Chapter 6 Phoenix

I opened the door to see Selene sleeping; she's been through so much in one day, we all have. There was a slight tap on my shoulder. Turning my head, I saw Amber standing behind me; closing the door quietly, I turned to talk to her, "We're ready to go." She said, then looked at the door, "How is she?" I looked at the door then turned back to Amber,

"She's strong, but she's gone through so much so fast. I don't remember her being like this when we were children; back then, she was so skittish, it was so cute." Amber smiled lightly,

"Phoenix, she's grown up. She's not that same little girl anymore." I nodded, I knew she was right, but that's what worried me. Selene is strong, I knew that, but she's the same strong my mother was, and even that much strength can't help you during the trying times; for my mother, it was when she delivered my sister, they both died that night. For Selene, I fear it will be the death of her loved ones and revenge that will throw her over the edge. "We should get going soon. None of us know if Mara has any supporters, and if she does, they may be looking for us already." Amber warned. I nodded and went into the room to wake Selene up.

Selene was sleeping so peacefully. This is the first time I've seen her like this, so beautiful. I knelt down beside her and shook her lightly, "Selene," I whispered. She was starting to stir but shot up and scooted away from me, "Honey, it's okay. It's just me." I said. She calmed down and took a few breaths,

"Sorry." She said, not even looking at me; I kissed her head and smiled,

"It's okay," I replied, reaching my hand out for hers, "Come on, it's time to go." She nodded, and we went downstairs to meet with the others.

It wasn't safe to travel by foot, so I had to warp us to Scotland, which took a lot of energy. Chris and Sam went back to the pack to help prepare them for war and deliver the news of the deaths. Amber stayed with us, and half of the others that managed to escape with us chose to either come with us, the other half went with Chris and Sam to help in any way they could. The moment I got as far as Inverness was when I got tired; two of the guys with us, Joshua and Adam, caught me and helped me walk to Inverness, "I have family here. They'll help us." I told everyone. Selene stayed behind me, probably to keep me from seeing how worried she was, but I wanted her near me; it was pretty dangerous around here. I didn't want anything to happen to her. I made a promise to her father as I watched him die, and I intend to keep it.

We walked for a while until I saw some familiar faces, "Aunt Katherine!" I shouted; she turned and ran over to us, hugging me tightly,

"Oh, my stars, Phoenix, what are you doing back so soon?" She looked at everyone else, "You all look hungry; come, Fiona, Donella, and Malina are home cooking." She led us to her home, which was basically a castle. When we got there, the guys set me down at the table, then Katherine came over with her hands on her hips. "Alright, what's going on? You look like hell." I looked at her and shook my head,

"There was an ambush at the ball. A lot of people were killed," I told her, then looked up, "including dad." She placed her hand over her heart as she looked at everyone else,

"You all escaped?" Everyone nodded,

"Us and some others," I told her, getting my strength back. I stood up and walked over to Selene, "This is Selene, the new queen." Katherine's eyes widened, bowing her head to Selene,

"I'm so sorry, dear." Amber perked up, tears rolling down her face at the sound of her mothers' name. She told her, "I was good friends with your aunt Amanda."

"I'm sorry," Amber said, "excuse me." She then went outside, crying; I nodded to Adam, who went after her. Katherine looked at me, slightly confused,

"Amanda was her mother." Selene told her, "I should check on her. I'll be back." She told me, kissing my cheek before going out the door. Katherine gave me a funny look, then turned to Joshua and smiled,

"Well, I hope you're hungry. My daughters have been hard at work with dinner." She told him, "Oh girls, we have company." I chuckled lightly, pinching the bridge of my nose, and shook my head. Within a moment's notice, all three of my cousins came in quickly, their breasts nearly out of their blouses; I turned to Joshua, who was staring at them.

Katherine escorted us all to our rooms, after everyone else, she took Selene and me to another hall, "Here we are," I gave her a look,

"Okay, whose room is this?" I asked; she smirked,

"Both of yours. You will be sharing a room." Selenes' face turned red,

"We're not married yet, Aunt Katherine," I told her; she smiled,

"I know." She replied, "That doesn't mean you can't sleep in the same room together." She stated as she ran away before I strangled her.

I opened the door and saw the beautiful layout of the room; a king bed with a canopy and a fireplace. We went in; there were two doors in between the fireplace. I opened the door to the left, a walk-in closet, the one to the right was a luxurious bathroom. Selene sat down on the bed, "This is a bit much, don't you think?" She asked; I nodded,

"Try telling Katherine that." I chuckled; she turned to face me,

"I thought you said that your father was an only child." She said,

"He was." I told her, "Katherine is my mothers' sister." Selene nodded. I smiled, "Are you tired?" I asked her; she shook her head, "Me either." I said.

I unpacked our bag and sat by the fire on the soft fur rug. Selene changed into a nightgown and joined me, smiling, "What is it?" I asked,

"Nothing." She said; I sat up, showing that I was ready to listen to her, "Okay, fine. I was thinking about how my parents got together." I chuckled, knowing where this was going, "Mom couldn't stand Dad, but then after she found out he was her mate, it just got worse. But then, Dad grew a pair and stood up to her, declaring his love, they were married that same day." I smiled; I don't know how many times I've heard that story. Selene whipped a small tear from her eye,

"Do you think they knew?" I asked her, taking her hand in mine,

"What do you mean?" She asked,

"Do you think your parents knew that we were going to end up together?" She shrugged her shoulders,

"Maybe," she blushed lightly, "I need to tell you something, Phoenix. It's something I haven't told anyone." I stared at her curiously, "I found my mate." I nearly jumped off the rug, but she continued, "I met him years ago when I was only six years old. He has red hair, blue eyes, and grew up to be very handsome." I smiled, "I didn't know what the feeling was until I was older when mom sat me down and talked to me about it. That's when I knew." She placed her hand on my face, stroking it gently,

"What's his name?" I asked playfully, already knowing the answer,

"Phoenix Alexander Mackenzie," Selene replied as she leaned in and began kissing me, pinning me to the floor as she got on top of me. My hands instinctively went to her hips as I leaned up and cocked my head to deepen the kiss; I pulled her closer, she gasped lightly when I did, which made me smirk. I knew we needed to stop, but I wanted her; no, I needed her. Selene pulled back and stared into my eyes.

"We should stop before we do something we might regret." She smiled and started kissing me again, taking my hands and putting them on her breast. My face turned red. She deepened the kiss before pulling away,

"I want you, Phoenix. I have loved you for so long, and now you're finally mine." I shook my head,

"I want you too, Selene, but I want us to be married first." Selene crossed her arms, pouting, but then a thought came to mind, "I have an idea; come with me." I got up and threw on some clothes. I took Selenes' hand and led her through the corridors until we made it to a door. I knocked and opened it seeing Katherine and her husband sitting by the fire,

"Nephew, what is it?" My uncle asked; I brought Selene closer,

"Uncle, if my understanding is correct, you're a minister, right?" He closed his book and stood up,

"Only for funerals and weddings, depending on who it is." Just as I hoped,

"Could you marry us?" I asked. Selene looked at me, shocked,

"Phoenix, do you mean...."

"I could. Do you have wedding bands?" I nodded and pulled them out of my pocket, he nodded; I then turned to Selene, who was still surprised,

"Selene, let's face it, we've been in love with each other before we even knew what love truly was. I don't want to wait another moment; we could be dead tomorrow for all we know. If I'm going to fight alongside anyone, it's going to be my wife." Selene smiled as tears rolled down her face, "Will you marry me, right here and right now?" She nodded,

"Yes, you didn't even have to ask." I smiled and kissed her deeply before pulling away. I'm about to marry this beautiful woman if only my parents could see me now.