"Hell yeah! See! I told you she would accept us, Grayson!" Dante says excitedly.

"I know she did, but she's still fucking scared of me" I reply as I walk out of Acacia's hospital room.

This is the third time she's passed out in the last week or so and every time I've been the reason.

"I know but it's going to be okay. You've just got to show her she can trust you."

"That's easier said than done, Dante. Plus, I'm new to all this mate stuff because unlike most of the other wolves in my pack, I haven't ever dated properly. I've never had sex either. I've chosen to save myself for my mate."

"Lies, dude. We both know that the only reason you haven't dated around properly is that you felt no need to have a mate or a girlfriend. Yeah, you may not have had sex but you've done pretty much everything else. Plus, up until the day you saw Acacia, you thought you were the most powerful Alpha in the world and if you had someone, they'd weigh you down. There's a reason you have the reputation you do, you know"

I let out a growl because I know he's right.

"So what? I can change for her" I reply, annoyed.

"Well, you better or you'll be the reason we lose our mate."

"Hey! It's not just me who has to change, it's you too!"

"I know but she hasn't met me properly yet so I have until then to clean up my act. Which means she'll never know what I was like before," he says chuckling.

"Ugh, I hate you sometimes you know."

"Love you too Grayson," he replies sarcastically.

I chuckle and make my way back to my house, pondering on how to show Acacia she can trust me.

"Why don't you ask your grandad? Wasn't he in a similar situation when he met your grandma?" Dante questions.

Oh yeah, I forgot about that.

I quickly change direction and run over to my grandad's house. Bursting through the front door, I find him sitting in his armchair, reading a book.

"Grayson. What a nice surprise!" My grandad smiles as he looks up from his book.

"Hi, Grandad," I reply, cheerfully.

"How are you doing, my boy?"

"I'm good but I need your help with something."

"Is it your mate?"

"Yeah. How'd you know?" I ask as I sit down on the couch opposite him.

"Your father is a bit of a gossip and filled me in and I figured you'd end up here to talk at some point," he says chuckling.

"Of course he did," I reply, smirking.

"So, she's deaf too huh?" he asks, warmly.

"Yeah. Similar situation to grandma. Captured by rogues except Acacia turned up on my land, whereas you saved grandma."

"That's right," he says chuckling.

"Although Grandma wasn't born deaf was she?"

"No, she wasn't. She lost her ability to hear from an explosion on her family's land during the war. She and I learnt sign language together after I saved her."

"That's right. I believe Acacia was born deaf and she must've learnt sign language when she was little."

"I see. How old was she when she was taken by the rogues?"

"She was eight and held captive for ten years."

"Oh lord, that's over half her life. No wonder she is struggling with everything. Your Grandmother was taken as a teenager and only spent a year or so held captive"

"Mhhm."

We sit there in silence for a moment before I turn my attention back to my Grandad.

"Grandad, was Grandma scared of you at first?" I ask nervously.

"Hell yes. Poor thing, always trying to run away from me because she thought I would hurt her. Even though she was only held captive for a year, it still really messed her up and messed with her ability to trust people. So I can't even begin to imagine how your mate must be feeling right now."

I nod, thinking for a moment.

"How did you get her to trust you?"

"I showed her that I cared about her, rather than just telling her. I did anything and everything for her, even if it was just getting her a tissue. I made sure that she knew she was safe and that I wasn't going to hurt her."

"And I'm guessing it worked huh?" I ask, chuckling.

"Yes sir, it did. If it hadn't, then your father wouldn't be here and neither would you" he says grinning.

"Do you miss her, Grandad?" I ask with a sad smile.

"Every day. She was taken from us too early. But she's in a better place now" he replies, matching my sad smile with his own.

I nod and sit there in silence for a moment, collecting my thoughts.

"Grandad?" I ask, breaking the silence.

"Mm?"

"Acacia is terrified of me. She's passed out three times now, and each time I was the reason."

"I'm sorry, Grayson. I highly doubt you were the sole reason for her reactions. It will be because of her past too."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I imagine she's got very severe PTSD correct?"

I nod silently. 

"So, being kidnapped from a young age, she's probably never been shown kindness or love like most people do at that age, so she'll expect the worst. She'll always be worried that you'll suddenly turn around and hurt her like the rogues probably did because that's all she's known for the past ten years. It's a defensive mechanism in order to try and protect herself from the horrors she's been through," he states, leaning forward in his chair.

"Her head is not in a good place and to be quite honest, it might never completely come back to a good place and because she ended up here, she's probably still in that same mindset of how life was when she was held captive. She probably thinks you've kidnapped her too, holding her captive yet again."

"But I haven't."

"I know that Grayson, but she doesn't. She's got a history that haunts her and until she can trust you, she's going to pull away because that's the easiest way for her to try and protect herself."

"So, how do I get her to trust me then?" I ask nervously.

"Well for starters, you need to understand and accept the fact that it's going to take a while. It's going to be difficult and you probably won't mate or even kiss her for at least a couple of weeks, months even. She probably won't let you mark her anytime soon either"

"Fuck! Are you serious?!" I growl, annoyed as Dante whines in my head.

"Language! And yes Grayson. Dead serious. You can't let your horny male hormones get in the way because that will just make it worse. I almost lost your grandma for trying to move too fast, so don't make that mistake or you could lose her too. You have to go at her pace."

I nod as I take the information in. Dante whines again, not happy with the fact that we won't be able to mark her.

"She'll warm up to you Grayson, just give her time. Once she trusts you, things will be a lot easier" he finishes, watching me carefully.

"Thank you, Grandad," I say smiling as I get up.

"Anytime, son," he says chuckling.

"Oh, before you go" he starts with a concerned expression on his face.

"There's a chance that what she's told you is only the tip of the iceberg. So don't expect her to tell you everything straight away. Don't push her into telling you anything either, let her tell you on her own when she's ready" he says, before letting me take in what he's said.

I nod and smile a thank you. He nods in return and I head out the door, back towards my house.

Along the way, I pass a rose bush and I suddenly get an idea.

"Hey, Teresa?" I mind link excitedly.

"Yes, Alpha?" she asks warmly.

"When will Acacia be coming home with me?"

"She can come home with you in the morning Alpha. Although she did want me to ask you and see if she could come live with me for a while. She doesn't think she's ready to live with you yet."

"Oh," I reply, my excitement quickly fading and being replaced with envy. 

"However, I'm going to try and convince her that living with you is actually the best and safest option so don't lose hope just yet" she adds quickly, noticing my change in tone.

"I see. Don't push her though" I reply quietly, my grandad's words drifting through my head.

"Alpha?" Teresa asks confused.

"If she's really not comfortable with the idea of living with me, then I'm not going to force her to and I will respect her decision. I don't want to make things worse by making her live with me straight away. So, if it's okay with you, then she's more than welcome to stay with you for a while."

A pang of sadness rushes through me as I stare at the rose bush in front of me.

"Okay, Alpha. I won't push her. However, if she is comfortable with the idea, then she can come home with you tomorrow. I just want to monitor her tonight because she's still very weak."

"Thank you, Doctor. Is she awake currently?"

"No, I believe she's asleep at the moment. Why's that Alpha?"

"Because I promised her I would come and check up on her and I also want to leave her something to wake up to in the morning so I'll be over there soon." 

"Okay Alpha. See you in a little bit" she replies happily.

I carefully eye up the best roses before gently breaking them off the bush and de-thorning them.

Once I have gotten a good bouquet, I run over to the hospital and make my way down the corridor until I find Teresa.

"Alpha," she says smiling, nodding her head in respect.

"Hey, Teresa. Umm, do you have a vase I could put these in?" I ask nicely, holding up the bouquet. She nods and grins before disappearing into the storage room.

She soon returns holding a beautiful white vase, one that I recognise all too well. She frowns as she wanders back over to me.

"I'm afraid this is the only one I have here Alpha. I didn't even realise it was still here. I thought it had gone back to your Grandad's place. Do you mind?" she asks nervously.

"No, it's okay. It's worth it" I say smiling as I take the vase from her and put the flowers in it. I walk over to the sink in the corridor and fill it up with water before holding it out, smiling at how good it looks.

"Now I know why this was my grandma's favourite vase," I say quietly. I look over at Teresa, who is also smiling.

"I'm sure Acacia will appreciate them. They're beautiful Alpha Grayson" she says warmly. I smile back at her before quietly making my way to the end of the corridor and into Acacia's room.

I walk over to the bedside table and gently place the vase down before stepping back and looking down at my sleeping mate.

God. She's so beautiful.

I bend down and kiss her forehead gently and watch as she wiggles a little, a smile forming on her lips. Dante growls and I chuckle quietly as I leave the room. I make my way back to the foyer, where Teresa is sitting at her desk doing paperwork.

"Go home and have a good night's rest Alpha," she says smiling. I nod and go to leave but I stop just short of the door, turning back around to look at her.

"Thank you for taking care of her, Teresa," I say genuinely.

"Anything for my Alpha," she says chuckling.

"Remind me to pay you more for what you do, you deserve it," I say chuckling before heading out the door and back home.

___________________________

Hey Guys,

So I hope you enjoyed that chapter! Acacia is finally warming up to Grayson! Yay! 

Thanks, for sticking by me through all this and feel free to leave me a comment below letting me know whether you liked this chapter!!

If you feel so inclined, go follow me on my Instagram account @allamy_duffell for a look into my life outside of writing!

Thanks,

- Allamy xx