The White Wolf Chapter 88: Babysitting

Waking up alone had a frown appearing on Alexia’s face as she saw Capian's side empty and the sheets cold.

The sun was beginning to rise and the palace would be busy with a flurry of activity as its inhabitants began their day.

Her body ached from the activities during the night. Stretching she could feel the soreness throughout her body urging her to get up.

Finally, removing herself from their bed that lingered of her and her mate's scent, she made her way to the shower which helped to relieve the soreness in her muscles.

Once her body was scrubbed and her body washed, she quickly styled her hair back into a sleek bun while applying minimal makeup.

Since she would be spending the day inside the warm walls of the castle, she opted for an easy short dress, pairing it with a light cardigan in case of a chill and sensible shoes.

As she stepped out of her chambers, she was surprised to not see Harley waiting for her. Odd but she kept moving, wanting to look at her office progression.

Treasuring the silence she walked with purpose, allowing her legs to stretch out till she arrived at her office.

Pleased with the work being she nodded as she surveyed the room. It would be soon when the furniture could be moved in and she would be fully functioning.

“Knock. Knock.” The words and the accompanying sound had Alexia turning from admiring the work being done in her office.

Surprise spread across her face as she saw Edmund coming threw the doorway. It was nice to see her friend as she had few at the palace, her main friend group returning to their own packs. Life at the palace meant not knowing who you could trust as everyone had their own agenda but Edmund was someone she knew she could trust.

A smile graced her lips. "I haven't seen you in a while."

"Good morning, I've been doing my best to keep a low profile." He replied nonchalantly.

Knowing he meant avoiding his duties, Alexia let out a scoff.

“It looks good.” He said nodding as he took in the room. “Have you picked out furniture?”

“Yes, it should be arriving soon, I’ll need to have Harley check on that.”

Appearing at the mention of her name, Harley stood in the doorway looking visibly flustered. “My apologies, your highness-” she said before startling as she saw Edmund. “-you’re highnesses, for my tardiness.” For once she looked slightly disheveled as if she had dressed in a hurry and hastily made her way there. There was a slight frizz to her hair and her clothes had creases in them as if she had thrown on the first pair of clothes she found. Alexia's gaze noticed she was only wearing one earring and she fought back the urge to laugh.

Alexia's voice sounded tired. “Harley, the sun is barely up.” It was too early for her to worry about protocol.

“Some coffee would be nice,” Edmund interjected.

Nodding eagerly, Harley jumped into action leaving the room in a hurry.

Edmund watched Harley disappear through the doorway “That girl needs a spa day or a Xanax.”

Her interactions with her brother-in-law had her coming to the conclusion that Caspian must take after his father, a man whom she rarely interacted with, as Edmund seemed so much like Judy it was laughable.

Alexia ran her finger across the wall seeing if it was still wet. “Noted.”

While Harley was off fetching their coffee, Alexia showed him the work being done and explained her vision for the room that would become her base of operation. With the samples in the room, she proudly showed off her design ideas and gestured animately with her hands. Edmund listened with interest which encouraged her to continue till she felt like she must be boring him and only stopping to drink the coffee that Harley had delivered before running off to perform errands for the queen.

“Not to try and be rude but don’t you have tasks and duties to attend?” She asked her brother-in-law wondering why he was awake so early and adamantly listening to her about her office renovations.

After knowing her friend her whole life, she knew there was something he was supposed to be doing even though he was a pro at avoiding said duties. “I do. I’ve been assigned to babysitting.”

“Babysitting? Who could you possibly be watching?” The confusion on her face morphed into outrage as the realization dawned on her. “Me? You’re babysitting me?”

"Apparently, you need the extra supervision," he said with a pointed look that left her fuming.

“That is absurd!” She yelled louder than she expected looking around in case anyone heard her but the halls were still quiet.

Edmund pretended to survey the Soto being done. “Says the person who went frolicking in the woods?”

Her voice was downcast as she looked away “So, he told you?”

Seeming unbothered, he gave his explanation “Well, since the guards were running everywhere yesterday, Gave looked like he was on death's door, and my brother ran off into the forest by himself without waiting for backup I was able to put two and two together.”

Some time passed before she spoke as she thought hard "What about Enzo? He is my guard." She said wanting to get rid of her friend who had a smug look on his face.

The situation made her angry, not because Caspain was worried about her safety but because the person he assigned to watch her was her age and friend! It was outrageous to her. Plus, she was more responsible than Edmond. That was a fact.

"He is in a meeting with my brother and Gabe. Thus, I was awoken at this inhuman hour to watch you." He said exasperated.

Perking up she looked at him intently "What meeting? Did something happen?"

"Something is always happening but I do not know the circumstances surrounding this meeting." He said without a care as he picked up fabric samples that were lying around the room and studied them.

they stood there sipping their coffee in the silence “Are you going to give me a lecture on how careless my actions were?”

A snort at the absurdity came from Edmund. “I would never, and besides I’m sure my dear big brother handled that."

Alexia made a face of the agreement, he had done that. Plus, a lecture from Edmund would be ridiculous as he was the poster child for bad decisions.

"I don't need a babysitter." She spat in anger to no one in particular and she stewed in her emotions and thoughts.

"I know that but I am not going to argue with my brother when he is being irrational and he is irrational when it comes to you." He said with a shrug. "Anyway, I won’t be watching you long I will be leaving to join Luca tonight.”

Not having heard this, her eyebrows furrowed “Why? Did something happen?”

“No, but the death of an alpha puts everyone on edge so the powers that be, my brother, decided it would be best to put a royal face with him so that’s my job." Throwing her a sarcastic smile.

Raising an eyebrow, Alexia saw the annoyance in his face “Stand there and look pretty?”

Edmund dramatically pretended to throw nonexistent hair over his shoulder. “Well of course.”

It was a joke but also true. The presence of a member of the royal family could completely alter the way others behaved. While Luca came from a prominent family and was brother to the queen he did have royal blood in his veins. Edmond would showcase the royal family's backing by just being present.

Letting out a laugh, the anger Alexia had soon disappeared as she settled into easy conversation with her friend.