Free Alpha by Mandy Rosko

Miranda had only ever had one pair of panties match a bra before. Usually, she had to buy the three packs of bras for ten dollars at the local Walmart, so it was hard to find anything that matched.
    Not that she'd been clothes shopping in several months.
    "It's only kind of true," Anna said. "Don't let him trick you into thinking he can push you around. He's just as much yours as you are his. That's a big thing that all the guys like to forget to tell their mates."
    "He's mine, too?" That thought brought a flurry of glee to Miranda's gut, but then she remembered how Garret had so easily ordered her to run on all fours out in the woods.
    "Are you sure?" she asked. "He already had me do something, and I really felt like I had to do it."
    "Nothing bad though, right?"
    "No! No, not at all," Miranda said quickly, even though it didn't sound as if Anna was seriously entertaining the thought of Garret being cruel with his commands. "But, well, the point is the same. He ordered me to do something and I really felt like I had to do it."
    "That's just 'cause you're not used to it yet," Anna said. "Here, try on this sweater. I bought you some necklaces and earrings, too."
    Miranda tensed. "You what?"
    "Don't worry, don't worry," Anna said. "Garret didn't give me a big budget, so the jewelry I got you all came from Ardene's and Claire's. I like their stuff better anyway, even though it's all fake. It has more color."
    Miranda thought of those boxes and bags. What was this girl's idea of a big budget?
    All the same, Miranda was familiar with those stores. She hadn't had much money even before living in her car, so they had become her favorite place for fake jewelry. The necklace and earrings Anna passed her were cute dangling hearts. "You're not allergic to the fake earrings are you?"
    "No, my ears can handle them. Thank you," Miranda added, trying not to feel like a kid at Christmas.
    Anna had picked all this out, but it had also come from Garret, too. It was flattering to be given presents from him that had been picked out with such care from a girl who knew fashion.
    "That's good, because just so you know, you're probably allergic to silver now."
    Miranda tensed. "Really?"
    She peeked around the side of the screen, and Anna nodded solemnly.
    Suddenly, Anna's love for fake jewelry made more sense.
    "Oh." Miranda went back behind the screen.
    "Yeah, so be careful when you go shopping. What were we talking about before?"
    Miranda thought about it. "Uh, Garret ordering me around. You said I just obeyed because I'm not used to it yet?"
    "Oh yeah, anyway, I've lived with Garret my whole life, right? I still feel the need to obey a command, and sometimes I do, but other times, when it's something dumb, I fight the urge. You'll get used to it. He doesn't totally control you or anyone else in the pack. He never will."
    "That's good," Miranda sighed.
    "Yeah, really good. Especially with more than one alpha around here, but like I said, I've gotten used to it."
    She kept referring to it, but what did Anna mean about living with him her entire life? There had been other women in the building and a lot of men. There were also quite a few bedrooms in this enormous house. Did she mean she lived with him because she was pack, or something more? Did the regular members of the pack live in this house? Or did they have their own houses?
    "Can I ask you another question?" Miranda pulled the long-sleeved red shirt over her head. It really seemed to make her boobs stick out in this bra.
    "Sure thing."
    Was she always so chipper and cheery?
    "Are you… related to Garret?"
    It wasn't exactly the smoothest way to pry about her and Garret's relationship, and the second the words were out of her mouth, Miranda thought for sure Anna would see through to her real question.
    Were they seeing each other? Was Anna part of his harem of shifter girls that Miranda had just joined? What was she?
    "You could tell, huh?" Anna asked. "Garret's my big brother."
    "I…"