"S-Sorry."

I blush as he chuckles at my reaction and he cradles my face in his hands.

"Like I said, you're so innocent."

I give him a playful growl in reply and he hugs me, the extra contact staving off the heat.

"Isaac, how long is this heat?"

"Four days."

I can't last that long, I barely made it through two days. How can I survive four? Especially as this one is supposed to be much worse.

Bile rises up in the back of my throat, causing me to suppress a retch, and I rush to the toilet, throwing up in the bowl for the second time that day. Tears drip down my cheeks as the pure misery and fear of the inevitable coming ordeal hits me. I hate this. I hate being so vulnerable in front of him. My skin is burning as if with a fever, but it fades away as Isaac pulls my hair out of my face, his fingers combing through my dark strands, the light contact cool.

"You're going to be okay sweetheart. You can get through this."

I sink backwards into his cool body and he wipes my face off with a towel before handing me the toothpaste again.

"You'll stop throwing up in a minute. Then the really bad part begins. You haven't had any cramps yet, right?"

"No," I whisper. "I didn't know I would get cramps."

"Unfortunately, you do. I'll do what I can to help you Iz, okay?"

I nod, my mind racing. Cramps: I never particularly had to deal with them when I had periods but their inclusion in the 'really bad part' is clearly meant to signify something awful to me. 

"We have a bit of time before they start so I would suggest we camp in here until you finish throwing up then we'll go back into our room, if that's alright?"

I nod again, releasing his hand, the safety of his presence reassuring me overly much, and a second later I dive for the toilet, filling it with my insides, retching as my stomach churns. Isaac tugs my hair out of my way, a grim expression on his face as it unfortunately managed to get splattered in vomit.

"Let's clean you up. Get in the shower and we'll get rid of your hair problems."

He takes my hand and we climb into the shower, switching on the water, setting it to freezing cold and drenching my clothes (again), yet this soothes my heat so I don't object, allowing it to pour over my feverish body. I attempt to get the vomit out of my hair but reaching all of it is impossible due to my need to maintain skin-to-skin contact with my mate.

However, without me asking, Isaac helps, turning me so the water is falling directly on my hair rinsing it out. Eventually it's all gone and I sink into his chest, feeling my body relax at his touch. I notice the goosebumps on his arms and I frown.

"You should have told me you were cold."

"I was too focused on you. And like I said Iz; if you don't want to be mated then please don't stand so close."

"Okay." I take a step back but keep a hand attached to his. I don't know where to look and nor, apparently, does my body as my eyes direct themselves at his abs. For the second or third time today. I sigh and he tilts my chin upwards so I stop staring at him. "Sorry," I whisper.

"It's alright. I know I'm irresistible." He winks at me and I blush but at the same time can't help giggling at his unadultered flirting. He briefly lets me go. Nothing happens. What? I thought -

My mark suddenly throbs violently and I yelp in pain and surprise. He backs away instantly, clutching his own mark, just as a stabbing in my abdomen forces me to whimper and clutch my stomach in agony. Heat cycle 2.0 has fully arrived.

I catch Isaac's concerned eyes and he must understand my gaze as he scoops me up in his arms, carrying me back into our bedroom, out of the bathroom.

He closes the door with his foot and settles me gently on the bed. I yelp when another wave hits me and I feel Jack block herself off from me entirely so I don't feel her pain too. Isaac's eyes are concerned and he strokes my cheek, decreasing the debilitating powers of the cramps but only intensifying the temperature.

Suddenly, he pulls away, head in hands as he battles with Nate for control of his body. His eyes morph to the orange brown as Nate takes command of his body, and, fighting the absolute agony, I back away, not trusting him not to lose control.

Nate stares at me, a growl rumbling deep in his throat. I know my heat is driving him and Isaac insane, especially as I'm marked. I retreat more under his gaze, fearful of what they might do in this state, dread coursing through my veins. Nate's eyes shift back to Isaac's, his expression softening at my terror of him.

"Iz, I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Neither of you can help the way you're acting."

He takes a step forward and I involuntarily flinch at the movement.

"I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to help you through the heat. I can only do that if you let me near you. Do you trust me?"

"Yes, I do." He holds out his hand and I take it willingly, already missing his touch.

He leads me to a radio seated in the corner, grabbing a CD from a rack I never noticed before and inserts it, releasing my hand in the process. After a few seconds, calm music comes on, it's peaceful melody, relaxing my tense body.

"Can you dance Isobel?"

"A bit. Not well, but a bit. Why?"

"Dance with me?" He offers his hand and I, smiling, take it.

He gently guides me through the basic steps and I quickly to adapt to the light rhythm, enjoying this moment like we are just any other normal couple. He spins me and as I come back round to him, his hand moves to my waist and my free one settles on his shoulder. Jack contentedly sighs inside me but I feel Isaac tense under my touch, his wolf still close to the surface. We sway to the music, bringing a sense of calmness to the otherwise strained atmosphere.

My heat's symptoms have nearly all gone due to spending so much time near my mate, my limbs cooled, my mind less turbulent and pained. The music draws us together, flowing through the steps in harmony, barely a mistake, rarely overbalancing and if I do, he is always there to catch me. My protector. From more than just the physical.

The spinning starts to make me dizzy and I end up collapsing onto Isaac's chest when he next spins me.

"Sorry," I whisper. He lifts my chin, making me meet his amused gaze.

"You should have told me you were so dizzy. We could have stopped." I laugh nervously; his face is very close to mine, his lips centimetres from my own.

All I can imagine is his lips on mine, all I can imagine is the sensation of them on mine. His gaze flicks to my lips then back to my eyes, unable to decide which to fix his attention on and I realise I'm doing the same to him, my eyes darting between his. His head lowers to mine and I hold my breath, expecting at any moment for someone to interrupt us like they always do.

No one does.

His lips land on mine and the world explodes around us in one big firey explosion. The music fades into the background, all my focus on his warm lips against mine, his arms around my waist, holding me tightly against him. The kiss deepens until we are full on making out, our instincts and the heat driving us, my heart racing.

The kiss is needy and passionate, yet conveys the affection we feel for each other perfectly, neither of us dominating the other, neither of us wanting or needing to fight for a respite, his solid frame holding me steady, his touch patient despite the instincts that must be threatening to override his remaining dredges of self-control at any second.

Eventually, however, we start to suffocate from the lack of air and have to pull apart. Isaac rests his forehead on mine, our breathing heavy, standing chest to chest. I realise my hands are looped in his hair, absentmindedly tugging at the short strands, his hands likewise occupied in my own.

"Iz, are you okay with that?"

"You have no idea." I smile and go to plant a kiss on his lips then change direction and peck his cheek instead and turn away, as if to leave.

"Stop teasing me" he grumbles.

"I'm not teasing you" I cry, faking innocence. He smirks.

"Is that so Isobel?" He leans in and I back into a wall, his hands coming onto either sides of my head, pinning to the wall, his eyes boring into mine.

"Is Isaac mad at me?" I say mockingly, trying to get a stronger reaction out of him.

"Shut up."

"Or what? You'll --" He cuts me off with another kiss and my mind goes blank, my heart pounding. He pulls away again and plants kisses on my mark, making me suppress a moan, my breathing coming in harsh pants.

"That enough teasing for you Isobel? Or do you want more?" He whispers, continuing to kiss my neck, refusing to satisfy my heat which returns at the touch of his lips on my skin. He backs away quickly in alarm and I can see the battle waged between him and Nate.

"Iz, are you happy to be mated?"

"Right now?"

"When else?" His eyes flash orange. I finally decide it: I, against perhaps my better judgement, trust him. We trust him. He's not going to leave us, abandon us. It's okay to trust him. He and Nate are not going to betray us. I trust them.

"Yes."

I guess that's all the prompting he needs as the next thing I know is his lips are on mine again and we're both falling backwards onto the bed, him on top, me underneath, his hands on either side of my head, my heart pounding in anticipation. He lowers his head to kiss me but suddenly hesitates; we both know there is no backtracking after this.

"Are you sure you're ready? We can stop."

"I trust you Isaac."

I pull him in, bringing his lips to mine, and I feel the world fade into a cycle of bliss and passion.

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Nightcore - Kiss from a rose (Seal)

Well you all know what happens after that ... 😏😏😏

Anyway, they finally kissed! Was this chapter alright? I decided to leave the rest of it to the reader's imagination.

WORxxx

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