“We’re almost there.”
Hope flicked a look over at the passenger side of the car. Silence. Just like most of the trip. Sure, the quiet was broken with the occasional grunt, but no actual words had been forthcoming for a while.
“It’ll be nice to see Auntie Joy again.” Hope was not giving up, dammit. If she had to talk to herself for half an hour to get one of those grunts, then that’s what she’d do. She had been named ‘Hope’ after all, so she was damn well going to keep on hoping that things would improve.
“And I’m sure your new school will be great.” Hope glanced over just in time to see a scowl directed at her.
“I liked my old school.” Olivia, sulky teen extraordinaire, slumped against the car door.
“Then maybe you shouldn’t have got yourself expelled from it,” Hope said lightly. She was not going to snap. She was not. There would be no headlines about a rage-fuelled reindeer going berserk on the side of the road. Not today. After a moment, she managed to relax her death grip on the steering wheel.
A grunt was the only response.
Hope sneaked a look in her rear-view mirror to check on the younger kids. Bella, the littlest one, had fallen asleep some time ago, her teddy bear clutched to her chest. Emmett, the middle kid, had passed out only twenty minutes earlier. Sadly, the teenager had been awake and glaring for the entire trip. It had been a long, lonely drive.
“Liv, I need you to behave at this new school, okay?” Maybe appealing to her better nature would help. Did teenagers have better natures? The kid was fourteen, and Hope had thought the serious stuff was still a few years away. Then again, the poor kid hadn’t had an easy life. Hope had known this wouldn’t be easy, but no one had warned her exactly how hard it would be. No one had mentioned the daily onslaught of grunting, scowling, and glaring.
“Why?”
Hope ground her teeth. She was not going to snap. The last thing she needed was to go full feral reindeer and wind up being darted in the ass and carted off to a zoo. “Because you have to attend school somewhere—”
“Why?”
“Because it’s the bloody law!” Okay, that was a bit more hissy than intended, but this girl could try the patience of a saint. Hope took a deep breath. Getting into a yelling match was not going to help. Someone had to be the adult here, and unfortunately Hope was the one over the age of eighteen, so looked like it would have to be her. Dammit. “Look, just keep your head down and try to behave. I know things have been tough—”
A snort.
“But we all have to make the best of it,” Hope ploughed on. “So I need you to not screw this up.”
“You’re not my mum.” Olivia’s jaw was set. “You can’t tell me what to do.”
“No, but I’m your aunt and also your legal guardian,” Hope pointed out. “So, actually, I can tell you what to do.” She took another deep breath. Any more and she was going to get dizzy. “Liv, please just try, okay? For the kids.”
“I always look after the kids.” Another scowl. “More than anyone else has.”
Hope sighed. Olivia wasn’t wrong. The poor girl had spent most of her time being a parent to her younger siblings. Hope had loved her older sister, Faith. She really had. But the woman would never have won any parenting awards. She’d always been a little wild, always pushing the boundaries. And then their parents had died in an accident when Faith was sixteen and Hope was thirteen, and Faith had gone completely off the rails. Auntie Joy had done her best to look after them, bringing them up right alongside her own kids, but Faith had been exceptionally difficult. Nobody had been shocked when a few weeks before Faith turned eighteen, she had given birth to Olivia.
Hope risked a quick glance at the teenage girl in the passenger seat. Olivia looked so similar to her mother that it was like a punch to the gut. The same long blonde hair and blue eyes. Same scowl. Same bloody attitude. Hope shared the general look, and there was no doubting they were family. The two younger kids had a different father and had medium brown skin, tightly curled black hair, and big brown eyes. They also lacked their sister’s attitude. Thankfully.
“Are we there yet?” A sleepy voice came from the back seat. Emmett.
“Almost, sweetie.”
The car passed a sign saying ‘Bearbank’ and a little tension drained out of Hope. She couldn’t wait to get to Auntie Joy’s house and not feel so alone with these kids. When Faith had died seven months ago, Hope had taken on her sister’s kids, and she didn’t regret it. Although she’d known it would be an adjustment, she hadn’t been prepared for how lonely she felt. The first few months had been a steep learning curve, but she was pretty sure she had the normal, everyday stuff sorted now. No one had been maimed, starved to death, or eaten by wolves, so Hope couldn’t be doing too bad a job. Right?
It was just all the teenage hormone crap that was going to drive her insane.
Hope looked at the streets as she drove. She’d grown up in Deerville, but she’d spent some time here in Bearbank, visiting Auntie Temperance whenever Auntie Joy had needed a break, and she had fond memories of the place. When Auntie Joy had moved to Bearbank, Hope had missed her dreadfully. Now Hope was looking forward to spending time with the woman. Besides, maybe Auntie Joy had some tips on wrangling teenagers.
“Why do we have to live in this dump?”
Hope reminded herself that she’d wanted Olivia to speak. Be careful what you wish for, huh? Forcing herself to stop grinding her teeth, Hope turned down the street she wanted.
“Because,” she said, as calmly as possible, “you needed a new school and I needed a job. We have both here, and we also have Auntie Joy to look after the kids.”
“I look after them.”
“You’ll be at school.” Hope drew the car to a stop and looked at the house. “And it’s not your responsibility to look after them. You’re still a kid.”
Yet another snort.
Hope didn’t even blame her for that one. Faith had been a fairly absent mother, often leaving her eldest kid to watch the others. Hope had tried to help, but Faith had moved town so frequently that Hope couldn’t keep up.
“Liv, things are different now.” She turned to look at her niece. “Emmett and Bella are my responsibility, so you can just focus on being a kid.”
“I’m not a kid.”
“I’m just asking you to try,” Hope said. “Stay at school, make friends, and do teenager-y things. Let Auntie Joy and me look after the little ones. You’re their sister, not their mother.”
The reply? Yup. Another grunt.
The front door of the house opened and Auntie Joy stepped outside, a big grin on her face. The woman looked just as she always did: warm, welcoming, and larger than life. Hope felt some of the tension drain out of her.
“Come on, let’s get settled in.” Hope removed her seatbelt and opened the car door.
“Hurry up and get inside,” Auntie Joy called, rubbing at her arms. “It’s freezing out here!”
“Snow?” Little Bella blinked up at Hope with those adorable dark eyes.
Hope smiled at her as she wrestled her out of her car seat. “Not yet, cutie pie.”
Auntie Joy took the little girl, giving her a huge grin. “I have missed this cheeky little face. Do you remember me, Bella?”
Bella shook her head.
“Ach well. I suppose it’s been a while.” Auntie Joy smiled at Emmet as Hope got him out of the car. “What about you?”
Emmett tilted his head. “I remember. You made me a birthday cake when mum…” He trailed off and shrugged.
When his mum forgot. Hope suppressed a sigh. She had loved her sister. The fact she had to keep reminding herself of that wasn’t a great sign.
“And Liv.” Auntie Joy grinned. “I’m so glad to see you. You look just like your mum did at your age.”
Olivia’s scowl got even darker.
“So, you’re not pleased to see me?” Hope teased, getting their luggage out of the car. The rest of their things would follow later. Her cousin Mercy had promised to send everything once they’d settled permanently. Not that the kids had much more, but Hope had a few bits and pieces.
“Of course I’m happy to see you.” Auntie Joy winked at her as she snuggled Bella. “Let’s get inside and get you all warmed up. It might be a bit of a squeeze, but I’m confident we can fit everyone in somewhere.”
“I am not sharing a room.” Olivia stomped into the house and straight up the stairs. A moment later, a door slammed.
“Oh dear.” Auntie Joy winced. “She really is like her mother.” She sighed. “Oh well, Faith never managed to actually destroy my house, so I’m sure we’ll be fine with her mini-me.”
“Go on,” Hope said to Emmett. “I’ll be there in a minute. I’m just going to bring in our stuff.”
Auntie Joy reached out and took Emmett’s hand while still holding Bella. Then the three of them walked into the house.
Hope looked up at the sky for a moment. She really needed this to work out. There was no plan B. Somehow, she had to get through to the kids while staying sane. Bella had bounced back quickly with the exuberance of the incredibly young, but Emmett was quiet and withdrawn, and Olivia was a disaster waiting to happen. Hope was doing her best, but she was seriously out of her depth.
She shivered and wrapped her arms around her waist. The biting chill in the air suggested that it might actually snow soon. Maybe even in time for Christmas.
A Christmas miracle. That was exactly what this family needed.
***
“What’s wrong with you?”
Adam glowered at his brother. “Nothing.”
Kyle tossed a handful of salted peanuts into his mouth. “So why do you look like you’re trying to shoot lasers out of your eyes at Ethan?”
“I don’t have a problem with Ethan.” Adam looked over to see Ethan sneaking a kiss from Dana. Okay, maybe he had a small problem with Ethan. Dana was his little sister and the thought of anyone kissing her? Ick.
“Gross, aren’t they?” Frankie swiped some of the nuts and ended up wrestling with Kyle for the bag. Frankie won, holding the packet in the air as he gloated. Until Ethan sneaked up from behind and grabbed the bag.
“Oi!”
“Ya snooze, ya lose.” Ethan tipped the remainder of the nuts into his mouth.
“I’m so proud.” Dana snuggled into him. “You’re like a true member of the Roberts herd.”
Ethan grinned down at her, and then the look became decidedly heated. Great. Adam checked the clock. How long until he could leave without looking suspicious? He did not want a front-row seat to that mangy wolf pawing Dana. To be honest, in his current mood, he couldn’t guarantee he wouldn’t shift and antler Ethan to death. That would make family dinners a little awkward.
“Still no lasers.”
Adam frowned at Kyle. “What?”
Kyle shrugged. “You’re still not shooting lasers from your eyes.”
“Why would Adam be shooting lasers?” their mother asked, coming into the room and sitting down with her cup of tea. “Is there something I should know about?”
“No, mum. I’m fine.” He glared at his brother, wishing for a moment that he could shoot lasers from his eyes. He’d take out Kyle first, then Frankie… and probably get rid of Ethan while he was at it. But then again… awkward family dinners. Plus, his mother would likely be upset.
“Are you sure?” His mother’s eyes narrowed. “You’ve been a bit quiet lately.”
“Seriously, I’m fine.” He shrugged. “I’m just tired. Work has been hectic, what with the run up to Christmas. You try controlling a class of excitable small children on a permanent sugar high.” It was the first of December, and Adam swore it was like someone had flipped a switch inside all the kids, leaving them overly energetic and loud.
His mother smiled. “No thanks. I had enough trouble controlling the four of you in the weeks before Christmas.”
His dad grunted his agreement, eyes still glued to the TV.
“You’re sure you’re okay?” his mother asked. “You haven’t seemed yourself since Una…” She frowned. “What happened to her? One minute you were bringing the girl to family dinners, and the next she was gone.”
Adam forced himself to smile. “Nothing happened. It just wasn’t working out.”
He left out the part where he’d walked in on her with someone else. He still had no idea why she’d done it. As far as he’d known, they were solid. Yeah, okay, so they hadn’t been true mates, but Adam had been considering mating with her anyway. Right up until she’d cheated on him. And not just once, either. After that night, he’d discovered that it hadn’t been the first time. The damn woman had been stringing four men along at once, and she hadn’t even seemed embarrassed to have been caught.
“Such a shame.” His mother sighed. “But if you weren’t happy, then it’s good that you moved on.” She took a sip of her tea.
Frankie snorted. “Moving on would suggest he’s dating again.”
Dana slapped the back of Frankie’s head. “Leave him alone. He’ll date when he wants to.”
“I’m just saying…” Frankie raised his hands. “Guy spends all day with kids, and then at nights he’s home alone.”
Dara narrowed her eyes. “And how’s Lisa?” she asked oh-so-casually.
Frankie and Kyle both scowled and then glared at each other. A moment later, an argument had broken out and their mother was attempting to separate the two men having a girlie slap-fight. Dana winked at Adam, and he gave her a small smile. His little sister was far too sweet for this family, but she did have a ruthless streak too.
Lisa was the woman playing his two brothers against each other, and neither Kyle nor Frankie was prepared to back down. Truthfully, after Una, Adam found himself hoping both brothers left the woman to it. He had no patience for people who played these games.
Dana patted his shoulder as she moved to stand beside Ethan. The pair of them were sickeningly lovey-dovey, and Adam felt his heart clench. Una hadn’t been right for him; he knew that now. But he still wanted what his sister had. A mate, preferably a true mate. Someone to come home to at night.
He looked out the window at the dark street. Christmas was coming, and once again, he was single.
He needed a bloody Christmas miracle.