Sage's POV:

I have never felt so rejected and embarrassed in my entire life. My insides already hurt and my damn Omega brain is wailing and telling me that I did something wrong for my mate to reject me. I know that Ashton is scared, but I wasn't planning on sex!

I just need him to be with me in our room so that I can feel safe and like I'm not letting down my mate. It hurts even worse now that he's here and he won't stay with me during my most vulnerable moment.

Hell, it's only preheat and I already want to cry and curl into a ball. That usually only happens at my peak, so I already know this is going to be an unbearable heat.

"Honey, it's okay," dad whispers as I bury my face into my pillow and try to breathe in the scent of Ashton's that I can pick up even though I'm pissed off at him. "Pauline, can you please go get him some tea and a snack?"

"I don't want a snack!" I growl. "I want my mate to be with me and not reject me!"

Dad rubs my back. "He's scared he'll hurt you, Sage," he coos.

Yeah, I know that and I understand why he's so anxious, but goddess! I just feel so hurt and achy right now and I want Ashton to just lay on top of me to cover and protect me. My inner Omega is sad and hurt, so rationality is pretty much irrelevant and I just feel hurt. Physically and emotionally.

Pauline comes back with a cup of tea and a plate of crackers and apples, but I don't turn when my dad tries to get me to eat.

"No," I growl. "Let me suffer in peace."

"Eat," my dad orders, a low growl bubbling in his throat.

He's sweet and gentle most of the time, but when he gives a direct order, he gets scary and it makes me really nervous.

So, I sit up and reluctantly and shove a couple of crackers in my mouth and drink some of the tea. It burns my tongue and makes me wince, but I continue to drink it. The tea is the kind that has a mixture of herbs and soothes some of the pain of Omegas in heat.

"My preheat feels like actual heat, dad," I whine once I finish the drink and have eaten half of the crackers and some of the apple slices. "It hurts so bad."

My dad lays his hand on my forehead. "Your head is really warm, honey. I'm going to run you a bath to help you relax," he says, but I grab his arm.

"Have Pauline do it," I beg him. "Please don't leave me."

All of my heats in the past I've been able to handle alone and have only interacted with someone else to bring me food or water. This one is already brutal though, and I felt the first symptoms about an hour ago.

I guess this is a downside to having a mate who doesn't want to cuddle and comfort you while you're in heat, but it's something I'll have to deal with. Right now, I just need comfort and my dad isn't even close to being the comfort I need, but it's better than being alone.

Pauline goes to the bathroom and starts to run the tub while I get up and start to go through the drawers to get out the clothes that smell like Ashton. There's not a lot of clothes that he has here but there's a few articles that I can throw into my bed.

I make sure to put the pillow he's been using at the head of my bed so I can take in his scent while I lay down. I reorganize my blankets around my bed so they're comfortable, but I feel anxious because a new instinct is creeping up to have my Alpha praise my best.

I know that Ashton will not want to enter this room while I'm in heat, but Omega-brain-Sage thinks that I did something wrong to make Ashton want to stay away and not praise my nest.

This sucks.

I whimper when the thought and a jolt of pain strike me because I know this is about to be the worse heat I've have in my life, and I have had one every two and half to three months since I was seventeen.

"Sweetheart, it's going to be okay," dad whispers, but I can barely hear him since my head is pounding so hard. "Pauline, please help me get him to the bath. I can take care of him from there."

"Would you like me to send someone else to assist you?" Pauline asks. "I could get Bri. She's been training with Sage for a while and they get along quite well, plus she's an Omega."

Dad shakes his head as they get me to the bathroom and help me out of my pajamas. "No, having too many people in here could stress him out. All he wants is his mate so having someone who he isn't completely comfortable with will overwhelm him. I would say to get Zach since he has fantastic control over his instincts, but having an Alpha in here could set Ashton off."

"But Ashton doesn't want to be here," Pauline says, making me whimper.

Thanks for the damn reminder, Pauline.

"Sorry, sweetheart," dad says as I settle into the tub and feel some of the pain fade. "Ashton's inner Alpha would want to fight with Zach, even though normal Ashton doesn't want to fight."

"Poor things," Pauline says in a pitying voice as someone knocks on the door to my room. "I'll go get it."

I hear Pauline talk to someone, but I'm too out of it to know who it is that she's speaking with. At some point, she grabs my dad and I'm alone in the bathroom, laying in the hot water and trying to will the pain away.

"Honey, someone is here to see you."

"Tell them to go away," I grumble as the door opens wider.

A voice I have been longing to hear echoes in the room.

"Even your mate?" Ashton asks, sitting down on the floor beside the tub.

Oh no, I'm horny now.

"You can stay," I mumble.

Ashton takes my hand. "I panicked, but I know I have good control over my instincts. I'm not going to have sex with you while you're in heat because you're mentally not here but I'll be with you and comfort you."

I barely process his words because I feel so giddy that he's here. "You're so much hotter when I'm in heat," I slur, feeling a pleased rumble escape my throat. "You're hot all the time, though."

He blushes which is really cute. He's also sexy.

The goddess blessed me with the whole package.

"I'll make sure to bring you both food," dad says, patting Ashton's shoulder. "I know you'll take care of him."

I kind of forgot dad was in here.

"Yes, Luna," Ashton says, smiling at my dad.

He should be paying attention to me, so I squeeze his bicep and get his attention. Of course, the angel he is, Ashton pays attention to me immediately and takes my hand in his own.

Dad and Pauline leave and I'm stuck staring at my mate as he waits for the water to get cold. Once it's too cold for me, Ashton pulls the drain and helps me out of the tub, and the pain is significantly less in my gut.

He wraps me up in a blanket and carries me to the bed, and I'm all swaddled up like a pup so I can't move.

"I got your pajamas," Ashton says, picking up the ones I was wearing earlier.

"Or we could sleep naked," I suggest.

He scoffs, his cheeks pink. Even his ears are a little pink which is kind of funny. "Did you listen to me when I told you that we aren't having sex?" he asks.

I scowl. "Sleeping naked isn't sex."

"Not while you're in heat, Sage."

"Can we please just sleep in underwear at least?" I beg. "Omegas overheat during heat, thus the existence of the name. Plus, you're always cold so skin to skin is nice..."

Ashton sighs. "Fine," he agrees, looking at the bed. "Uh... am I allowed to sit down? Some of the Omegas I talked to said I should ask first."

He's so cute.

"When did you have time to ask other Omegas?" I ask, yawning and wiping my eyes.

"Before I came back I asked that one warrior... uh, Bri was her name, I think? And Evelyn, the doctor. I told them I wanted to help and they offered some advice because I've never been with an Omega in heat."

I smile, my heart warming when I realize he went out of his way for advice in order to support me. Plus, it's nice to hear that he's never been with an Omega in heat because I want to be the only Omega he takes care of. I've never been with an Alpha while in heat either, so this is a first for both of us.

"That's really nice," I say, getting in my underwear. "You can sit down, but no pants in my bed until my heat is done."

"Aren't you in preheat?" Ashton asks, but he listens and lays down after he's taken off his shirt and pants.

I growl. "Heat is heat," I grumble, clinging onto him almost immediately. "Did they mention anything about scenting?"

"Yes... they said Omegas in preheat and heat like to be scented so they feel claimed and they like to scent their mate so they can have a claim."

He sounds like he's studying for a test and not talking to his mate, but I know Ashton just wants to ensure he heard everything right and will be able to properly comfort me.

"Are you comfortable with that?" I ask and Ashton nods.

"You'll have to tell me what to do because I don't think I have seen much scenting and I don't really know how," Ashton says.

I lay on top of him and smile, resting my chin on his chest. "Or I can just show you."

He's clearly embarrassed and a little shy, but he nods.

I rub my wrists along his neck so that he smells like me, as some of the strongest scent glands are on the inner wrist. It's a very calming process, and I can see that Ashton is so relaxed that he's nearly falling asleep.

He stays awake until I'm done, though, just so he can reciprocate. "Like this?" he asks, rubbing his wrists along my neck, but he moves them way too quickly.

"Slower than that. Like it's a massage. It's meant to spread scent and to calm your mate," I tell him, and Ashton surprises me by rolling on top of me and matching what I did.

His scent is so powerful and comforting that I feel tired, and the skin to skin contact is the most comfortable thing I've ever felt. It's probably because I'm in heat, tired as hell, and happy to have my mate, because we've had skin to skin contact before but this feels so much better.

"Sleep well, Sage," Ashton whispers in my ear as I drift off, feeling purrs rumble in my chest and throat the whole time.