Chapter 29

Charlotte's phone rang and when she saw it was her grandfather, she answered.

"Hello."

A pause.

"Yes, sir. I'll ask and see what Jaxson says." Charlotte put her phone on mute and looked at Jaxson. "Granddad wants to know if we want to come to Knoxville instead of him coming here. He said that it would be ideal, what with Amber and needing to shop for wedding gowns and bridesmaid dresses. Not to mention shoes, undergarments, jewelry, etc." She smirked. "His words not mine."

Jaxson looked from Rio to Bill with one eyebrow cocked up, waiting for an answer about how they felt about it. After all, it was Bill's job to keep them safe.

Both nodded.

"Granddad, you still there?" She smiled and said, "Jaxson agreed. How long should we plan to be there?"

Jaxson thought that she was cute when she was pensive and thoughtful looking. "Okay. No longer than that though. So, the helicopter will be here in the morning at 9?" She winced a bit. "Oh, three helicopters. That way I can have Hunter and his team.....Yes sir, I understand. Yes, I will."

Charlotte released a pent-up breath that she didn't realize that she was holding until she disconnected the call.

"He said to pack for three days. He wants you and Anders to come, as well, Momma Miney."

Miney smiled at the young girl who had quickly won her and Anders's hearts. She was good-natured, compassionate, gentle when it was called for and then fierce, capable and strong. Everything that a Luna should be. The clan was going to love her. Most already did according to Bill.

"I think that is a wonderful idea, my dear. The three of us shopping and eating lunch at a cute little bistro, having drinks." Miney said chatting at the girls, trying to encourage them.

"Yeah, with your five bodyguards in tow." Hunter said, snickering

Miney turned to him and said, "And why not! We are important women. Why shouldn't we have bodyguards? After all, we will be the three prettiest women in Knoxville. We must have bodyguards to beat the admirers off."

Jaxson, Rio and Anders all snorted in laughter. Hunter's eyes got wide and his face turned red. He didn't know what to say. On the one hand, it would be offensive, on the other, it would be considered mean. Snapping his mouth shut, he just smiled and said, "Absolutely, and it will be my and my men's pleasure to be those bodyguards and escort you three ladies around Knoxville while you shop."

Jaxson grinned at Hunter, understanding the dilemma he was experiencing. "Yeah, and while you three are out being our ladies' bodyguards, Rio, Dad, and I will be holed up with Graeham trying to figure out the best way to put Charlotte's plan into place. At least the first night."

Rio looked over at their dad and said, "You ready for some excitement, Dad?"

"Son, at my age, I'm always ready for excitement. Because, at this point, retirement was starting to get boring." He said with a grin.

"Anders! Why didn't you say something? We could have done anything you wanted if you were getting bored."

"Granddad is staying the The Tennessean and he was reserved the three other suites left in the hotel. and several rooms close by for you and your men, Hunter."

Bill whistled. "That's some hotel. Fanciest one in town. Enjoy your stay while you are there. Take plenty of pictures. After the baby is born, Misty and I will need a honeymoon." Misty smiled at Bill.

"Something simple for dinner?" Charlotte asked the crowd gathered.

When everyone nodded, Charlotte turned to Rio and asked, "You got any boar in the cellar or freezer?"

Frowning, he thought for a minute. "Yeah, in the freezer. How much do you need?"

He asked.

"Four pounds?" He nodded and got the meat from the freezer and put it in the microwave to thaw.

She began working on her sauce and looked in the cabinet to find some pasta and started her water to boil.

Amber and Miney got the salad prepped up and made homemade dressing. Jaxson, Rio and Hunter opened the cabinets and drawers for plates, silverware and glasses, then carried the gathered items out to the table on the back porch.

While they were out there, Jaxson and Rio took a minute to talk to Hunter.

"You know what the threat is. Do not let our mates get shot or killed. Remember how I trained you. No one ever thinks to look up. Be on the lookout for snipers, constantly. And do not be afraid to hustle them somewhere safe. Charlotte's grandfather probably has several bullet-proof vehicles. Make sure that you are all in it when you go anywhere. We may not still be in, but consider this an order, Hunter."

Hunter didn't say anything, he just nodded and they all went inside.

The smell of finely chopped wild boar cooking in red wine and spices permeated the air with its perfume when they walked in and Hunter groaned and said, 'Damn Charlotte. When we are finished here, I'm going to have to find a girl that can cook like you. You have spoiled me. I don't think that I will ever look at home cooking the same ever again."

Everyone laughed, but in all seriousness, she was a fabulous cook. "Seriously, Charlotte, why didn't you go to culinary school?" Misty asked her, tasting her sauce, and moaning at the flavor.

"I had a passion for nursing and I wanted to do geriatrics. I didn't realize how emotionally difficult it would be. Especially when they die alone. I always tried to go and sit with them when there was no family, no friends that would come." She sighed and grimaced. "It took a deep toll on my emotions. It got so bad that I couldn't sleep without drinking half a bottle of wine a night. That's when I decided that it would be healthier for me to do something else. Maybe I should have gone to culinary school." She said, frowning. "I guess it's true what they say, hindsight is twenty-twenty."

"Do you think you will ever go back into nursing again, Charlotte?" Misty asked her.

"I don't know....wait, no, I do know. Yes. I just don't think that I can do geriatrics again. Maybe general practice. You know, like a doctor's office. That would be better. No care facilities or hospitals for me anymore." Turning back to the stove, she stilled the pasta and then took it to the sink to drain it. Mixing the sauce, meat and pasta all in one bowl, she sat it on the table and sat down at Jaxson's right to eat.

"You know, Jaxson, I just realized something. You have a cellar full of expensive wines and we have been drinking tea, juice and water with our meals. Is there a reason why?"

Jaxson looked startled. "I forgot about it being there, truthfully." Looking over at his dad, he said, "Want to go pick us out a couple bottles, Dad?"

"Sure thing, son. I can do that. Won't be a minute."

Standing and exiting the room, Anders came back several minutes later with four bottles of Bordeaux in a very fine vintage, smiling. "The perfect wine for wild boar ragu."

Jaxson wasn't sure how Charlotte would react to drinking wine, and so he offered it to her with an eyebrow raised and gestured with the bottle. When she nodded her head, he filled her glass about half full. He watched her during dinner. She would sip the wine only. She didn't drink more and a quarter of the wine that he had poured her

Realizing that her mate was concerned about her, she smiled softly and said, "It's okay Jax. I'm not an alcoholic. Promise. I just choose not to allow it to happen to me. I was on my way to being one, but I am safe. Alcohol doesn't control my life." Charlotte watched the relief wash over her mate's face, feeling so thankful that his man and beast was hers and hers alone. They enjoyed dinner and the leftover pies that Amber had made.

After the meal, the men took over and cleaned. It seemed to become the thing around the house. The women would prep and cook, the men would clean and put away the leftovers and wash dishes.

Charlotte was tired, so she said her goodnights and kissed Jaxson. Once in their room, she stripped her clothes and walked into the ensuite bathroom and started the shower. As tired as she was, she really appreciated this shower. It was enclosed on three sides with tile and the fourth wall was rock halfway up and glass the rest of the way. There shower itself was big enough to hold four people the size of Jaxson. So, she had plenty of room. Her favorite part was the shelf that allowed you to sit on it to shave. Today however, she sat on the floor of the shower and hugged her knees. Her brain was trying to misfire on her. She knew that it had something to do with leaving this house. Here she was safe. Here is where she got better. Here is home and she really didn't want to leave it. Even to go shopping for her wedding dress. She knew she should make some effort to wash, but she just couldn't. She must have been there for a while, because she realized that Jaxson was in there with her.

He was in his boxer briefs and squatting down next to her. Pushing her hair out of her face and tucking it behind one of her ears, he gently took her face in his hands and leaned in and kissed her. "It's going to be okay, baby, I promise. I will be with you almost the entire time. You're going to find a beautiful dress for the Alpha ceremony, our mating ceremony and our wedding. Then you are going to find a dress to wear as a bridesmaid in Rio and Amber's wedding and their mating ceremony. Then you are going to find another beautiful dress for Rio's Beta ceremony. Then you, Mom and Amber are going to find matching undergarments. Dear Lord, help me. I can imagine you wearing them, trying them on, and me taking them off of you." Shaking himself to bring himself back to the present, he said, "Then you are going to shopping for my mother's favorite thing. Jewelry." He leaned in and kissed her gently again and said, "And on that last day, we will find our wedding rings. You can have whatever you want. If you want an obscenely large diamond, then you can have it. If you want a colored stone, you can have it. If you want a simple gold band like my parents have, then you can have that. It's your choice."

Jaxson was beginning to wonder if he had gotten through to her. So, he turned her face to his and said, "Charlotte, I understand what you are going through. When I first got here after leaving the military, because of what I had lived through, this house was my refuge. I hated leaving it. I still do. The reason for that is different now. I hate to leave because you are here. This house isn't home to me, you are. Where you are, Charlotte, that's home for me and it will always be like that. My heart was yours the minute that I touched you to turn you over in that field. When I realized that you weren't going to die, I was so torn. I wasn't even sure that I was worthy of you. I'm still not sure. You are good, Charlotte and pure in ways that a lot of, not just women, but people, are not."

Standing her up, Jaxson picked up a washcloth and added body wash and began to wash his mate's body. Then, when he was finished, he gently turned her and backed her up under the shower spray and washed her hair. When he finished, he made sure that she was rinsed off good and dried her and put her gown on, then led her to bed.