Ash looks great in one of the dresses Ella bought for her courtesy of Eric.
I owe Eric a lot for going all out to make sure my mate was comfortable while inside the prison that I put her in. Things would have been far worse for my mate and me if it wasn't for him. I know I'll forever be in his debt when I think of how he almost lost his life on his way from visiting her at Council Yard.
I can't believe my eyes when we arrive at the dining room and I see everyone dressed up, waiting for our arrival. I'm happy. I never thought they would organize a celebratory dinner to welcome my mate. We lost our unborn baby but the fact that we're finally able to reunite with each other is still worth celebrating.
Ash's face breaks into a huge smile when she sees the feast laid before us and all of them dressed up, standing up to welcome her. As we walk to our seats at the head of the table, I'm not surprised by the way she warmly greets each of my men by their names.
Ella leaves her chair and walks up to us and they hug tightly as if they're long-lost friends. After greeting each of my men, she works up to my dad...
"Hey Pops..." She says, kissing him on both sides of his cheeks.
Even though they'd all been informed about her present condition, my dad still can't hide how surprised he is. He pulls her to himself and hugs her so tightly that I'm afraid he will crush her to death.
"Oh, I'm so glad you're okay. So, so glad you're okay." He continues to say until my Uncle mercifully rescues her.
"Knox, Knox, Knox, leave some for the rest of us, will you." He chuckles as he practically pries him off my mate. It's obvious my dad is starstruck and he's making no attempt to hide it.
Ash laughs after what my Uncle said
"Uncle Elias. It's good to see you again." She laughingly says, moving into his outstretched arms
"It's always good to see you too sweetheart." My Uncle smilingly replies. His hug is not any better than my Dad's. If anything, I'll say it even looks more crushing
It's amusing to see the seer standing like he's anticipating his turn to be recognized. What I said earlier must have really gotten to him. He's a seer who sees other people's future but can't tell if he will be alive or dead before the great war. I must admit that I enjoyed seeing him looking worried for the first time since I met him. It's good to see him feel a bit of what he has been making me go through in the past weeks.
When Ash pulls away from Elias, she finally turns to him with her trademark bright smile...
"It's good to see you too Uncle Leif"
I chuckle when I hear him heave a huge sigh of relief before he also hugs her like she just gave him the most wonderful news ever.
"I'm happy to see you too Luna. So happy to see you." He gloatingly says the last part while looking at me. I'm just glad to see we'll all be present and fight the great war together.
The Beta's chair is placed on the left of mine while the Luna's chair is placed on the right. That is why Eric is the last one she greets.
"Luna..." He smilingly says with a nod but Ash moves closer to hug him tightly instead.
He looks at me like he's first asking for my permission before he finally securely wraps his arms around her.
"Thank you, Eric. Thank you so much for everything." She says and I freeze.
'She said, 'Thank you for everything' Eric. Do you think she's waking up already?' I ask through our mind link.
His eyes narrow wonderingly over Ash's head before asking her...
"Thank you for everything. What are you thanking me for?"
She pulls away from him
"I don't know..." She smilingly replies with a shrug. "I guess it's because I know you've always and will always be there for him... For both of us."
Eric nods, smiling back at her,
'Anders told me you already planned to wake her up after dinner. I think that is a good idea. We can't afford to delay any more than necessary.' He tells me through the mind link
I have never been happier in my life. Seeing my Luna relate with my family exactly the same way I've always wanted it makes me happy.
I'm happily smiling as we sit down to start eating our dinner when another of her questions freezes me in place.
"Why is Martha not here? Is it because of Axel?"
'Who is Axel supposed to be?' The question resounds in my mind that can't think up a quick reply.
Ella is the first to recover from our speechless state to save the night.
"Yes..." she replies with a smile. "Martha is too overprotective of him I'm afraid. She refused to leave him with anyone apart from me. They should be getting ready for bed by now."
A smile appears on Ash's face and I heave a sigh of relief.
'She bought Ella's story!'
"Oh, yes it's almost his bedtime. I'll go check on them after we're done with dinner. I've really missed both of them." She tells Ella.
'I guess Axel is the name of our future son that she saw in her dream?' I say through our mind link
'Apparently' Ella replies
'You don't have to look so worried, now. Remember the Seer said the worst has come and passed.' Ivar says.
'The worst is here but I don't think it has passed. Damn, I still had no idea how to go about fixing this.' I worriedly say
'You worry too much. Stop looking as if it's the end of the world! If you don't want her to start asking why you have such a disheartening look on your face then concentrate on dinner and her happiness at the moment. We're in this together and we'll fix it!' Eric says
"Hmm..." I say in reply but still find it difficult to concentrate. My mind is bothered with the worries of what will happen after dinner until Ash herself slowly draws me into their conversation and my worries are temporarily forgotten.
This dinner makes me know a little bit about the kind of person she is. Now I know she's free-spirited, caring, and witty. She makes me laugh. Damn, she makes everyone laugh. Even Henrik, who hardly finds anything funny in a conversation can't help himself this time.
Immediately after dinner, my heart literally starts aching when she reminds me she wants to see Martha and the baby.
"Okay, but can we go for a walk first? There's something I need to discuss with you..." I say to her and she nods without smiling this time
She takes my hand as we walk out of the mansion.
"I sensed you were worried about something when we sat down to eat earlier. I don't even need to see your countenance, I felt your uneasiness in my heart."
She stops talking for a while as we get outside the mansion and walk towards the field. She walks as if she already knows her way around the area.
"Babe?" She calls softly
"Yeah..."
"I want to know, how bad is whatever it is you want to talk to me about? I thought you were good at hiding your emotions but look at you now. I can easily see from your countenance that this is bad and it's scaring me. Just tell me how bad it is. Truthfully."
"It's so bad, you threatened to reject me as your mate." I finally say and she stops in her tracks. Now she looks scared.