Page 1 of Jacked-up Mate (Alphas of Whisper Grove #1)

Jack

The timer on my phone went off, and my stomach clenched. Years of this, and I still hadn’t gotten used to it. Didn’t think anyone on the earth could ever adjust to their head turning into a fucking pumpkin at night.

I had exactly one hour to prep for the night. With the pumpkin head, I had the ability to eat, but it all had the taste of pumpkin pie. Pumpkin-pie grilled chicken didn’t appeal to me. Imagine that.

I reached for the phone in my back pocket, swiped off the alarm, and sighed at the countdown on the screen. I had less than six months left until the mage’s curse took on a new level of permanence.

Regret ate at my heart as I set the table and prepared to eat my dinner, my mind going back to the event that set this all in motion.

I’d been set up on a blind date with a nice-enough omega, but there was no chemistry, at least on my end. At the end of the night, I did the gentlemanly thing and took him home, even walked him to his door. He asked for another date, and I said I would text him.

Then he asked for a kiss good night, and I refused. Biggest mistake of my life.

After I turned down his kiss, in a polite way, he cupped my face with his hands and whispered something in a different language.

Weird. It made my head fuzzy. I stumbled down the stairs of his apartment building and went home, considering the matter closed.

The next day, I stayed in. Ordered Chinese for dinner.

That night as the sun set and I had a forkful of Dandan noodles raised to my lips, my head turned into something big.

Swollen. Huge. A heavy weight pressing on my shoulders.

At first, I thought I’d passed out or been drugged.

One look in the mirror and my world would never be the same.

I had a jack-o’-lantern instead of a head.

My mouth the jagged grin of a carved pumpkin.

My vision dimmed by the dark lens of its black eyes.

I stepped backward, shocked, of course, screaming.

A disembodied chuckle preceded the appearance of my date from the night before behind me.

A refused kiss seemed like such a little slight, but to him, it was a rejection of the worst kind. He said there were punishments for alphas like me who teased and flirted but refused to act.

I didn’t remember flirting or teasing at all.

That omega was a mage—a fact I learned too late—and not a good one either.

I’d offended him so greatly that he cursed me for life. My head turned into a jack-o’-lantern every night at sunset.

There was only one way to reverse it.

“Hey, sorry I’m late.” My best friend, Cole, barreled through the kitchen doorway and came over to slap me on the back. He had seen me with the pumpkin head, but I preferred to be alone with my big, orange, fruit instead.

We had dinner every Friday, as neither of us were mated and he had a secret of his own. Something about his shift being unordinary—unique—monstrous. His words, not mine. I never pressed to see the other side of him.

“It’s fine. Everything is ready. Let eat before…”

He nodded. “Of course. What did you get up to today? I saw you assisting Gretchen with the lights for the Samhain festival.”

“Yeah. Even with the ladder, there are places she can’t reach. She tries, but I end up helping. It’s fine. It gets me out of the house and socializing. Plus, the festival is next week. She needs all the help she can get.”

Cole nodded and took two thick slices of turkey breast, along with mashed potatoes and gravy.

The cooler temperatures called for heartier meals and later mornings. There was nothing worse than pulling myself out of my warm, comfortable bed and placing my feet on an icy floor. Yes, I could keep the heater on, but why waste the money while my blankets kept me cozy?

“She does a good job being mayor but the woman never stops,” he said.

“She doesn’t. What about you? Anything new?”

I was interested in what Cole had to say but kept my eyes on the wall clock with less than forty minutes until the sun set.

Everything was more difficult after dark.

I couldn’t read books with fuzzy sight. Movies were the same.

I cleaned house and washed dishes, mostly by touch.

No snacking because pumpkin spice. I had to arrange my pillows in a certain way so my neck didn’t feel like it was cracked in half the next morning.

If only I’d kissed that mage.

“The crops are coming in nicely. I expect a good harvest and have some tricks planned with the pumpkins this year.”

“Like what?”

“I planted some new versions. Midnight. Jarrahdale. Ghost. Different colors and outside textures.” His voice slowed with the last words. “I’m…is this offensive?”

“Talking about pumpkins?” I laughed, shaking my head. Cole had good intentions but sometimes fumbled to get the right words out. “No. I’m not a pumpkin; my head turns into one. I’m not a pumpkin rights advocate.”

He snorted. “Yeah, it sounds stupid now that I think about it. Anyway, there will be plenty of produce for the town and extra for making canned goods for the winter.”

“You’ll let me know if I can help with the harvest, right?”

“I will. I’ll probably need it this year. Plus, I’m hoping to spend more time in town this year.”

“Why is that?” I asked, finishing my food in record time. Time was wealth to me now. “Does Whisper Grove have some new events this year? I haven’t checked the newsletter.”

“No. But we’re expecting more visitors and tourists this year. That’s why Gretchen is working even harder. Everyone is.”

“She mentioned something about everyone putting on their best face, but I thought it was just the mayor being upbeat and optimistic.”

Cole leaned back. “I know there has been some uptick in the social media posts, and it’s garnering a lot of attention for our small town.”

“I need to get out more. Maybe I’ll go into town tomorrow and have lunch at the diner. That place is a haven for gossip.”

Cole got up and my eyes flicked to the clock.

Shit. I only had a few minutes. “Thanks for dinner. I’m gonna go. Stop by the farm tomorrow, and I’ll show you the crops.”

“Will do.”

Cole left, and I popped two homemade chocolate chip cookies in my mouth before the change came on. My skin tingled. The scent of pumpkin wafted in the air. My ears ached. That might’ve been the strangest part.

As if I was encased in a bubble. But my head was the bubble.

It would’ve been better if the mage turned me into an orc at night. Omegas fawned and fainted over orcs. Even the tusks.

I stepped out to the front porch and watched the sun seep into the horizon bit by bit. As it did, I inhaled deeply and let the change come over me. It felt like my head was blowing up like a balloon and threatening to pop all night.

The only way to reverse the curse was the one thing I wasn’t capable of having.

No one wanted to mate an alpha with a jack-o’-lantern for a head.