The Scarred Prince (The Wolf's Pet Book One) Read Online Free Page A

almost as handsome as my dad. Every day I looked at a mirror of myself, one who was better in every way.
    It was terrible .
    They were talking about the birthright ceremony when my thoughts drifted back to the table.
    “What does birthright mean, exactly?” Mom asked. “Is it a rule of the pack, or something else?”
    “Shifter tradition,” Dad said.
    “Hnmph, tradition,” I mumbled, but nobody heard me.
    “It’s tradition for the alpha to hand down control to his son once he’s of age,” Dad continued. “If anybody wants to challenge the new alpha, they can.”
    “Challenge?” Mom asked. “This is the first I’ve heard of that. What does that mean?”
    “Nobody’s going to challenge me,” Blaise said confidently. “But I’ve been practicing just in case.”
    “We’re a peaceful pack,” Dad said. “There’s no reason to challenge the alpha. If someone is unhappy here, they can always bring up their concerns in the pack meetings.”
    “Alright,” Mom said, exhaling a sigh of relief. “As long as you think he’ll be safe.”
    Of course she would be worried about what would happen to Blaise. He was their favorite. I slouched in my seat, picking at my pancakes.
    “And once I’m alpha, I can pick my own security guards,” Blaise said. “I think I’ll pick Erroll and Francis.”
    I rolled my eyes. The two dumbest jock boys in the pack. Of course he would pick them.
    “That sounds like a good idea,” Mom said. “But maybe you can ask your father for advice.”
    “What about the girls?” I interrupted.
    “Girls?”
    “I’m not having girls as my security guards,” Blaise scoffed.
    “No, that’s not what I’m asking. I’m asking about girls like me. Why don’t we have a birthright?”
    “Because you’re not made out to be rulers,” Blaise said. He was so nonchalant that it made me want to puke.
    “Is that so?” I asked sarcastically.
    “That’s so.”
    “Dee says that long ago, women ruled the packs and the alphas were just leaders of hunting groups.”
    “Yeah, but nobody really knows what happened back then, do they?” Blaise said. “She could be making all that up.”
    “Shut up.” I hated it when he questioned Granny Dee.
    “Children…” Mom said.
    “Why are you scolding me and not him?” I asked. I was exasperated. “He’s the one who started it.”
    “I’m not scolding anyone,” Mom said. “I’m asking you to stop arguing.”
    “Well, ask him!”
    “You want to be the alpha?” Blaise snorted through his orange juice.
    “Shut up,” I said.
    “Who would follow you into war?” he asked.
    “We’re not in a war.”
    “We could be. Anytime we could be. That’s why it’s important to have a strong alpha.”
    “It’s more important for an alpha to be fair-minded,” I said. My dad was just sitting there, listening to us argue. He had a calm expression on his face. I knew he’d said a million times that it was better to fight smart than to fight strong. I looked over at him, even though I knew he couldn’t see my look.
    “Sure, yeah, but if we had to fight,” Blaise said. “I’d be great in a war.”
    “You talk about it like you want to fight.”
    “It would be fun!”
    “ No. ”
    We both looked over at Dad. He had his hands clasped in his lap, and he didn’t look mad. But he didn’t look happy, either.
    “War is never fun,” he said.
    “Sorry, dad,” Blaise said. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
    “Sure you didn’t,” I muttered.
    “I gotta go,” Blaise said, tossing his fork down onto his plate. He had already finished the pancakes off. “We’re practicing sparring. In case anybody tries to challenge me.” He waggled his eyebrows in my direction.
    “I’ll challenge you,” I muttered under my breath.
    When he closed the door behind him, I sighed.
    “How can someone so stupid lead the pack?”
    “Don’t call your brother stupid,” Mom said. “Anyway, he’ll have lots of guidance for the first few years. It’s not