赤裸裸的滑稽故事

When Axel felt the shift in his bond with Alice, when he felt her weakened state, Bell was with him. She knew immediately that there was something wrong with Alice.

Axel had left in a hurry, and Bell couldn\'t let go of her concern.

Alice wasn\'t a friend, exactly, but she was family. So after Bell heard from Axel about Alice\'s condition and after going through the records in Winter, Bell pushed Galen to get her access to the Summer records.

Once she was confident that her blood could be the answer, she, Galen, and Ren were on the road to Summer.

Galen, for his part, hardly put up a fight. But, of course, he was concerned about traveling when so many attacks were reported. Still, Bell could see from the first mention that he actually really wanted to go.

When they arrived, Galen took Bell to the hospital where Alice was being treated. But for the first time in their relationship, he didn\'t insist on staying by her side.

After all, far too many people had not had a chance to meet his precious son. Starting with Fiona.

It warmed Bell\'s heart to see how Fiona fawned over Galen and Ren.

Once the treatment had been agreed on, and Bell had begun her testing, she was directed to Galen\'s room. It was still a few hours until Galen and Ren returned to sleep for the night.

The next evening, after Bell returned to the room to rest after the blood exchange with Alice, she was surprised by a visit from Fiona.

“It\'s good to see you, sweetheart,” Fiona smiled brightly. She took Bell\'s hand and then sat down beside her.

“You too, Fiona,” Bell smiled and then looked toward the door.

“They aren\'t with me,” Fiona said.

Bell laughed.

“Sorry, I\'m happy to see you. I just thought they were going to spend the day with you.”

“That was the plan,” Fiona smiled. “But then Ashleigh stole little Ren away, and Galen couldn\'t help but get involved in some of the deployment orders.”

Bell smiled.

“That man does not know how to take a break,” Fiona laughed.

“No,” Bell smiled, “he doesn\'t.”

“So,” Fiona said. “How are you liking Summer?”

“Well, I can\'t say I\'ve honestly seen much of it, but your hospital is quite lovely,” Bell laughed. “And it is nice to go outside without having to layer up.”

Fiona nodded.

“I don\'t know how Corrine handles the cold of Winter. I get achy just thinking about it,” Fiona smiled.

Bell nodded and then looked around the small room.

“Fiona, I do have a question, and it may seem strange,” Bell said.

“What is it, dear?”

“Do all pack members have only a room to themselves? No houses?” Bell asked

Fiona looked around the room and then smiled.

“Not exactly,” she replied. “Many of our wolves have homes or apartments in the residential district. But most of our single wolves or mates without children prefer to stay in small rooms like these.”

“Is it a space thing?” Bell asked. “Is there a limited amount of housing available?”

“No,” Fiona replied with a shake of her head. “We actually have several empty houses. It\'s more of an efficiency thing.”

Bell furrowed her brows.

“You see, the residential district is in the center of our community. It is surrounded by military posts and research buildings. But unfortunately, it is also a distance from where we hold our important leadership meetings and discussions.

“So, people like Galen and Caleb often opt to have a room within our offices rather than a home in the residential district.”

“So, Caleb has only a room too? And Ashleigh hasn\'t complained about that?” Bell laughed.

“Well, they have a sort of… second residence away from the community that they often stay at,” Fiona smiled.

“Ah… the famous treehouse,” Bell smiled.

“Did Galen tell you about it?”

“No,” Bell smiled. “Ashleigh pretends like she doesn\'t give me dirty details… but she does,” Bell giggled.

Fiona laughed. She was quite pleased with her daughters-in-law. They each had their troubles, and their lives were not easy. But they were both bright women with warm hearts. Her boys had done good.

“Galen mentioned that you expressed an interest in possibly making Summer your new home now that things in your life have changed,” Fiona said carefully.

Bell nodded.

“Yes,” she said. “I think Summer is a place where we will be able to grow together.”

Fiona smiled.

“Just make sure it is what you want,” Fiona said. “If you choose to come because you think it will make Galen happy, you\'re right.”

Bell laughed. Fiona smiled before continuing.

“He would be happy to come home, but he would always be worried about your feelings. If you didn\'t like here, if you missed Winter, he would blame himself.”

“I know,” Bell said softly. “Truthfully, I am scared to leave Winter.”

“Of course you are, dear,” Fiona smiled. “But no one is going to force you to rush your decision. Take your time, do what is best for you and your family.”

“Thank you,” Bell smiled.

Fiona was a kind woman. Bell knew she loved her sons more than anything, and now with a grandson, she would love to have them all in Summer.

It meant a lot to Bell that Fiona had come to her to make sure that she knew it was alright to stay in Winter.

***

It had only been a few days since they arrived in Summer. Alice was recovering and had even been cleared to leave the hospital.

Ashleigh and Fiona had both taken turns stealing little Ren away and spoiling him with attention. Yet, Bell and Galen had barely spent any time together.

After doing her part for Alice, Bell had time to wander around Summer, to meet the wolves. She ran into Clara and Nessa, who offered to give her a tour and then took her out to lunch. But most of the time she spent alone, exploring.

In her exploration, she had actually found Galen several times, but he had not seen her even once. So instead, she watched him from a distance as he gave orders and helped with odd jobs here and there. She watched him laugh with old friends and even saw him stop in at the school and play with the children.

Summer was a beautiful place filled with exciting things and people. But watching Galen over the course of the day was, by far, the most interesting thing she had encountered.

That evening, the night of the full moon, Bell and Galen were supposed to meet at one of the restaurants for a romantic meal.

Fiona had agreed to keep Ren for the night, so they could enjoy some time together under the moon’s light.

But Galen had run into some trouble. He apologized and let Bell know that he wouldn\'t be able to meet her at the restaurant. He expected that she would already be asleep by the time he arrived back at his room.

He was racked with guilt when he opened the door, and the aroma hit him immediately. A garlic alfredo wafted through the air and drew a groan of hunger from his stomach.

Galen saw the two tv trays placed together, each with a plate of food and a drink. A small push light, used on a shirt or belt to light the way in a dark space, sat between them like a makeshift candle.

He smiled and turned toward the bed where Bell was lying down with her eyes closed. She had the blanket pulled up to her waist, but he could tell she was wearing a dress. She rarely wore dresses. He wondered how long she had waited for him.

Galen gently closed the door, locking it behind him. He moved across the room and sat down on the side of the bed. He smiled as he looked at her resting form.

Had he ever seen a more beautiful woman in his life?

Gently he stroked his thumb along her jaw. She stirred. Her brown eyes slowly began to open, and she smiled when she saw him.

“Hello, puppy,” she whispered.

Galen laughed. He leaned forward and gave her a tender kiss.

“Hello, my love,” he whispered back. “I\'m sorry I ruined our plans, twice it seems.”

Bell smiled and reached for him, pulling him down to lay beside her in the bed. She snuggled into him, resting her head on his chest.

“I know you were busy,” she said.

“Still, I should have–”

“You have never complained about Winter,” she said, interrupting the apology she knew he was trying to get out. “You have been an amazing help to Axel and Corrine, and I couldn\'t have done without you all this time.”

Galen furrowed his brow; he wrapped his arm around Bell protectively. He wasn\'t sure where this train was leading, but he didn\'t like that it sounded like a goodbye.

Bell pulled herself up and turned so she could see his face. She rested her chin on her hands, crossed over his chest.

“Did you know that you light up?” she asked.

“What?” Galen asked.

“You give orders with ease; you\'re passionate about your work,” she smiled. “You come to life here in a way I\'ve never seen before.”

Galen moved to sit up; they both did.

“What are you trying to say?” he asked.

“I\'m saying that Summer is where you belong, Galen.”