Cowgirls and Alphas

Chapter 1

June

Lottie POV

My heart beats faster as I run through the forest, dodging the trees and jumping over the fallen ones. My jacket catches on a branch, pulling me to a stop. ‘No, no, no! Come on!’ I frantically yank on my jacket. ‘Please let go!’ A bone-chilling howl rings through the quiet forest, and my heart stops. ‘Oh no.. they’re getting close.’ I decide to take the darn thing off and keep running. I have to keep going if I want to live. My lungs feel like they’re on fire. My legs feel like they’re about to give out. I look ahead and see the moonlight illuminating the familiar cabin in the clearing. ‘Almost there! Don’t give up now!’ I push on with what little strength I have left. All of a sudden, I hear growls closing in around me. I look to my left and see two of them flanking me. To the right, three. Where is the other one? I look back in front of me. ‘Keep going! Don’t slow down!’ I’m about to clear the tree line when the last one jumps into my path, facing me head-on. I am so focused on the giant in front of me that I fail to notice a rock sticking out of the ground. My foot catches, and I tumble to the forest floor. ‘Damn it! No!’ I lay there, too exhausted to get up. Then, the hot breath of the beast is on the back of my neck. A growl erupts from its chest, making me cower further into the ground. I slowly move my eyes to look at the wolf-like monster towering over me. The light of the moon outlines its grey fur. The power radiating off of it penetrates my soul. Its pitch black eyes bore holes into mine. ‘This is it. I’m going to die.’ Then everything goes dark.

I jolt up from my bed, panicked and gasping for air. I’ve broken into a cold sweat, and my hands are quaking. “Calm down, Lottie. It was only a nightmare.” I repeat to myself. I head to the bathroom to take a hot shower to help ground myself. I’ve found that this is the best way to calm my panic attacks over these stupid nightmares. They started two months ago. At first, they came sporadically but have become more consistent this last week. I have come to expect the same nightmare every time. Giant wolves chase me in the mountains, and before I can see what happens to me, I wake up. I’m starting to wonder if this dream is supposed to mean something.

After 30 minutes of scrubbing the terrible thoughts away, I feel much better. I look at the time and see it’s 6:15 am. Ugh, there’s no point going back to bed now since I need to be up in an hour to do chores, so I guess I’ll get ready for the day. I comb my long sun-kissed brown hair before putting it into a French braid. I head back to my room to pick out my clothes: blue jeans, a t-shirt, a hoodie, a ball cap, and boots. Nothing fancy, but I’m comfortable. That’s all I care about. I grab a banana nut muffin on my way out to do my chores. Then take a moment to enjoy the crisp, quiet summer morning on the front porch. I love this time of day. There’s something about it that fills my soul with joy and peace. I take a deep breath in and let it out. “Today is going to be a good day,” I tell myself.

••••

I head back to the house and am engulfed by the scent of pancakes and bacon. Mmm... My stomach growls at the delicious smell.

“Good morning, Momma!” I say once I enter the kitchen. I see my mom standing at the stovetop flipping pancakes. She’s a petite hourglass-shaped woman with long golden hair and blue-green eyes. We’re practically twins. Except I have brown hair and chocolate brown eyes like my dad.

“Good morning, sweet girl! You’re up early,” she says brightly.

“Yeah, I couldn’t sleep, so I got up and did the chores.”

“Bad dreams again?” She gives me a sympathetic look.

“Yes, the same one as always,” I say lowly.

“I’m sorry, honey,” she says as she brings me into a tight hug. Her hugs are the best. They always manage to make one feel better.

“It’s okay,” I reply, “is there anything I can help you with?”

“I’ve got breakfast covered. Could you make sure your brother and sisters are up and getting ready?” I nod and give her a quick kiss on her cheek. Then head upstairs to the bedrooms.

I knock on Ava’s door first. “Ava?” I say, entering her room. Looking around, I see her finishing getting dressed. She’s a taller, more slender version of our mom.

“Morning, Lottie. I’m coming down in a minute,” she says.

“Okay, Mom wanted me to check on you.”

Next, I go to Katie’s room. I brace myself before knocking on the door. She’s a bit of a bear in the morning. “Katie?” I call out, entering the room. She’s still snuggled in bed, so I gently push her to try and wake her up. “Katie, it’s time to get up,” I whisper. A muffled “No!” comes from under the blankets. “Come on. Mom made pancakes and bacon! Let’s go.” She kicks at me and snaps, “Go away!” I stand up and snap back, “Fine! But you won’t like it when I come back. So I suggest you get up.”

Closing the door behind me, I head to Austin’s room only to find it open and him not there. I look downstairs and see him at the dining table, eating a plate full of food.

“Good morning, bubba!” I give him a big bear hug.

“Lottie, you're crushing me!” I laugh at his dramatic tone and ruffle his short brown hair. He rolls his hazel-colored eyes and continues attacking his breakfast.

Turning to my mom, I ask, “Mom, can I have the marbles to wake Katie up? She’s kicking again.”

She sighs, “Sure, but try being nice once more before using them, please.”

“Yes, ma’am.” I go to the freezer and grab a bag of marbles that are in it. Then speed-walk back to Katie’s room. She is still buried under a mountain of blankets. Sitting on the end of her bed, I say, “Katie, mom said it’s time to get up,” a little louder than last time. She kicks at me again. “Okay, know that I warned you.” I stand up, open the bag and dump the contents between the mattress and the blankets where she resides.

“HOLY MOTHER OF PEARL!” She exclaims, rolling around in her bed. “AHHH! SO COLD!” Katie jumps up, her dark brown eyes glaring at me through her messy blond hair. I meet her gaze and give her a mischievous smirk. “You’re the worst!” She hisses at me while storming out of the room. I snicker while picking up the marbles before heading back to the kitchen.

••••

At breakfast, we enjoy the meal as a family. It’s quiet until Dad clears his throat to gain our attention.

“Does anyone have any plans for this weekend?”

Ava is the first to answer. “Lottie and I were planning on going to the movies with some friends on Friday, but that’s all.”

“Hmm, okay. Anyone else?” Everyone else shakes their heads no. “We need to go to the mountain to check on the herd. I want to go to the cabin and spend time together. I’d like to stay until Monday afternoon,” he states.

“That’s a wonderful idea!” My mom says excitedly.

Dad takes a minute to think. Then, he looks at us and says, “Girls, I’d like you to come with us, so how about I make you a deal. We’ll go up Thursday afternoon. I need you to take care of the chores and clean the house before you go out Friday night. Then, start driving up to the cabin at 8 a.m. Saturday.”

Mom chimes in, “No friends over here while we’re gone. Also, use the radio to call us when you leave so we know when to expect you.”

Dad takes Mom’s hand in his. “I agree with your mom. We trust you and believe that you’ll respect this deal,” he finishes. The two of us agree and thank them for letting us go.

“Alright, I’m going to go finish irrigating. I’ll see ya later,” Dad says standing up from the table. He leans down to kiss Mom goodbye.

“I love you,” he gently proclaims.

“I love you too,” she replies smiling.

Someday, I’m going to have a love like theirs. They are a team, equal partners who value one another’s work and opinion. They also absolutely adore one another and don’t hesitate to let the world know how they feel. As their child, it can be nauseating to see at times. Even so, I’d still like to have that with my future husband. Not that I’m thinking about marrying any time soon! I recently turned 19, and I’m in no rush to find “Mr. Right.” Especially after everything I’ve been through this last year.