"How may I help you miss?" An older woman asked with a kind smile.
"Oh, yes...could you please tell me where I can find Vance Cage?"
She nodded and then focused on her computer, "it looks like he is on floor two, room two-ten."
"Thank you." I smiled.
She then gave me instructions to the elevator before I went on my way.
Once I reached the second floor I quickly made my way down the halls in search for his room, I had found it with ease.
I was just about to walk in when a young nurse walked out. "Hello, how may I help you?"
"I'm here to visit with Vance Cage."
She looked back at the room, "and may I ask how it is that you know Mr Cage?"
I quickly got defensive and prepared to hold my wolf back from coming forward, but the urge wasn't there...just like she wasn't there.
I also knew losing my temper wasn't going to get me anywhere.
But I didn't fail to notice that this nurse was young and pretty, and I know for a fact my Mate is beyond attractive, I'd noticed many females looking at him before, but he never paid them any attention.
"I'm his fiancée." I said as sweetly as I could...I mean, sure it wasn't exactly the truth, no Vance hadn't asked me to marry him...but how do you explain mates to a human? And I wouldn't dare call him my boyfriend as he is sooo much more than that.
She looked down at my bare hands, obviously she didn't see an engagement ring.
I watched as she looked over at another nurse sitting at the nurses station and smiled before turning her attention back to me, "I'm sorry, but only family may visit with Mr Cage at the moment." And just like that she carefully closed the door, blocking him from my view.
"What if I call his parents, I'm sure they would vouch for me." I offered, "I'm practically his wife."
"You'll need to calm down or you will have to leave miss."
'Calm down' I hadn't even so much as raised my voice...but I knew I could raise hell if need be.
And just as I was getting ready to start bitching out this stuck-up nurse who seemed to be getting a kick out of refusing my entry to see Vance I was interrupted.
"What's going on here?"
We both turned to find Tommy approaching.
"Tommy?" I sounded before I hugged him.
"Ellie, it's so good to see you...are you okay?"
"I'd be better if I could see Vance." I admitted.
"She isn't family." The nurse put in.
"And...Vance has had friends visit him this past week and there hasn't been an issue, why now?" He asked.
The nurse looked over to the nurses station and I followed her gaze to see another young nurse who quickly busied herself so as not to get caught.
So she was purposely trying to keep me from seeing Vance.
"Yes...well, as for Mister Cages past visitors, there were family present to authorize their visit."
Tommy and I both knew she was lying and Tommy called her out on it. "Bullshit...but whatever...I'm his brother and I say Elise Ocklan can see Vance Cage whenever she wants to, Unless Vance's doctor tells us otherwise." Tommy sounded with slight authority now.
The nurse went behind her counter and Tommy opened Vance's door for me, "I'll give you a moment alone."
I hugged him once more before I entered the room.
I practically held my breath as I walked toward him, there he was, fast asleep. I went up to his bed and sat down...he was always such a heavy sleeper.
I let out a shaky breath as a tear fell, I couldn't feel his wolf. I couldn't smell his scent.
Then I picked up his hand and began bawling.
Those lovely electrical currents that flooded me every time my Vance touched me, they weren't there...it was like this was a stranger.
Vance stirred and I held back my remaining tears.
"Ellie, babe."
He hugged me tight and I couldn't hold back my tears, I hugged him too me in a desperate attempt to feel what I use to feel, to smell what I use to smell, when he pulled back I reached up and touched his face.
Just like mine, it was familiar but slightly different...like a part of us had been drained out.
I suppose to anyone else we would look the same...but I had known him just like he had known me and as I looked into his eyes I could see the same sadness I had, mirrored in his eyes for me.
"Hi." I said softly.
"Hey." He smirked, this time he reached out and caressed my face, he sighed, "how you holding up?"
"Not too well." I admitted.
He nodded, "I know what you mean, it was hard to fully accept it all when they first told me he was gone, but sitting here with you now, it's suddenly real."
I nodded and began to cry again, I hated that I didn't have my wolf, I hated being this emotional, and most of all I hated feeling like I don't know Vance all of a sudden.
"This changes everything Vance."
She shook his head 'no' before he pulled me close to him, "this doesn't change shit babe, I fell in love with you the day I shifted, and have loved you every day since then...nothing in this world can ever change or take away all of the history we have together."
He stroked my hair gently and kissed my forehead.
I didn't feel anything but his lips pressing against my skin.
"Do you love me?" He asked.
"Of course I do."
"And I love you still...so what's the problem?" He asked.
I shrugged, "it's just...are we even mates anymore if we don't have our wolves?"
"You are mine, and I am yours...be it boyfriend and girlfriend, mates, or whatever...as long as we're together we will work things out."
"It's going to be tough." I replied.
He nodded, "it'll take some getting use to, but I don't mind trying...I think I can remember some of my old dating techniques." He teased.
I couldn't help but smile, "oh you're going to woo me?"
He nodded, "I've done it once before, without trying to sound cocky, I'm pretty sure I've got this in the bag."
I laid down against his pillow, leaving him sitting by himself. "So cocky."
"Too cocky?"
I bit my bottom lip, "well it's like you said, maybe you should try some of those old techniques and see what happens.
He flashed his perfect side smirk at me.
And in that moment I didn't need my wolf to tell me how handsome he is, or how much I really really wanted him right now.
He slowly unzipped the hoodie I was wearing, revealing only the bra I had on underneath, he left it half zipped but enough to expose exactly what he wanted to see.
He touched my face before he let his finger caress my jaw and trail down my neck, by the time his hand had reached my breast his mouth had met mine.
His touch made me shiver and his kiss made me crave more of him.
But a small knock sounded and pulled us apart.
I moved as quickly as I could to zip myself back up, Vance adjusted the sheets to cover his prominent budge and Tommy enter the room.
"Sorry to interrupt." He said knowingly. "But Ma just called...apparently your parents called her and long story short, they're all on their way."
I picked up Vance's watch from the small bedside table.
"She couldn't even wait the whole hour." I sighed as I saw it had only been close to forty minutes since I had left the house.
"Thanks bro." Vance said.
Once more Tommy left us alone.
I looked up at Vance, I gave him another kiss, this one was a desperate kiss though.
He gave me a sad look, I knew he was going to be concerned, "Ellie...-"
"I had to see you." I confessed.
"Babe, you shouldn't have come if you aren't one hundred percent yet."
I reached up to touch his face once more, this time he touched his hand to mine against his face and moved a little, he ended up brushing my pinking burn scars with his thumb gently.
He carefully took my hand off of his face and pushed my sleeve up to reveal the scars on my wrists (the same ones he wore on his own wrists now). He lifted my other hand as well and found the matching scar.
He placed one small chaste kiss against each one before he looked at me with tear filled eyes.
"I'm sorry I couldn't protect you Elise."
Once more I found myself crying. "Please don't." I whispered. "You did, you endured so much just so I could get away...don't you dare talk down on yourself, you're my hero baby."
He shook his head.
"I love you Vance."
"I don't know why." He countered.
I pushed him and he didn't even flinch. "I won't sit here and listen to you tear yourself down or question my love dammit."
"I'm sorry Ellie, I just wish I could've done more."
I hugged him, mindful of his leg. "I'm glad you didn't do more...any more and you might not be here right now, and I'm too damn selfish to lose you...so please just kiss me and hold me until my parents come to drag me back to my room."
And that's just what he did, he laid us back down and he held me, I rested my head on his chest and he kissed my hair every so often.
With my head resting on his chest comfortable I closed my eyes and listen...it was the same heart beat I had grown accustom to, he stroked my hair in the same fashion, the sound of him saying I love you filled me up the same way it always has, the way I felt wrapped in his arms was the exact same.
Small things may not be there anymore but the big things, the important things were still there for sure.