Mistletoe Magic: Kissed by the Triplet Alphas

Ellie Carter stood on her tiptoes, stretching to hang a sparkly silver snowflake on the gym wall. The ladder wobbled beneath her feet, but she refused to ask for help. She'd rather do everything alone than watch Jake and his new girlfriend decorate together. The bright lights of the gym bounced off the snowflake, sending tiny sparkles dancing across her face. "A little higher!" Sarah called from below, looking at the decoration. Her red hair was tied up in a messy bun, with a candy cane pen stuck through it. "The Principal wants everything perfect for tomorrow's Christmas party. You know how she gets about school events." "Like this?" Ellie fixed the snowflake, trying to ignore the ache in her chest. Last year, Jake had been the one holding the ladder, making stupid jokes about her being as graceful as a baby giraffe. Now he was on the other side of the gym, probably making those same jokes with Mia. "Perfect!" Sarah grinned, her green eyes twinkling with Christmas joy. "Now come down before you fall and break something. I can't take you to the hospital in this outfit." She pointed at her paint-splattered jeans and oversized sweater with dancing reindeer on it. The gym buzzed with activity as other students hung sparkling lights and arranged giant candy canes. Music played from someone's phone—Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You"—filling the air with happy tunes that only made Ellie feel worse. Last year, this had been her and Jake's song. "I can't believe it's been a year," Ellie mumbled, climbing down. Her curly brown hair fell in her face, covering the tears that threatened to spill. She brushed it back, showing hazel eyes that had lost their usual sparkle. Sarah squeezed her shoulder. "Hey, no sad faces allowed at Christmas! Besides, you're better off without him. Any guy who dumps you because he suddenly finds his 'true mate' is—" "Shhh!" Ellie glanced around nervously. Not everyone at Silverwood High knew about the werewolves. Sure, half the student body could grow fur and fangs, but they tried to keep it quiet from the humans who weren't "in the know." Principal Morrison would have a fit if the news got out. "Sorry," Sarah whispered, rolling her eyes. She grabbed a string of silver tinsel and started wrapping it around a nearby column. "I still think it's weird. One day Jake's totally in love with you, the next he takes one look at Mia and BAM! Werewolf magic says they're meant to be. Like, what kind of fairy tale bullshit is that?" "Can we please talk about something else?" Ellie grabbed another snowflake from the ornament box. This one was blue and seemed to shimmer with its own light. "Like how you're going to help me avoid them both at the party tomorrow?" "Actually..." Sarah bit her lip, dropping the tinsel. Little pieces of silver clung to her sweater. "About that..." Ellie's stomach dropped. The snowflake in her hand suddenly felt heavy. "No. Don't tell me—" "Jason asked me to be his date!" Sarah bounced on her toes, her excitement bubbling over. "He did it in the cutest way too! He left a trail of candy canes leading to my locker, and inside was this adorable stuffed wolf holding a note that said—" "It's fine," Ellie forced a smile, cutting off Sarah's story before it could make her feel even worse. "Really. I'm happy for you." She put the blue snowflake back in the box, not trusting herself to hang it without breaking down. But inside, her heart sank even lower. Now she'd be totally alone at the party. Again. She could already picture it—standing by the punch bowl, pretending to text someone while everyone else danced and laughed and had their perfect Christmas moments. A burst of laughter drew her attention to the other side of the room. Jake stood there, helping Mia wrap tinsel around a Christmas tree. His brown hair was messy as always, and his letterman jacket—the one Ellie used to wear—was now thrown over Mia's shoulders. He lifted her up so she could put the star on top, just like he used to do with Ellie. Mia's long black hair cascaded down her back as Jake spun her around, both of them laughing. She was beautiful, Ellie had to admit. All werewolves were. They had this natural grace, this wild beauty that normal people couldn't match. "I think I need some air," Ellie muttered, running toward the exit. She pushed through the double doors and gasped in the cold December air. The sound of laughter and music faded behind her, replaced by the soft whisper of falling snow. Snowflakes danced around her, each one sparkling in the afternoon sun like tiny diamonds. Ellie wrapped her arms around herself, wishing she'd grabbed her coat before running outside. The cold bit through her thin sweater, but she welcomed it. At least it gave her something else to focus on besides the ache in her chest. "Stupid werewolves," she whispered, watching her breath cloud in the air. "Stupid true mates. Stupid Christmas." The words hung in the frosty air like little prayers of defiance. A strange tingle ran down her spine, like someone was watching her. The hair on the back of her neck stood up, and her skin prickled with awareness. Ellie spun around, but the courtyard was empty. Just snow-covered benches and bare trees, their branches reaching toward the grey sky like skeleton fingers. Then she saw them. Three figures stood at the edge of the woods that bordered the school. Even from this distance, she recognized the Steele triplets. Everyone knew who they were—the most powerful monsters at Silverwood High. They were seniors, a year ahead of Ellie, and they ruled the school's wolf pack with total authority. Liam, the oldest by four minutes, stood straight and tall, his presence commanding even from afar. He wore a dark peacoat that made him look older than eighteen, more like the Alpha he was born to be. His blue eyes seemed to cut right through her. Noah, always happy, had his hands in his pockets, rocking back and forth like he couldn't stand still. His blonde hair caught the sunshine, making it look almost white against the snow. Unlike his brother, he wore just a leather jacket, as if the cold couldn't touch him. And Ethan, the mysterious one, leaned against a tree, his dark eyes fixed straight on Ellie. His black sweater and jeans helped him blend into the shadows, but there was no hiding the intensity of his look. A silver chain glinted at his neck—the pack symbol all three brothers wore. A gust of wind carried their scents to her—pine needles, winter air, and something wild that made her heart race. The triplets shouldn't affect her like this. They were Alphas, way out of her league. Besides, she was done with werewolves. One heartbreak was enough. But as she watched, all three brothers tilted their heads at exactly the same moment, like wolves catching an interesting scent. Their eyes glowed—Liam's amber, Noah's gold, and Ethan's silver—and Ellie felt that strange tingle again. It was like lightning dancing across her skin, making her feel more alive than she had in months. Something was about to change. She could feel it in the air, in the swirling snow, in the way her body hummed with awareness. The rational part of her brain said to go back inside, to forget about strange werewolf triplets and glowing eyes. But another part, a part that believed in Christmas magic and true mates, wanted to step closer. "Ellie!" Sarah's voice broke the spell. "Where are you? These things won't hang themselves!" Ellie turned toward her friend's call, her heart racing. When she looked back at the woods, the triplets were gone. The snow fell untouched where they had stood, as if they'd never been there at all. Had she imagined them? But their scents lingered in the air, and that feeling of impending change remained. Tomorrow was the Christmas party. Tomorrow everything would be different. She could feel it in her bones, in the way the air crackled with possibility. She just didn't know how right she was. Ellie took one last look at the woods, then rushed back inside. The warmth of the gym wrapped around her like a blanket, but she couldn't shake the chill that had nothing to do with the cold. Sarah met her at the door, arms full of more decorations. "There you are! I thought you'd frozen solid out there. Here, help me with these wreaths." She paused, studying Ellie's face. "Are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost." "Not a ghost," Ellie whispered, taking a wreath. "Just..." She trailed off, not sure how to explain what had happened. How do you tell your best friend that three werewolf Alphas just made your world shift on its axis? "Just what?" Sarah pressed, but Ellie shook her head. "Nothing. Let's finish decorating." She forced herself to focus on hanging the wreath, on the scratch of pine needles against her fingers, on anything except the memory of glowing eyes and wild smells. Across the room, Jake and Mia had finished with their tree. They sat together on the benches, sharing earbuds and swaying to whatever song they were listening to. Ellie waited for the normal stab of pain, but something was different. The ache was still there, but duller now, overshadowed by the lingering electricity from her encounter with the triplets. As she worked, Ellie found herself humming along to the Christmas music. Not because she felt particularly festive, but because it helped drown out the whispers in her head. Whispers that said maybe, just maybe, this Christmas would bring its own kind of magic. Back in the gym, high above where anyone could see, a small sprig of mistletoe began to glow with a faint, magical light. It was waiting. Watching. Ready to spark a Christmas magic that would change everything. The mistletoe's light flashed once, twice, like a heartbeat. A single leaf unfolded, reaching toward where Ellie stood below. Tomorrow, the real magic would begin. Tomorrow, three hearts would beat as one. Tomorrow, a lonely girl would find out that sometimes the best Christmas gifts come in threes. And somewhere in the snowy woods, three wolves raised their heads to the winter sky, already feeling the pull of fate. The stage was set. The magic was rising. And Ellie Carter's world was about to turn upside down in the most wonderful way possible. All she had to do was believe.