They had just reached the landing when Ezzy came running down the hallway.
“Fran,” he said, throwing his arms around his cousin. “I can’t believe you found your mate and didn’t tell me. We could have had a planning meeting to get him to fall in love with you.”
Fran laughed and hugged him back. “Sorry, we'll keep that in reserve in case we need to do that in the future.”
Ezzy pulled away. “We will. Now let’s go and check on your mate.”
CHAPTER 14
Jacob woke up slowly and groaned, he hurt everywhere. He wondered for a moment if Cresswell had injured him more seriously than he had originally thought, but then the fight in the woods came flooding back to him. He had to wake up and protect the Beta.
He opened his eyes and sat up quickly before any of his surroundings registered, and then groaned and clutched his stomach, hunching over as pain shot through him.
“Easy, Jacob, you’re safe,” Robbie said to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. “And thanks to you, Uncle Frank is fine.”
Jacob looked at him in confusion, especially when he saw a concerned yet friendly look on Robbie’s face.
“As you came to, you said you had to protect the Beta,” Robbie told him.
“And he’s alright?”
“I promise he's fine. Shifting healed his scratches and bites. You, unfortunately, were severely injured, something which shifting alone couldn’t fix.”
Jacob looked down at his body. “I thought my stomach had fallen out,” he said, his arm still wrapped around his stomach.
“Not quite, but nearly. The gash was deep enough that shifting alone couldn’t heal itself. As you know once the stitches are in, there is no shifting until they’re removed. You need to give your body a rest too, and not drain it with another shift.”
Jacob nodded. “I need to learn not to shift anymore anyway, so I can keep practicing.” He paused and looked round. At a quick glance he saw deep blue curtains drawn across the window. There was normal bedroom furniture, plus what looked like a large seating area. The bedroom lights gave off a soft glow. “Where am I? This isn’t the lodge, or a hospital?”
“No, it’s not, young Jacob,” Berni said, walking into the room, smiling. “You are in my home, or to be more accurate, my castle.”
Fran came in behind him and rushed to Jacob’s bed. He smiled and reached for Jacob’s hand, before the smile fell off his face and he lowered his arm. “You’re awake.” Fran internally shook his head, way to go stating the obvious.
He had helped Robbie stitch Jacob up, and then been sent away to have something to eat, only just coming back now. He’d eaten as quickly as he could and rushed back. Only the fact Robbie had stayed with Jacob, well, and an order from Berni, made him leave.
Jacob nodded. “Only just,” he said, shifting around a little and wincing at the pain.
“We have shifter-grade painkillers; do you want some?” Robbie asked him.
Jacob shook his head. “No, I’ll be fine, but thank you for the offer.”
“Are you sure?” Fran asked him. “Why suffer pain when we have meds that can help?”
“I'm sure,” Jacob said before looking at Berni. “As soon as I find my things, I’ll be on my way, Alpha.”
“You really shouldn’t move for the next few days. You need total bed rest,” Robbie cautioned. “If you do too much, you could burst your stitches and put back your recovery.”
“Stay here, heal. Have Clairmont and Fran pamper you. Have you ever stayed in a castle before? I guarantee it’s fun,” Berni said, walking closer to the bed.
Jacob looked at him. “I’m a lone wolf and an outcast, why would you want me to stay?” And did Jacob really want to stay in the same place as the Alpha who destroyed his life?
“You’re no longer an outcast. I got Cresswell to rescind that.”
Jacob looked shocked. “You did? Why?”
“Well, for starters, you’re my nephew’s mate, and secondly, you did everything you could to protect my brother.”
“Those wolves wanted me, not him. I couldn’t let him get hurt because of me,” Jacob told him.
