Axel's Little Rose

I Thought You Were Dead.

I'm in the library reading when Axel comes striding in. It's been about a week since Alice was here. Axel has slowly been warming up to the idea of communicating his feelings but just like in the moral world, boys and men are shamed for expressing their feelings. I don't want Axel to feel like he can't tell me how he is feeling. I want him to be comfortable and open with me. 

I glance up from the book I'm reading. Axel is standing over top of me. 

"May I help you?" I ask, looking up at him. 

"Yes, you can help me out." He says sitting down in the chair next to him. My eyes follow. 

"With what?" 

"You see, the werewolf world hasn't seen you for a little while, and their getting concerned." His jaw clinches ever so slight. I can tell this stresses him. 

"Okay? What should we do?" 

"Go out in public for a little while. It doesn't have to be long. Just long enough for them to know your still alive and well." 

I nod my head. That sounds reasonable enough. I have had difficult time adjusting to this new security detail I have to live with. It wasn't like this before. "Okay, when?" 

"Soon." 

"Okay, just let me know." 

"I will, sweetheart." He says. He gets up and kisses my head and then walks out of the library leaving me alone. 

I sigh, and go back to my book. 

A few days later

"Come on! We're going to be late!" Axel yells from down stairs. 

"I'm coming! I'm coming." 

Today were would going out side the walls of my house, and to the public. We invited Axel's mother and her boyfriend out for lunch. But before we do that, we decided to meet at the Alice's house, so that we can all get the awkwardness over. 

Alice still lives in the old Royal household. Though we offered her a new house, as a fresh start she insisted on staying there. I think it's the familiarity that comforts her. Now that Axel and I have our own house, it has become the Royal household and the palace remains to be a decoy. 

I walk down the stairs, and over to my mate who is waiting over by the door. 

"Since when did you get so excited to do this?" I ask, straightening his tie. He growls at me. 

"I didn't. I just want to get this over with." He says. He opens the door for me. 

"Promise me you'll be fair and open to him." I say to him. He nods his head, and I walk outside to the car. We get in and drive to Alice's house. Once we pass through security and down the private driveway, there's two cars parked outside.  

I unbuckle, and look over to him. 

He does the same, but looking back at me. 

"Are you ready?" I ask, and he nods his head again. 

I get out and wait for him on his side of the car. 

He gets out and takes my hand, that I'm holding out to him. 

We walk to the front door and open it. It's custom that the resident is informed when visitors have arrived so seemingly Alice already knows of our presence. 

We hear talking coming from the porch out back, we head back there and see Alice sitting; giggling with a man. 

"Hey," I say as we come into the room. 

Alice smiles when she sees us. "Hello darlings!" she says and gets up. She hugs us both and then motions over to the man. 

"This is Mark. Mark is my son Axel, and his beautiful mate Carter." 

The man turns around and I get the shock of my life. 

"Uncle Mark?!?" 

"Carter?" He ask. 

He gets up and wraps me in a huge hug. 

"What-what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be dead?" I say into our hug. 

We pull apart and look at each other. "Of course not. I wouldn't go out that easily" he jokes. I laugh. Axel growls from behind me. 

I turn and look up at him, I smile at him. 

"Uncle Mark this is my mate Axel, Axel this is Uncle Mark." 

Mark holds out his hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Alpha."  

Axel hesitantly takes his hand and shakes it. 

I sit down on the couch, and Axel quickly follows. 

After a minute of award silence, Uncle Mark breaks it. 

"So kiddo, what's new?" He asks so casually as if I hadn't just seen him for the first time in years. Mark is my dad's brother, well fake dad. He was always around when I was a kid but one day he just stopped. My parents told me that he had moved away up north to live in the Wilderness Pack, a pack that is known for making people disappear. It's always been assumed he either died or just didn't want to be found. 

"Well I honestly don't know where to begin. I haven't seen you since I was a pup." I remark to him. Axel's hand finds it's way to my back and starts rubbing it. It's a small gesture but it's the comfort and reassurance that I needed. "Well surely you know that Rucker is Alpha now." 

Mark's eyebrows raise. "Ahh, young Rucker grew up to be a man? I figured that he would be Alpha by now. Rumor has it, he's a good one. Leading his fine is something to be proud of." 

I nod my head. Mark continues, "And your parents? They've retired in a small cottage by the lake? They always talked about their plans once Rucker took over."

My eyebrows furrow. "You don't know?" I ask. He shakes his head, worry filling his eyes. "Their dead. They died about a two months ago." 

"That's horrible. I had no idea. How are you coping?" he asks. He reaches his hand out to put a loving touch on my knee. He hovers about a inch away when Alice clears her throat. He looks over at her and nods his head. 

"Oh right." He puts his hand down at his side. "It's going to take some getting use to all these new rules." Axel snorts from beside me. 

"No pressure." He says with a smile and that makes Mark's worry wash away. The Royal bi-laws have always been strict. Wolves can't do this, they can't do that. Most of them are pointless. But even though there are pointless, it's important that we follow them especially while in public. Alice must be preparing Uncle Mark for our public outing. 

I smile at Mark, male wolves are not allowed to touch the Royal Queen unless there blood relation between the two. Thought Uncle Mark is practically  blood related to me, the public eye does not know that.

"Listen, before we go can we speak in private?" Axel growls beside me at the thought. 

I nod my head and turn toward Axel, "It'll only take a minute." 

"Fine," he grumbles, and leaves the room with Alice. 

I turn back to my uncle. "What is it?" 

He opens his mouth to reply...