"I wouldn't have said anything if I wasn't, Lilly. But the thought of you having to be on that medication for the rest of our lives, it saddens me. I want you to be able to have a full and happy life with us." He turned the vehicle into the driveway and slowed at the gate as it began to open. "We'll wait until Gavriel is back before we start it. He'll have to take a baseline reading on you before we start and then monitor you throughout the treatments. I will warn you, though, your senses will kick up a few notches while you're getting the blood. They'll even out and then settle back into normal after you're done. But we should also do it all before we mate. I don't know if it would be possible to do after the fact."
"How long will the blood exchanges take? I want happiness with you both, but I very much would like to be able to be rid of my disease if it is at all possible. I want a very long and very healthy life with you guys." There was a moment where he could tell she was thinking and her question made him smile. "Is Gav a medic or something, as well? Are you both total overachievers or something?"
"No, he's not a medic. But with his magic, he can read your body's electrical field and get a baseline. From there, we give you the injections and then keep an eye on the changes. We'll have to test your blood at the start before you take your medicine, after the medicine, and then after the injection of my blood." He parked in front of the house and turned toward her once the engine was off. "Depending on what all is going on in your body, what damage the disease has done, about a week, give or take a couple days of injections."
He let out a breath. "But this all depends on the tests we do initially on your blood. We need to know if your system will even accept my blood. As a Vhampire, I'm a universal donor. We all are, which is why we keep this a carefully hidden secret. Because anyone with a disease could grab one of us and use us to cure themselves. We're the reason there are so many cures. All based on our blood, of course, and the properties within it."
"Oh my," she said with a frown. "So it's possible that my blood won't even accept yours, that perhaps my disease is too much and I won't be able to take the cure that you are offering?" Which would royally suck, but they would deal with it. Somehow and some way, they would deal.
"Yes and no. But we have to be sure, little mate. I have a good feeling about it, but I also want to be absolutely sure as well. So, we will run the test and make sure it will work like I'm hoping it will. And if it does, then we begin the treatments. But there will be strict rules during it, ones you'll have to follow to the letter for best results."
"Oh really? What sort of rules?" She was leery now of what he would tell her she had to do in order to gain this gift. "Do you mean, like, not jumping your bones? If you tell me I'm no longer allowed to sleep with you, I will hit you and just live with my illness for the rest of time."
He shook his head, a small grin on his lips. "No little mate, nothing like that. You will be on a very strict diet, you will eat at very specific times, and you will sleep a certain number of hours every day. You also will not be able to deviate from the meal plan, no matter what I make you eat. And no, nothing nasty or bizarre, but some of it may be boring. You ready to put up with that for at least a week, maybe longer?"
"As long as it's nothing nasty or totally weird. Bland and boring I can do, but weird and freaky I can't." Her face instantly blushed as she realized she would do "weird and freaky," just not with food. "Sorry, that was so totally out of the blue. Yes, I will do whatever it takes in order be able to be rid of this disease so that I can have a long and happy life with you two."
"It will be relatively mild, bland, and boring. We need to control your salt, sugar, spice, butter, and other wonderful cooking elements fully. But we will grill and steam what we can. I don't want you ready to revolt after one meal, but-" He gave a shrug. "I also don't want you clueless as to what it will all entail. Now, let's go inside. We'll make dinner and wait on Gav. We still need to discuss everything with him anyway before we can even get started. And with the trouble with his mother, now may not be the time to start this."
"Is he okay?" Lilly asked softly. "I haven't heard anything from him, and I'm honestly more than a little worried for him. Is his mom okay? Are you sure that you guys have time to worry about me with his mom being as bad off as she is? Shouldn't his focus be with her?"
"Lilly." He leaned in closer. "Take a breath and let it out. Inside, please. We need to feed you, and then we will work the rest of it out." He got out of the car and came around to her side. Pulling open the door, he held out a hand to her.
Her hand moved to his easily, trustingly. "Thank you," she whispered with a smile. "All right, we will worry about the here and now. I'm sorry I just kind of wigged out a little. I'm being utterly selfish, when he's got his hands full right now. I feel terrible for that. I'm sorry."
"Don't do that, Lilly," he said. Shutting the car door, he pressed her back to the side of the vehicle. "This is your life, too, darling. You deserve to have the occasional selfish moment. Besides, you are our mate and we will pretty much cater to your every wish."
Moving to wrap her arms around his neck, Lilly pulled him closer. Pressing her cheek to the side of his neck, she rubbed her cheek to his neck and sighed. "I would do anything for you as well. Anything. I just hate thinking that I'm the reason he's not getting as much time with his mom as he deserves to have."
"Lilly." His arms came around her. "Gavriel is ancient and lived his entire life under his mother's care. Until the Veil fell, he pretty much catered to her every whim. I got him out of there when I could so he'd have a break, but he always went back. Since the Veil, he's lived on his own, relatively speaking of course, which would be the very first time."
"Are you sure?" she asked softly. "I can't and I won't come between a son and his mother. That's such an impossibly strong bond. I want to be a part of his life, I need to be a part of his life, but not if it means that he will not be able to give her the care that she needs as well." She even confused herself with her statement, and he could see it on her face.
Pressing a kiss to her cheek, Artaxias drew back. Grabbing up her hand he pulled her, gently of course, toward the house. Inside, he leaned back against the door. "Lilly, you are his mate and he is yours. Yes, there will be days that Gav needs to deal with his mother and other things at that end. But it's not all the time and, hopefully, he will figure out a way to keep her safe, keep her from annoying me, and therefore keep me from giving into the urge to kill her."
That had Lilly grinning, "And there is no way to block her from getting your frequency? Oh God, wait. What about when she meets me? Will she want to constantly contact me as well, or will I be lost to her memories on the bad days?" Not that she would mind, honestly, Lilly had never really had family, and she wanted a family, but she just didn't know how to act around them.
"Unless Gavriel has her link permanently disabled, unless it's a life-threatening emergency, then no, there's no way to block her from calling me. As to the rest, don't know. She unfortunately remembers me too much, even on her bad days. Or maybe I should say especially on her bad days. On those days, she seems to revert to an early time, but only a certain time. She then seems to think I've got Gavriel out carousing and whoring, as she so quaintly puts it. Gotta say, for such a lady when she's perfectly fine, she's got a sailor's mouth on her when she's not all there."
"Oh, that's terrible. That poor man," Lilly whispered. "Both of you, really. I'm sure that you all had amazing times when she wasn't suffering from whatever this is that is affecting her now. Bless her heart, she likely thinks that she's done something wrong or, well, I don't know. I don't know why I'm making assumptions, because they only are just that, assumptions. I can't even begin to imagine how she's feeling."
"Look, I know this is a little overwhelming, Lilly. We will go and see her when she's a little more stable and you can meet her. She can meet you and we will go from there. For now, love, take a deep breath and relax. Let's go and get you something to eat so that your blood sugar doesn't go all wonky on us. I do not want to be worrying about you as well."