It's so cool that so many of you are continuing to read this book. <3

Test Drive- Joji

𝖆𝖚𝖌𝖚𝖘𝖙

After several more chick flicks, which Heaven effortlessly convinced me to watch, it was well past midnight, and Heaven once again fell asleep against my shoulder.

Grabbing the remote, I quickly shut off the tv, which had currently been playing The Notebook.

I scooped Heaven bridal style into my arms, smiling as she snuggled closer to my chest.

She let out an adorable sigh, settling quietly into my arms.

I carried her up to her room, careful not to move around too much so as not to wake her up.

Laying her down gently under the covers, I tucked the blankets back around her.

I leaned down swiftly, placing a kiss softly onto her forehead.

Giving on last glance over my shoulder, I made my way out of her room and down the hall to mine.

I quickly took off my shirt and pants, changing into a pair of black joggers.

I then settled into my own bed, but no matter how much I tried, I couldn't get comfortable.

I need Heaven next to me.

But I knew that she wasn't ready. I had to keep reminding myself that she was human, and humans often have to go through a process of getting to know each other before going into a relationship.

So, I would respect her boundaries, and slowly get to know her at the pace that she wants.

But I'm not saying that it doesn't kill me to take it slow. This wasn't usually how werewolf mates acted. Often times, mates would've been marked and mated by this point.

But I'd be willing to do anything for Heaven, even if it meant holding back my instincts.

After a while longer of restlessly rolling around in my bed, unable to fall asleep, I nearly give up on sleeping altogether.

Just as I was about to get out of my bed, a quiet knock sounded from my door.

"Come in!" I call out lightly, curious as to who could be at my door at this time.

The door creaked open slowly, and the scent of lavender and fresh rain washed through my room.

"Heaven?" I asked, immediately sitting up straighter in my bed.

Her small frame stood in the doorway, playing awkwardly with the sleeves of her shirt.

"I'm sorry for waking you," she whispered quietly, "I can go back to my room if you want."

"No," I said, almost too excitedly, "You didn't wake me up. But what are you doing up, anyways?"

"I woke up and you weren't next to me anymore," she said, glancing shyly at the floor, trying to hide the faint blush that was beginning to spread across her freckles cheeks, "And I couldn't fall back asleep."

I could tell that she was embarrassed about coming to me. She didn't understand the rapid feelings that had been progressing since the day we first met each other.

But the mate bond was strong, and it was beginning to show even bigger effects on her.

I stood up, making my way over to my dresser, where I grabbed a large, long sleeved shirt out.

Walking back over to Heaven, I handed her the shirt.

"You can stay here if you'd like, but you might want to change into something more comfortable," I said, gesturing to the outfit that Heaven had been wearing all day.

I turned around to give her privacy while she changed, no matter how much effort it took to not look back.

"Okay," She said, "You can turn around now."

I turned back to face her, and I nearly drooled.

Heaven stood there, in nothing but my t-shirt that hung loosely off her, falling nearly to her knees. She played with the sleeves, occasionally glancing up to my face.

"Come here," I growled out, trying to contain my animalistic side at the sight of her.

Heaven hesitantly closed the small distance between us, and I wasted no time in pulling her into my chest.

Lifting her up, I carried her over to my bed and sat her down lightly. I crawled in beside her, wrapping my arms around her waist as I sat against the headboard beside her.

Heaven settled snugly into my embrace, letting out a cute yawn.

"So," I spoke, "What woke you up in the first place?"

"Well," Heaven responded uncertainly, "I've never slept very well in the first place, but I've been getting nightmares for quite awhile. They wake me up a lot."

My face scrunched up in concern at her words.

"What do you get nightmares about?"

I was genuinely curious about what Heaven was saying.

What could she be having nightmares about that keep her from sleeping?

"Uhm," she hesitated, "I've never really talked about it before. Well, I've never really actually had anyone to talk to about it."

"You can tell me anything," I said, "But I'm not forcing you. You don't have to do anything you're not comfortable with."

"No," she shook her head lightly, "I want to tell you."

I nodded my head for her to continue.

"I came from a pretty loving family," She began, and I listened intently, "Well, my mom was never the most affectionate person ever, but my dad was. My dad and I were like best friends, we loved each other more than anything. Three years ago, we got into a car accident."

She choked on her last words, barely getting them out.

I rubbed her back affectionately, waiting patiently for her to continue.

"My dad didn't make it," she sobbed.

"I'm so sorry Heaven," I mumbled, combing my fingers soothingly through her hair.

"I always knew that my mother wasn't really all that warm and fuzzy, but after my dad died, she just got worse. She went out more, leaving me alone for days on end. She lost more jobs than I can count, and left me to fend for myself. But I think that the worst was when she was actually home. When she was home, she'd never stop screaming at me, blaming me for my father's death, always telling me that it was all my fault."

I couldn't help the growl that left my lips at the thought of Heaven's mother.

What kind of person does that to their child?

"Losing my father was hard enough," She choked out, doing her best to keep the stinging tears at bay, "but when he died, I lost my mom too."

"But I grew used to it," Heaven continued on, "I eventually became numb to it all. I stopped crying all the time, stopped trying to defend myself when she blamed me, and I stopped trying to be the perfect daughter. And soon, this rage was always building up in me, and the only way to let it out was physically. I started getting into fights at school, dissociating myself from my friends, and eventually I just became a shell of who I used to be."

I pulled Heaven impossibly close to me, wanting to take all of her pain away.

I could feel my heart slowly breaking for her as she finished up her story.

"You shouldn't have had to go through all of that." I whispered, resting my forehead affectionately against hers.

"Yeah, but you know the good thing?" She whispered back, "If none of that happened, I might have never met you."

A small yawn escaped her lips, and I leaned in to quickly peck them.

"Come on, lets go to sleep," I said, pulling her down to lay next to me, "I promise you'll feel better in the morning."

She nodded, snuggling closer into my embrace.

Soon, her soft breaths evened out, tickling my neck with each sigh.

Not long after, I fell asleep to the soothing sound of my mate's heartbeat.