Chapter 47

Raphael sat in silence on the drive to the dump. It had been hard to leave Brooke, but he didn't want her family to think that he was trying to keep her from them. When he kinda was.

He'd helped load the back of Mitchell's van. Apparently the family only had two vehicles, and Bradley needed to use the truck for his work. He was thinking about the idea of Brooke working, he hoped she was okay.

Mitchell wasn't much of a talker, so Raphael didn't try to make conversation.

He found it strange, and funny, that he was older than his mate's father, but he was still nervous with what he thought about him. 'Guess that would never change.' He thought wryly.

They drove on a winding road for just under an hour and a half, till they finally got the dump.

There was a sign next to the entrance that read: Landfill rd.

To be honest Raphael hadn't been to a landfill since the 60's. They smelled a lot better now.

On the drive home Mitchell actually said something, "Thank you Raphael, for everything you've done for our family." Raph opened his mouth to reply but Mitchell kept talking, "There's just one thing that I need from you though. What do you want with my daughter?" He asked, looking at Raph through his sunglasses.

"I think sir," Why was he calling him sir? "That you should ask Brooke." Raphael evaded the question.

"Oh, I plan to. But I want to hear it from you too. What does she mean to you?" He asked, his eyes now focused on the winding road again.

"I, uh… she means everything to me. I love her. And I do believe that she loves me too." Raph said confidently.

Mitchell looked at him from the corner of his eye.

They drove the rest of the way in silence.

They got back to the house and Brooke and her siblings still weren't there.

"Sit." Mitchell ordered him. The Beta in him didn't like taking orders, except from his Alpha. But he was Brooke's father, and he didn't want to upset her.

He took the seat and waited.

He was getting a little annoyed. He was two hundred and forty-two, he was two hundred years older than them! They were kids compared to him. He took a deep breath and calmed himself, 'This is for Brooke.' He said.

"What happened after you found Brooke on the side of the road?" Kelly broke the silence. He looked and saw sadness in her eyes, 'So they did care.' He thought.

Raphael relayed once again what happened, or the made up one.

"And when exactly did you fall in love with her." Mitchell asked, his expression severe.

Raphael wasn't daunted by this interrogation in the least. The only thing he was afraid of was disappointing his mate.

"One day, she woke up and asked if her family was alright. That was the first thing she asked, was if you guys were okay. I think it started then." He ended, with what he knew was a goofy looking smile, but it was true. Maybe it wasn't the first thing she asked, but he was still touched by how much she cared about her family.

He couldn't say he felt the same for his.

They nodded to his response, Kelly with a slight smile on her face.

"How old are you Raphael?" Kelly then asked.

Raphael let out a breath, "Twenty-five, or at least will be this January." His birthday was in January, so that wasn't a lie.

He hoped that they wouldn't mind such a large age gap, it was only five years and not the actual one which was two hundred and twenty, give or take.

"Hmm." Mitchell hummed. "And where do you work again?" He asked.

"Teck Resources." Raph replied. He didn't work there, but he had created a fake profile and business account for him there. And Thresh paid the CEO to tell people that he did.

"Right." Mitchell said.

"And where do you live again, Prince George?" Kelly asked, a hint of worry flickered in her hazel eyes.

"Yes." Raphael confirmed.

"But Teck Resources is based in Vancouver." Mitchell replied, his hazel eyes still firm.

"It is, most of my work can be sent to the main company. But when there's an important meeting I will fly down to Vancouver." He answered simply.

They sat and continued to drill him for another couple hours, over lunch. Raphael hadn't had breakfast, so he was getting hungry.

Kelly seemed to finally notice the time, "Oh, we're sorry Raphael, we seemed to have skipped lunch." She stood up, "What would you like?"

"Oh, it's alright, no need to apologize. I think just a sandwich would be fine." He replied.

"Okay." She said and smiled.

She returned from the kitchen with a plate and ham sandwich on it.

"Thank you." He said.

"Your welcome." She said in kind, then she and her husband went into the kitchen to make their own meals.

Once they were all finished eating, Kelly said, "Raphael, you might want to change into more comfortable clothes." She said pointing to his black polo shirt and jeans, "You see, it may be cooler inside because of the AC, but it's twenty-nine degrees out there and it's not gonna be pleasant walking around in warm, winter clothes at the Fair. In my opinion."

"Oh." Raphael said, surprisedly. He had realized that it was hotter here than Prince George, but twenty-nine degrees, that was just ridiculous.

"Thank you, I'll go change now." Then he headed downstairs.

He changed into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Then he called Thresh.

"Hello." His usual bored voice answered.

"Hello, sir. I was thinking that I would stay three or four more days, then come back."

"That's fine with me." Thresh said.

"Okay then, see you Wednesday, sir." He ended the call.

He decided to pull out his laptop and try to get some work done.

He was soon interrupted by a knock on his bedroom door. He got up and opened it and found Kelly waiting.

"We're leaving now, so we can get a good parking spot and get in the lineup." Kelly said.

"Okay, I'll just put my shoes on." He said and shut the door. He walked out and he got into his rental car, and Kelly and Mitchell their van.

He followed them to a big, dusty dirt patch and they drove down to a grassy field behind it. The 'parking lot' was bordered off by red and yellow tape like crime scene. The lot was already filling up as almost half of it was occupied with cars.

They joined up with Judith, who'd gotten there around the same time as them, and got into line to wait for Brooke and the others.