Apollo nodded. “Right. Lachlan had to carry you inside, and I didn’t like it.”
“Which part? Me needing to be carried or Lachlan being the one to carry me?”
“Take your pick,” Apollo muttered. “Stupid Lachlan and his face and muscles all heroic and shit.”
Bridget giggled. “Are you okay?”
“He’s fine. He’s just got a severe case of yearning.”
Apollo groaned. “Don’t be dicks. I’m doing my best.”
Bas really hoped that was going to be enough to see Apollo through because when they pulled into the parking lot next to the Ironwood SUV, Lachlan got out with Reeve and Charlotte.He was wearing dark jeans and a black button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up.
“Oh god, why is he wearing a shirt that tight? And forearm porn? It’s not even mid-day. Is he hoping to pick up a ward of nurses?” Apollo complained.
Bas couldn’t resist patting him on the shoulder. “What did you call that look on me the other night? Respectable but slutty?”
Bridget chuckled. “Perfect description, and for the record, that look? It worked.”
“It always works,” Apollo grumbled darkly and got out of the car.
Bas couldn’t help but notice his brother had dressed in respectable tweed. He only played with those kinds of outfits when he wanted to blend in with academia, which wasn’t often.
Reeve caught Bas up in a tight hug as soon as he got close enough. “I should kick your ass for pulling that stunt yesterday.”
Bas ruffled his already messy hair. “It’s okay, baby bro. I had good backup. Reeve, Charlotte, this is Bridget. She’s my…” he fumbled, trying to find the right word. “Ah, my Bridget.”
“Your Bridget? Very eloquent, Basset,” Charlotte said primly, but she still smiled warmly at them. “It’s nice to meet you, Bridget. Apollo tells me that this creature we are hunting has you in its sights.”
“It does, and I think I have figured out what it is. Have you heard of a Brollachan? They are Scottish,” Bridget said.
“No! How interesting. Tell me about it,” Charlotte replied, leading Bridget towards the hospital entrance.
Bas watched them wander off together, already chatting away about what Bridget had discovered and her own experiences with it.
“She’s cute,” Reeve said slyly.
“She’s my mate, and I can’t tell her just yet, and neither can you and when I look at her, everything goes haywire in my head,” Bas blurted out in a low whisper. “Val told her we are dragons because he doesn’t know how to shut up, and I don’t know what to do because all I want to do is protect her and never let her out of my sight again.”
Reeve laughed and hugged him. “You’re a bit fucked from the sounds of things.”
“That’s what I told him,” Apollo said. “You should see them together, Reeve. It’s sickening. I thought she was going to fight us all yesterday when he got hurt.”
“It was rather sweet when she threatened to ‘rip my fucking face off’ if I went anywhere near him,” Lachlan added.
Apollo’s eyes narrowed. “She did what now?”
“She got over it,” Lachlan said with a shrug.
“We had best follow them before they leave us behind altogether,” Reeve interrupted, and they all started moving towards the big glass doors.
Bas was surprised when Apollo didn’t make some excuse to leave, but maybe the lure of messing about in a research hospital was enough to get him past his need to run in the opposite direction whenever Lachie was around. Or maybe he didn’t want anyone getting close enough to hit on him. With Apollo, it was anyone’s guess.
Bas took a deep breath, locked his mental shields down tight, and hurried to catch Bridget and Charlotte.
24
Bridget had heard of how smooth life could be when you knew the right people, but she had never experienced it for herself in real life until that moment. Charlotte gave her name to the receptionist, and all the staff around them seemed to sit up a little straighter.
