Chapter 16
Chapter 16
‘"Eeep!"
I jumped from my former sitting position when I felt a ticklish nibble on my arm. I knew it couldn't be anything dangerous, but the female in me had to scream.
The little bunny looked startled at my reaction, as it stared at me in utter shock. I almost laughed at his expression, but it ran away before I could blink.
Sitting back down against the tree, I relished in the cool summer air. The breeze was light and relaxing, and the meadow looked as beautiful as when I first saw it.
The sun shone in all its glory, and I ensured to appreciate it's warmth before my enemy ascended in the night.
It was the day of the full moon, and I would go in heat once the moon takes the place of the welcoming ball of fire in the sky.
Such irony.
I came here to think and clear my mind at the same time. My mind still throbbed with possibilities, as I remembered the document I found nights ago. I didn't bother to tell Aiden, since a list of pack members wouldn't be of use to dad. And I also wasn't sure if it was our mom.
But who else would it be?
My dad had no other siblings, and as far as I knew, we had no other relatives by the name of Gilbert. But what coincidence? My mother happened to have the same name as this person. Could it be?
No. Dad would never tell such a lie.
Would he?
On many occasions I planned to approach Ace with the matter, and demand he tells me all he knows. But what much could he know about my pack members? His father was the one who took them. That, and the fact that I was a coward. Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.
I was afraid it would indeed be my mom. I would've been thrilled to know she's still alive of course, but I refused to believe that my whole life had been a lie--that my childhood could've been different.
That my father was a liar.
It made me hate Ace's dad even more, and if I come to learn that she is indeed my mom, I personally will dig him up, raise him, and kill him again.
But then it had me thinking, was this mission a lie too? Did dad create this whole plan, just to get his one true mate back?
My mind spiralled with possibilities and questions. What was the true purpose of the attack? How did they even manage to take her? Why didn't dad come get her back? It all didn't make sense to me.
But then again, it may not even be her.
My tummy growled in misery, demanding that I get something to fill it. It has been hours since I came here, but it felt like mere minutes.
Ace had left for his other meetings two days ago, and he wasn't meant to be back for another three days. It wrenched my heart really, but I had to think about Aiden.
If he was here today, we would've been fully mated by midnight, and down goes everything.
I dreaded the pain I'll go through in another couple hours, and that I'll go through it for the whole night. I actually hoped my body would give up and I passed out. But I'm an Alpha blooded wolf, I'm stronger than I wish I was.
I've heard of heats and how awful they were, especially if your mate isn't near. A heat is the wolf's way of ensuring the mating process is complete by the next full moon after she's marked.
But some shewolves rather to wait, so they endure the pain until they are ready. The difference between me and them are: one, my mate wasn't near me so my heat wouldn't be subdued in any way. Two, being Alpha blooded means my wolf is much more eager to get it done, making it hella harder and three, I'm Roxy.
Roxy and pain doesn't mix.
Can't my wolf see that Ace wasn't around and just call it off? But of course that wouldn't happen, since a heat is solely natural. Aiden and I have found a few ways to help me endure it, but I still had a bad feeling.
Is it too late to call Ace home?
I made my way back to the house, going through the back door which led me straight to the kitchen. I took out some leftover lasagna from the fridge and warmed it in the microwave.
"Hey Roxy."
I glanced around to see Lilly as she entered and placed Asia in her high chair. "Hey Lilly. How are you?"
"I'm fine. But you don't look so good, are you okay?"
I glanced at my reflection in the shiny refrigerator, before groaning at my pale skin. I also noticed that my head had a slight throb, and I could already feel the cold sweat forming on my neck.
It was only four in the afternoon for Pete's sake! Couldn't it wait until six to start showing signs like normal shewolves!?
The few moments I wished I wasn't highly ranked.
"I'm fine, just a little tired I guess" I muttered while I took five large gulps of cold water.
"Don't tell me you're fine when you're not. Your skin is always glowing, even when you just got out of bed"
Really?
Her motherly instincts kicked in, as she placed her palm against my forehead. A light frown played at her lips as she examined me carefully.
"You're a little warmer than usual," she muttered as she turned my cheek to examine me more. Her eyes then fell on my neck, and her eyebrows shot up in realization.
"It's a full moon" She said mostly to herself, but I nodded anyway. "Shit Roxy you know Ace is miles away" I nodded again as she watched me in concern.
Her eyes then glazed over, indicating that she was linking someone. I felt slightly uncomfortable since I didn't want anyone else to know about my heat. I knew my scent would change, but I intended to be in my room by then.
I didn't really mind if they knew, but I knew Scott and Ryan were unmated, and I still didn't know them that much as yet to know if I could trust them.
"It's okay Roxy. I just told Ryan and Scott to sleep at the pack house tonight. They didn't mind. " I smiled gratefully at her. At least Aiden won't be fighting anyone tonight.
"Let's get you ready shall we? When my heat came, I started burning up by six, and it's not like I was a highly ranked wolf, I was just marked by a Beta"
I involuntarily gulped at that. She was just marked by a Beta and she started her heat before the moon rose. Imagine me who was of the highest ranked wolves.
"What-what about Asia? "
"I'll take care of her," Calum announced as he entered. He looked at me with sympathetic eyes, then nodded at Lilly as she pulled me from the kitchen.
"Ace should have never left for that meeting " I heard Calum mumble to himself, causing another rush of panic to run through me.
Oh dear moon, please have mercy on me.
***
"Just kill me please! "
The agonising pain and heat was too much to bear. If they killed me now, it'll be better since I already felt like I was going to die. So what's the difference?
"We can't do that Roxy, then Ace would kill us" Lilly stated, and I moaned at the sound of his name.
In addition to the terrible pain and heat, I was extremely over the top horny. My skin tingled for his touch and my core throbbed ever so often. And all that without getting release, it was torture.
"What-what time is-s it? "
"7:30" Lilly mumbled with a pained expression on her face.
7:30!?
The moon hasn't even reached its apex as yet, and I was already dying!? I felt like I was going to cry, but even the tears radiated from my burning skin.
Remember when you were eight and you had that terrible fever? Well that's what I felt like, but ten times worse. When Lilly placed the thermometer under my armpit to check my temperature, it broke.
I was naked in the bathtub, my water already getting warm. Aiden and Calum brought ice to cool down the already cold water, but in thirty minutes it was already at room temperature.
My stomach churned with another shock of pain, and I clenched it hard in attempts to ease the pain. A loud cry escaped my lips and I felt like I already hit my maximum for the night.
"I can't do this. I can't do this. Please knock me out or something please" I pleaded desperately. Aiden and Lilly watched me in pure pain. I couldn't imagine what I looked like from their eyes.
"Ace should've never left. Didn't he know what she would go through? " Aiden complained angrily. Through my despair I regarded him quizzingly. Wasn't he the one against Ace being here?
"I know Rox. I didn't want you to complete the mating process. But if I knew your heat was going to be this bad, hell I would've gone to the bloody meeting for him" He seemed to have read my questioning expression perfectly as he answered.
The look of utter regret and guilt flooded his features. I knew he felt bad for demanding I didn't mate with Ace tonight, but how could we have known? We were never around anymore who's been through heat, we only heard stories. In our minds we thought it would be bearable, but it wasn't.
Maybe if Ace was here, and stayed in the room next to mine, his wolf would've calmed mine from the distance, making it somewhat better. But he was far away. Too far.
"Don't feel bad Aide. You being here to help makes it better" But another cry of pain ran through me, contradicting that statement completely.
I could see that he was uncomfortable too. Not because I was naked, that was kind of normal for us. But even I could smell my arousal though I was completely submerged in water. Smelling your sister's arousal is very cringy I'm sure.
"Aiden can you get another ice pack? This one is almost melted" He nodded at Lilly's request and headed through my bathroom door. All my windows were open, even the door on the balcony was open, but it barely helped.
Indeed, the ice pack that Lilly had on my forehead no longer had ice, and the worry sketched on her face made me want to cry. She was such a wonderful woman. She stayed with me from the minute she found me in the kitchen, tending to me like I was her daughter.
My heart clenched at the betrayal Aiden and I were to bring if things didn't work out in my favour. She didn't deserve this.
They all didn't deserve this.
Scott, Ryan, Lilly, Asia, Calum...Ace.
I'm not worthy of their love and care.
A whimper sounded from my throat, and Lilly hushed me like a child, pulling my matted hair from my forehead. Little did she know that it wasn't the heat that caused that whimper. It was my heart.
A door banging open pulled me from my thoughts to reality, and I heard thudding footsteps approaching us.
"Where is she?! " A voice I knew too well asked in desperation.
My heart leaped and my eyes and ears perked. I could already feel my body feeling better, but my excitement at the centre just got worse.
He's here.
Ace is here!
As if right on cue, he appeared at the bathroom door looking equally worried as everyone else. He was only wearing a pair of shorts and his chest had a shimmery layer of sweat, telling me one thing--he ran here.
"Roxy" He whispered as he approached me. Lilly looked relieved, as she joined Aiden at the door, who looked equally relieved. Hell, even I was relieved! I didn't think I could go on a minute longer..
"Ace. You came." My eyes welled up with tears of joy, but they didn't make it past my eye lashes.
"Of course I came chere. I couldn't let you go through this heat all alone" He cursed under his breath when his hand touched my burning skin.
"I'm sorry I didn't come earlier, I left as soon as my meeting ended today with enough time to get home before it started, but my engine gave out and I gave up on waiting on someone to come fix it-"
"So you ran the rest of the way" I ended for him as my heart warmed. How extremely chivalrous.
"I did" He smiled. "Ten miles. But I didn't care, I just needed to get to you "
"Awwwwwwwe."
Both our heads snapped to the doorway, where Lilly and Aiden still stood. Lilly blushed at her outburst and turned to leave.
"Thank you" Ace smiled wholeheartedly to them before they turned and left. It was then that I remembered how on fire my body was.
"Ace" I whined. "This is torturous "
"I know love" He picked me up gently from the water. "I'll make it better"
The skin to skin contact made me moan in delight, as my body got even more stimulated due to the closeness. I even saw his eyes turn dark with desire when he got the full whiff of my scent, with a low groan rumbling from his chest.
He brought me to my bed as my body got more excited with each step. A low whimper sounded from my lips when he placed me on the bed, since my body already missed his touch. But I felt his warmth
only seconds after as he hovered above me. His lips immediately caught mine in a slow, sweet and lingering kiss. My heat was already subsiding, only pushing forth my burning desire for him.
He kissed down my neck and to my chest, teasing my sensitive bud with tongue. My back arched and my toes curled, as each kiss left a burning sensation at the spots.
Ace kissed every inch of my body with nothing but pure admiration. He made me feel beautiful, loved and wanted. He appreciated every curve of my body with his finger tips, and every dip with his kisses.
I moaned and whimpered ever so often as he took his time with making me feel loved, then he slowly kissed back his way to my mouth.
"Are we gonna mate now? " I asked with a shaky breath. He chuckled lightly as his eyes danced with admiration, and he kissed my nose with a shake of his head. My heart dropped at that.
"Not at all, my sweet sweet Roxy. I'm going to make love to you."