“Stop fretting,” Sienna said.“It’s important to eat and rest.”
“But I don’t remember—”
“You hit your head.”She bit her lip, hesitating at his bedside.“We were mucking around, and you tripped.”
“On what?”Did that cause his epic hangover?This woman was his mate, right?But why did her voice catch when she saidtripped?And why did she avoid his gaze?
When he’d eavesdropped on their conversation, Tamsin and Sienna had sounded worried, but he didn’t recognize them.Why didn’t they seem familiar?He’d struck his head, but would a skull knock blank his mind?
Liam didn’t know.But this went beyond ordinary weakness—the pain was unlike anything he’d experienced.Normally, his feline form would have kicked in by now, its rapid healing magic already knitting bone and flesh.But there was nothing.His cat wasn’t responding.The truth, cold and sharp, swirled in his mind, tightening the vise around his head.
Cautiously, he prodded the most tender spot and winced, a raw gasp torn from his throat from the stabbing spike.
“Eat your soup while it’s hot,” Sienna said, but she watched him closely.Not concern, but calculation?“I want my mate to eat, rest, and, more importantly, recover as fast as possible.Can you hold the bowl on your own, or would you like me to feed you?”
“I can do it.”His limbs refused to cooperate, shaking so hard the soup sloshed over the bowl’s edge.
“Accept her help,” Tamsin said.“That’s what mates do.”
Mates.He shook his head but stopped when burning seared his brain.Something felt off, but Tamsin was right—he had to eat.
Sienna dipped the spoon into the soup, held it to his mouth, and waited patiently for him to open.
Liam wanted to scowl, but he needed help.He swallowed the soup.It was thin but flavorful, and he didn’t take long to polish off the bowl.
“Let me get you more tablets.Given how you keep grimacing, it’s obvious your head is giving you trouble,” Sienna said.
“Yes.I can’t remember—”
“Don’t worry.It’s more important for you to rest and recover your strength.”
“I need the bathroom.”
“Of course.Let me help you up.”Sienna slipped an arm around his waist as he swayed.Outside, she led him to a small wooden structure.An outhouse.He stared at the privy, something nagging at the back of his mind, but the thought slipped away before he could grasp it.
His eyes squeezed shut against the sudden brightness.He should remember, shouldn’t he?Without warning, his stomach roiled, and he lurched toward the door.Tamsin, quick as a flash, opened it, but he barely made it inside before he vomited.
“Easy there,” Sienna said, her voice surprisingly gentle, considering the brusque way she’d spoken earlier.
“Who are you?”he asked, the question raw.She couldn’t be his mate.Every instinct screamed it, despite his confusion.
“You don’t remember?”
There was a strange note in her voice—shock?Worry?Or caution?He couldn’t trust his instincts, which insisted he run, yet offered no reason why.His feline was silent, his usual anchor to reality severed.This wasn’t a physical weakness.It was a deeper, more insidious drain.
“Now, I’m truly worried,” she said.“I wish we had the money to call a doctor, but they charge so much for house calls.”
Truth, he decided, logic breaking through the haze.
“Liam, we haven’t known each other long.”She met his gaze, her brown eyes full of anxiety.“We were still learning about each other.”
“You have an accent.”
“So do you,” she fired back.
“Where am I from?”Because try as he might, he couldn’t imagine a place he called home.
“Filling in the gaps isn’t a good idea.But…Australia.”
