Muffled noises and vibrations fill the air as I start to come around. My head begins to throb as a dull ringing sound takes up residence in my ears.

God, I really need to stop passing out.

I go to open my eyes but they feel like someone has pulled cotton wool over them.

Heavy.

Instead, I just lay extra still and focus on trying to feel and hear what is happening around me. An absence of cool metal behind my ears quickly becomes apparent as I realise that my hearing aids have been taken off so there's no use in even trying.

I feel a hand intertwine with mine and a warm feeling floods my chest.

Grayson.

Using all my energy, I manage to gently squeeze his hand. He squeezes back and I feel a little better. I try to open my eyes again and this time I succeed, bright light flooding in. I groan, wincing at the light and roll my head to the side to look at Grayson.

"I need to stop ending up here" I manage to sign after a couple of minutes.

"It's my fault. I'm sorry, Princess" he signs back with a guilty look.

I frown at him before letting out a sigh.

"You know it's true. I'm always the reason you end up here."

"It's okay. I'm used to it."

"But that's the thing, Acacia. This shouldn't be something you have to be used to. You're my mate, you deserve better."

"What are you talking about? All you've done is be nice to me Grayson."

"But-"

"You've cared for me and protected me ever since I ended up here which is way more than anyone's ever done in the past ten years."

"I know but still. You deserve the world."

"But I don't. They beat me and tortured me and raped me, Grayson. I'm dirty and used. If anything, I don't deserve you and we both know that. You deserve so much better than me" I sign as angry hot tears begin to tumble down my face.

Grayson stares back at me, his face a mix of emotions. His eyes, however, are perfectly calm for once.

I guess Dante won't be making an appearance.

"You saved yourself for me and yet I can't even give you the one thing you've been waiting for your whole life. It was stolen from me and I can't get it back. I'm used, you don't need me." I finish signing, my heart aching.

His face finally settles on a look of sadness. He can feel it too.

"Acacia" he signs slowly.

I look away but he gently turns my head back to look at him.

"Acacia, I love you. Nothing is going to change that."

Tears continue to run down my face as my bottom lip trembles.

"Yes, he raped you but that doesn't make me love you any less."

"Grayson-"

"I'm serious Acacia. Yes, I'm pissed off at him for what he did and I know I can't fix or change it but that doesn't mean that we can't still have our special moment."

He stops for a moment and runs his hand through his hair. I notice how careful he is being about wording this and I respect that.

"You're still a virgin, you were forced into non-consensual sex, raped. Not only would it be your first time actually having proper consensual sex, but it will also be our first time together and that means something."

I stare at him in awe, my tears turning from angry to happy ones.

"We don't have to do anything until you are ready and you don't have to love me back either but I'm telling you right here, right now, that I love you and will always love you and that I will wait till forever for you."

"Grayson-"

"I will never stop loving and caring about you, Acacia and I need you to know that."

The ache in my heart quickly turns into a fast-paced flutter. He means every word. I don't think I can shut him out anymore. Plus, he knows everything now anyway. I want to be able to love him as much as he clearly loves me. He deserves it.

He deserves the world.

I smile at him, hot tears still running down my face in pure happiness. Man, I wanna do this right.

Where are my hearing aids?

I look over to the other side of me and spy my hearing aids on the table next to my bed. I grab them and put them in before looking back at Grayson.

He watches me carefully and I gently grab his hand and intertwine my fingers with his. I close my eyes and breathe deeply for a moment, trying to prepare myself before opening my eyes to look at him. He gives me a confused look and I smile at him.

"I-I th-th-thin-in-ink I-I-I m--mi-ght-t b-b-be-be f-fall-i-ing i-in-n lo-lo-v-v-ve w-wi-th-ith y-yo-you, G-G-Grays-son" I quietly manage to stutter as another wave of happy tears rushes down my face.

He stares at me in shock for a second before his expression quickly changes into one of happiness.

"You do?" he asks aloud and I nod grinning.

Suddenly, his lips are on mine as he scoops me gently out of bed to sit on his lap.

Our mouths move in rhythm with one another, dancing to their own perfect beat. He snakes his arms around my waist, holding me close as my hands find their way through his hair to the nape of his neck.

God, he smells divine.

He begins to gently rock my hips against his own as he deepens the kiss, my whole body turning to putty in his hands.

Eventually, we break away air, leaning our foreheads against each other. Grayson moves his head away after a moment and gently cups my face, wiping away my tears with his thumbs.

He grins at me and I notice his eyes change colour for a split second before returning to their beautiful grey colour.

"Is your wolf okay?" I ask, mind linking to Grayson for the first time.

"Yeah, he's just happy," he replies aloud, smirking.

I smile and kiss him gently again.

"How come he was only here for a second?" I sign, curiously.

"Well, we aren't exactly on the best of terms at the moment. But that's not important right now" he replies, his smile disappearing.

I stare back at him for a moment, knowing not to push the issue, before moving in to kiss him again. Within seconds, his hand are all over me but this time, I'm okay with it. It feels different, nice even. He lightly brushes his hand over my side as he deepens the kiss, causing me to giggle, pulling away. His eyes shine back at me as his smirk returns to his handsome face.

"You're ticklish?" he signs, raising an eyebrow at me.

"I guess so?" I reply with a sheepish grin.

"I know it's out of the blue and I don't want to rush you but would you want to meet the rest of my family and my pack sometime soon?" he asks after a moment.

I nod and smile at him.

"I'd like that" I mind link back.

He grins and kisses me again before gently placing me back on the bed.

His gaze wanders as he sits back down in his chair and I watch as he smirks, a smug look creeping onto his face.

I look in the direction of his gaze and I find myself looking at Doctor Teresa, who is leaning against the doorframe with a gigantic grin on her face.

Oh lord.

"How long have you been standing there?" I sign, shocked, embarrassment flooding my cheeks.

"Long enough to know that you guys seem to have worked things out" she signs back, laughing.

I cringe and hide my head in my hands for a moment as she walks over to me.

"So how are you feeling?" she continues as she gives me a once over.

"Tired" I sign back with a small smile.

"And your wolf?"

Oh crap.

I'd forgotten about Elliott.

"Elliott?" I yell in my head.

"I'm still here, hun" she replies, quietly. There's a weakness to her tone which makes me nervous.

"She's still here but she's really weak" I sign back to Teresa.

"Okay, well hopefully she'll start to get stronger now that you and Grayson have umm... patched things up" she signs, smugly.

I blush and quickly glance at Grayson to see him grinning with an equally smug expression.

He winks and I blush harder.

Goddammit.

"Well, you're free to go home now, Acacia," Teresa says smiling and I nod, returning her smile with my own.

She gives me some more medication before walking out of the room, leaving Grayson and I alone together.

"You ready to go home, princess?" Grayson asks aloud, after a moment of silence. I nod and smile before he scoops me up in his arms and carries me out the door, saying goodbye to Doctor Teresa on our way out.

We make it home in little time and Grayson carries me up to his room before setting me down on his bed.

He stands in front of me and grins.

"What would you like to do today, Princess?" he asks aloud, watching me curiously.

I think for a moment, frowning before an idea pops into my head.

"Tell me about yourself" I sign back with a small smile.

"What do you mean?" he replies, raising an eyebrow at me.

"After all this time I've known you, which hasn't been very long, I still don't know much about you."

"Oh, I guess you're right. To be fair, I don't exactly know much about you either?"

"You know more about me than I do you. Plus, I would have assumed you would have already done some kind of background check on me?"

"Well I was going to..." he starts sheepishly.

"But it's kind of difficult to do one when I don't know your last name. You would be surprised about many people there are under the first name Acacia in the database."

"Oh, right. Well, why don't you tell me about yourself then?" I sign back, a smile tugging at my lips.

"Sure. Only if you share too though."

"I'll try my best" I reply smiling.

He flashes me a stunning smile and sits down on the bed opposite me.

"So, what would you like to know first, Princess?" He asks cheekily.

"The basics would be a good start, I guess?" I sign to him after thinking for a moment.

"Well my full name is Grayson Maxwell Hays, I'm twenty-three years old, I'm Alpha of the Scarlett Moon Pack, have been for five years now, I'm six foot three, ummmm" he starts aloud and I stare at him in awe.

My mate is twenty-three.

Damn, Moon Goddess.

"My mum's name is Rosaleen Davina Hays and my dad's name is William Alexander Hays. You already know the twins but their full names are Beckett Tom Hays and Bella Fayette Hays. They are both seventeen years old, and my parents are both in their forties. My wolf's name is Dante, you'll umm, meet him properly later and my Beta wolf is Levi Cortez and my Gamma wolf is Bentley Rollins."

I nod, grinning as I take in everything that he is saying. He smiles and gently kisses me, causing me to blush.

"Your turn now," he says gently.

Right, okay. Ummm. I breathe, steadying myself before focusing on him.

"Well, my full name is Acacia Violet Blackwell and-" I start signing but am quickly cut off.

"No!" Grayson says, staring at me in disbelief. "You're Alpha Andrew Blackwell's daughter."

I give him a confused look.

"Yes? I mean, I'm pretty sure I am"

"You're the missing Blackwell girl. Your father contacted my dad ten years ago asking if you had ended up here."

I stare at him in shock.

"My father was one of the many Alphas that were part of the search party your dad had for you."

"My father held a search party for me?" I sign after a while, trying to process what Grayson had just told me.

"Yeah, for five years in fact."

Oh my god. My poor parents. They were probably worried sick.

"Why'd he stop? Have you heard from him recently?" I sign, panicked.

"Breathe, Princess. Please?" Grayson says in a worried tone.

I nod and breathe for a moment before looking back at him.

"He stopped because your mother became sick. She fully recovered about a month later but he didn't continue to search. A few months later, when I became Alpha, was the last time we heard from him."

"Oh," I sign, feeling defeated.

"He said that he hopes that someday we would find you but he wants to take some time off to focus on his family and rebuilding his pack. He came to my Alpha initiation and gave me something, now that I think about it" he says before getting up off the bed and walking over to his desk.

He opens one of the drawers and rummages around for a moment before pulling out a small piece of paper. He grins at the paper before walking back over to me and sitting down.

"He gave me a photo of his daughter," he says quietly before handing me the photo.

I stare at the photograph in my hand.

It's me. It's a photo of me on my eighth birthday.

Tears begin to fall down my cheeks as I stare at the photo. It's all a distant memory now. I hardly remember anything from before I was taken.

"He simply gave me the photo and asked that if I ever were to find you, to take good care of you until I could bring you back to him."

I look up at Grayson to see him staring back at me, his grey eyes sparkling.

"I never got rid of the photo and I always kept a lookout for you because whenever I looked at you, I felt something. It was a warm fluttery feeling deep inside of me. I didn't know what it meant at the time but now I do" he says, flashing me the most beautiful smile I've ever seen.

Without thinking, I reach up and cup his face before pulling his lips into mine. He kisses me softly before licking my bottom lip. Excited, I open my mouth and our tongues begin to dance, heat travelling through my body to my core.

Eventually, we break apart for air, resting our foreheads against one another.

"Who would have thought, ten years after she went missing, Acacia Blackwell is now my mate," Grayson says huskily, pulling away to look at me, causing me to blush.

We watch each other in silence for a moment, grinning stupidly.

"So now that you are eighteen, you would have taken over your father's position as Alpha if he chose to step down, you know that right?" he continues, his expression becoming more serious.

Oh shit.

I had completely forgotten about that. I was meant to be an Alpha someday. Female Alphas are few and far between these days. More often than not, it's a male who is Alpha due to the whole hierarchy system. However, my parents never had any sons, making me - their firstborn child - the next in line to take over my parent's pack.

I nod and play with my fingers nervously.

"It's okay. It will just be something we have to work through when the time comes. Because with the hierarchy system still in play, even though you are entitled to your Alpha position, you being the Luna to my pack will most likely overrule that."

I nod again, processing the new information.

"Anyway, now that we've established all that. What else can you tell me, my little Alpha" he continues, before winking at me.

I blush and think for a moment before replying.

"Well, there's not much more to tell, really. You already know who my parents are. Ummm, my little sister's name is Claire Dahlia Blackwell and I think she'll be fifteen years old now."

I pause for a moment, trying to think of anything else I can tell him.

"Oh, and umm, my wolf's name is Elliott, Ellie for short" I sign with a small smile.

Suddenly, Grayson's eyes flash to Dante's silver and he lets out a low growl, vibrating my core. I blush and watch as his eyes change back to their normal beautiful grey colour.

"Sorry, that was Dante. He wants your wolf to know that he think's Elliott is a sexy name" he says, a lazy grin plastered on his face.

I grin and he smirks.

"Did you hear that, Elliot?" I ask quietly in my head.

"I sure did" she purrs happily.

I giggle at her before turning my attention back to Grayson.

"Grayson" I sign, nerves kicking in.

"Yes, Princess?"

"Do you think we could go see my family sometime when it's safe to?"

"Of course. Once it's safe and you are doing better health-wise, we can go whenever you feel like."

"Thank you, Grayson"

"You don't have to thank me, Acacia," he says aloud, huskily.

I blush and gently kiss him.

Elliott stirs and I'm suddenly overcome with a sense of passion and hunger. I kiss Grayson hard and he responds equally as he pulls me onto his lap so I'm straddling him.

Holy crap.

Heat rushes to my core again and I can tell Grayson knows that I'm aroused.

His eyes flash silver again as he gently flips me onto my back and kneels between my legs, kissing me aggressively. He begins to kiss down my neck and a small moan escapes my lips.

I feel him grin against my skin before he sucks on my sweet spot. I dig my fingers into his back as he sinks his canines into my neck.

I moan in pleasure and he takes his teeth out, licking the wound before kissing his way back up to my lips.

We continue to kiss for a while before I get a burst of courage and slowly move my hand down his chest to his stomach. He shivers and stops kissing me.

"Acacia," he says huskily, his eyes shifting from his wolf's back to his own.

"I-I-I'm-m r-r-rea-d-d-dy" I stutter, aloud and he looks at me in shock.

"Are you sure Princess? I don't want to cause you any more pain than he already has and I don't want you to pass out again because it's too much and-"

I smash my lips onto him to shut him up.

He grins into the kiss before eventually breaking away. I stare into his beautiful grey eyes and smile.

"I'm ready, Grayson," I say, mind linking him. "I want this. Plus, Elliott needs it to help to get better."

"I know she does. I just don't want to make you upset or bring up bad memories."

"I know but you're not him, Grayson. I know that now. He never loved me but you do. That's all that matters" I reply, smiling.

He stares at me in awe for a moment, before kissing me gently.

"Please know you can tell me to stop if it gets too much," he mind links after breaking away to look at me, caution in his tone.

"I know," I reply, smiling.

He nods before smashing his lips back onto mine. I kiss back hungrily as a new wave of emotions floods through me.

For the first time in my life, I'm going to have real sex. Not forced and unwanted, this time it will be with the man I'm in love with.

Happy with my realisation, I eagerly slide my hands through Grayson's hair.

________________________

Hey Guys,

So I hope you enjoyed that chapter! Thanks for sticking by me through all this and feel free to vote and 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