The Black Sheep

Chapter 3

As Leigh gushed over her waffles, I watched two men approach the house. "Emilio?" I called out. The man squinted his eyes before a look of recognition crossed his face. Holding my phone in my hand, I moved to give him a hug. "You need to shave. You look older with stubble" I pointed out, poking at his jaw.

He rolled his eyes before introducing me to his friend, Clyde. "Pleasure to meet you, Your Highness" Clyde said formally in a southern accent- kinda like a cowboy. The guy bowed too. No one actually bows and greets me like that- like I'm a true Royal. Needless to say, I was surprised. I stared at him and awkwardly shifted from foot to foot. Lucky for me, the awkwardness didn't last long because Clyde began to laugh. "You were right" he pulled a five dollar bill out of his pocket and placed it in Emilio's outstretched hand.

They bet on this? "I said that you wouldn't do anything if he said that. He said you would curtsy" Emilio explained as he joined in on Clyde's laughter. "I don't think you would ever curtsy" he roared with laughter, probably imagining it. I grabbed the invisible ends of my nonexistent skirt and did a little curtsy. "Nope. You look awkward" Emilio said honestly. I felt awkward. I almost even fell since my right leg was behind my left. Balance was always a weak spot for me. "Come on, kid. I smell bacon" Emilio wrapped his arm around my shoulders and guided me into the house. I scowled at his use of 'kid' before asking him how old he was. "Twenty-nine"

That would make him six years older than me- give or take a few months. "You can't call me 'kid' if you're only six years older" I grumbled, entering the house. I was hit with the scent of bacon. Since I don't have those weird heightened senses, I had to be in the house to smell it.

Emilio chuckled. "You're still a kid until you're twenty-five" he declared. I glowered, but didn't say anything since the Alpha and Luna could now hear us. "Hey, Gary. Nikki" Emilio greeted them. So they use their first names- not titles.

That's a good sign. It establishes a relationship- trust. It makes the Alpha and Luna seem normal, like they're not at a higher ranking. No domination, no submission, just equality. Maybe that's why they don't have cooks either. I took a mental note of that.

Rule #2: Equality

"I'm lucky I made all the bacon. You two guys will probably eat a whole package by yourselves" Nikki stated, giving Emilio and Clyde a pointed look. They shrugged shamelessly. "Guests first" Nikki smiled kindly at me and handed me a plate. I quickly grabbed my sandwich, then the other four got theirs after me.

I took one bite, and instantly knew that Gary wasn't lying when he said Nikki could make an amazing BLT. "Oh, my God. What's in this?" I gushed, practically stuffing the whole sandwich into my mouth. It wasn't lady-like and it definitely didn't look attractive. But it's food. And I was extremely hungry. "Don't judge" I blurted with my mouth full.

Emilio and Clyde were just staring at me. "How lovely" Emilio muttered, sarcastically. I stuck my tongue out and continued to eat. "It's the sauce by the way. Nikki makes her own mayonnaise thing. Some secret recipe" he explained.

I nodded my head in understanding before swallowing my food and turning to Nikki. "It is amazing " I complimented. She smiled and thanked me. I suddenly heard some shouting. With my eyes wide, I pulled my phone out of my pocket. "Dale?" I muttered.

"You forgot about us!" he exclaimed. I winced at his tone. I guess when I saw Emilio and Clyde, I did kinda forget about the phone call. "Leigh! She's back!" Dale called out. Hissing through my teeth, I prepared for Leigh's anger. "Leigh said that she's not talking to you" he informed me.

Well, at least I won't get yelled at. "I'll call you guys back in a bit. Let me eat first. You should eat too" I suggested. He grumbled before hanging up the phone. "I completely forgot I was talking to them" I mumbled as I put my phone down.

Clyde rolled his eyes. "No offense. But who the hell does that?" he wondered. Shrugging, I took the last bite of my BLT, then grabbed another one. "Where do you put it?" Clyde wondered, his eyes dragging down my body.

Emilio slapped the back of his head. "That's my cousin's niece" Emilio scolded him. Clyde rolled his eyes and said I was 'of age'. "That's disgusting. You need a mate" he pointed out. I completely agreed with him, but didn't say anything.

His friend shrugged. "Think of it this way. We would be related by marriage" Clyde told Emilio- who scoffed and shook his head. "And if we happened to get together, we would make some good looking babies" he stated. I would never get together with my uncle's cousin's friend. Ever. Honestly, it sounds gross and it crosses a line. But I had an urge to thank him for the indirect compliment. "If they didn't inherit her hair" Yeah, forget about that thank you.

I frowned and touched my hair. "What's wrong with my hair?" I murmured, putting my sandwich down. I didn't think anything was wrong with it. Maybe it was a bit poofy since I didn't wash it this morning. But other than that, I thought it looked fine.

"I just don't like the wavy thing" he admitted with a shrug. I actually liked my wavy hair. Most girls hate their hair, but I love mine. It used to be straight when I was younger, but it started to curl as I got older. It never made a full curl though. It was always just wavy.

Gary chastised Clyde on insulting someone that he just met. I don't know if he was sticking up for me because he was a good person, or because he wanted to get on my good side. However, it was still a good thing to add to the list.

Rule #3: Kindness

"Well, it doesn't look bad. It's just my personal opinion" Clyde assured me.

I nodded my head in understanding as I bit my tongue instead of saying what was on my mind. His personal opinion is shit. My hair is amazing. If we had kids- which would never happen- I hope they wouldn't inherit his accent. Nothing was wrong with accents. But it just didn't fit him. He didn't look like the type of person to wear cowboy boots and walk around saying "Howdy, partner" or "There's a snake in my boot!" Woody didn't have an accent in Toy Story. But he was a cowboy. That's all that matters. 

My point is: my hair is beautiful and this cowboy's opinion doesn't bother me.  

_______________

"Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself"

-George Bernard Shaw

Can I please have Riley's mindset? And I'm about to update my other book too. So yeah... You should read that one too.

Kayyyzzz Byeeezzz

~A.J.