Axel sat at his desk in his office, staring off into space. It annoyed him to end that he had a thing for Gabrielle Remington. He had ever since he'd laid eyes on her three years ago, but she'd never been interested. Now he knew why. She'd had a mate all this time. He was a bit jealous.
Offering for her had sort of been random. He'd made it sound like he needed an heir, which was true, but at the same time, it really wasn't at the forefront of his mind. Being with Gabrielle Remington was.
He didn't care about her title or that she was a princess or even a Remington. None of that mattered one iota to him. He just found her very beautiful. He loved listening to her laugh when she was with his Beta's sister.
She'd spent some time over the summer here, and that was when he'd really noticed her and how beautiful she was. He still wanted her, but not if she was mated to someone else.
What a messed up situation all of that was. He couldn't believe she was mated to a panther shifter. He hadn't known that was a thing. The world held many mysteries.
There was a knock at his door, and then the door opened, and Daniel Remington, the Alpha King, walked in. Daniel had attended his own ceremony when Axel had taken over as the Alpha of Denali Pack. He didn't know much about the man except that he was Gabrielle's brother. The Royal Pack was a bit shrouded in mystery.
He stood as the Alpha approached, and bowed his head. "Alpha." Remnants of an interesting scent flitted under his nose and he breathed it in, wondering where it came from. It smelled really good but he pushed it out of his mind.
"Alpha, my sister would appreciate a meal and some sleep, then we will get out of your hair," Daniel said.
"That's no problem. You all are welcome to stay as long as you wish," Axel told him.
"I appreciate that, Alpha. There's something else I want to discuss with you as well." Daniel sat down in the chair in front of Axel's desk.
"Of course." Axel sat down as well.
"I'm about to divulge some things to you that are not really known in the werewolf community. I would prefer that you keep this to yourself. I wouldn't even tell you but you're going to have questions soon so it's better that I give you a heads up now." Daniel steepled his fingers together.
Well this conversation has just gotten very interesting. "Alright."
"I'm over four hundred years old. I've been King for a very long time. All the members of my pack are immortal, and remain so as long as they're in my pack." He stopped.
Axel stared at him as the full ramifications of what Gabby becoming his mate would mean. She'd be giving up her immortality for him. He felt slightly sick at that. If he'd known, he would have never asked that of her. And he had a feeling she may not have told him until it was too late. "I didn't know, Alpha."
Daniel frowned at him. "I'm aware of that, and I'm not telling you this because you asked her to be your chosen. It's her decision. If she chose to be with you, that would be her decision. She's well aware."
Axel nodded. He didn't know what to think of that. His mind was a little blown, especially as he stared at the man sitting across from him who looked to be in his twenties. He wondered how old Gabby was. It also explained why her own father looked as young as he did.
"Because of our immortality, we will get second chance mates. So, since Gabby has rejected her mate, she will get another," Daniel told him.
Another strike against him, Axel nodded. Why would she want him when she could have another fated?
"Her second chance is in your pack."
This was getting worse and worse by the second for him. He felt an ache in his chest over it and stiffled a sigh. "Who is it?"
Daniel shrugged. "At the moment, I don't know." He grew quiet for a moment, linking someone. "She hasn't come across whoever it is yet. I'm not sure she's mentally ready for it either, but given what happened to my daughter when her first mate rejected her, finding her second chance really eased her heartache."
Axel wanted to ask about that but he didn't. He figured if the Alpha King wanted him to know, he'd tell him. He'd already divulged more than Axel had expected. "I understand." Not really but it seemed like the appropriate response. He'd never found his own mate.
Daniel raised an eyebrow at him, but didn't respond to that comment. "So, about food."
Axel smiled. "Of course, Alpha." He stood and walked over to the door, and opened it up. The most devine scent hit him in the face, startling him, and he stopped, breathing it in and forgetting for a moment that the Alpha King was behind him.
"Alpha?" Daniel said from behind him.
It brought him to his senses and he moved. "Sorry. Something.." he stopped.
The King looked at him. "Something?"
"It's nothing. Something smells good," he said softly.
"Really."
Axel glanced at Daniel. "What am I missing?"
Daniel shrugged. 'Lets go."
Axel nodded and headed down the hall, following the Alpha King. The scent was getting stronger the further along they went. They walked around the corner, and he stopped as the scent hit him full force.
Gabrielle turned to look at him and gasped. His eyes met hers and he forgot for a moment where he was as he looked at her. Mate! He heard it clearly in his mind.
He wasn't sure what to think at that point. He was thrilled to death that she was his, but at the same time, she'd just gone through a rejection and she was immortal. He was .. a bit deflated. He didn't even know what to say at that point. "Um.." He'd never been speechless before but now he was and it didn't help that both her father and brother were standing there watching. Both the Alpha King and former Alpha King.
Both men suddenly turned and left, leaving Gabby and Axel alone. She was just staring at him now, a bit shocked at the turn of events.
"Gabby?"
"I'm sorry. I'm just trying to wrap my head around this. It was very unexpected," she said.
"You're telling me." Was this why he'd always found her so attractive? Why he'd fallen in love with her?
"I can have a second chance mate," she murmured.
"I'm aware. Your brother filled me in." Not that he'd dared to think he'd be it.
"Did you know it was you?"
"No. He just told me that somebody in the pack was your second chance," he said.
"Okay."
"Gabby, I'll understand if you want to reject me. I know you'll have to give up your immortality for me." It killed him to say that to her.
"Is that what you want?" She frowned.
"No, it's not. I wanted you before I had any idea that you were my mate. I want you now probably worse. But I will go with whatever you want."
"You won't get a second chance," she reminded him.
"I know."
She stared at him for a long moment thinking. The bond was already there between them easing her heartache. She felt like she could breathe again. She couldn't expect him to give up his pack for her. And if she wanted to be with him, she would have to give up her immortality for him. It wasn't a big deal. Not really.
"Gabby."
"Yes?"
"I'll walk away from my pack for you. My brother can take over as Alpha. He's only a year younger than me and he's been trained to be Alpha as well. He's already mated." His brother would be fine with it too.
"You'd do that?" She seemed startled.
"Yes I would. I've wanted you for a while now, ever since I first laid eyes on you. I thought you were the most beautiful woman I've ever seen," he said softly.
She blushed. "I thought you just wanted me for my title."
"Nope, I don't care about that." He never had.
"I need some time. Not a lot because this has eased my heartache." She looked away from him.
"I'm going to need a little bit of time to talk to my brother and get everything situated here before I can leave." His mind was already working in over drive.
"Will your brother be upset?"
"No. It actually kind of makes sense for me to go to your pack since you're higher ranking than me. Will your brother be okay with that?"
"Yeah he'll be fine with it," she said, flashing him a smile.
He reached out to take her hand in his, then stopped, not sure how she'd feel about it. But she reached out to him and he took her hand carefully. The tingles were there, and he smiled at the feel of them. She smiled back. "Come on. I'll get you something to eat."