Page 21 of Malek

“Well, I’m as ready as I’ll ever be…”

Malek led his mate down the stairs, but before he could get Axel outside, his mate looked around his home and took everything in.

His house was renovated just a couple of years ago, and when he’d done it, he’d modernised the inside, and he hoped his mate liked it.

The walkway they stood in had a simple mirror and table, where he could drop his keys once he came home. The floors were a light wood, that was the same throughout the house.

Malek watched as his mate took in everything. He hoped he liked it and even if he didn’t, this was going to be his home.

“You can change or add anything you want,” Malek said, “Not that there’s much here anyway.”

“I was just looking. I like it,” Axel said.

“Thank you, but this was mine from before you came along. Now it’s ours and I want you to feel at home, so feel free to get anything you want.”

“Can I see the kitchen? I love to bake, and cook sometimes. If I hadn’t become a teacher, I would definitely be a chef, maybe a baker…”

Malek led his mate into their kitchen at the back of the house, and this too had been redone, with every modern convenience available. When he’d picked it out, he thought there were too many bells and whistles, but now he was glad he did, the look on his mate’s face one of wonder as he ran his hands across Malek’s range.

The kitchen led to the large garden that backed into the valley, and on the left just a few steps away was his brother Malachi’s house. His mate looked out the double doors, but didn’t open them.

They walked out of the kitchen, and into a room that stood empty, “This is the dining room. I just haven’t got around to picking out a table, but I guess you can now.”

Axel smiled and kept moving through the house, taking in everything until they were back where they started.

“So, what do you think,” Malek said, coming up and pulling his mate into his arms.

“It’s lovely,” Axel said, looking up at him with a smile.

Malek let out a sigh he didn’t realise he’d been holding in, “Do you think you’ll be happy here? If not, we have a lot of land, so I can build you your dream home.”

“No, this is just perfect. I can see us having a home here, although it does need some throws, a couple of pillows, some pictures for the wall. Oh, my bookshelf will look lovely in the front room, and maybe a kids’ playroom.”

Malek smiled, and listened to his mate plan their home. He hadn’t done much more than renovate it, but he didn’t reallylivein it, since he was usually at the resort, or crashing at one of his brothers’, usually Malachi’s, or sometimes even at his parents’.

Their home was large enough for all the kids, and grandkids, as his parents reminded them when they guilted Malek and his brothers about not providing offspring for them to spoil.

“Ready to meet everyone?” Malek took Axel’s hands in his.

He led them out through the front door, and Axel dropped his hand and walked backwards looking at their home.

It was stone which had darkened with age, built in the mock-Tudor style, and was too big to be called a cottage, but not large enough for a hall, either.

“Wow,” Axel breathed, turning around, taking in the valley that Malek called home, that would now be his new home.

"It's kind of like a large estate, but in the middle of a valley, and we all have our own homes. I think the story goes that my family came upon this clearing and thought it was the perfect place to live, so they settled here, and the valley kept them hidden."

They started walking as Malek spoke, "We're surrounded by hills on every side, and honestly, you'd have to be looking to find us in a National Park this size. Plus, we own most of the resorts and campsites, and we direct people away from here."

"That explains how you guys have stayed hidden for so long."

"We settled here before the Battle of Hastings, so the story goes, and helped fight, alongside William the Conqueror. That was how our family got this place bestowed to them, at least officially. I believe before then, it was survival of the fittest and they won. All I know is we've been here over a thousand years, but then most of our kind migrated to the States, leaving Europe. We do still have some family in Western Europe, Wales, Scotland, Ireland."

"That's amazing, to think you've been here so long," Axel said in awe.

"There's more to the story, but I'll tell you that at breakfast. Come on, I'm starving."

“This is like a whole village,” Axel said, as they walked along to his parents’ home.