Stripping For The Alpha King

Chapter 52

"You have a very good eye for photography," Ajax mused as he flicked through my recently developed photographs. "These angles are amazing."

He was so engaged in my photos that he almost bumped into a shop display. I grabbed the sleeve of his jacket and pulled him alongside me.

"Thank you," I replied. "When I started getting into scrapbooking it kind of came along with it. you don't want to put all of this effort into a page that ends up being covered with shitty pictures."

"I could see that," he mused as we began walking out of the store together. We both winced as the cold air blasted into us. "I'm still amazed that a girl like you would want to spend her time hunched over a table, looking at stickers that match her paper. How did you ever get into scrapbooking?"

Ajax and I had had a wonderful day together. He had taken me away from the palace, into the city for a slower day together. We had developed my pictures, gone out for a sit down meal, and wandered around the German city for a while. it had been beautiful to experience a new country with someone who smiled at every word that tumbled out of my mouth. It made me forget the bizarre situation I was in.

But his question sobered me up rather quickly.

"My mom and I used to do it together. We would set up tables in the basement, pull out all of our supplies and work for hours. We would get dozens of pages done in one day and we would get to talk about all the trips we had been on and all of the family events." I tried to say everything with a soft voice while still sounding certain of myself. I was a strong woman. I could handle talking about my mother. If she decided to abandon me then I could handle that.

But Ajax knew me better than that. He took my hand in his, giving it a cautious squeeze as we approached his SUV in the parking lot. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you unhappy. I know that this has all been very hard on you."

With a careful tug he pulled me around so I was facing him. it was like he feared that if he pushed too hard too fast I would break. It was a huge adjustment from the man he was a couple weeks ago when he had been ordering me around, demanding that I do whatever he asked.

"Everything is fine," I lied with a big smile. "You have been great for the past week and I have your mom. She's been helping me through everything. It would've been a complete mess without her."

"But she's not your mom," Ajax murmured sympathetically, his green eyes so concerned that it made me look away.

"Well there isn't much that we can do, now is there?" I said, blinking rapidly to keep the tears at bay. I guess I wasn't strong enough to conquer the fact that my mom had left me.

"You're right. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything about it; I know how upsetting this is to you. How about we go and get some ice cream or go get some new scrapbooking supplies?"

I gave Ajax the best smile I could muster but I could feel the slightest quiver in my lips. "I just want to go home. Your mom is waiting for me so we can pick out flowers and food."

"Alright sweetheart."

Ajax slipped his arms around my small frame and pulled me to his chest. When my cheek hit the smooth material of his sweater I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. My arms looped around him, finding comfort in his strength and masculinity in that moment. I would've stayed there forever if I could've but he eased me away and kissed the top of my head.

In about an hour we were back at the palace and I was escorted to the grand dining hall where the event would be hosted. Adeline was waiting for me, eyeing up several different flower arrangements in front of her. I didn't know what was more intimidating: the massive space with high ceilings and tapestries or the tables covered in binders and papers and laminated pictures.

Or maybe it was the woman helping me that I should've been scared of. The elegant woman had her hair twisted into a beautiful bun without a stray hair and she was wearing a pencil skirt with a fitted, cashmere blouse. Perfect as always. And here I was with my reddened ears, wearing sporty leggings and an oversized sweatshirt. I didn't miss the way her eyes dripped over me, not exactly disgusted but certainly not pleased.

"How was your outing?" Queen Adeline asked as I neared her.

"It was great. I don't get to leave the palace much so sometimes I forget that I am even in Germany. Everyone speaks perfect English and I haven't noticed any other customs that you enforce here that you wouldn't in America."

"Well, after the ball you will have plenty of time to go out and explore. I'm sure that Ajax would be happy to take you now that you are marked and your scent is returning to that of a normal werewolf. Now, which flowers do you like best? Because we are quite close to the Christmas season I would lean towards red, but it's all entirely up to you."

I spent about twenty minutes picking out flowers. There were so many options and when the florist saw my indecision she suggested combining and altering the arrangements she had already created which only made the choice harder. I ended up picking a deep red rose bouquet with red berries, green leaves, and pine cones to tie it all in. it was Christmassy, but still romantic and classy. And by the time I had finished I was almost exhausted from the effort it took to decide.

Then it was on to food.

"How many people are we going to be feeding?" I asked.

"About a hundred and fifty to two hundred," Adeline stated, pushing a menu towards me.

"What?" I gasped. "Why are there that many people coming to see me?"

"Two hundred? If we had left it as an open invitation we would have thousands of people coming. You are going to be the next queen. People are dying to meet you and rumors have been spreading like wild fire. But don't worry, these are all our strongest allies and closest family. And no TV cameras, I promise."

"I didn't even know there was the possibility that this would be televised," I managed. "Wait, do you mean that I will be a queen after this?"

"Well, not anymore. Several years ago they used to do a ceremony called The Reveal. Very stressful for anyone who had newly turned into royalty. And when Ryan and I came forward to the public about our relationship....well it was a disaster and it was also televised. Since then I decided that I would not have cameras filming in the palace." She gestured to the massive table that was covered in documents. We both sat down. "As for being queen we will have an official crowning later. This is more of an introduction to the community as their future queen."

"Well I'm incredibly thankful for that," I squeaked.

Adeline shot me a small smile. "And I don't want you to worry about your scent either. I know that it was a concern before, however I have informed all the guards and explained the situation to many of our guests."

"Oh, thank you."

"You're welcome. Now, what are you thinking for food? All the meals will be plated and guests will have options in terms of dietary concerns, but you still need to pick the options. We are going to need gluten free, chicken, beef, and seafood."

"What about a vegetarian or vegan option?"

"A vegetarian werewolf? That's not likely. In fact, our digestive systems are altered from that of normal humans to the point that we wouldn't be healthy on a plant-only diet. Besides, I think four options is plenty."

"Right, of course."

"Now, after we pick food we will move onto music, decorations, speeches, and choices for your live band or alternative entertainment."

I nodded along and smiled like I was supposed to but all I could think about was how much I missed my mom and how much I needed her right now.