The Choice
Chapter 20 making amends/Christmas

Selena

The weeks have gone by quickly. His mom and I have gotten the details down and we just have to figure out where to have it. Kieran and I are taking a walk in the woods where we replace this abandoned gothic church.

“What’s a church doing out here?” It seems kind of random for it to be here. I’ve never seen it before, but it’s hidden with weeds, ivy, and grass. Must’ve been here a while. “I’m sure it was a beautiful church at one point.” I let go of his hand I’ve been holding and walked towards it. The stones aren’t as sharp as they once were. Weeds and grass have taken over the floor, ivy on the walls.

“Must’ve been a royal church at some point or maybe an old pack church. Looks too small to fit an entire pack.” Kieran walks behind me exploring rooms as well.

“The pack could’ve been smaller so maybe it did.” I look around and what I guess is the ceremony space. Windows all around the altar, grass, and weeds again all over the floor. “This looks like it’d fit our needs. Just needs some landscaping done.” I smile as I keep looking around. “Get rid of the overgrown grass and weeds on the floor and it should be fine. I like the ivy on the walls. Makes it look nice. I don’t want to ruin it too much.”

“If this is what you want, then we’ll get to work.” Kieran smiles at me and kisses my cheek. “Come on, let’s get out of the cold and let them know we finally found our ceremony space.” We walk back to the packhouse giddy. He goes to tell his parents when I hear Georgie calling.

“Selena…” She bows her head in respect for me.

“Yes?” I turn to face her. She looks at me with a sad smile.

“I just wanted to apologize for hurting you… your… mom… blackmailed me to get me to cooperate with her.” Yeah, that sounds like her.

“I’m not surprised she did the same to me until I was banished here.”

“Maybe we can have a fresh start? I never wanted to take Kieran away from you. He and I are only friends now, but he’s a great guy.” I growled at her. Carolina didn’t like that she knew our mate that way.

“I know that! He’s the best thing that’s happened to me!” I tried to blink away my angry tears, but I couldn’t.

“I’m sorry…” She turns away and I try to grab her hand, but I grab her hand just in time. I take another deep breath and smile at her.

“I’m sorry too, Georgie. Maybe we can go Christmas shopping with Mia and Raven some time. ” I say with a little smile and she smiles back.

“I’d like that. Maybe over the weekend if you’re free. ”

“Yeah, I’m free now that my heat is over.” I blush at the memory.

“Oooh, the first heat cycle can be rough. And I didn’t mean to cause trouble for him that day, I just wanted to ask him a question.”

“It’s ok and we’re both ok now.” I try to not feel embarrassed about it.

“I better get back to school… pups to tend to.” She smiles at me.

“Yeah, of course, see you around.” She leaves and I head to meet his parents. On my way to my office, I get a call.

“Hello?”

“Lena! It’s Gwen!” She tells me excitedly. I smile at her voice.

“And how are you?! I’ve been meaning to call you, but I’ve been… busy.” I wanted to keep it respectful with her. No need for gory details.

“I wanted to tell you I found my mate! I met him at the ball!” She sounds so happy.

“I’m so happy for you. What’s his name?” I already knew this, but I didn’t want to spoil her fun.

“He’s a royal from the Cedarcrown Pack! He’s hereditary prince Damian! Mom was happy of course, but he’s a really sweet guy!” I can’t believe how happy she is.

“I’m glad you’re happy. I’m actually glad you called since I wanted to invite you, Jude, and Liam to my mating ceremony on New Year’s Eve.” There was silence for a moment, but a squeal of delight.

“I can’t believe you’re getting mated! So exciting! We’ll be happy to come! Damian has wanted to meet you too! I’ve told him all about our relationship and adventures!” I smile as I remember her time with us.

“Can’t wait to meet him too. I hope he treats you well. I don’t want to hurt a prince.” We laugh at the thought. He’d probably whip my butt, but I’d do anything for Gwen.

“I’ll let his family know about it!”

“No! Just you and him… let’s not worry anyone else yet.” To be honest, I don’t have an excellent track record with parents, but I don’t want her to worry.

“Oh… ok that’s fine too. I’ll let Liam and Jude know.” I smile at the thought of seeing them again.

“Yeah, that’s fine. It’ll be good to see you again.”

“You too, Lena! I miss you!”

“I miss you too, Gwennie!” I tear up a little. I’ve missed her a lot! I think back to the ball when I last saw her and remember the reason I don’t want to go back to my so-called parents’ home.

“I’ll see you soon!”

“See you soon! Maybe you and Damian can come for Christmas and stay for the ceremony. It’ll be nice to have you around again. You’re always welcomed here!”

“Thanks, Lena! I’ll let him know! Love ya bye!”

“Bye Gwennie!” She hangs up, and I head up to replace Kieran. I replace him and his parents in his study.

“Sorry, I’m late. I ran into Georgie and Gwen called.” I give them a bashful smile.

“It’s ok we just got here.” He wraps his arms around me and kisses my cheek.

“What were you up to?” I asked him curiously.

“I showed them the church we found.” I look at them wondering what they thought about it.

“I remember it being used a long time ago when this pack was smaller than it is now. I’m surprised it’s still standing.” Jacob says.

“With some good landscaping, it can be beautiful again. We were married there, so it makes me smile knowing you want to be married there.” Caroline got a little teary-eyed, and we all gave her a group hug. With only a week and a half left there was much to do. Things were slowly coming together. The packhouse was decorated with beautiful Christmas flowers. Beautiful poinsettias, amaryllis, roses, garland, holly, all the works and I can tell a lot of love went into this! All the workers all look so happy but a little worn out.

“Hey everyone, everything looks so beautiful but why don’t you take a hot chocolate and cookies break!” I smiled at everyone and they all went to the kitchen where I made all the goodies. They all said their thanks to me and we made some small talk about holiday plans but bounced back to work. I let them continue in their decorating and just look around. It snowed again, and I smiled. I made it to my office which seems to have been transformed into a dressing room!

“What’s going on?” I asked the group of ladies with confusion.

“Don’t you remember we all have dress fittings!” Mia tells me with excitement. I smack my forehead cause I forgot.

“Right of course. Let me see yours first! I want to keep mine a surprise for now.” I’m so excited about their dresses. They haven’t told me what they choose! Mia and Raven come in burgundy, velvet, short v-neck dresses. Raven is ¾ sleeves while Mia is long sleeves. Caroline came out with a silver, off-the-shoulder, sequined short dress!

“All of you look fabulous! Love it!” I couldn’t help but smile at them. I let them pick and they don’t disappoint!

“Now for you!” His mom links arms with me, and we look around the dress shop. About ten minutes into looking around I hear the bell chime of someone else coming in. Who else is here, I always thought a store would close for us.

“Glad you could make it!” Mia smiled, and I realized that it’s Georgie.

“Oh, hi… didn’t expect you to come!” I smile at her but internally I’m screaming in my head.

“Mia invited me and afterward we can all go Christmas shopping together.” Oh yeah, we wanted to do that. Ok, I’m not as mad at her anymore.

“Sure that’d be fun.” I smile again and turn to look at some dresses. Nothing seems to jump out at me yet though.

“I know white is usually what brides but for us we wear black. Black symbolizes power, mystery, strength, elegance, formality, and sophistication. For you my dear…” She smiles a gentle smile at me. “I think that couldn’t describe you more perfectly, but if you replace a white dress you like, we won’t judge.”

“To be honest… I never really thought about my mating ceremony… I figured that it’d just be for some political power and that it wouldn’t be something special, but now that it’s the real thing… I’d love to see what ideas you ladies have.” I smile at them as they squeal with excitement dying to get into the racks. I look around and they’re beautiful dresses but nothing jumps at me yet. I think of Kieran and what he’s up to. The ladies show me dresses that they like, but I think it describes their style more than mine. I look around the racks that are filled with every color of the rainbow for any occasion. I finally found the black dresses and of course, there’re various styles, but there was one dress that caught my eye. It was on a mannequin in a corner. Beautiful ball gown. The top was a sweetheart top with subtle sparkles while the skirt flowed to what looked to me as a starry evening night full of stars. The back had a beautiful sheer cape that had some thick lace and turned into the train in the back. I tried to quietly replace an employee to see if I could try it on, but I couldn’t replace one. Guess they didn’t want to interrupt us. Soon I feel a hand on my shoulder and it makes me jump.

“Oh, it’s just you.” I put my hand over my chest when I realized that it’s just Mia. “You snuck up on me.”

“Sorry, I couldn’t help but notice you lingering around this dress.” She smirks at me.

“Yeah, I like this one, I wanted to replace an employee to help me get it off the rack, but I didn’t see any, and I didn’t want to bother anyone.” I shyly smile.

“Well a lifetime ago, before I decided to be a doctor I thought I wanted to be a dress seller, a much simpler life. I used to work here. That’s why they’re generous to us besides being the alpha family. Now let’s see you in this dress.” She smiles at me and we both rush to the dressing room. When I came out it fit like a glove and I felt beautiful for once in my life. Sure I had worn many beautiful dresses, but all those times I felt like I was just on display like a trophy. This time it felt real. The reality of my mating ceremony was sinking in.

“Oh, Selena… you look beautiful.” Caroline gives me a warm motherly smile and I never tire of it. “I think this is it, but it’s missing something… hmm…” Lost in thought she looked around the accessories. She looked around at necklaces, earrings, tiara which I scrunch my nose at, I never wanted to see another tiara ever again… she went back to the accessories and went to the veils. So many styles and colors like the dresses, but mostly black or silver. We went back and forth between the two, but I eventually picked a black one that’s shoulder-length with some sparkles like the top. The rest of the day went smoothly and got presents for everyone, even Georgie. That one surprised even me, but I’m trying to make nice with her… with all the goodies that I hid away in my office so no one will see until Christmas including my dress and veil. Everyone is in good spirits as the packhouse is fully decorated with garland, mistletoe, Christmas tree, ornaments, lights.

Days flew by and the drama with my family has calmed down and I text my siblings a Merry Christmas. I still don’t talk to either set of parents, but my siblings are still in my life. All the presents are wrapped with care and put under the tree except for one that I’ll give to Kieran in private. Everyone comes down in their PJs for Christmas breakfast with cinnamon rolls, a breakfast casserole, waffles and pancakes, bacon, and some fruit. It smelled heavenly!

“Merry Christmas everybody!” I smile at everybody around the table. Kieran comes up behind me and whispers Merry Christmas in my ear and I couldn’t help the shiver that went down my spine. I grab a plate of food and some hot chocolate. During my breakfast, I felt sick, so I stopped mid-bite of my bacon and ran to the bathroom. Unfortunately, I saw my breakfast again in the toilet and it didn’t taste as good as it went down… I hear a small knock on the door but I’m too embarrassed to answer.

“Selena?” Mia opens the door just enough for her head to peek in. “Are you ok?”

“I don’t feel so good… ugh I didn’t want this Christmas present… a stomach bug for Christmas isn’t fun.”

“You sure it’s just a bug?” Mia sounds worried. “Why don’t I get a couple of tests for you to take.”

“What tests?” I asked her confused.

“Pregnancy tests goof.” Mia smiles at me like it was obvious.

“Oh... I don’t think I am…” I didn’t even think about that.

“Well, you had your heat recently… come on, let’s just make sure.” She helps me off the floor and wraps an arm around my shoulder just in case I need it. We made it to her office and handed me two tests and a small plastic cup.

“I shouldn’t have to explain this, but just in case, you pee in that” She points to the cup. “and you put the tests in there for 5 seconds. Wait, a few minutes and you get your results.” Sounds simple enough. I do my business in the bathroom and wait for the tests to do their thing. I check the box just so I know what the lines mean. One means no, two means yes… my hands are sweaty and shaky. I don’t even want to look at them, but I want to know. After a few minutes, I paced to the counter to see the tests… they’re blazing two pink lines! Like there’s no mistaking that! I cry silent tears of joy. How am I going to tell everyone?? I grab the tests and hide them in my robe. I open the door where Mia is waiting for me.

“Well, what did they say?” She’s on pins and needles dying to know!

“Just one line… guess it was just a bug.” I try to fake it as best as I can.

“Oh… oh well yeah that happens. Well, at least we know.” I can see she’s disappointed, but I go on my way back to the presents.

“Hey, we’re about to open presents. Are you coming?” Kieran links me as I’m on the stairs.

“Yeah, I just had to use the bathroom. I’ll be on my way down.” I go back to the tree where all the presents are and excitedly wait to open them. I got the ladies some jewelry for the ceremony. His dad, some vintage whiskey that he could have with some guests or the guys of the family in his office. Connor, I got him a fancy mid-thigh trench coat since he’s not on the battlefield as much, but if he needed to it won’t be in the way. Conrad a warm black bomber jacket with white fleece, something easy for him to fight in. For Kieran, I saved something special from my old room at Oakcrown. One of the few weapons I was given from Liam, a small dagger that I could conceal just in case of emergencies.

“I’m going to get some hot chocolate. I’m getting a little cold.” I rub Kieran’s shoulder as I get up. The rest of the pack trickles in for Christmas brunch. Pups run around showing off their new presents and I just smile knowing my little secret. Some go outside with new sleds, toboggans, and new cloaks. I hold on to my mug warming up my hands as I go help in the kitchen. I grabbed a plate for myself since my breakfast got interrupted. This time I’m able to keep it down and I’m able to enjoy the day in peace. I hold on to the tests in my robe pocket keeping those my little secret. The day goes smoothly with no more trips to the bathroom. As the day ends I sigh in content as we lay in bed.

“Finally, I have you to myself.” He growls seductively at me.

“And what do you plan to do?” I smirk at him.

“I have another gift for you.” I give him a confused look. He had already given me a nice snowflake necklace.

“Oh, really?”

“This one isn’t as family-friendly as the necklace.” He smirks as he goes to the closet where there was a bag nicely decorated.

“What’s this?” I’m dumbfounded that he’d come up with something like this.

“Open it and replace out.” I take out the tissue paper and take out a long burgundy tulle lingerie robe with a feather boa around the hem of the sleeves and bottom, and a satin lace nightgown.

“Ooh, babe this is stunning!” He walks up to me and wraps his arms around me.

“Why don’t you try it on…” He whispers in my ear and it just sends a shiver down my spine.

“Ok…” I go to the bathroom with my new present and calm myself for a moment before trying it on. I took my original robe and Pjs and put them on the counter and hid my secret under my clothes. The nightgown is so soft and smooth against my skin. The robe is so comfortable. I shyly make my way back to the bedroom and I see his eye bug out. I could see his eyes change and I knew he liked it.

“You look beautiful…” He growls in my ear. He pulls me in for a kiss and we enjoy each other’s company for the rest of the night.