Oh, Lord. Nothing he hated more than a pouty, unreasonable Sissy. That Sissy didn’t make an appearance often, but when she did, she could be the biggest pain in the ass.

As soon as he’d heard Sissy had come back to town, Sammy had come straight over here, missing the morning rush at his diner. But he’d known with both his parents out of town, Travis, Jackie, and Donnie would start on Sissy. Their baby sister annoyed them because she didn’t back down. If you wanted a fight, she’d give it to you. If you were rude, she’d tell you so and act accordingly. She never averted her gaze; she never let anyone pin her down.

Unlike Sammy, who knew and accepted what he was, Sissy would never bend to anyone’s will but her own. She was an Alpha through and through. And that made her a problem for Travis, who wanted his mate to be the next Alpha Female when he took over for their daddy. Shame Patty Rose was nowhere near as strong as Sissy. And in the end, that’s what it came down to. Not mere physical strength either, although that helped, but strength of will. Sissy didn’t back off until she got what she wanted, no matter the consequences.

“Why don’t I take this big buck upstairs, and you make him something to eat? I’m sure he’s starving.”

“Let him starve.”

Sammy shook his head and let out a sigh. “Sissy, just make the man some soup. Please.”

She stood in the middle of the kitchen, her arms crossed over her chest, one bare foot tapping against the linoleum floor. Yup. She was pissed.

“Do you have any idea how bad cats smell after they die? The whole house will be funky, and then you’ll have to answer to Daddy.”

She rolled her eyes even as her mouth twitched.

“He’ll come in complaining about a ‘cat funk.’ And I won’t take the blame for it.”

“All right, all right.” She waved him off. “Take the big idiot upstairs, and I’ll make him soup or something.”

“Thank you, darlin’.” He lifted the man over his shoulder and carried him back to the second floor. Sammy started into Sissy’s room, but he really didn’t like the idea of some guy being in there. This was his baby sister, after all. So he went down a few doors to Bobby Ray’s old room. He dumped the cat on the bed and stared down at him.

After a few moments, he slapped him on the forehead. “You awake?” When he didn’t get an answer, he slapped him again. Harder.

“Huh? What?” Gold eyes opened. “Smitty?”

“Don’t insult me, son.” He crossed his arms over his chest and stared down at the cat. “Name’s Sammy Ray Smith. I’m Sissy’s older brother. Now, she’s gonna take care of you while you get better. And I know how you cats get when you’re sick. You snarl and snap and are basicallyunpleasant. But if you don’t want me coming over and peeling off big portions of your skin while you scream and cry for help, you’ll be nice to her. You’ll treat her with respect, and you’ll keep your dirty cat paws off her. Understand me, hoss?”

Those gold eyes narrowed. “You sure you’re not Smitty?”

That made Sammy laugh. “Nope. Not Smitty. But I’m not surprised he’d tell you the same thing. And probably has. Now Sissy will be up here in a bit with some soup for you.”

“Soup? What am I? An eight-year-old with the flu?”

“Now see, that’s what I mean. That’s not nice and respectful. That’s rude and unpleasant. Nice and respectful will keep you covered in the skin God gave ya as opposed to donor flesh. Understand me, hoss?”

He knew the cat wanted to snap and snarl again, but he probably also knew he wasn’t strong enough to take on Sammy Ray’s youngest daughter, much less Sammy himself. “Yeah,” he finally grumbled out.

“Good.” Sammy pulled a blanket from the end of the bed and covered Mitch from the chest down. The last thing he needed to think about was a naked cat running around in front of his innocent baby sister. “Enjoy your soup.”

Sammy walked out and headed back to the kitchen. Sissy stood at the stove stirring a saucepan filled with canned soup and water. Dumb cat. If he’d been nice, she’d probably make the big oaf soup from scratch. That’s something his bonehead brothers, besides Bobby Ray, had never understood. Sissy had the biggest heart Sammy had ever known. And she protected her own. But you had to treat her right, and Travis, Donnie, and Jackie never did. They let those jealous girls say all those horrible things about Sissy and sometimes joined in. It was the one thing Sammy wouldn’t tolerate. Not from anyone, but especially his own kin. Alpha or not.

“Chicken noodle,” he said, walking into the small kitchen—small for a family of seven anyway. “My favorite.”

“You want some?”

“Nope.” He kissed her forehead. “I need to get back to the diner.”

“Okay. Thanks for coming by.”

He walked to the door and had it open when Sissy’s voice stopped him.

“How bad can this get, Sammy? With the Pack. And don’t sugarcoat it.”

“They tolerate you, darlin’, because you’re family. But you didn’t come alone, and Travis is going to try and use that to his advantage.”

“Fine.” She slammed the soup spoon down. “I’ll go over there right now and—”

“No. You won’t.” He moved next to her again and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Let him make the first move.”