THE ALPHA'S LOVER

Chapter 1

Chapter One

"Come on Steph its not all that bad."

Stephanie looked at her new or rather old home not so sure what to make of it, she really didnt mind that it looked uninhabitated for at least a century it was way larger than her and her aunts two bedroomed flat back in the city and she loved the space and quiet.

"Well i didn't say it was all that bad but it seriously needs a makeover it looks like something out of a horror movie."

Her Aunt Lily laughed, "If there were undead zombies and monsters in that house this would be the last place i would take us but its home our family home."

Stephanie looked back to share in her aunts joke but her expression changed quickly as she ran up to her.

" your nose its bleeding!"

Steph took out her handkerchief and started wiping the blood away but Lily lightly pushed off her niece and took a cloth from her own jacket and tending to the problem to herself. Stephanie looked at her aunt worriedly, this anguish had been part of her for two years now. She feared loneliness and the feeling of despair that was inevitably waiting for her at the end of the journey she dreaded finishing, her aunt was the only family member she ever knew she never knew her father or mother or any other relative,as far she knew it was always the two of them living in their dump of an apartment. Steph pushed back her convulsed thoughts and took the nearest box to her moving towards the house.

"So are you ever gonna tell me how we own such a house and why I have never known,"

"Well its been our family property for 120 years," Lily said as she got back to moving their belongings into the house. " This estate is a very important part of this town's history."

"it sure doesn't look like it all," Steph picked up an old sign post left by the door.

"Eclipse Hill what a weird name for a house."

Lily took the sign from her niece throwing it aside, "Just an old fancy name used to be a popular trend in the earlier days."

"So are we gonna see the inside of the house or not,"

Lily chuckled as she opened the door lock revealing the interior of the room.

"I can definitely live here as long as someone cleans it first," Steph entered the enormous living room that was fully furnished with old dusty household items that hadn't been touched in ages. The decorations on the wall were classical but spooky looking with antique candle holders and light stands, family portraits of old forgotten ancestors hung across the wall as well as framed photos. Stephanie left her box by the wooden table in the living room as she past by the photos with keen interest.

"Looks like our family was rich so the question is where did all the money go."

Lily laughed at her niece's remark, "Money doesn't sick around long."

"And this place does need a cleaning I hope Fergus gets here any minute now."

Steph's ears perked up at the sound of a new name, her aunt rarely talked about her past and her growing up here and this new person might hold the keys to her never answered questions. "Who's Fergus?"

Lily shifted uneasily before calming herself, "Well he's the groundskeeper, he maintains the place since no one lives here."

"Well he's definitely doesn't do his job right this place is filthy."

"That mainly has to do with the fact that he doesn't get paid." Steph walked across the room once again looking at the photos until one particular photo sparked her interest.

It portrayed two girls sitting on a balcony Steph recognized that was on the left upper floor of the house. The photo was in black and white but both the girls were clearly blonde, they wore matching white dresses with a flower pinned to the right side of either of their dresses. The two girls were both smiling but Steph realized that something was off in the photo.

 Their eyes were blurred out by a white light that covered them. It seemed strange that the picture was taken and framed like that, she took the photo next to it and it portrayed a young man standing in an old study room she guessed was part of the house. His face was stern, he was well-groomed and easy on the eyes but just like the other photo his eyes were blurred out.

"Admiring the family portraits," Lily said as she re-entered the living room.

"Yeah but there is something weird with the camera pictures, the eyes are like all blurred out," Steph said as she went through other pictures with the similar effects.

"Don't worry yourself too much its just a old family tradition to have the photos taken like that."

"And why is that?"

"I'm sure it hardly matters now."

"It does if we live here, what if this house is haunted I really dont want to be here when s**t goes down."

"Relax honey I lived here for almost half my life its fine,"

Steph sighed at her mother's response and reluctantly left the subject at that. " You'll take the quarters to the left of the house."

"The one with the balcony,"

"Yes i'll be two doors down from you, I know you have been trying your best to care for me but i'm the mom and i want you to live to the fullest so yeah you take the biggest room as a thank you from me."

Steph jumped on her mom with a big hug filled with affection, "I love you."

Lily warmed into her niece taking up the warmth, closing her eyes in a fleeting moment of happiness, "I love you too sweetie."

"Eehmmm," the two were interrupted by the clearing of a throat behind them.

Stephanie turned around to look up at two towering men. One was sporting a full lumberjack beard with a messy and dirty overall, he was excessively ripped and had a flaming orb tattoo on the side of his right arm. He didn't smile at her at all but just looked at her like she was a helpless little puppy, she really didn't like the first impression. She turned to face the other guy and wished she hadn't. 

He was the gorgeous boy she had ever seen, he was shorter than the lumberjack but not short at all. He was built-up too but in the more eye-catching way and it didn't help that he hadn't cut his pitch black hair short and left it grow slightly lower than his shoulders making look like a fierce warrior prince from her hidden fantasies. The warrior boy didn't seem to take care that Stephanie was fawning over him, like it was normal for girls to gush over his apperance.

"Welcome back Mrs.Hill," Warrior boy said as he shook his mom's hand revealing the same flaming orb on his right hand. But what was more mysterious to Stephanie was the appearance of the same tattoo on her aunt's right hand too.