[Carmen]Heats grew and changed as female werewolves got older. Our first heat was when we were twelve or thirteen years old. Much like humans, puberty was the onset. In the beginning, it wasn’t as much of a sensual need. More like a desire to touch and be touched. Any touch would fulfill the need. When we were fifteen, it would change to a need for completion. When that happened, anything would do. It could be self-pleasure or done by someone else. I was used to that.Intellectually, I knew that heats after being marked were different, but it wasn’t until I experienced it myself that I truly understood the difference between them. I didn’t just need completion. I burned for the touch of my mate. Even doing it myself didn’t quench the burning inside of me. At least it came in waves instead of being constant.My phone was taken away and hidden, so I couldn’t contact Rock. I would have said or done anything to get him to come for me. Every night, I pined for him. I put his shirt over a pillow and held it at night to help me sleep. I dreamed of when I could be with him again. My days were darker and duller without him. When I was having less trouble, I would spend time with my mother. She was actually listening to me when we talked and, for the first time, I felt like she understood me.Mom asked questions about Rock, his business, his family, and his friends. She was really trying to be better than she was before. I appreciated her efforts. It made me feel like she really wanted to know my mate.I talked to her about everything, including all of Rock’s achievements and everything he did for me… at least, everything that was PG rated. She loved hearing how he ordered me all of the best equipment for the office and how he was considering going paperless at work. She was growing to like Rock more and more with every new piece of information. On Friday, I was useless. The last day of heat was always atrocious. I knew that human women went through three to five days where their bodies expelled everything from baby preparations. For us, though, it was twenty-four hours of pain and suffering. I didn’t know which was really better, but I was happy when it ended.Not only did I feel mentally restored, but I felt physically better. Most of all, I was more in control of my emotions. I wasn’t moody anymore. Missing my mate made me irritable and anxious.When Saturday finally came, I felt like a caged animal waiting to be set free. Yes, I’d had time to repair my relationship with my mom and I loved having a chance to be home, but I missed Rock so much I felt like I would burst without him. Mom cooked a big breakfast and we were joined by Mike and Beth. I loved having more time with them this last week as well. I hugged him tight before heading to my room to get my things together. Beth came in while I was working and helped me pack. She wasn’t unhappy about me leaving, but she wasn’t thrilled with me and I could tell. “Your mom is still suffering right now. Having you here to take care of helped, but you’re so eager to leave…,” she said as we packed.“All pups grow up and move away, Beth. My mom knows I love her, but my home isn’t in the pack lands anymore. I’ve been away from my mate for four days.”“And hers has been gone for almost seven. She knows that you’re going to go. I just wish you would have spent a little more time with her.”“She had twenty-one years with me and didn’t try to get to know me until this week. That wasn’t on me. That was on her. This is just your ‘mom brain’ taking effect,” I said.“Maybe… I don’t know…. It doesn’t feel fair to her, but I get where you’re coming from. She didn’t do what was best for your relationship. It will take a long time to heal those wounds.”I nodded. She was right. Healing this would take a while, but we had already started.We finished packing my bag and then went out to the living room. Mike and Mom were waiting there for us. We sat with them. I was in a chair and I knew Beth would be with Mike. Over the whole time, I had been working on my magic. I made sure to spend at least an hour every night trying to build my magic in my hands and pass it through things I touched. After that, I would work on pushing my magic outside my body in order to see what was around me. It would take a while before I could get it to go very far. My magic was like a muscle that I never worked in the past. I knew it would all take time and I was willing to be patient for it. “I wish you could stay for the rest of the weekend,” my mom said. “Rock misses me. I can’t feel him, as I would have been able to if he were a werewolf, but I can feel that much. He needs me back.” “I’m sure one more day wouldn’t be too much of a strain on him. He managed most of the week. He even took a couple of days off of work.” Gemma told me about Rock’s irritability and how Forrest told her he stopped eating. She told me what Forrest told her about trolls and their need for food. Forrest and Elbio got him eating and made him stay home yesterday so he could eat more and have time in a place where he could smell me a little. Trolls were more adept at smelling blood than other scents, but I knew Rock could smell me. Trolls learned the scent of their mate and it became part of their comfort, even if they couldn’t see them. I didn’t realize he was going to start starving himself over me being gone, though. “He took time off of work because he was having trouble, Mom. Forrest told Gemma that most trolls don’t spend more than a day without their mates for the first year. This was hard for him, much harder than it was for me,” I told her. “Mom, trying to push Carmen into staying longer isn’t going to work. You need to back off and show Carmen that you’ve changed. You can reach out and talk to her on the phone from time to time and see her when she visits. If you show her you’re not the same person who tried to take her away from her mate, then Queen Maeve might reconsider letting you go to the fae lands for a visit,” Mike said. “I’m sorry. I miss having people here and I’m a little afraid of what’s going to happen to me when I’m all alone again.”“You can call Trent’s mom or Ben’s mom to hang out. They’re more than happy to come see you or go out. Beth and I can visit after work from time to time. You can come to see us in the packhouse. Your parents and siblings are more than happy to come be with you or have you over. You have options. I want to see you using them,” he replied. Without Dad there, she would probably sink further into depression. There wasn’t a lot I could do about that. They both made their own choices and I didn’t tell her to reject him. That was never a condition for me. What I really wanted was for both of them to love me enough to accept my mate.I could hear a vehicle pulling into the driveway. It sounded like Rock’s truck and I felt my entire body perk up. He was back!Standing, I went to the door and opened it. I heard the truck door open and close, then I headed into the yard. I could smell him, my mate. Within a few moments, I was off my feet. Rock had me in his arms and was nuzzling my ear with his face. He squeezed me tightly and I caressed his ear gently as his mouth eventually found mine. “I missed you so much, my little wolf,” Rock murmured between kisses. “I missed you, too. I thought about you every night and every day. All I wanted was to see you again. My Rock, my big, strong troll,” I whispered. It felt like it had been months since I last saw him. He let me down and took my hand, but he didn’t take me to the truck, instead, he took me back to the house. He stopped short of the door. I pushed my magic out to see why he stopped and my mom was standing there. “Thank you for taking my mate in this week. I know you’re healing, but giving her the chance to be here with you is a blessing to her. Carmen has wanted nothing more than to heal your relationship. I feel like this was a step forward in that,” Rock told my mom. “Oh… I appreciate that…. Carmen has been teaching me more about fae and telling me more about you. I feel like I didn’t give you as much of a chance. If Carmen had come back with a werewolf who was as accomplished as you, I would have been over the moon. I can’t just decide that you being a troll makes everything you’ve created worthless,” Mom said. “You never expected to have a troll for a son-in-law. I’m sure it was difficult to accept because of your struggle with the fae. I hope you never keep something like this from your family and your Alpha again.”“I won’t. I only did because my mate told me this wasn’t a matter the Alpha could resolve. He convinced me that our Alpha wouldn’t have an answer. Now, I wonder what Landon would have done.” “If we can have my bag, I’d like to go home,” I added. There was some movement and I heard my bag being brought out. Rock set me on my feet and accepted my bag from whoever had it. I held on to his other hand with a tight grip. “Our Alpha’s family does family dinners on Sundays, I was hoping you and Carmen might be willing to do something like that with us. Not tomorrow, of course, but perhaps next Sunday. I can invite my parents and my sister and brother’s families. You could get to know the rest of Carmen’s family. Maybe we could work out something like the Alpha family does…,” Mom suggested. “Perhaps. I don’t like the idea of having to come out here every weekend, maybe every other weekend. Since we work all week, Saturday and Sunday are the days we have entirely to ourselves. Maybe we could arrange a dinner sometime after Queen Maeve lifts her ban on you and all of you can meet my family,” Rock offered. “That sounds lovely. Are they all as… troll-like as you?” “More. They’re full trolls. My mom is seven feet tall and my brothers are both around seven and a half feet tall. I have more human-like features than they do. Half trolls usually have a middle-ground appearance between their troll side and human side. My mother said my father was about my height. I’m probably a couple of inches taller than he was,” he answered. “I won’t keep you any longer. I’m sure you want to get Carmen home and… reconnect. Will you come next Sunday for dinner?” “Carmen?” Rock asked. “I’d like that if you’re okay with it. I really want you to meet the rest of my family like you should have shortly after we were mated.” “Then we will. Text Carmen with a time. Did you want us to bring anything?” “If you want to, please do. Otherwise, don’t worry about it. I’ll make a lot of food so we can feed you properly. Drive safely,” Mom said. I let go of Rock and hugged my family before we left. Rock took me back to the truck and helped me in before settling my bag on the seat next to me. Though I was grateful for my mother taking me in, I was glad to be going home. It hadn’t been my home for very long, but it felt more like home than my mother’s house. Our home was where I felt safe and loved all the time. I never questioned myself and I was sure of everything.