Page 1 of My Possessive Alpha

Chapter 1 - Lydia

The gentle scratch of bristles dragging across my scalp and hair filled the otherwise quiet room as Mom stood behind me, carefully removing knots and imperfections.

I looked at her through the vanity mirror I sat in front of, catching the pleased smile on her lips.

She seemed relaxed and at peace, entertaining some sort of bliss in her mind at the simple gesture.

While the bristles against my head made my skin tingle, I was more confused than anything and a bit suspicious of her actions.

We have always been close; she and Dad were all I had, but I was just a kid the last time she asked to brush my hair. Even if it was nice to receive affection from her, I didn't understand where it came from.

Mom hummed to herself as she pulled the brush through a section of my thick brown hair before letting it gently fall back into place.

"How does it feel to be eighteen, honey?" she asked, tone light and casual.

"Not much different from seventeen," I admitted, mirroring her faint smile. "I guess I feel a little stronger than last year."

"You know, you're at the perfect age to better understand your options now," she hummed, eyes gleaming with those thoughts hidden away in her mind.

I glanced at her curiously. "My options?"

"Mhm," she replied, letting my hair cascade over my shoulder. "Who you'd like to spend the rest of your life with. The available contenders in our pack might be more interestedin you, but you should focus your attention on the only one who really matters."

"Who?"

Mom chuckled to herself as if it were obvious. "Our alpha, of course. He still needs a Luna, as well as an heir."

The implications brought immediate warmth to my cheeks, and I averted my eyes, embarrassed by the topic as it stirred discomfort in my chest. "I—I don't know..."

"No need to be bashful, Lydia. I heard he's taken an interest in you already," she said with a smile, more than pleased by the idea. "It would be the greatest honor for him to desire you as his mate. If he moves in that direction, you'd be wise to accept his advances."

The thought alone was enough to make my stomach twist, shaken by the idea.

Even if my parents followed his leadership closely, and I found myself doing the same, all while receiving our praise for being the ideal alpha, I've only ever seen him as exactly that.

Jack was near my parents’ ages, and while his shifter blood visibly slowed signs of his aging, that fact was enough to make me grimace. Knowing that he was old enough to be my parent.

To make matters worse, it triggered a familiar, almost painful response in me—the same feeling I used to get when I was younger every time I was around him alone. The creeping discomfort that put me on edge.

He was the figure who guided and taught me the ways of our world, and I couldn’t see him in a different kind of way.

I had no longing for Jack, even if Mom wanted me to.

My throat went dry as I glanced at Mom through the mirror, feeling my skin prickle with uneasiness. "Do I have to?"

There was something almost juvenile in my tone—an unideal question from a recent child turned adult. Yet, my doubt lingered in those words anyway, stomach clenching at the thought of becoming his in a way beyond being a follower in his pack.

I didn’t like how he looked at me even since I was younger, and I certainly didn’t want to keep enduring that any longer than I had to.

"It would be ideal, yes. An honor, really," Mom answered, eyes full of empathy despite how her words seemed to be the opposite. "Your father and I have been hoping this would happen for a while. To see you with him, as the pack's Luna, would make us happier than anything else."

Even if her smile was supposed to be a comfort, I felt anything but.

"I..." my sentence trailed off as I let go of a breath and tried to gather my tumultuous thoughts. "I respect him as a leader, but only that. It would feel too strange."

"Change can be uncomfortable but essential. I want to see you flourish and become something in this pack, my dear. You never know, you might find yourself being more receptive to his advances than you thought possible."

Blinking back at her as I struggled to understand her suggestion, I tried to envision the idea for myself: finding myself alone with Jack, accepting his physical advances and enjoying his attention, becoming his mate and Luna, and making my parents happy at the same time.

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