Book 4 - Lisa and Alex's Human Mates - Prologue
Lisa exited the car and looked around excitedly. She couldn't believe she had made it. The University of San Diego was a beautiful campus she couldn't wait to explore. She had worked really hard to get a full-ride scholarship based on academics alone.
Other students passed, staring at her, but she didn't notice. Lisa was still small and petite, but she had filled out in all the right places. She left her curly blonde hair long so it almost reached her slender waist. She didn't care about her looks. The only person she ever planned on impressing was her mate. While lost in thought, she didn't see the young man who approached her.
"Hey, beautiful, would you like me to show you around?" Lisa turned to look at the tall, handsome, well-built man wearing basketball shorts and a tight black t-shirt. He let his eyes roam over her body, taking in her short denim shorts and white tank top. When he got to her eyes, he took a step back. Lisa was glaring at him.
"I don't need you to show me anything, but you can show yourself to the shower. Don't they teach you guys to shower after practice? I could smell you as soon as I pulled onto campus grounds." Lisa scrunched her nose up and acted like she was choking. The man's face turned red with embarrassment when several people started laughing. He walked away quickly with his head down.
"Making friends already, I see," Lisa looked up with a grin at her brother Alex. He towered over her with his 6'8" muscled frame. His dark brown hair had waves that made him look boyish, even with his size. Lisa saw several female students gawking at him and rolled her eyes. They were wasting their time. Even if Alex wasn't waiting to find his fated mate, he wouldn't have noticed them. He was still shy and kept to himself. He was going to school on an art scholarship. It had thrilled them to get into the same university.
"Who needs friends when I have the best brother in the world?" Lisa said, wrapping her arms around Alex. Melanie and Saxon watched them with smiles and tears. Their little cubs were all grown up. They had insisted on flying down to help get them settled as they started this new chapter.
"Please don't start any fights your first day," Melanie said, putting her arm around her daughter's shoulders. Lisa giggled, leaning on her mom.
"I can't make any promises." They all laughed, knowing she was being honest.
"I'm going with Alex to his dorm while you get settled," Saxon said, kissing Lisa's forehead. They had left Tristen and Carlita at home with their grandparents. Melanie and Saxon wanted to have this time alone with Alex and Lisa.
"Okay, Dad. Don't leave without saying goodbye." Lisa hugged Saxon tight. Their parents had never made them feel like they were any less their children than Tristen and Carlita were. All their fears of being replaced by their real children had vanished the minute Tristen was born.
Lisa and Melanie carried her bags to her dorm. She was nervous about sharing a room with someone that wasn't part of her family. She didn't have many friends and had never had a sleepover with anyone other than her cousins. Lisa hoped that her roommate was someone she would get along with. If it was some bimbo cheerleader with attitude, there was a good chance a fight would happen sooner than later.
Melanie could feel Lisa's anxiousness coming off her in waves. She knew that as brave as her daughter was, there was still some fear inside her of not belonging. As they made their way to the dorm's third floor, Melanie noticed some of the other freshman girls staring at Lisa. Some looked jealous, and others looked intimidated. Her daughter was incredibly beautiful, and she hoped it didn't attract the wrong kind of attention. She was glad Alex was there with her. He may be shy but would fight anyone who messed with his sister.
Lisa took a deep breath when they reached her room. She looked up at Melanie with a small smile before opening the door. She saw a girl with long straight brown hair making up one of the beds. When she turned to see who had come in, Lisa relaxed slightly. She was tall and slender, with big green eyes that looked even bigger behind her large glasses.
"Hi, I'm Breanne. If you want this bed, I can move my stuff. I thought you might like that one because it's closer to the window. I can move if you want me to. In fact, I can ask for a different room if you don't want me to be your roommate." Lisa and Melanie exchanged a look of confusion as Breanne rambled nervously.
"I'm Lisa, and this is my mom. This bed is fine. Breanne, are you scared of me?" Lisa asked softly, setting her bags on her bed and turning toward the other girl, whose face was bright red as she looked at the floor.
"Gi...girls like you don't usually like girls like me. I just didn't want you to be stuck with me," Breanne felt the tears welling up in her eyes as she continued to look down.
"Girls like me?" Lisa asked. She didn't understand why Breanne would be afraid of her.
"Obviously, you're a cheerleader, and you're gorgeous. I'm not either one of those things," Breanne answered softly. Her head shot up when she heard both Lisa and Melanie giggling. At first, she thought they were laughing at her, but when she looked at them, they were smiling widely. Lisa walked over to stand next to Breanne.
"I think we're going to get along just fine. I'm definitely not a cheerleader, and if one tries to come in here, we can fight over who gets to throw her out the window." Breanne smiled. She had never met anyone like Lisa.
"I'm Melanie." Breanne smiled as she shook Melanie's hand.
"So you're really okay with being my roommate?" Breanne asked hopefully. The one thing she had dreaded the most about college was having a horrible roommate.
"You're perfect. What's your major?" Lisa asked as she unpacked her things.
"Pre-law. What's yours?" Breanne answered. Lisa turned around and squealed.
"Same thing. So we'll get to be in some of the same classes." Breanne giggled at Lisa's excitement. Maybe college wouldn't be so bad after all. They finished setting up their room chit chatting as they unpacked. Breanne had never had so much fun in her life. Lisa was her exact opposite, and she already really liked her.
"Where are you from?" Lisa asked, plopping down on her bed next to Melanie.
"Austin, Texas. How about you?" Lisa noticed Breanne's eyes looked pained when she said her hometown.
"Sacramento. I didn't want to be too far from my family. Do you have any siblings?" Breanne shook her head but wouldn't meet Lisa's eyes.
"Is everything okay?" Melanie asked. She was picking up on the anxiety coming off Breanne, and it concerned her.
"I...I don't have any family. I grew up in foster care." Breanne waited for the ridicule to come. She was bullied and tormented from elementary school through high school because she was a foster kid. Was it going to be the same in college too? She looked up when Lisa and Melanie walked over and sat beside her on her bed.
"You didn't have any family, but you do now. Me and my brother Alex didn't have a family either until Mom and Dad found us and adopted us when we were five. Our family is made up of many people who aren't related by blood, but that doesn't make us love them any less. From now on, you and I are sisters." Lisa said, hugging Breanne. Melanie beamed at them. Her daughter had the biggest heart of anyone she knew.
"What if you don't like me?" Breanne asked against Lisa's shoulder.
"What's not to like? You're sweet, kind, beautiful, and fun. I should be more worried you won't like me. Sometimes my brain-to-mouth filter is broken, and I say things I shouldn't. I can be loud, and according to my siblings, I'm annoying." Lisa answered honestly. Breanne laughed as she pulled away.
"You sound perfect to me," She said with a smile.
"I'm going to go check on your brother. Dad and I will stop by before we leave," Melanie left them alone. Lisa and Breanne talked about any and everything. Neither had ever had a friend they could be themselves with. By the time Melanie returned with Saxon, Breanne could just about name every member of Lisa's family. After all the goodbyes and tears had passed, Melanie and Saxon left to return home.
That night Lisa lay in her bed looking out the window. Breanne was sound asleep, but Lisa was too wired up to sleep. She had turned eighteen a few weeks ago and had been thinking about her mate more than anything. Would he like her? What if he was already with someone else and rejected her? A part of her hoped that she would meet him in college, while another part wanted to meet him later. If he was going to reject her, she would rather put off the pain. As she fell asleep, her last thought was of a faceless man running toward her and wrapping her in his arms, promising to love her forever. She hoped it was a premonition and not a fairy tale.
