A quiet sigh passed Ben’s lips as Roxie’s went along with his soothing of the young pup. Though it appeared she was trying to convey something more then that when her hand came to rest gently on his cheek. A mix of instinct and his own feelings drove him to gently nuzzle her hand, letting the stubble that grew slowly to graze against her warm skin. Whatever message she was trying to get across didn’t really click with the Beta, but he knew she was just worried about not only him, but also the boy and the fate of both their packs. Luckily, none of the struggles between the packs had effected the child sleeping between the newly bonded pair. His quiet snores were enough for Benjamin to stopping worrying about him for a moment, and instead focus on his mate, who motioned for him to follow. They stepped out into the hallway, the door to the child’s room gently shut behind them, perhaps it was for the best considering what Roxie had to say. The moment she stopped talking, Ben shushed her and whispered “Not here, follow me.” Without another word, the Beta walked down the hall and into a side bedroom, where he was quick to both close and lock the door. When Ben first spoke, his tone was close to that of the man who’d been bitter and angry at Roxie for so long “You can’t just talk about that out in the open for everyone to hear!” After a moment, he calmed and quickly apologized. “Sorry... It’s just... What you want me to do is dangerous, and... I don’t think I’m ready.” He shifted, moving to the small single bed that sat in the room, while also taking a moment to turn on the desk lamp to provide more light to the room. “Even I don’t openly take the role of Alpha, the Council will see it as a blatant power play.” If there was one thing no wolf wanted, it was to have the Council of Alpha’s involved in their lives. Essentially, every pack in the United States had an Alpha, and that Alpha automatically got a seat on the Council. All the laws of werewolf society were made and judged by this council. The minute they get involved, the wolf in question was, for a lack of a better term, fucked.<br/><br/>While Roxie know doubt knew about the Council, the other reason for Benjamin’s reluctance was a bitter more difficult for him to talk about. “I know that the pack needs leadership, and I know Marcus may never be able to truly take up leadership in the Pack, but if I take power for myself, I betray the man who I called a friend before he died.” Of course, Ben referred to the old Alpha, whom he’d served faithfully as Beta for nearly ten years. They’d known each other since childhood, and he was the only wolf Ben has known longer then Roxie. He’d never show any outward signs of sadness or pain, but he truly was upset about losing his friend. “Your just trying to help, and you have every right to be involved in this. Your my Mate, Roxie. Neither of us can do this alone, I need you just as much as you need me. But for right now, we need to stay out of the spotlight, try and solve this before things get a lot worse.” He stayed quiet for a moment while he reached into his pocket to remove his phone, only to look at the time. “It’s past midnight, you should get some sleep. I’m going to go sit with Marcus for awhile, we can start fresh in the morning.” Rising from the bed, Benjamin went toward the door, but he paused for a moment as he sniffed at the air. He could swear he’d had that sent before, along time ago, but now it appeared to be right outside the door. The Beta opened it quickly, but found no one there, just the hallway. The sent was gone as well, perhaps it was just his nerves?<br/><br/>“You... You can sleep in here if you’d like. Or you can take my car back to your place. Either way, we’ll have to do our homework on the Alpha’s movements up until he was murdered.” Looking into Roxie’s blue orbs, Benjamin could feel his wolf begging him to return to his mate. It wanted nothing but to make love to Roxie all night long, to hold her in his arms, ensure she was safe and warm. But ever since they’d made love, the urge to go to Roxie was now under control. This was due to the fact they were connected now. From the bite he’d left on her shoulder, the mating bond was forged. This allowed wolves to feel each other’s emotions, and if the love is deep enough and true enough, some are able to communicate telepathically with each other. But this was rare, and often took years to master. Benjamin didn’t need to be in Roxie’s head speaking to her constantly, for as long as she lived, they would be connected on a deeper level then any human couple could possibly hope to achieve.