Your authority does not stem from biological ties; there is no set reason why your freedom - loving stepkids should listen to you at all. (fathers.com)
And stepparents often feel shut out — by partners who have gotten used to years of parenting solo, and by stepkids who, the research shows, tend to be hostile and rejecting of a stepparent in the initial years of the repartnership — and sometimes for years. (luvemorleavem.com)
Stepkids feel loyalty binds — a sense that to love or even like a stepparent is a betrayal of their real mom or dad. (luvemorleavem.com)