Scum (Book 1)

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Cheyenne’s POV

“No,” I reply, taking everyone in the room aback. “I’m extremely uncomfortable about how being Alpha Liam’s pretend date can potentially affect my future within the pack.”

“Did you just say no?” Jenna looks extremely shocked, but I said what I said.

“Miss Jenna, I consider us cordial, and while we aren’t friends, I’m almost positive that you know, if only because your mate told you, that I want to be a Luna’s escort. I’m not putting that in danger by causing-”

“You’ll be paid 4k plus expenses.” Liam isn’t playing fair, and I glance over to my brother who must have told the man that an extra four thousand dollars in our family account would allow our mother to partially retire.

“That, and you can consider the time as experience in escorting a ranking pack member.” Royce is right, but Jenna spreads the icing on the cake by telling me that I can also get paid training time, and now I’m extremely conflicted.

“How would something like this make me look?”

“Exactly,” Kelvin says, staring at Liam who clearly wasn’t expecting the man to speak. “Regardless of if we know that she isn’t being paid to actually go on a date with her future alpha, that’s how it’ll appear, and it may damage her reputation.”

“Not exactly,” Dallas replies, rubbing the back of his neck in what I can only assume is discomfort. “If Liam asked me to come with him, same arrangement, would anyone think that way, or are we jumping to conclusions because my sister is female.”

“That’s right gamma; you’re letting your bigotry show.” Jenna is joking, but Kelvin is irritated enough to give her the finger, making her snort in amusement. “You also get to dress really pretty.” The woman randomly blurts out. “And who knows… you’re seventeen, of gamma blood, and you may meet a male who feels a pull toward you.”

I can feel my heart rate increase, and although I’m nervous, I find myself nodding.

Jenna squeals in delight before sitting on her mate’s lap and opening her laptop. She asks me what size dress I wear, but I have no clue, in fact...

“Nora kind of handles those things for me.”

“Okay, at least tell me your cup size?”

“Large?” Every single person in the room starts laughing, but Jenna is just staring at me with a gaping mouth that tells me I said something wrong. “You don’t know your own bra size?”

“No, but I can…” I start tugging at my shirt, but my brother stops me, holding my wrists in place with a vice grip that’s tight enough to trigger my instinct to protect myself. “What’s the problem?”

“Chey, you aren’t a little girl anymore. You can’t just strip in front of men.”

“I wasn’t going to strip. I was going to lift my shirt. Everyone here has seen a bra before, and Royce has a mate.”

“You’re right Chey, but so is Dallas.” I look at Kelvin, who stood at the same time my brother restrained me. “We aren’t looking at you like that, but there are men who will be, so just be a little more aware of your surroundings.”

“So, what would happen if I needed to shift? Am I supposed to go to a secluded area to shift back?”

“Chey, you really have to stop skipping wolf education classes. Men are always looking, and they are always lying about it,” Jenna adds.

“Then I’ll tear their eyes out.” Dallas doesn’t laugh because he knows that I’m serious, and so does Liam, so he gently tries to correct me.

“Look, I agree with you that a punishment is in order, but at our core, our species is primal. That means that if everyone reacted the way you suggested, the whole pack would be blind.”

“I’m confused…” I reply, slumping my shoulders because… “If men are going to look anyway, then why am I hiding?”

Liam’s POV

I’m so glad that I’m not Dallas right now, and while Chey has a valid point, fundamentally she’s wrong.

There is a stark difference between stripping out of necessity, and stripping just because, and when her brother explains it, the girl turns crimson, realizing that ‘advertising her assets’ is a form of ‘invitation.’

“Why hasn’t anyone said anything to me? I’ve been making myself a billboard!” Royce bellows out a laugh so loud that Jenna has to cover her ears.

It takes him forever to compose himself because every time he looks up at Chey, he starts laughing again.

“Chey,” he finally says, still chuckling in between words. “No one in this pack is dumb enough to try you, but that’s only here. Elsewhere, it may be different.”

“So, should I tone it down?”

“Yes.”

“No.” We answered the girl simultaneously, and Jenna is the only one who told the girl not to change.

Chey looks like she doesn’t know who to listen to, despite the majority being in favor of her dressing somewhat differently, but we’re spared from having to explain because Dallas mind-linked Nora, and Chey basically assaults the woman with a series of questions upon arrival.

“What? There’s nothing wrong with the way that you dress; not now, not before and not later. Whoever says anything different is just jealous.”

“It was them.” Chey points to us, and because Nora isn’t going to talk down to her superiors, she focuses on her mate.

“Babe, I can explain…” Dallas tells the woman everything, and Nora turns to hear Chey’s response.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Well, are you going to go?”

“Do you think that I should?”

“Only if you feel comfortable.” Nora is very non-confrontational, so I’m surprised that she didn’t yield to Dallas, but then again, they are fated, marked, and mated to one another; some traits are bound to rub off on the other.

My father once told me that he hated to keep record of minor pack expenses, finding it to be a tedious task, both unnecessary and annoying, but my mother keeps track of everything, and eventually, it became his habit.

Now, no matter if it's ten dollars, twenty, or one thousand, my father can tell you exactly where it went and why. He doesn’t know when the change happened for him, but it just did, and the whole pack is happier for it.

Being an alpha is no longer about just physical strength. This is the twenty-first century, and things are more political now. Packs have leaderships that are heavily modeled after our country’s governing body.

Challenges can still be issued, but the pack’s elders have to sanction it. This is why Dallas is seen as a threat.

It’s only because of his father’s misfortune that he isn’t in the pack’s hierarchy, not because he isn’t capable. In fact, he’s much more responsible than I am, he’s already found his mate, so he isn’t chasing ‘skirts’ or ‘shorts,’ and while he may not be as ‘smart’ as me, he isn’t an i***t.

There’s also the fact that Dallas and I are pretty evenly matched in strength, and honestly speaking, I don’t know if the man holds back when we’re sparring, or if I can actually beat him, but I can say for sure that both Royce and Kelvin hate going against him in anything.

With that said, Nora is probably beginning to take on some of her mate’s attributes, just like Dallas is taking on some of hers.

Kelvin, Royce, and I have had conversations about it behind the man’s back, thinking that the woman’s nerdy behavior and passive personality were going to be his downfall, but instead, it made him more likable. He’s now able to calmly address an issue without immediately resorting to violence, and sometimes, a stern talking to by a man who can break your neck, is all a person really needs.

“If Chey is comfortable with going as his companion, then I think it’s important for us to support her, but if she isn’t, then it’s important that we understand why.” Everyone turns to the woman, who once again mentions being a Luna’s escort.

I can’t argue with her logic, especially if I find my mate, and her jealousy is anything close to Porsha’s.

“Then it’s settled, she isn’t going,” Kelvin says, making Royce laugh before he realized the man was serious.

“Um… Obviously you weren’t paying attention. Chey told us what worries her; give Liam a chance to rebuttal before you shut it down.” Royce looks at me, mind-linking what I could possibly say to entice Chey to agree.

“If you do me this favor, I will write a character letter to the were-nursing program, encouraging them to see your application sooner.”

“On top of all the other incentives,” Jenna adds, and Chey doesn’t even hesitate.

My sister shrills in excitement, and the girls start talking about bra and dress sizes; well, everyone except Chey, who looks so lost that it’s not even funny.

“Chey, do you like this dress?” Nora asks, pulling the girl into the conversation.

“Is it an advertisement?” I glance over at Dallas, who has his hands clasped in front of his face. I move closer to the man, gripping his shoulder in what I hope is a comforting manner because I know what he’s thinking.

“Bro, don’t worry, she still has time to change. Chey isn’t the same girl she used to be at fourteen; she’s just taking longer to get there than other girls.” Dallas and I are mind-linking because I don’t want his sister to feel bad.

“What if we never had this conversation? She would have been taking off her clothes in front of everyone.”

“And they would have learned quickly to look away.”

“Or they would have ganged up against her… again.”

“D., that will never happen again, and we’ve already corrected her. Chey learns quickly.”

“You’ll keep her out of trouble, right?”

“I won’t leave her side.”

Chey’s POV

I went from being weary, to being excited about traveling. I don’t have much down time, and this ‘assignment’ is sort of like a vacation for me.

Jenna says that Liam just wants to show Porsha that he will be okay without her. Likewise, because I am a pack warrior and I aspire to become a Luna’s Escort, if she decides that she wants to make up with him on the spot, he will be able to accept without the trouble of explaining.

It’s like a win-win for both of us, and the money just makes things even better.

“Ready to go?” Nora questions, rechecking my luggage to make sure that she packed it well.

“Yup!”

“And remember, Jenna has your gown.”

“Got it!” I reply, darting out of the front door.