Bullied Mate (The Alpha Shifter Collection Book 17) Read online

  “So, after you work here for a month, you’ll go to Nicole’s,” Anna said.

  “Right, Nicole’s.” The alpha’s mate’s beauty shop.

  Poppy couldn’t think of anything worse. She didn’t say anything and smiled at her mother.

  Anna pulled off her glasses, ones with sharp lenses for her to make the jewelry she made perfect. Her mother was talented and built this business up from the ground up while also raising her.

  “What’s on your mind, honey?” Anna asked.

  “Nothing is on my mind. I am fine. Totally fine.” She felt her mother’s gaze on her and glanced down at her clipboard, feeling the sickness spiraling in her stomach.

  Poppy hadn’t told her mother about the mating. She never told her mother about the bullying from him either.

  She knew her mother would be pissed off. It would have caused a whole scene, and the truth was, she didn’t want her mother to go through with it. Poppy didn’t understand her mother’s enjoyment of being with the men, but she kind of got it.

  Over the years, she had heard other pack members talk about the loneliness. How empty it was.

  “Are you excited?” Anna asked.

  “About what?”

  “Lionel’s pack arriving soon?”

  “Oh, yeah, I guess.”

  “Sweetheart, that might be your chance to actually, you know, find your true mate.”

  “I don’t think that is possible,” Poppy said.

  “Why not? You haven’t found your mate here. It is always possible.”

  “Maybe you will find … someone.” She hated lying to her mother. It didn’t sit well with her at all. This was awful.

  “It’s not possible for me to find a mate, sweetheart. I have been mated once. It never happens again.”

  They had never talked about this. “Not ever?”

  “No, not ever. You get the chance to be with your one soul mate. Some mates are lucky and will be together for their whole lives. Others, not so much.” Anna climbed off her chair, but Poppy had seen the pain flash in her gaze.

  “Mom, I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be, sweetheart. I know this is a trying time for you. For all of you. I remember my first transition. It was a painful experience, but it was also the night I found your father. Even with all of that pain, there was joy, and I wouldn’t trade a moment of it.” Anna sighed. “I want that for you.”

  “You do?”

  “Yes, there is something so magical about finding your one true love.”

  It was hard for Poppy not to snort. “Do you think that there is a chance that mates may not like each other?” Poppy asked.

  “No.”

  “No?”

  “The feelings that consume you, it is … no, there is no way for that kind of feeling to be anything that can be easily squashed or ignored. It builds you up. Drives you. It’s like an explosion, and it happens so fast. You can’t deny it. Can’t ignore it.” Anna smiled. “It’s always there, glowing between you.”

  Poppy wanted to tell her mother that the anger and hatred were very much real. Clearly, her mother wasn’t aware of what happened if two mates weren’t accepting of each other.

  She went to her mother and wrapped her arms around her, hugging her close. “Well, I hope that’s not the case and someone from Lionel’s pack is there to love you, and cherish you, and to want to keep you as part of them.” She kissed her mother’s head.

  Anna laughed.

  “Sweetheart, that is what I should be saying to you. Not the other way around.” Anna kissed her head. “I’m getting hungry. How about I head out and grab us a couple of burgers from the diner?”

  “Sounds amazing.” She smiled at her mother, loving her even more.

  Anna gave her a kiss on the head and then left the store.

  Alone.

  Poppy was able to drop the falseness. She hated lying to her mother. It made her skin crawl.

  Being alone wasn’t a good thing either. With her mother around, she was able to control the wolf a little better.

  Her skin felt too tight. It was uncomfortable.

  Keeping so many secrets locked up inside her made her struggle to focus. The wolf inside her wanted out. It wanted to run. To be let free, but it also wanted to go to its mate. To Klaus.

  She took several deep breaths.

  It had only been three days. There was no way this feeling should be coming to her right now.

  In and out.

  She felt the perspiration on her brow, the sickness swirling in her gut.

  Dropping the clipboard, she lost her vision and grasped the edge of the nearest counter. Tension built along her spine, and she felt her bones start to merge. This couldn’t be happening. No full moon.

  She tried to think of her mother.

  Out!

  Run.

  Free.

  Klaus.

  Her wolf wanted freedom, and this was why their alpha insisted that newly turned wolves take a minimum of one year to work at different places throughout the pack. He believed every single person had a part to play in helping bring the wolf under control. To bring stability.

  Poppy needed it. She was desperate for it. She wanted to scream for her mom. To beg for help.

  In the background, she heard the sound of the doorbell.

  Arms surrounded her, and she waited as she was moved. Within seconds, the pain started to evaporate. Opening her eyes, her vision returned, and she was shocked to see Klaus standing right in front of her.

  He held her face in his hands. “I’ve got you. I’ve got you.”

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I’m … I was … I … you’re welcome. I was being responsible here for you, and yeah, I was making sure that everything was working all right.”

  She frowned. There was no reason for Klaus to be here.

  He didn’t let go of her face, and she quickly became very aware their bodies were flush together.

  “I’ve got you.”

  “You shouldn’t be here.”

  “Poppy, you can be pissed at me all you want to be, but we both know what would have happened if I hadn’t been here. You needed me. Stop being so freaking stubborn.”

  “My mom?”

  “She’ll be back soon, and I’ll leave out of the back, or wherever you need me to go. I will never hurt you.”

  “You … she is asking about a mate. Do you know Lionel’s pack is supposed to be coming here?” she asked.

  She watched as his jaw clenched.

  “Yes, I’m aware of it.”

  “Should I be worried?” she asked.

  “Don’t allow any of the men to get too close.”

  “Why not?”

  “Damn it, Poppy. Why the fuck do you think?” he asked.

  She glared at him.

  “We haven’t told anyone that we’re mates. I … want you. There, I’ve said it. I fucking crave you, and there is this desperation I feel for you. Do you think I’m going to be able to have so much control if a dick comes sniffing around you? Hell no. I will cause problems. Trust me when I say we don’t want that to happen.”

  “Fine.” She understood.

  With her mother asking questions and another pack coming, she was screwed.

  They both tensed up as they heard the bell above the door ring.

  Klaus surprised her even more by kissing the top of her head, and then he snuck out of the back. Poppy rushed to lock the door behind him.

  She returned to her mother, who was calling her name.

  “Honey, why were you not in the shop?” Anna asked.

  “I, er, I thought I heard something.”

  “Poppy, how many times do I have to tell you not to do something like that?” Anna moved past her, going to the door, sliding the lock open, and checking out in the alleyway.

  Klaus was long gone.

  Anna tutted. “It was probably just a squirrel. Your senses will be all over the place. It has only been three days, but trust me, as soon as
you get a handle on everything, it will all make a whole lot of sense to you.” Anna moved toward her. “Honey, are you feeling okay?” Her mother put her hand on her forehead.

  “Yeah, I’m fine.”

  “You’re burning up and sweaty.”

  “Oh, it’s nothing. Just a little warm, don’t you think?”

  “It is summer.” Anna didn’t look happy.

  Poppy hated the lies and deception, but what more could she do? She wasn’t going to tell her mother that she had found her mate, one she couldn’t stand. Also that said mate had stopped her from losing control, hurting herself, and possibly even destroying her mother’s shop, causing a lot of damage.

  There was no reason to alarm her mother or to upset her.

  No reason at all.

  ****

  “You need to stop following me,” Poppy said.

  “I’m not following you. I wanted to go into this part of the forest. Last time I checked, you didn’t own every single piece of forest.” Klaus was lying. He didn’t need to go into the forest.

  He was following Poppy., Had been doing it for the past few days. Would probably still be doing it for a lifetime. Klaus wasn’t going to apologize for that.

  She shook her head and sighed. “You’re being a pain in the ass.” She put her hands on her hips.

  Damn it, he loved those hips. He hadn’t gotten the chance to touch them the other day. It was a good thing he’d been stalking her. Otherwise, she would’ve been up shit creek with her wolf coming out in an enclosed space.

  A new transition is always problematic, as he should know.

  After his first transition, he had multiple occasions when he turned into a wolf. His father had to Alpha his ass, to get him to comply, which was hard to do, considering he carried the alpha gene as well. It was built into him to rebel.

  His father put up with so much, but Klaus knew it was important to follow the orders of the alpha at all times.

  “That I am, but don’t worry, you’ll be grateful for it as well.” He winked at her, and he saw her lips twitch. “I saw that.”

  “Shut up.”

  “You won’t be able to hate me for long. We’re not wired that way.”

  “I don’t think it matters how we’re wired, Klaus. This, between us, is not happening.”

  “Do you like lying to your mom?” Klaus asked.

  “Don’t even talk about my mother. I mean it. I will gut you this time. Alpha’s son or not, I will hurt you.”

  He held his hands up. “I want to keep my guts. I don’t… Look, I’m sorry for all the shit I said before. I don’t— It wasn’t me.”

  Poppy whirled around toward him. “And you think it is supposed to make it all better?”

  “I said I was sorry.”

  “Do you even mean it or are you just saying that to … I don’t know, make me forgive you so we can go on with our lives and be happy mates?”

  “I do mean it. I do.”

  “Wow, yes, I can totally hear how sorry you are.” She rolled her eyes and turned away from him.

  He gritted his teeth, angry with himself. This was fucked up.

  “Poppy, tell me what you need me to do. Tell me what I can do to make this easier for us. I hate lying to my dad. He even believes Lionel’s pack might have my mate for me.”

  “Stop it. Okay? Just stop. I’m already getting that from my mom. How important it is to find a mate. How amazing it would feel to finally know who he is. I have never lied to my mother. Never. Not once in my life. I’m close to her. She is my best friend.”

  Klaus put his hands on his hips and frowned. “Then tell me why I was never punished.”

  Poppy stopped, her back ramrod straight.

  She wore a beautiful dress that fell to her knees. The dress fit her through the tits and waist, flaring out, but as she moved, he caught sight of her ass. How had he not realized how curvy and sexy her ass was?

  So much wasted time and opportunity. This was on him, and he wasn’t going to squander another moment.

  Poppy was perfect.

  Yeah, and she won’t even let you get close to her.

  I got close. I was able to touch her. Kiss her.

  She wasn’t in control.

  Her wolf was knocking on the door.

  Klaus gritted his teeth as he watched her.

  “You want to know why? You’re right. I never told her.”

  “Then that’s a lie.”

  “She never asked.”

  “Lying by omission is still freaking lying, Poppy. You can’t dress that up.”

  Poppy stormed over to him, and she looked mightily pissed. He couldn’t help but admire her full tits as they bounced.

  He was missing out on so much. This woman was all his. All woman. Curves that now belonged to him.

  Klaus wanted to get his hands on her, but of course, he couldn’t.

  “You want me to tell you why I never said a word? My dad died, Klaus. My mother’s soul mate died protecting your dad. That’s right, in case you forgot, your father was being hunted, and my father put his ass on the line. He got hunted and torn apart. My mother lost her soul mate and I lost my dad. I had to listen to her pain for months and years. She never got over that. By some miracle, she was able to find some kind of peace with random pack men. They were never mated. Never married to anyone else, but she found a small slither of peace, enough to help with the pain. Why the hell would I tell my mother that I was getting bullied by the son of the very man who was there when she lost her mate? How do I tell her that I’m being called fat, ugly, and the daughter of the whore? Being shoved. Hair pulled. Huh? How do I do that?”

  She took another step toward him. “And I wasn’t an idiot, Klaus. I know you did all of that with no witnesses. So don’t you dare come at me with any accusations.”

  She spun on her heel about to leave, but he couldn’t let her.

  He grabbed her hand, stopping her from going. She drew her hand back as if to slap him, but he caught her wrist, stopping her again.

  “Let me go!”

  “Do you think I don’t regret what I did?” Klaus asked. “That I’m not paying that price?”

  “Fuck off. I don’t believe a word you say and I never will. I won’t say anything, and if you don’t want to end up with a mate who hates you, I suggest you keep it to yourself as well.”

  She pulled away. Klaus didn’t want to hurt her, so he released his grip on her. She took a couple of steps away.

  He should turn back, go back to the pack, and have dinner with his parents and sisters. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it.

  Poppy might turn. He’d seen it, and he didn’t want her to do anything to herself that she might regret.

  Klaus took another step in her direction. When he stepped on a twig and it snapped, she stopped, tensing up, and he expected her to attack and yell.

  She didn’t. Poppy kept on walking, and Klaus followed, keeping his distance, watching her back. He was a dick. He knew that.

  There was nothing he could do to change the shit he’d done, and he hated himself for that. He didn’t even know why he said the shit that he did or shoved her. At least he knew why he’d pulled her hair. He loved her blonde locks. She had them pulled back, even now, and it was so annoying that she did that.

  They kept on walking, moving through the forest.

  Klaus took several deep inhales, smelling to see if she needed his help, but the wolf wasn’t coming out. It would seem she finally had some semblance of control over it.

  He followed close to her, taking deep breaths, waiting, and breathing. They did this for a couple of hours until it was time for her to head back. This time, she wasn’t slow as she walked, but she picked up speed. Within twenty minutes, Poppy was back at home with her mother.

  He shoved his hands into his pockets and stared at Poppy’s home. She had a nice place.

  “Are you okay?”

  Klaus looked at Bethany, his little sister.

  “What are you d
oing here?”

  “Easy. Proving to our dear old dad that I could totally take your ass in a fight.”

  Klaus rolled his eyes. Bethany was his youngest sister at ten years old, but she was close to thirty mentally. She hated that the alpha went to a male. A tomboy from a young age, she had always been a pain. Climbing trees, badly. Bethany had broken a whole load of bones as she tried to prove that she was better than any boy.

  “You’re sneaking out of the house again?” Klaus asked.

  “That depends,” Bethany said. “Are we telling Dad that you have a mate, and it’s the girl you bullied for years?”

  Klaus tensed up. “Kid, I mean it. You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “You’ve got to learn to hide your stuff together. Does Poppy know you have a shrine?” Bethany asked. “Kind of creepy. A whole file of pictures.”

  “You’ve been through my room?”

  “Like I said, I’m the best alpha there is.”

  Klaus glared at his sister. “Tell me what you want.”

  “For you to tell Dad that I should be respected.”

  “Beth, you’re ten years old. You will earn that respect when you start doing as you’re told.” He glared at her. “Come on, before Dad orders a search party.”

  Chapter Three

  The pack was humming with excitement. Lionel’s pack was due to arrive tomorrow. From what Poppy knew, their alpha had already been informed that everything was on schedule. Lionel’s pack would arrive. Hotels and spare rooms were all ready and available. It was very common for packs to open their homes to each other.

  Especially as this wasn’t a hostile trip, but a friendly one.

  Her mother had a spare room as well, so they were going to be housing someone. Poppy didn’t know who. Even her mother was excited as well. Festivities were being planned. Their orders had been cleared as well. All of the purchases packaged up and sent to the necessary addresses.

  That had been her job to do, to stand in line at the post office and send the last of the items on their merry way. Now, she was at home, and like so many times before, cooking up a storm with her mother.

  Her mother’s famous chili was in the oven. Lots of beans and spice. It was a treat and often the first chili to go. With her hair pinned back, Poppy worked on the brownies that were also a hit, while her mother baked several pastry cases. Anna’s custard strawberry cream pie was a hit. A beautifully tender pastry case, a thick custard, left to go cold and spread onto the base, slices of strawberry, and a squirt of whipped cream. Divine.