My Hockey Alpha Stepbrother

Chapter 5

Ellen

I’m all shaky when I wake up the following morning. Oscar is snoring lightly beside me in my bed, but when I look at him, it just feels wrong having him so close to me. Probably because I, once again, dreamt about my freaking stepbrother.

Just what is going on, and what did Christian mean by saying, “Ask me the truth about what happened to your parents” in my dream?

“Mhm...chocolate...” Oscar mumbles in his sleep, and I smile to myself. He is rather cute. I almost get teary-eyed as I remember all the reasons I like him.

1. Protective.

2. Kind.

3. He has a really nice car.

4. Hmm...

Oh well, I can think of other things some other time. I’m just a bit tired now, I guess.

I sneak out of bed and slip into my slippers. My stomach grumbles. I’m always hungrier than a wolf in the mornings. My plan is to make a sandwich before the hunt today. That’s the reason Oscar stayed over so that we could go to the pack hunt together.

As I open the cabinet, I hear a chuckle coming from the door opening. “Eating before a pack hunt, really? How are you going to fit breakfast AND whatever prey we catch in your stomach, huh?”

I give Christian the stink eye. “Are you calling me fat or something, pal?”

He grins. “Not at all,” those eyes of his travel down to my stomach, and his teeth show in that grin. “I actually think your little pouch is adorable.”

My face burns. “I don’t have a pouch!” I mean, I do - most women who love snacks do - but he isn’t supposed to point that out!

“Whatever you say, sis,” Christian teases and places a hand on my stomach. “Your belly is cute.”

“What the hell are you doing?!” I slap his hand away from my belly.

“Hey, chill,” Christian pouts. “I’m just touching you. It’s not like I’m hurting you.”

“You placed your hand on my pouch - That’s so disrespectful!”

“I’m sorry.”

“Your apology doesn’t matter - I demand justice!”

Christian looks amused. “Justice?”

“Hell yeah!” I exclaim. “Let’s see how you will feel if I do the same thing to you!”

I place my hand on his stomach, expecting Christian to get mad, but he just c***s his head to the side and gives me a curious look. It throws me off my game. I don’t know what to do now, and when my hand snakes underneath his t-shirt, I’m met with a six-pack.

“Did you find what you’re looking for?” Christian asks in an amused tone. “My pouch?”

My whole face burns - he knows goddamn well that he doesn’t have a pouch. The guy is ripped, and it was a mistake touching him. I quickly withdraw my hand, hating myself for my racing heartbeat.

“You don’t have a pouch...” I mutter.

Christian laughs. “No, but you’re welcome to touch me anyway. I quite liked it.”

“You liked it?!”

“...is that bad?”

I gasp. “We are siblings!”

“Step-siblings,” Christian looks at me with his beautiful blue eyes and smiles. “There is a big difference.”

I can feel my body reacting in ways that it shouldn’t. This is wrong on so many levels, but there’s something about Christian that makes me want to forget everything else.

He is so pretty and—

NO!

He is my brother, and I’m together with Oscar - I should be ashamed of myself for feeling up Christian.

“It’s still weird, Christian. We practically grew up together since our parents were so close.”

“Alright, alright,” he raises his palms in surrender. “No more flirting with you then.”

He...he admits that he was flirting with me?

I stare up at him, and a heavy silence falls between us as we both look at each other. He is so gorgeous. Blue eyes, dark hair, and a mischievous smile. Even his skin is tanned and gorgeous, with a few freckles left from the summer. I want him really badly, but he is wrong for me.

I can’t be with my stepbrother.

“Are you ready for the hunt?” Christian asks, breaking the silence.

I’m grateful for the change in topic and force myself to smile up at him. “Y-yeah. I’m very excited. Oscar and I were hoping to hunt moose.”

“Oscar, huh,” Christian’s eyes lose their light at that. He no longer looks friendly, only jealous. “Is he still here, or did he already leave?”

“He is sleeping inside my room.”

“I see...” Christian looks down at me with an intensity I’ve never seen in him before. “Are you in love with him, Ellen? Be honest with me.”

I snort. “Of course I love him - why else would I be together with him?”

Christian narrows his eyes. I never noticed it before, but he is so tall these days that I have to bend his head at an awkward angle to make eye contact.

“But are you in love with him?” he asks.

I swallow hard, suddenly feeling exposed in front of Christian. I know the answer to his question, but I’m not sure if I’m ready to admit it out loud.

“He is my boyfriend,” I finally say, my voice not louder than a whisper.

Christian’s jaw tightens, and he takes a step closer to me with that huge body of his towering over me. “That’s not what I asked, Ellen. Are you in love with him?”

I take a step back, feeling trapped by his intense gaze. “What’s it to you, Christian? You’re my stepbrother. It’s not like we can be together.”

“You didn’t answer my question,” he says, his voice low and threatening.

I can sense the anger simmering beneath his words, and it scares me. I’ve never seen Christian looking like this before.

“I don’t know,” I say, hoping to calm him. “Maybe I’m in love with him. What does it matter?”

“It matters to me,” he says, taking another step closer so that I’m pressed up against the wall. “I can’t stand the thought of you being with someone you aren’t even in love with, Ellen.”

I can feel his breath on my face as he looks down at me, and I close my eyes for a moment, trying to control my racing heart. His chest is broader than ever, and his hard n*****s are poking through the fabric of his shirt. I’m boxed into the wall, and I’m... I’m turned on! Damn it, why am I turned on?!

This is wrong, so wrong. But I can’t deny the attraction that I feel for Christian. He has grown into such a big man, and he knows how to make me happy. The guy is so caring and kind but also mischievous, and it’s just so freaking sexy. How am I supposed to ignore all of that?!

“Christian...please,” I whisper, afraid of him because I’m already wet between my legs.

“Oh no, Ellen,” he whispers, his face so close to mine that I can’t help but think about those lips of his. “I’m not going to let you escape from this conversation.”

“Christian, you’re being ridiculous,” I say, but I’m not scared of him anymore. Instead, I’m nervous and excited and almost ready to concede my defeat.

“I’m not giving you a choice,” he says, gripping my arms and pulling me close. “I want you to be honest with me: why are you with that guy?”

I can feel his hard manhood pressing against me, and it’s driving me crazy. Most of the time, I wish for Oscar to be more forward. I have a desire to be pushed up against a wall and be taken hard, but I know Oscar doesn’t have that sort of thing in him. He is too vanilla, whereas Christian isn’t vanilla at all.

No, Christian could naturally dominate me in bed, and I would love it. Still, I can’t be with him. It’s wrong on so many levels. I’m not even his fated mate, and what happens if she suddenly pops up, huh?

It’s safer to be with Oscar. That way, I won’t get hurt. That way, I can protect my heart because I’m not... I’m not in love with him.

Shit.

Did I actually admit that to myself?

“Anyway, since I suspect this won’t go anywhere, I will let you off the hook today,” Christian backs off, but instead of feeling relief, I’m disappointed. Strange. He fixes his eyes on me, and I shudder involuntarily. “Don’t be late for the pack hunt, okay?”

With that, Christian stalks off, and I’m left standing there with wet underwear. Freaking Christ. Just what am I supposed to do about my raging lust?