“Now for the fun part.” She grinned at him, and he frowned, making her laugh. “Oh come on, it’s not that bad.”
Cole eyed the treadmill warily.
He was in good shape, fitness-wise, but that was due to his self-defence training. He wasn’t a runner. Hated it. The only time he ran was in warm-up for karate class, never anything long distance.
This was going to suck.
Dr Meena entered the room again and eyed Amy putting the blood pressure cuff away. “All done?”
“Yes. We’re ready for the cardiovascular endurance testing.”
Cole did roll his eyes this time and couldn’t hold his tongue. “Why is all this necessary?” He waved a hand at the equipment in the room.
Dr Meena raised an eyebrow. “We do a full health check, not just the test to see if your body would be receptive to the bite.”
“But if you find anything serious, then I can just get the bite and voila!” He held his hands out. “Problem solved.”
She sighed and pushed her glasses back up on her nose a little. “That’s true. But what if you aren’t a good candidate for the bite and we find something wrong?” She paused to let that sink in. “This is an ideal opportunity to give everyone a thorough medical examination which they wouldn’t normally get, and if we find anything serious, then we can address it sooner rather than later.”
Cole hadn’t thought of it like that. She had a point, he guessed. He didn’t ask what that would mean for someone, and she didn’t offer any further explanation.
She nodded at the treadmill. “Are you ready?”
“Yes.”
“Right, we just need to check your pre-exercise heart and respiration rates, then you can start running.”
“THANK YOU, Mr Moreton, we’re all finished. You may get changed.” Dr Meena handed him his rucksack and gestured towards the screen. “The results will be posted to you a week from today.” She left with Amy close behind her, but Logan made no move to go.
When Cole looked over at him, Logan pushed off the wall and stood up straight. He was taller than Cole had first thought. Only an inch or so taller than Cole, but Cole was no shortarse. “I’d like to talk to you for a moment, if that’s okay?”
Cole wiped the sweat from his face and tried not to show how absolutely knackered he was. “About what, exactly?”
Logan stared at him, andfine, Cole knew exactly what he wanted to talk to him about. But he wasn’t about to make this easy for him. Soon Cole might not have the option of refusing pack requests; he wanted to enjoy it while he could.
“If you test positive for—”
“That’s a big if. One in four if I’m not mistaken.” Cole expected frustration or annoyance from Logan, but Logan’s expression softened a touch.
He met Cole’s gaze, grey-blue eyes searching for something, and Cole crossed his arms over his chest, suddenly feeling exposed.
Logan sighed. “You’re hoping it’s negative.”
It wasn’t a question, but Cole answered anyway. “I didn’t say that.”Fuck. Come on, Cole. Pull it together.
“No, you didn’t.” Logan ran a hand through his hair. “Look, Cole, I’ll be honest with you. There’s some promising candidates this time around. But you...” He shook his head. “You’re something else. A black belt in both taekwondo and karate. You excelled in the weapons training, second in your class on the shooting range...”
Cole had been proud to get his black belts. The feeling of accomplishment, of achieving something he’d worked so hard for, but now he started to wish it’d never happened.
“There’s a lot of interest in you,” Logan added. “Not just from my pack.” He glanced down at where his tattoo was clearly visible. “You know which pack I mean, right?”
Cole rolled his eyes. “Yes. I’m not stupid.”
Logan grinned, eyes dancing with amusement. “No, you’re definitely not stupid.”
Ugh, he probably had Cole’s college grades too. Nothing was sacred when it came to the packs. “What’s your point?”
Smile falling away, Logan took a step closer, voice barely more than a whisper. “I’m trying to warn you what’s ahead if your test shows compatibility.”
