Chapter Twelve — Fever Dream

“Joseph!”

Her piercing scream shot through his entire body. He was up on his feet within a heartbeat. The adrenalin numbed the pain in his knee as he sprinted into the bedroom. Moose stood over Maria who writhed in her bed with a layer of sweat covering her face and the smell of distress and a certain sweetness in the air.

“Maria, I am here.” He limped over to the bed and hesitated touching her. The last thing he wanted was to scare her when she already had a nightmare.

“Joseph!” she screamed again, desperate panic in her voice that tore right through his chest. He immediately touched her arm, gently shaking to wake her up. As soon as he made contact with her skin though, he felt her high temperature and placed his free hand over her forehead. She was burning hot.

Worry contorted his face. He knew this was going to happen. She should have listened and put on thicker layers whenever she had left the house even for a minute. Now she was feverish and he had no idea how to help her.

“Sweat it out,” he whispered, remembering the old pearls of wisdom from his childhood days he had almost forgotten by now. She needed more blankets.

When he moved to get his wool blanket from the living room and took his hand from her forehead, Maria let out the most heart-wrenching cry.

“I’m here, Omega,” he whispered, slipping into the unfamiliarity of a purr at the last syllable. “I’ll be right back I promise.”

She sighed heavily, a drop of sweat ran down her temple.

As quickly as he could, Joseph hurried into the living room and got the blanket. She would need liquids as well, so he also got a fresh bottle of water from the pantry and returned to Maria. Quietly whimpering, she had burrowed her face into his side of the bed and clasped onto the sheets until her knuckles turned white.

“I’m here,” he purred now with full intention. Her death grip loosened and he sighed a little relieved breath. Joseph sat down on the edge of the bed and immediately noticed her inching closer, seeking his body like a missile. Maria’s brows were furrowed, her lips slightly open to let out the puffs of hot air that seemed to burn her further on the inside, while her face glistened in the dim lighting emanating from the fireplace. What did he do? What could he do?

Joseph was clueless, never really the most caring type to begin with, and yet with Maria it seemed so much easier and harder at the same time. Alma could help him. His sister had two boys and children always had runny noses or a cough. She would know what to do.

He stood up and immediately Maria let out another whimper.

Joseph bit his tongue and fought against the need to stay and comfort her. He needed to get his phone and call his sister for advice. Again, ignoring the pain in his knee, he made his way back into the living room where his mobile still lay on the coffee table and dialed Alma’s number while hurrying back to his Omega.

“Alma Magnus, what can I do for you, stranger?” she said with a smile in her voice. Of course, even by answering the phone she had to give him a little punch for not calling her enough… at least in her opinion. But Joseph had no time for her passive aggressiveness right now.

“I need your help, Alma.”

His sister’s playful tone changed within a heartbeat. “What’s wrong, Joe? Is your leg getting worse? Do you need me to come up?”

“Streets aren’t clear yet. And I’m not calling for myself. I’ll tell you everything later, but how do you reduce a fever?”

“Do you have a fever?”

“No,” he said annoyed, “why is that important?”

“Because I need to know if you are lying about your leg, dumbass.”

His irritation returned to his scent and he stopped in front of the bedroom door. He didn’t need to bother Maria with his uneasy scent in addition to her fever.

“No, I have an Omega here. She—”

“An Omega?” Alma interrupted him with an incredulous snort.

“Stop interrupting me!” he growled and earned himself a truly distressed cry from Maria, thrashing under the covers and fighting to get further away from him, her face contorted in terror and pain.

“I found her on the first day of the storm. Everything was fine until an hour ago. Now she is covered in sweat, burning to the touch, and seems to be having nightmares. What do I do to lower the fever?”

“Well, when Charlie had a fever last year, he had to stay in bed and take some temperature lowering meds. Other than that, cold baths and a cold compress around his legs also helped. Who is she, Joe?”

“I’ll tell you later, okay? Thank you, Alma.” Before she had a chance to reply or ask more questions he didn’t have time for right now, he hung up and turned around to prepare a bunch of compresses. He dumped a stack of towels into his sink and soaked them in ice-cold water. This would definitely cool her down. Joseph decided he wanted to leave the cold bath as a last resort if all else failed.

Maria moved closer to him again once she sensed him back in the room with her. Her eyes opened only a slit, a glassy expression in them as she looked up at him.

“I’m here, Maria,” he repeated and another sigh of what he hoped was relief escaped her parted, dry lips. She needed water. Through the heavy sweat she’d lost way too much.

He carefully peeled the damp blankets from around her and swallowed thickly when he began removing her sweatpants. The cold compresses needed to have full body contact. Any other day she would have jumped two yards into the air if he’d tried to undress her, but she subconsciously helped him by lifting her full hips for him to pull the thick material down over her butt.

Joseph had to be dead not to react to her intoxicating scent and the sight of the beautiful Omega in her underwear, but he stayed focused. She had not survived this fucking asshole of a husband to die from a fever in the middle of nowhere.

“Joseph,” he heard above him. Maria looked at him from under her heavy lids, a little clearer. She lifted her hands to touch his face, her fingertips tracing his features as if she couldn’t believe he was real. When her fingers reached his lips, he tasted the salt from her sweat on them. He wanted to kiss them, to hold them close and suck in her scent strongest on her wrists.

She let out another sigh and her hands landed on the mattress, too weak to keep them suspended mid-air. The next sound she made pulled Joseph back into the present. It was a troubled mewl. She scrunched up her face and her scent turned panicked again.

“No, stop,” she whimpered. “Chad… no.”

So not only a fever, but also nightmares. Joseph tried purring at her again. Relieved, he saw her features relax at the primal sound and her restlessness ceasing slowly until she was motionless again. By now the towels were soaked through. Joseph continued purring while he limped into the bathroom, turned off the tap, and squeezed the excess water from the towels.

Careful as can be, he wrapped her lower legs into the compresses and checked on her temperature once again by placing his hand on her forehead. Still burning like embers, he thought and his eyes drifted down to her dry lips again. She needed water. He snaked one hand around the back of her neck and propped her up a little before he placed the bottle of water onto her lips. She furrowed her brows again and turned her head to the side until her face was buried in his chest.

All right, he would try again a little later. Maria’s hand came up and clutched onto his sweater, pulling on it as if she was afraid he would leave again. He had no intention of leaving her when she needed him like this. Joseph groaned at the awkward sitting position and thought for a moment before he gently placed her down on the bed again and pushed her back onto “her” side of the bed to make enough space for himself. He checked on the temperature of the compresses, making sure they were still cooler than her skin before laying back.

Maria let out a deep breath and snuggled into his chest. She was again tucked perfectly underneath his chin with his arms wrapped around her tightly. Shivering, she mewled a few unintelligible words, but she didn’t sound troubled anymore. Maybe his scent helped with her nightmares, maybe his purr did the trick. One way or another, she needed him.

Maria shivered underneath her blankets even more, the longer he left the cold compresses on her. Every once in a while he checked to make sure they were still effective, but all in all, Joseph mostly held her close to his chest. He quickly realized she would get worse if he tried to put physical distance between them. Her small hands clutched to his shirt, holding him tightly as if, even buried deep underneath her fever, she needed this to keep herself grounded.

Joseph did his best to calm her down with his purrs and his warm hands rubbing over her sweat-soaked back. Her whimpers and whines spurred him on to do more, purr deeper, gather more of the bedding around her in the sad imitation of a nest. It seemed to work except for when she slid into another nightmare. Her scent was the first sign, turning sour and biting in his nose.

After he managed to calm her down from a particularly bad nightmare, judging by her violent reaction as she balled her tiny fists and even kicked underneath the covers, barely missing his knee once, he felt her forehead once more. Again, her temperature seemed to rise. It had also been over twelve hours since he had seen her eat. She needed water and something to keep her strength up. With no better idea, he peeled himself out of the sweat-drenched bed and limped into the kitchen to quickly prepare some instant chicken broth for her.

Joseph could hear her mewling from the kitchen. He had to hold onto the edge of the counter to keep himself from running back to her. Broth and water, he reminded himself. She needed that more than his closeness right now. After he managed to get some of that inside her, he would go back to holding her.

His nose suddenly picked up her sweetness, much closer than before. When he turned around and faced the door to the hallway, Maria stood there. She needed to steady herself with one hand on the doorframe, while her body shook. Joseph had never seen the look she gave him right now. He needed to swallow as his eyes followed the curve of her breasts underneath his sweater toward the hem that, slightly askew, barely hid the junction between her soft thighs. The faint stretch marks she had shimmered silver in the cool evening light that shined in through the windows.

“Alpha,” was all she could utter before she hurried over to him and crashed into his open arms. Within an instant, her arms were around him, her hands busy roaming over his muscled back while she rubbed her face against his chest as if to make sure that his scent was all over her. If he didn’t know better, he would assume that Maria was in heat, but that little extra bit of arousal was still missing from her scent right now.

“I’m here,” he whispered deeply and pressed his lips to the top of her head. He had no idea why, but it seemed like this was the only thing that mattered right now. He was here and he would take care of her. Maria wound her arms around his neck and pulled him down slightly to bury her nose in the crook of his neck.

“Not Chad,” she whispered hoarsely. “Safe.”

“Yes, Maria, you are safe here.” Right after he said those words the kettle on the stove gave its characteristic high-pitched whistling sound and ended the strange moment between them. Maria didn’t want to let go of him, but Joseph needed both hands to handle the hot pot.

“No!” she screamed, anger and a hint of panic tinting her sweet scent.

“Yes, you need something warm to drink.” He caught her around her wrists when she wanted to wrap her arms back around him, mindful not to hurt her. “Go back to bed and wait there for me.”

She let out another little whimper, giving him a pleading look, but he needed to stay firm this time. As much as he wanted to carry her there himself, tuck her in and build a whole blanket fort around her, his main objective right now was getting her healthy again and that included getting her something to eat. Maria turned around just before he could lose his resolve and right after he saw her lower lip quiver. She hurried into her nest and burrowed herself deeply into the layers of blankets. That’s at least where he found her sound asleep again only two minutes later.

Joseph let out a sigh. She looked more peaceful than before, but she still needed to eat something.

“Wake up, Maria,” he whispered softly and saw Moose wag his tail by the foot of the bed. He nodded for the dog to get into action like he knew he was dying to. Usually he would not subject someone sick to Moose’s often overwhelming love, but Maria loved him just as much from what he could tell. Surely, it would do no harm.

Moose sniffed and began seeking for her underneath the covers until he found her. Maria let out a squeak and a giggle. Her hands came up from under the blanket to pull it away slightly. As soon as she saw Joseph by the side of the bed though, her smile faded. She gave him a frown and pulled the blankets over her head again.

“Are you angry at me?” he asked with a little laugh. “Come on, Maria. I don’t know what’s wrong with you, but you need to eat something.” She didn’t move.

“Maria, now. You haven't eaten since last night. That’s almost twenty-four hours.”

Still, nothing.

Joseph placed the bowl with the chicken broth onto his bedside table and gently placed a hand to where he guessed her shoulder should be.

“I’m sorry, I yelled at you. Can we please be friends again?” he asked in a half-hearted attempt to make up with her. “I promise, I won’t do it again.”

Suddenly, there was movement and her hand appeared from underneath her soft shell, her pinkie extended in a way that could only mean one thing. With a smirk, Joseph hooked his little finger around hers and nodded.

“I swear.”

Only then, Maria returned to the headboard and brushed her knotted and still sweaty hair out of her face. She sat up and held out her hands for the bowl. It felt a little like tending to a stubborn child and with that in mind, he mentally apologized to his mother for giving her such a hard time as a kid.

Maria didn’t say another word. She ate and after the bowl was empty, she slipped back into a fitful sleep, turning from side to side, distress heavy in her scent and burning in his lungs once again. He crawled underneath the covers by her side and held her close.

She shivered but her skin was again burning hot. Pained whispers and whimpers escaped her lips. He wanted to calm her, but when he began purring, she suddenly let out a scream. Joseph pulled his arms off her and looked down into the frightful grimace she made in her sleep.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered over and over again, tears rushing down her flushed cheeks and soaking into the pillow underneath her. Joseph tried to purr for her, softly in case whatever she was dreaming ended up getting worse because of his attempts at comforting her. It seemed to work though. After a couple of minutes, she fell asleep again and managed to rest for a few hours. Only when Joseph had to get up to put another log on the fire or let Moose out for his evening business, she stirred, not waking though.

When she had slept for hours, Joseph turned tired as well. He fought against his tiredness. If she had managed to get up while he had been in the kitchen, she could also wander outside into the cold if he didn’t stay alert. In the end he lost his battle and slipped into a deep slumber. His only comforting thought that Moose would hopefully wake him if Maria did something stupid.

***

When he woke up the next morning, nothing had changed. Maria was still in the throes of a fever, whispering nonsense and whimpering when he tried to leave the nest she had somehow managed to wrap around him too. It nearly broke his heart when he had to misplace a pillow in order to get out of bed. He quickly fixed them a small breakfast, even finding some herbal tea in the darkest corner of his pantry to give to Maria. When he returned to the bedroom, she sat upright, looking confused and tired despite having slept the better part of yesterday.

“How do you feel?” he inquired and placed the cup of tea on the bedside table.

She didn’t answer, only crawled toward him until she could press her cheek against the center of his chest. His hope that her weird feverish state of mind had passed was quickly destroyed by the almost inaudible “Alpha” she whispered when she wrapped her thin arms around his middle.

The second day of her fever played out much like the first one and Joseph had a new worry. How long was she going to be like this? He couldn’t stay in bed all day, as much as he wanted to. As much as standing for too long was like poison for his knee, so was lying down too much.

On the morning of day three, Joseph checked her forehead for her temperature and groaned with closed eyes when she was just as hot as the days prior. When he opened them again, he found her beautiful blue eyes staring up at him. Something in her scent shifted, only slightly but it had a big impact on him.

Despite himself, he got hard. He needed to get out of bed and take a cold shower before his brain could shut off and he let his instinct take over. Maria seemed to feel his resistance and held onto him only tighter. She shuffled closer, trapping his hardness between their bodies, before she leaned up and Joseph watched like a deer in the headlights how her eyes flicked from his down to his lips and back up again. It was like she silently asked for his consent. She had her answer when Joseph gave in. He pulled her to his body tightly, closed his eyes and kissed her.

Maria’s fingers weaved through his curly graying hair, moaned against his lips and intertwined their legs underneath the mountain of blankets they lay under. She tasted sweet and salty. Joseph moaned against her lips, losing himself in the feeling of her bosom pressed against his hard chest, her mouth moving against his, and her soft moans sounding like music to his ears.

He wanted more. More moans, more kisses, more contact. When he turned them slightly so she was lying on her back and him covering her body with his, the piercing pain coming from his knee brought him back to his senses.

He had kissed her.

She wasn’t his to kiss.

She was not herself right now.

He needed to stop this.

Now.

Joseph pushed himself up on the bed and rolled to the side, ignoring her unhappy cry that tore right through his heart. He didn’t look back on his way straight into the bathroom and under a cold shower.

What the hell had gotten into him? Thankfully the freezing cold water cleared his mind quickly as his member shrank back to its relaxed state and the lingering scent of her arousal that clung to his skin washed down the drain. He could still feel her fingers run through his hair and it took him a while to remember when he had last felt the way he had just done.

Years, almost a decade if he was honest, but it couldn't happen again. He couldn’t misuse the trust she put into him to allow his lower instincts to indulge in her softness. When he started shivering from the cold shower and his knee screamed for him to get out and give it some rest, he turned off the water. Stepping out of the shower, he almost expected her to standing in the doorway and come crashing back into his arms or give him another teary glance before she would hide away in her nest again, but she was nowhere to be seen. Only when Joseph returned into the hallway and looked into the bedroom, he saw her.

Maria lay sprawled over his side of the bed, his pillow in a tight hug while she seemed to be sound asleep. A weird mixture of relief and hurt pride raked through him, the relief definitely being the stronger of the two emotions. If she was asleep so quickly after almost getting violated by him, she would hopefully think it had just been one of her dreams. Like this, he wouldn’t have to explain his behavior when he couldn’t understand it fully himself yet.

She wasn’t his. It simply couldn’t be.