Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 87502 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 438(@200wpm)___ 350(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87502 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 438(@200wpm)___ 350(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
"Wait—wait," I said, catching the edge of her robe before she could pull it closed again and flee upstairs.
My gaze swept over her and every second I looked, I became more concerned. Her breasts were visibly swollen beneath the soaked fabric, and I could tell they were tender from the way she flinched whenever the material brushed against her.
"Vivienne," I said quietly, looking back up into her face. "Why didn't you tell me?"
She opened her mouth, but no words came out.
For a moment she simply stood there, clutching the edges of the robe with trembling hands. Then her shoulders slumped, and she looked down at the floor.
"I didn't want you to know," she whispered at last.
Her answer made my heart fist in my chest—not because I was offended she had hidden it from me, but because it told me how frightened she must be.
Vivienne had spent twenty years being judged, criticized, and blamed for things that were never her fault. She'd learned to carry every burden herself because no one had ever given her reason to believe she could rely on anyone else. Even now, when she was obviously miserable, her first instinct had been to suffer in silence.
My chest ached as I looked at her.
"Sweetheart," I said softly, "you're in pain."
Her laugh was shaky and unhappy.
"You noticed that, did you?"
"Vivienne." I stepped closer, keeping my movements slow and careful so I wouldn't startle her. "You're practically crying, baby."
At that, her composure cracked completely.
She looked away, blinking rapidly.
"I tried to handle it myself," she admitted in a small voice. "I thought if I could just get the pump and take care of it, maybe it wouldn't get any worse."
So instead of asking for help, she'd immediately started trying to solve the problem alone. Because she’d only ever had herself to rely on. But now she had me—I wouldn’t stand by and let her be in pain.
"You didn’t have to do that," I said gently.
She looked up at me, her eyes shiny with unshed tears.
"What else was I supposed to do?"
She didn’t sound angry—just exhausted and sad. Suddenly I realized just how alone she must have felt when she realized her Heat Cycle was beginning with no one to turn to and no idea what was happening to her body.
The thought broke my heart.
"You could have come to me," I said quietly.
Her eyes flew to mine.
"Kor, you know I can't."
"Why not?" I asked.
She nibbled her lower lip.
"Because you know what this means."
I did know—that was the problem. I knew exactly what it meant.
The sweetness I'd been smelling all morning…the nectar…the swelling…the pain. Vivienne wasn't experiencing some mild hormonal fluctuation—she was entering a real Heat—possibly the first one of her life.
And if it continued progressing at this rate, she could be in serious danger.
The realization settled heavily in my chest as I looked at her. Right now she was embarrassed and uncomfortable and frightened. But if this kept getting worse, embarrassment was going to be the least of our concerns.
Somehow I had to convince her that she didn't have to face it alone…but how?
THIRTY-NINE
VIVIENNE
Kor was silent for so long, I was sure he was disgusted with me. After all, why wouldn’t he be? My breasts were all swollen and leaking and my nightgown was sticking to me. I was a mess.
“Look, just give me the pump and I’ll take care of myself,” I said.
Snatching my robe closed, I grabbed the boxes. Ignoring the pain in my breasts as I lifted them, I marched upstairs to my room and began unpacking the pump immediately.
There were a few instructions—it wasn’t hard to figure out. Even though my hands were trembling, I managed to get everything assembled. I pulled up my nightgown and pushed the pump’s suction cup to my swollen right breast in record time.
Then, anticipating the massive relief that offloading the nectar would be, I pressed the button, and the machine began to suck rhythmically at my nipple.
It lasted exactly three seconds before a gasped in pain and turned the thing off. The suction was simply too painful to my swollen breast and tender nipple.
But no—I couldn’t give up so soon. I had to try again. I had to get the nectar out of my breasts, or I could get really sick! I knew that much from listening to the other female Weres talk when they didn’t know I was listening.
As I prepared to try again, I heard a knock on the connecting door.
“Don’t come in!” I said loudly.
But the door creaked open anyway and Kor came into my bedchamber.
“I heard you gasp,” he said, frowning. “It’s not working, is it?”
“Yes it is!” I lied. Pressing the suction cup end of the pump to my other nipple, I pressed the button again.
This time the pain was even worse, but I bore it in silence, gritting my teeth and willing myself not to say anything. Soon it felt like my nipple was on fire and my breast was caught in a vise as the breast pump sucked and sucked.