I had sat there in the office stewing over the fact the Alpha was too much of a wuss to talk to us himself. Charlie tried to bargain and say it was better he spoke to us because the Alpha would've snapped and potentially hurt Sean.

He was probably right, but the rest of the conversation regarding me was unnecessary. He should be a normal mate and ask me the questions himself.

Now I was sitting in the living room, trying to focus my attention on the television with no hope. I was bored and my mind was distracted. There were wolves around me all talking and laughing over something Sheldon did on TV but I couldn't be bothered to talk to them.

Sean hadn't taken the news well, that Phoenix had been listening and so he had stormed over to his office soon after. Charlie chased behind him and gave me an apologetic smile.

I wanted to follow; the curiosity was killing me. I should've done, but I really couldn't be bothered with more drama.

A slam of a door came from down the hallway and I looked up in interest since it came from near Phoenix's office. Heavy booted footsteps made their way down the hall, I made out two sets of feet.

When they came closer to the living room, I turned to I could see who was coming. To my surprise, it was both Sean and Phoenix. I gasped when I saw the black bruise healing on Phoenix's jaw and a blood smear along Sean's cheek. I was relieved to see they were relatively okay though. I assumed they fought.

Phoenix's hazel eyes were blank as they rounded the corner. The living room being open plan meant there was a huge gap for them to hover in. His eyes met mine and with a determination, he stalked his way over to me.

My eyes widened and I reached my hands out in caution, but he took that as an easy attack and before I knew it, I was flying before landing over his shoulder. He had lifted me gently, but the nature of his actions took me by surprise.

The few wolves in the room had gone silent at the intrusion and I lifted myself on his back to see where we were going. They stared at me with doe-like expressions as Phoenix began to carry me away. They no doubt thought I was going to my doom, heck, I thought I was too.

"Where are we going?" I shrieked, unable to hold myself up for long.

Cel purred as we stayed flopped over his shoulder, her fondness for his back profile taking over. I could feel her arousal and cursed her name to calm down or it'd get us nowhere. We were meant to be angry at him right now.

"Sean?" I wondered, looking to where he stayed in the hall.

Phoenix growled beneath me and I whimpered when Sean shook his head with a tight lip. I could see the want to follow in his eyes, but I could only assume Phoenix had commanded him to stay put.

We walked for a few minutes, eventually going outside into the summer heat. Anytime someone so much as looked at us Phoenix growled at them.

The sound of a door opening piqued my curiosity as unfamiliar smells hit my face. It smelt sweet and somehow green. I lifted my head to see where we were but soon, I was pulled down from Phoenix's back.

He steadied me on my feet, his hands holding my waist as the blood rushed to my legs. I didn't meet his gaze, unhappy with him manhandling me. So instead, I kept my arms crossed and looked around the room we were in.

It was a dusky, dark yet huge shed. I could make out the smell of mud, compost, and the metal twinge of tools.

"W-what is this place?" I whispered.

A light flickered on, its bulb cracking in the centre of the room. I could see in more colour now. There were planters and trays all piled up in one corner, compost and soil bags in another. There were dead and unplanted bulbs lying in heaps and grass and mud all over the floor. Things lay broken that I couldn't make out anymore and I gasped when I saw so many broken garden ornaments.

"It's the gardening shed." Phoenix stated making me want to roll my eyes.

I took a further step into the room to look in more detail. It was abandoned, the things in her covered in cobwebs and dust, plants left to dry and die.

I turned around. "Why-"

"It's not been used in years..." He sighed, standing awkwardly by the door. "My... mother used to love gardening. It was her little place. My father built her this shed and some greenhouses so she could grow her plants and food. When he was murdered, she drew into herself and eventually passed away. She lost interest in her gardening and so things got abandoned."

I felt sympathy for him and gave him a small smile. I was glad he was telling me something, despite how angry I wanted to be at him.

He looked around the room and wrinkled his nose. "I came in once after she passed when I was sad, and I ended up angry and as you can tell a lot of things got destroyed and broken. I regretted it straight away, but I haven't come back since."

"So why am I here?" I titled my head in curiosity.

His hazel eyes met mine, glowing in the dull light of the room. "It's yours now."

"Mine?"

He nodded. "You said you like outdoors and flowers, so I thought you might like gardening. I've seen the plants in your window and been told by others how many you have."

I blushed at the thought of him keeping tabs on me. "I do."

He gave me a sad smile. "Nova, I apologise for listening in on your conversation with Charlie. I didn't want to face you in fear of me killing Sean. I couldn't do that to you since he means so much to you."

I sighed sadly, having no energy to be mad at him over it. I did enjoy plants and the buzzing under my skin reminded me of how much I could do out here.

I turned to him. "It was a coward's way, but thank you."

"No need to thank me, Nova, he's your best friend. You deserve to have someone like that, even if it is an un-mated male whose hands wander too much." He grumbled at the end. "I can't help but get jealous."

I chuckled at his anger, stepping towards him so I was close. He was finally opening to me, and it made me feel fuzzy inside. I wanted to corner him about the woman but kept my mouth shut, enjoying this moment. Plus, I needed more evidence before I embarrassed myself.

"Thank you for the plants." I smiled, cupping his bruised jaw in one hand. "But what's this?"

He grimaced and looked away from me. "Sean got me good."

I giggled and pulled my hand away. "Good."

He growled, his hazel eyes flashing down at me.

I rolled my eyes. "You deserved it. You were being an asshole."

He continued to growl at me, but I wasn't the least bit threatened by him. I walked around him and flicked off the light, letting myself out the creaky old door.

When he didn't follow, I poked my head back in. "You coming, or just gonna stand there?"

His head darted to me when I shut the door and he stormed forwards with determination. I shrieked and jumped out the way as he flung the old door open. It flew off its hinges and smashed on the floor and I pouted. We both stared at it for a second before I huffed, drawing his attention to me once again.

"You broke my door."

"Your door?" His eyebrow raised.

"Yes, my door." I crossed my arms.

A smirk graced his features and he rolled his eyes. "I'll get it fixed, maybe put a stable door on. But come on. I'll show you the rest."

I nodded in approval and followed him. He showed me the two medium-sized greenhouses, both lay broken and overrun. Brambles and grass as tall as me had forced their way through the soil and taken over. Some had forced their way through cracks in the frame, eventually cracking some of the panels.

"I'm gonna need to write a list," I murmured.

He showed me the veggie patch, broken bamboo sticks laying around and yet again overrun with weeds. The whole garden on this side of the house was barren, looking like it was barer cut or maintained. The front garden was pretty, I could see the shrubs and flowers from my window. So why was everywhere else so distraught?

"Who tends to the front garden?" I asked. "Why is all of this so awful?"

"One of the elder maids prunes the bushes to keep the house looking enticing for guests. I never bring them to this part of the house, only the face and the training field." He shrugged.

I quirked my eyebrow at the irony of only caring for front appearances, but nodded my head in silence. I was grateful for having something to look after and keep me busy. It was better than sitting in my room while everyone else was busy.

"Thank you for showing me, but manhandling me to get here was not the way..."

He chuckled. "Blame Ares."

I hummed. "Sure, blame the wolf... I gotta go write a list."

"Can we at least be civil now?" He mumbled.

I sighed. "I can be civil, but you're not forgiven. You can't lead me astray with plants and a hobby but act like an asshole five minutes later. I'm your mate, not a random woman."

He sighed and went to step towards me but I stepped back. His eyes flashed with annoyance before he sighed and smoothed his hands down his shirt.

"I suppose I deserve that."

"You do." I chirped.

His eyes widened in surprise before he chuckled. "Who knew you were so sassy."

I smirked. "Everything grows in the right environment. Now if you'll excuse me Alpha, I have a list to write."

I turned and left him there to make my way back to the house. I was on the east side of the house, and just round the corner was the backfield that eventually lead to the training grounds. I could only imagine how many trees were cut down to have an acre of open field.

I jogged my way up to my room, happy to finally have something to put my mind on. I grabbed a notepad from my dresser and a pretty blue fine tip pen. I outlined the list title in blue before grabbing another pen for the bullet points. I chose green, of course.

I practically skipped my way back to the gardening patch. I passed some wolves who whispered to each other and I frowned since no doubt it was about me. I smelled strongly of both Phoenix and Sean and was recently carried out like a sack of flour by one, so good gossip there.

For the next couple of hours, I listed things that needed repairing. I took up three pages in my A5 notebook before I stopped to see people going inside for lunch. I took my notepad with me so I could read over it when I ate.

I wandered my way into the kitchen and helped myself to a plate of potatoes and vegetables. I debated on which meat to choose, before settling on chicken again.

"Good choice, the beef is chewy today." Sean's voice came up from behind.

I gasped and pulled him into a hug, my plate is forgotten on the kitchen side. "Are you okay?"

He chuckled and hugged me back, patting my back. "Of course, I am, he didn't fight back much. Rather let me get a few hits in."

"I saw blood-"

"I did say not much." He smirked and pulled away. "I gave him an uppercut and he gave me a broken nose. All good now it's healed."

"Already?" My eyes widened.

He nodded and followed me to sit down. "Yep. What's with the book?"

"Well, Alpha Phoenix gave me his mother's old gardening shed and stuff. So, I'm writing a list of repairs and what I may need to get."

"He gave you his mother's veg patch?" He gasped.

"Yeah... w-why?"

He swallowed his food. "He's avoided that area ever since he went wolf. He doesn't so well with his mother's death; her last days took its toll on him."

"Oh." I frowned.

We ate in silence for a moment before I opened my notebook and began to read over it. Sean helped eventually with some input on the repair front. He said he knows a good handyman who could help me. Although I was nervous about someone new, I was grateful for the help.

"I'm glad it got into his thick skull to let you have some freedom." He frowned after I closed the book.

I finished the rest of my tea with a small smile. "He's not getting off that easy. He may think all is fine, but he still won't claim me."

He smirked in amusement. "I look forward to the upcoming months. But I gotta go, the football match is on TV and I can't miss it."

I chuckled and waved him off as I took out plates to the dishwashers. I was excited to go back outside and finish my list, so eagerly washed my hands and made my way back out there.

•••

Hope u liked it 😅

Question of the Day:

If someone was to try and woo you, what would they need to do for it to work?

For me it's just cook me dinner, or take me somewhere without the kids. Easy to please! Haha

© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2021 © XDeafening_SilenceX on Wattpad