stage, her earlier pride replaced by a look of worry, a mask rather. "Nina, are you alright?" she exclaimed. That voice was not just of concern. It had something in it that I knew all too well. It had a measured dose of annoyance. One that was well hid in that facade of concern that she had plastered on her face.

I mumbled a vague response, still caught in a daze in that same spotlight, which had felt empowering just moments ago, but now shone harshly on my clumsiness.

Now, it was back to playing the role of the dutiful daughter, the perfect family unit on display for everyone to admire.

The forced merriment around me felt hollow, shallow even. As the crowd clinked their glasses and cheers erupted, I stood there.

He remained by my side, or rather, by our side as mom fussed over me, check-in for injuries. The silence wasn't awkward; it felt… respectful. Or maybe I was just thinking things too deep.

Then, he spoke again, "Are you sure you're alright, Nina?" he asked, his gaze holding mine for a while longer than necessary. "You looked like you were about to faint a minute ago."

“Oh, she's fine.” My mom waved, dropping my arm that she had been inspecting non-chalantly.

The sound of his voice, the way his gaze seemed to see right through me. It was deeply unsettling.

"I'm fine," I managed. "Just a little lightheaded, that's all."

He nodded once, a soft smile playing on his lips. "Well, maybe you should sit down for a bit. Don't want you collapsing on me again," he said.

A laugh escaped my lips, a sound that surprised even me. "Right," I replied, the blush returning to my cheeks. "Wouldn't want to cause a scene, would I?"

He chuckled, a rich sound that sent shivers down my spine. "No, wouldn't want that," he agreed.

I glanced at mom, my stomach tightening, her earlier pride replaced, in the blink of an eye, by something far uglier. Her forced smile faltered, replaced by a grimace that pulled her lips into a thin, white line. I opened my mouth to apologize, to explain the sudden dizziness that had swept over me, but the words died on my tongue, choked by the words in her next breath.

"Nina!" she hissed, and my feet made a firm grip with the ground, bracing my ears to receive the words that I had suspected would have been a curse. "Get yourself together. You're making a scene.” She said between gritted teeth.

Shame burned through me, hotter and more painful than the scrape on my elbow. I felt a clumsy child throwing a tantrum on the stage of her mother's carefully curated evening.

“This is supposed to be a celebration, not a drama queen's showcase."

The blood drained from my face. Drama queen? Was this truly how she saw me? A lump formed in my throat, choking back the retort that threatened to spill out.

Tears threatened to escape my eyes. Mom's words echoed in my head. Drama queen. Just the thought of it stung worse than the scrape on my elbow.

All that followed was a suffocating silence. The emcee's voice, the murmured conversations, all faded into the background. All I could hear was the hammering of my own heart.

Then, mom strode over to my side of the stage in her impossibly high heels. The hem of her crimson dress swished with each step.

She reached me in a flurry of chiffon and expensive perfume, and before I could react, I was enveloped in a tight embrace. I stared blankly, stunned.

I was unsure of where to place my hand. Was this the part where I was supposed to pat her on the back, and soothe her? Or was she supposed to pat me on the back instead?

The gesture felt practiced, like a performance. My body stiffened instinctively, the warmth she gave was a soothing comfort to the coldness that had settled in my gut.

A quick glance told me everything I needed to know. Mom's carefully constructed smile, a touch too wide and lacking the crinkling at the corners of her eyes that usually accompanied her genuine happiness, was aimed not at me, but at the faces beyond the stage lights. It was a show, a desperate attempt to salvage the illusion of a loving mother and daughter.

Across the room, I saw Sue. She had a poorly veiled smirk tugging at the corner of her lips. Even from this distance, I could practically tell that either she was reeling in my embarrassment, or she had something to do with me tripping off the stage.

Kai, however, didn't have his gaze on me. His expression was unreadable. His jaw was clenched tight, a muscle ticking in his temple, and his gaze was fixed not on me, but on his father, Alpha Vincent.

They exchanged a look. It wasn't voiced, but silent. Alpha Vincent's expression seemed to be directed not at his newly acquired wife, but at me, the crumpled mess on the stage.

Something else, something I couldn't quite decipher, flitted across his features before he schooled his face back into its usual impassivity.

The embrace, which was suffocating and insincere, dragged on for an eternity. After what felt like eons, Mom released me, her smile faltering for a brief moment before snapping back into place, a touch brighter this time, for the benefit of the audience, of course.

"There, there," she murmured, her voice a soft coo that did little to soothe the distraught feeling within me. "Just a little stumble. Let's get you back to your seat."

She took my arm, her grip surprisingly tight, and propelled me towards the edge of the stage. As we stepped the steps, the whispers started. Or maybe I heard wrong, but still, shame burned through me, hotter and more painful than the scrape on my elbow. I felt exposed, like a raw nerve laid bare for everyone to see.

Mom kept her pace brisk, her grip on my arm still firm. She strutted through the throng of well-wishers with practiced ease, her smile never faltering. Every forced pleasantry, every murmured response, felt like another nail hammered into the coffin of our already strained relationship.

When we reached our table, I practically collapsed onto the plush chair. Mom, however, remained standing, her gaze sweeping over the room before settling on him, Alpha Vince, who sat stiffly in his chair.

"There you go, sweetheart," Mom said, her voice reeling with forced cheer. "All settled in, I hope?"

I mumbled a barely audible response, unable to meet her gaze.

The image of Sue's smirk and the stark expression on Kai's face played on a loop in my mind. In that moment, I felt more alone than I ever had in my entire life.

****

The ceremony mercifully drew to a close. The forced merriment, the charade of a happy family, finally reached its end.

As guests filtered, exhaustion settled on me. Hugs were exchanged, good wishes were kissed, and I found myself going through all of this as if I were on autopilot.

Back home, the silence of the house was a welcome from the noise of the evening.

Yet, even with the quiet, a different kind of noise disturbed my very being. It was the restless pacing of my wolf within.

Unlike the physical exhaustion that wore on my body, this was a deeper.

The knowledge that Alpha Vincent was under the same roof, mere steps away from my mother's room, shook me. It wasn't jealousy, not in the traditional sense. My wolf must have seen it as a threat – a potential rival not just for my mother's affection, but for the taking of what she must have assumed to be rightfully mine

Images flickered through my mind – his intense blue gaze, the brush of his hand against mine, the way his eyes seemed to pierce through the layers I'd built around myself. It was unsettling, this feeling with a man who was, by all rights, my step father.

I tried to settle my wolf, to soothe her agitation with logic. He was just her new stepfather, a title that still felt foreign on my tongue. Yet, logic held little sway against the way my insides were acting. The scent of him, a musky scent and something faintly citrusy teased my nostrils.

I squeezed my eyes shut.

She had to stop! I had to stop!

Sleep was a sweet escape I desperately craved, but when I needed it the most, it vanished. Every rustle, every creak of the floorboards sent my wolf into a frenzy.

The night stretched on, and all I could think about was him. Alpha Venice. Well, to be fair I wasn't thinking just about him. I was thinking about him with mother!

Fair enough, I wasn't the one doing all the thinking.

My damn wolf was! But she was me, and I was her. She couldn't be separated from my being, and that made it even worse.

The floorboards creaked as I paced. The creaking of the floorboards, the ticking of the clock, seemed to amplify the sounds coming from down the hall.

The murmur of voices, my mother's soft laugh- a sound I hadn't heard in years. It was a laugh that was never reserved for me.

My wolf. She was the driving force behind this restless dance. She snarled at the very idea of Alpha Vincent sharing a bed, let alone a room, with my mother.

He was my stepfather. The title felt foreign on my tongue, a bitter pill I couldn't quite swallow. Just hours ago, he was a stranger. Now, he'd become an unwelcome object of… desire?

Shame burned in my throat. Of all the years of longing and waiting for my mate, it just had to be him. This man, practically a stranger, was my mother's husband. The very thought of entertaining such desires was repulsive.

I found myself drawn to his door, like a moth to a flame. My hand hovered over the cool wood. The urge to burst in and claim what my wolf believed was rightfully hers was a dizzying thought. But the reality of the situation slammed into me without caution.

So what, if I was able to snag him away from my mother? What did I even know about love, about intimacy? My experiences were limited to making out. The thought of engaging in physical relationship – especially with a man who was practically family – filled me with disgust.

I pressed my ear against the door, feeling a risng of guilt as I listened to my stepfather their conversation.

Vince's voice, low and seductive, was the first to reach my ear, and it did send a shiver down my spine.

"You're driving me wild," he murmured. "I can't get enough of you."

My mother's response was breathless. "Tell me what you want," she whispered.

"I want to feel you, every inch of you," Vince replied, his desire was so obvious even through the closed door. "I want to make you scream my name."

My heart raced as I listened, my cheeks burning with arousal and guilt.

With a deep, shuddering breath, I tore my hand away. The wolf whimpered.

“This is stupid.” I muttered to myself. The whole thought was stupid. The whole hypothesis that I had cooked up ony head was stupid.

This man couldn't be my mate. He was my stepfather. I concluded.

Slinking back to my room, I collapsed onto the bed, the cold sheets offering little comfort.

Then, a painful feeling tore in my chest. But before I could react, another round of it ripped through me.

A yelp jumped from my throat as another searing pain flared in my chest. It was a pain unlike any I'd ever experienced. My wolf whimpered in defeat.

I stumbled back from the door, gasping for air. My vision blurred, the hallway tilting around me. I needed out. Now.

Without a second thought, I bolted from my room, the cold air slapping against my burning skin. I didn't bother with shoes, the soft grass soothed my bare feet. I just ran.

My destination was anywhere but there. My legs pumped, lungs burning, until my own heart was the only sound in my ears. Tears, hot and angry, streamed down my face.

As I plunged deeper into the woods behind our house, a choked sob reached my ears, the sound arresting my flight. I followed the sound.

My eyes tried to identify a figure. It was one that I couldn't mistake for another.

There, beneath a gnarled oak tree, sat Kai. His back was to me, but even from a distance, I could see the way his broad shoulders shook with silent sobs.

We weren't exactly friends. Well, not after what he did to me. Kai had kept me at arm's length, ever since the whole break-up thing. But seeing him like this, all vulnerable and broken, stripped away part of the hate that I had grown for him, these past few days.

I hesitated for a moment before I approached him. "Kai?" My voice emerged, welcomed by the chirping crickets.

He flinched at the sound, his head snapping up. Surprise flashed cross his tear-streaked face before it hardened into a mask of indifference. He quickly wiped his eyes.

For a moment, an awkward silence stretched between us. Then, with an heavy sigh, he spoke. "Nina," he said, "What are you doing out here?"