Bearing the Royal Mark (Completed)

Chapter 18

Wendy

I shook my head at Ralph. "No, thanks. I'm fine" I lied through my teeth. He wanted me to change into a camisole and shorts so I wouldn't be so hot. But the Mark would show if I wore a tanktop. Plus, Shane's shirt still had his scent on it, slightly calming me down.

Liz was whimpering in my mind, she had taken most of the pain until she couldn't take any more. I had my mouth tightly shut, so screams shouldn't escape to scare Clara. Maddi told me not to worry about keeping my mouth shut- literally. But I'm still attempting not to make any loud sounds. "How long is this supposed to last?" I asked my cousin. It's been four hours and the pain hasn't lessened. In fact, I think it got worse.

Ralph shrugged, giving me an apologetic look. "It varies. It could last an hour or it could last ten hours" he informed me. I gritted my teeth together, stiffly nodding my head as the pain struck again. "Look on the bright side. Your mate is a gentleman. He left so you wouldn't do anything... sexual" Ralph said, the tips of his ears turning pink.

I would laugh if the pain would just lessen a little. My cousin's embarrassment is amusing to me. "Do you want more ice cream?" he asked, changing the subject. Without hesitation, I nodded my head. Ralph laughed as he went to fetch my delicious ice cream.

"So-" he cleared his throat while placing the tub of deliciousness in front of me. "Um.. if this gets too much for you, I can- uh. I can get Shane back here. And um- we can give you guys a few hours to.. you know" he was a full blown tomato by the time he stopped talking.

I shook my head, swallowing my ice cream. "I'd rather not have sex in my cousin's house. But thanks" I stated. He let out a breath of relief. I laughed, pressing a hand against my wide as pain erupted in my abdomen. I gritted my teeth together, hissing at the pain. "I don't understand why this shit has to hurt"

The Moon Goddess has a painful way of telling us mates to have sex. "I have no idea" Ralph said with a shrug. He hopped onto the countertop next to me and gave me a small smile. "But I'll be right here until it's over" he declared.

***

"Are you sure?" Ralph questioned. It's been about six hours since my heat first started. The pain is gone; I just feel sore. Nodding my head, I jumped off the counter and walked around as a way to show my cousin that I was okay. "Maybe we should just wait until tomorrow for Shane to come over. Better safe than sorry right?" he offered.

Shaking my head, I walked back over to him. "Ralph. I'm fine. I just want to see my mate. There's no more pain. It's over" I told him.

He sighed and nodded his head. His eyes glazed over for a few moments. "Okay. I mind-linked him. It might take a while-" the back door slammed open, interrupting Ralph's sentence.

My mate marched in with Tyson behind him. "Damn. That took forever" Shane muttered, wrapping his arms around my stomach. It lessened the soreness, causing a smile to make it's way onto my face. "You okay? Do you want me to run a bath or something? My dad used to run baths for my mom after a long day. He used to buy her chocolate too. Do you want chocolate? I can go get some" he offered.

Laughing, I shook my head at him. "I'm fine. I don't need anything" I told him. It's obvious that he adored his father. I can only imagine how great of a man he was. I wish I could thank him for teaching Shane to be- well, to be Shane. He's amazing, kind, thoughtful, helpful, loving, and really good with kids.

"What about ice cream? I know you like the Oreo one. Do you want Oreos? I can get some of those too" Shaking my head, I grabbed Shane's hand and intertwined our fingers. "Are you sure? It's not a problem. The store isn't far" he stated.