Talia's POV

"Um, how are you feeling?" He tries opening up a conversation.

I let out a deep breath, "Pretty dizzy."

"Oh," His smile turns to a frown. "Why don't you sleep again?"

"Are you sure?"

"Why wouldn't I be?"

I felt a bit uncomfortable with letting myself sleep with him again. I knew however, that I could sleep most of my heat off. So, I closed my eyes and let myself fall into a deep sleep.

So, I closed my eyes and let myself fall into a deep sleep

Ellisons Pov.

Talia. Her name is Talia.

I keep staring at her in her sleep. Her lips pout a bit as she fights off her heat. I knew she wouldn't forgive me yet but I was surprised when she agreed to try to be my mate. I had to win her over. I would show her how much I cared about her even when she was gone. How much I thought about her after I left.

It had been maybe an hour that she was asleep, I had no clue. I wasn't wearing my watch. I refused to move however, I was starting to get hungry. The ice was about halfway melted but Talia kept me warm. It amazed me how much her heat was giving off. I was just glad I could help enough that she could sleep through it.

The pack doctor came in and asked how she was doing. I told him well but that I was still worried. He explained he couldn't give her another shot for twelve hours. He also said that as long as I was with her, we could leave the tub.

As nervous as I am to take her out, I know I had to eat. I got out and carried her to the bed, dripping water as I moved. She didn't stir too much but just kept holding onto me.

"Cole?" I mind linked.

"Yes?"

"I need you and your mate to come and bring us food. I'm starving and once she wakes up, she will be too."

"She fell asleep?"

"Thankfully, yes."

"Lillian is asking how she was."

Lillian must be his mate. "She was fine. She wasn't in too much pain."

"Okay. We'll be there soon."

Not ten minutes later, they walk inside. I sit up a bit, bringing Talia with me. She lays on my chest as Cole hands me a drink.

"It's coffee. Her heat is gonna keep her up all night so I figured you want to be prepared." He tells me and I thank him. He hands me a plate of food- steak and potatoes.

"Usually during her heat, I give her frozen foods or cold fruit. She likes orange popsicles the best." Lillian says as she sets down a bowl of fruit and a Popsicle. "I'd wake her up soon or else she'll wake up in too much pain. If she gets food inside her system, it will help."

"Thank you." I tell her and she nods.

I decide it's best for me to eat first and then wake her up. She might need help eating so I didn't want to spill something on the bed while trying to balance my food and hers. I eat as fast as I can before softly shaking her.

"Time to wake up." I softly sing.

She groans and lifts her head up. Her eyebrows furrow on why I'd wake her up. I show her the Popsicle and her eyes light up, grabbing it from me. She unwraps it before throwing the wrapper at me and putting it in her mouth.

"Mmmm." She hums.

I chuckle, "Lillian brought it for you."

"She was here?" She questions.

"Yeah, not too long ago. Her and my beta brought us dinner. Well, me dinner and you a Popsicle and fruit." I laugh and she smiles.

"I'd call that dinner." She says before biting a piece off.

I shake my head. "How's your heat?"

"Hot." She says and I roll my eyes. "What, did you expect something differently?"

"No," I say, rolling my eyes. "I meant your pain."

She shrugs, "It could be worse."

I frown. It's not the answer I wanted but at least she was fine enough to talk to me, "The doctor said he'll give you another shot tomorrow."

"Good. I'll need it." She tells me.

We don't talk that much but not out of awkwardness. I let her eat until she starts to feel sick again. I tell her to go to bed, which she agrees to.

I lay down and she lays down with her head on my chest. She curls her body into the fetus position as her cramps come back. I wrap myself around her again as I try to help ease her pain. Eventually, she does fall asleep but I know that this is only the start to a very long night.

-      -     -

Talia's Pov.

When I wake up, it's pitch black and there's an unsettling feeling in my stomach. I bolt up and out of bed and make it to the toilet, throwing up.

A pair of feet come rushing over and lean over me. Ellison holds my hair back as I grip the toilet seat and continue to empty myself. Once I finish, I've got a pounding headache and no strength left. I fall back, letting Ellison catch me.

"Woah," He says when I fall back, "You alright? Can you stand?"

I shake my head, not wanting to talk with my mouth tasting horrible.

"Um, okay. I've got this." Ellison says to himself. He moves me so that I'm leaning against the wall before picking me up. He sets me down on the sink counter before grabbing a washcloth and running water over it.

I let Ellison clean up my face. He's gentle when he rubs the cloth over my mouth and cheek, almost too carefully. After, he gives me a glass of water. I take a sip and swish it around before spitting it out.

"Better?" He asks, eyes searching for any signs of pain or sickness.

"My mouth tastes bad." I say, nose scrunched at the vile taste stuck in my mouth.

Ellison frowns and begins looking around. He finds a bottle of mouthwash in one of the drawers and gives me a cap full. I take it and swish it around before spitting it back out. I feel exhausted but smile.

"Better." I tell him. "I wanna take a cold shower before I go back to bed."

He nods and puts me down. "I'll be right outside in the bedroom. Call me if you need me. I know this is just a guest room but I'm gonna look for some pajamas for us."

I nod and blush when I realize that in fact, I was still in my bathing suit. When Ellison leaves me, I turn on the shower all the way on cold. When I step in, my hot skin is soothed by the icy water. I sigh, wondering how much longer until my heat is over.

I decide to wash my hair and body while I was there instead of just taking a body shower. I'm sure I had smelled like hair spray and sweat. After, I turned off the water and found a towel under the sink.

A small knock on the door let me know Ellison found something for me to wear. I open it up only enough to peak my head around.

"Here." He hands me silk shorts and tee-shirt. "They're from Aaron's younger sister."

"Thank you." I mutter as I take them from him.

I close the door and get dressed. I'm already starting to feel warm so I know I need to get back to Ellison soon. I want to hate him but part of me understands why he did what he did. That doesn't mean I'm not still upset. I still need to know the whole story.

I find a brush and hair tie and I put my hair into a bun. By the time I was done, I was getting dizzy. I went back into the bedroom and saw Ellison standing in a pair of boxers near the T.V. I tried walking to the bed but nearly fell, catching myself on the dresser.

"Shít." Ellison runs over to me, lifting me up and placing me on the bed.

I cry out when I feel a crash of cramps hit me. Ellison instantly wraps himself around me as he tries to help. I crawl closer to him. His skin feels electrifying yet, cools my skin instantly. but it wasn't enough this time.

"It hurts!" I sob, pulling him to try to get more relief.

"Shh, I know." He rubs my back as my heat worsens.

"I need something." I beg. "I need ice or meds- just something to make it better."

"Okay darling. Let me mind link Cole to get the doctors." He tells me as he continues to rub my back.

After what feels like forever, Cole, Lillian and the pack doctor rush inside. Lillian rushes over to me as she tries to calm me down. The doctor orders Ellison to move so that he can examine me but he refuses. He instead growls and pulls me closer.

"Ellison, let her go." Says the doctor.

"No," He's starting to crush me but it's still isn't enough. The doctor tries to get to me but Ellison let's out a snarl- warning him not to touch me.

"Talia," Cole says, "You have to tell him to let you go. His wolf is coming out."

I whimper, not wanting to let go either but I can't handle the pain anymore. "Ellison,"

"No." He grunts. His eyes are turning golden and I know he's slowly losing control. His wolf hates feeling so helpless and he's tired of not doing the one thing that will stop my heat which is mating me completely. I don't know his wolf yet so I don't know how far he'll take this.

"Ellison, please," I plead. "It hurts. I need them to help."

"I can help you." He insists, not letting me move an inch. Ellison holds onto me tightly. I begin to squirm as I start to feel even worse than ever.

"I know you can but I need more." He growls at me. "I know you want to help but you're being selfish. You need to let others try to make me feel better."

It's then that I feel him loosen his grip. He hesitantly moves away from me, keeping his eyes on me. Ellison sits on his knees, away from me as I tell the doctor it's okay. When he moves towards me, Ellison let's out a growl at him. I take his hand and his eyes shoot to his hands wrapped around mine. I rub my thumb against his knuckles as he slowly looks into my eyes. I silently tell him that everything will be okay and he nods.

The pack doctor takes my temperature and see's that I've spiked again. He tells me I can't get into the bath because it will send my body into shock. I can either try to take a sleeping pill or wait another hour until I can take the shot.

"I'll wait." I groan. Ellison instantly takes me back into his arms, trying to protect me from the pain. I cuddle into him, my head on his chest as I listen to his heart beating.

"It might be best to stay awake and try to distract yourself from the pain." I hear the doctor say. "I'll be back later." With that, he walks out.

"Alpha, I'll get you some more coffee." Cole announces and Ellison huffs in response.

"Talia, do you want anything?" Lillian asks me softly.

"Another Popsicle." I tell her weakly. I feel her weight leave the bed as her and Cole leave the room.

I look up slightly to see Ellison with golden eyes still. His wolf is still present. I make a note to myself that he's very persistent and strong. He can't be controlled easily.

"Ellison," I bring my hand to his cheek and he looks down. "I'll be okay. Just calm down."

Ellison closes his eyes and takes a deep breath in before slowly releasing it. When he opens his eyes again, they are back to it's clear grey color. I sigh in relief and smile.

"You okay?" I ask him, wondering if he's completely back.

He chuckles, "You're asking if I'm okay?" I roll my eyes and punch him. He laughs, nodding. "I'm fine. It's just, the animal side of me is desperate to help you. It wants out."

"Are you going to let him?" I timidly say. One day, I'd love to meet his wolf but not when he's angry and feeling like he's a bad mate.

"Of course not." He honestly says, "I love my wolf side but I still don't have control over him. I can't trust him enough to be alone with you especially after he marked you without permission."

Before I can respond, Cole and Lillian walk back in. He hands Ellison his coffee while Lillian gives me my Popsicle. We all decide to stay together. Lillian crawls on the bed with me but keeps her distance. One, because of Ellison and two because if she was too close, her body heat would just add to my own. Cole takes a seat in a chair near us before turning on the T.V.

It's hard to be cuddled and try to eat. I end up dripping some of the juice onto Ellison's chest. If he noticed, he didn't say anything.

I try to pay attention to whatever is playing but with my cramps getting worse and worse, it's nearly impossible. I keep letting out small cries every other minute. Ellison tries his best to help me. Whether it's rubbing my back, cradling me or hugging me. We try every cuddle position in the book. Nothing works.

I'm panting as he hugs my front, "I'm so hot."

"Do you want me to get you a cold washcloth for your forehead?" Lillian asks me and I nod. She goes to the bathroom and comes back, placing the cool towel on my head. I sigh at the touch, giving me a bit of relief.

"Talia, what worked best to ease your heat?" Ellison asks me. I knew he was feeling absolutely helpless. If it wasn't for his constant ideas to help, I'd be feeling so much worse than I already am.

"The ice bath." I whimper. It was the only time I felt like I wasn't dying in the flames of hell. I knew we couldn't do it though.

He tightens his jaw, frustrated. He thinks for a minute before replying. "Does it feel better than when I'm just holding you like this or in another position?"

"It's better when I just feel surrounded by you." I admit. Ellison someone manages to pull me closer until my face is squished into his chest. The feeling of his skin on mine is incomparable. Is as if I am the sun and he is the ocean. We'll never be close enough to cool me down.

Later on in the night, the pack doctor came in. I stuck out my arm as he injected me. It started working within minutes and I suddenly felt very tired as I cooled down.

"She'll need another in the morning. I suggest you two get to know each other so that next month, you can naturally cure her heat." The doctor says before walking out the door again. Cole and Lillian say their goodnights before heading off themselves.

"I won't be ready." I blurt out. I back away from Ellison's chest to look him in the eyes. "In a month, I won't be ready to mate with you."

"I know." He says softly. "Let's just take this day by day. We don't need to worry about that just yet."

I nod my head and lay back down. Ellison moves to lay on his back, pulling me to his side. We lace our legs together before I let my arm wrap around him. He does the same to me and I let my head fall down on his chest.

I don't feel hot anymore. Warm, yes but not hot. When I finally feel myself falling into a deep sleep, I feel a pair of lips kiss the top of my head. A wave of ice hits me, goosebumps rising on my skin.

"Goodnight my darling." Ellison whispers on my hair.

I try to fall asleep after but I can't. All I can think about is how his lips managed to completely cool me down after all other attempts failed. And he hadn't even kissed my lips.

Love ya!!!
Aria