Chapter 21

As soon as I slid into the passenger seat of Axel’s Range Rover, I was hit by the warm, spicy scent sifting in the car. It was a heaven of leather, pine, and something distinctly Axel. It made my head swim a little, or maybe that was just the proximity.
He closed the door with a click before settling into the driver’s seat beside me.
Axel’s presence beside me was overwhelming. His hands gripped the steering wheel as he started the engine. The hum of the car vibrated through my seat, making me acutely aware of just how out of place I felt.
He adjusted the rearview mirror before speaking in a casual tone as if the past hour hadn’t been a whirlwind of humiliation, heroics, and… whatever this was.
“I usually come to that butcher,” Axel began, his eyes flicking briefly toward me before returning to the road. “But I didn’t think I’d stumble upon you there.”
Wait, what?
My brows shot up. Did he just say he usually went there? That couldn’t be true. Not after the butcher himself had practically announced to the entire shop—right in front of me—that he’d never seen the Beta there before. Thɪs chapter is updatᴇd by ͟.net
So why did he say he did? Hold on a second…
It hit me like a ton of bricks. He was trying to play it cool. Axel was deliberately downplaying the fact that he had gone out of his way to help me. He didn’t want me to know the lengths he’d gone to, probably to avoid making me feel indebted to him.
Did he come to the butchery because of me? Or maybe just as he’d done with the Luna wolf hunt incident, he didn’t want to simply accept that he was trying to help me.
Perhaps, he came for other businesses and decided to save me one more time?
The realization made my lips twitch. Despite my best efforts, a small chuckle escaped.
Axel turned to glance at me with confusion and curiosity. “What’s so funny?”
“Oh, nothing,” I said quickly, covering my mouth with my hand to stifle another laugh. “Just… nothing.”
He arched an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced, but his lips curved into a faint smile like he enjoyed the mystery.
“It’s fine though. You look prettier when you laugh, so you’re free to do it more often.” He blurted out and my world halted.
If my face wasn’t red already, it was now. The warmth that flooded my cheeks was both embarrassing and… maybe fascinating.
If that was a compliment from Axel—I’d take it. No, I’d swallow it whole.
However, come to think of it… his words triggered an uninvited memory—the note someone had left for me earlier: You’re ugly when you cry.
Truly, those words were meant to cheer me up. And the benefactor, whoever they were, they tried to help me. Coincidentally, Axel was also trying to help me.
The echo of those words dampened my brief moment of joy. I bit my lip, casting a sideways glance at Axel as doubt swept over me.
Could it have been him?
No. Surely not.
He wasn’t the type to leave anonymous notes. Was he?
He wasn’t the type to randomly drop some money for me like he’d been stalking me and watching Luis Miguel and his stupid gang bully me without intervening.
Nah, that’s not him.
The rest of the drive was quiet and growing increasingly awkward by the minute. The sun had dipped below the horizon and shadows that blurred past us as the car sped toward my father’s villa.
The silence between us wasn’t entirely uncomfortable, but it’d have been great if we’d at least said a word or two to each other. I wanted to speak, to thank him properly, to ask why he’d gone out of his way to help me—but the words wouldn’t come.
Finally, the gates of my father’s estate came into view, their iron bars glinting. As we approached, the guards stepped forward with cautious expressions until they saw who was driving. One glance at Axel was all it took for them to straighten up and swing the gates open without question.
The car rolled forward, its tires crunching on the pebble driveway.
When we alighted, “I’ll wait here with you until Manuel arrives.” Axel declared, stunning me.
“You don’t have to,” I interjected quickly, my cheeks flushing. “Really, I can manage from here.”
Axel tilted his head as a smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. “Axel does whatever Axel wants to do, señorita.”
I wasn’t sure whether to be flattered or mortified. The idea of Axel standing here, waiting for Manuel to haul the mountain of meat all the way to the villa, felt like another opportunity for Camilla—or worse, my father—to misinterpret his intentions.
Speaking of Camilla…
My sister, all changed now with her hair back into style, was running toward us like a child meeting her military father for the first time in years.
Her flowy dress swirled around her as she reached the car, her eyes almost popping when Axel stepped out and walked around to open the passenger door for me.
“Axel!” she exclaimed, clapping her hands sweetly. “What a surprise seeing you here.”
I had heard the stories surrounding Axel and our eldest sister, Rosa. It was said that when they were kids, our father would take them along to the pack house where Axel and Rosa became best of friends.
Camilla would also tag along, but the relationship between Axel and our eldest sister was the most distinct.
However, it all ended when Axel was sent abroad to high school. Apparently, they had never met again ever since. And with Axel being a rebel, he barely ever came home.
When he did, no one—absolutely no one would see him. Well, until now…
Ever since the gala, Axel has been showing his face more. Anyway, I bet Rosa could even barely remember those memories of her and Axel.
From the look of things, it might be mutual.