Chosen

Chapter Eighteen

 
  It had been a few weeks since Luna had come to see me in my sleep. My ribs had healed nicely. Axel and I had also grown closer over the last few weeks. He was extremely protective, Cat often teased him about it. Axel and I no longer had a separate room. In fact, he had me moved to his room shortly after we completed the mating process. I loved being in the same room with Axel, though he's been busy lately and only coming back after I was already asleep.
    I jumped out of the bed and stretched. Sighing, I looked at the side Axel slept in and bit my lip. He never came to bed last night. I walked to the bathroom and undid my robe, slipping out of my nightgown. I slipped into the shower and tipped my head back, letting the water soak my face and hair. Sighing, I grabbed my shampoo and began washing my hair. I finished and grabbed a towel, drying myself slowly. I slid into the yellow summer dress and ran a brush through my hair. I left it loose, not wanting to deal with the headache from having it up. I sighed and walked out of the bathroom. A knock sounded on the door and I opened it. Cat stood there smiling at me.
"Good morning, Addy."
"Cat..."
   She picked up on my mood and sighed.
"Did he not come last night?"
"No... I woke up alone. Is he avoiding me for some reason?"
"I'm not sure, honestly... you should probably talk with him. But... let's go spend some time with your mom and dad before they leave today."
"Oh. Yeah. Let's go."
   I followed her from the room and bite my lip. Axels behavior lately was very confusing and unnerving for me. We walked into the dining hall and I ran to my mother, hugging her. She giggled and held me tightly.
"Whats wrong?"
   I shook my head and bit my lip. I didn't want to talk about it at the moment. My eyes stung and I quickly swiped at them. She frowned and sighed. Cat smiled at me softly and walked to Blake. She started whispering something with him. I took a breath to center myself and smiled at my father. He seemed to notice that I was faking it.
"Little Dove... what's wrong?"
"I'm okay."
"You can call and talk to us about it when you're ready. But something is wrong. And I'm pretty sure it has to do with the fact that Axel has been pretty much ignoring you the last few weeks?"
    I didn't say anything, just shrugged and looked at my feet to try to keep from crying.
"I think you two need to talk."
    My mother whispered and hugged me again. It was at that point that I broke. I began sobbing and trembling. I didnt understand what I had done wrong. Cat ran over when she heard me and pulled me into her arms. Blake had followed her, his eyes full of worry.
"Addy.... you haven't done anything wrong."
   His mother murmured as she walked in and took me from Cat.
"Then why has he been avoiding me?"
"My son is stubborn. But you do need to talk to him."
    I nodded and swiped at my eyes again.  Holding my head up high, I smiled at Blake. He chuckled and I blushed. Cat started giggling and I smiled brighter. Just then the door opened again and in walked Axel and his father. I glanced at Axel quickly, his eyes softened when they landed on me and I blushed. Everyone seemed to decide to go do their own thing when he walked towards me. He stopped in front of me and placed a hand on my shoulder. I squeaked and jumped a little startled.
"Little one.... are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Axel.... why have you been avoiding me?"
   I asked, looking into his eyes. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, with a sigh.
"What did I do wrong?"
    I whispered and felt my eyes sting again. His eyes softened further and he cupped my face in his hand.
"Oh, baby. You haven't done anything wrong. It's not you, love. I've been throwing myself into training again. I had a pack Alpha threaten you. He was allied with Alpha Mark. I'm trying to handle it. I didn't want you to worry. Please don't cry."
    He whispered, his thumb wiping away my tears. I sniffled and he brushed his lips against mine softly, with a groan.
"Princess... please... don't cry. I was never mad at you. I'm sorry it seemed like it."
  I buried my face in his chest and inhaled his scent. I had missed this. The smell of fresh rain and pine. I inhaled lungfuls of it, calming down. He purred softly and I relaxed further. It was something he had started doing more when he noticed it calmed and soothed me. Most males would do it when their mates were in distress of some kind. The door burst open again and I sighed. That would be his father. My father started talking with him to keep him away from Axel and I at the moment and I was grateful.
"I do need to go for another training. This the last one for a while. I'll be gone a few months probably. But Blake will be with you. And so will Cat. And your mother. Your father is going with me. I just asked them before breakfast."
    I looked at him and sighed.
"You promise?"
"Yes. Then we can spend all the time you want together. I leave tomorrow. The sooner I go, the sooner I can come back. Well spend the rest of the day together."
    I nodded and Axel pressed his lips to my forehead. His father had made his way to us without me realizing.
"You tell her were leaving in the morning?" 
   I jumped, completely startled and began to panic a little. Axel pulled me close and glared at his father.
"I did and we're spending the day together." 
   His father nodded and walked away. Axel smiled at me and I giggled. Cat smiled at me again and she started gushing about the plans for the day.