He studied me carefully. His eyes narrowed, announcing in no uncertain terms that he knew I was lying. Fine. If he was determined to baby me, so be it.
"I..I think I could eat," I said softly, allowing him to wrap his arm around my waist for support. "And I could definitely use some water."
Alrick nodded, his expression tight, and led me to a chair at the small table in the kitchen. He set a cup of water down in front of me and turned away, rifling through cabinets. He pulled a myriad of ingredients from the refrigerator, and soon the small kitchen was adrift in the heavenly smell of venison hash and scrambled eggs. Once Alrick had placed two heaping plates of food on the table and sat down, I tried again.
"Th..this is delicious," I complimented him as the sweet hash all but melted in my mouth. "Thank..thank you. Now, will you p..please tell me what r..really happened?"
Alrick froze, his fork in mid-air on its way to bring a bite to his mouth, and his brow furrowed. He carefully lowered the fork and caught my eyes with his.
"Sebastian, I was telling you the truth," he said slowly, his head cocking slightly as he considered me. "You really were shot when you took down the gunman." He reached over to place one huge Alpha paw over my hand on the table. "You saved me. I owe you my life."
I looked down at his hand on mine, then back up to his eyes. There was no doubting the sincerity in his gaze.
"N..no problem," I assured him, tugging my hand free and dropping it into my lap. "Y..you can repay m..me by getting us h..home."
I scooped up another mouthful of hash even though I wasn't sure my shrunken stomach could take anymore. It gave me something to do with my hands as I pretended not to see the uneasiness on Alrick's face. He watched me for several minutes while I pushed the food around on my plate before seemingly coming to an agreement with himself and turning his attention back to his food.
"I'm going to shower," I decided aloud, pushing my plate back. "I'll be out in a few minutes."
The Alpha opened his mouth like he was going to argue but snapped it closed and looked away.
"Be careful." Alrick didn't look up from his food as I stood. "You haven't been awake very long."
"Y..yes, Al.." I caught myself before I called himAlphaagain. "I will."
I stood in front of the full-length bathroom mirror, taking in my smaller-than-usual form and my eyes lit on the bandage. Crap.
"Hey, Alrick?" I called through the closed door, knowing that he was listening for any sound that would suggest I needed help. "Can..can I get this bandage wet?"
"Just peel it off," his deep voice answered immediately, confirming my suspicion. "The wound should be starting to close."
I peeled back the tape holding the terrycloth patch in place, thankful that I didn't have a hairy chest like my Alpha –theAlpha – did. The foul smelling sticky poultice was irritating enough without having to tear out clumps of body hair.
"Ugg," I snorted under my breath, wiping at the mess with a wet washcloth. "Whatisthis?"
"Mostly honey with a few herbs," Alrick's voice came through the door.
I jumped, not expecting Alrick's response.
"Can I take a look at it?"
I sighed and pulled the door open instead of answering. Sure enough, the werewolf was mere inches from the door. I stepped back to allow him in. Alrick took the washcloth, rewetting it with hot water and proceeded to wipe the mess off. I flinched at first and then realized he hadn't hurt me, his touch was sure and gentle as he cleaned the wound.
"It looks good," he said, his voice gruff. "The edges are knitting together. By tomorrow, you probably won't even be able to feel it."
I nodded, fighting the urge to cover my naked body. It wasn't as if it was anything he hadn't already seen….and felt, I reminded myself, remembering the way his hot flesh had been wrapped around me when I woke. He continued to stroke the skin around my wound with one finger, and his eyes took on the familiar predatory fix I was used to seeing when he watched me; the look that Spence had teased me about.
"I..I'm gonna.." I trailed off, nodding toward the shower.
"Oh, yeah." Alrick nodded, his long legs taking him from the room in two steps and leaving me to shower in private.
Chapter Eight
Alrick
As long as Sebastian had lain unconscious, I'd been able to maintain perfect control over my body. My every touch had been designed to aid in his healing. Even when I'd held his naked body against me, I'd focused solely on providing the Alpha touch that would aid his healing, nothing else. Not that I'm bragging. What kind of sick fiend would I be if I had used those lonely hours to take advantage of an injured Omega? But now that he was back on his feet? His sweet little mouth back to sassing me? I was right back to fighting my body's nearly overwhelming need to claim him. And unlike our time in the dragon's castle, it was just the two of us. No one else to interact with. No other scents to drown Sebastian's out. Nothing to distract me from the incessant itch under my skin, the humming in my blood, the biological drive so strong that it had long since surpassedwantand, skipping desire entirely, evolved directly intoneed.
As soon as I confirmed that Sebastian’s wound had closed, that our Omega was healthy enough for me to claim, my wolf had demanded to do so. Leaving Sebastian to his shower, I barely made it out of the small bathroom without shoving him up against the cold tile wall and giving in to my baser instincts. I pulled the door closed behind me as my control finally snapped. My blood rushed south, my cock rearing up as my inner beast fought for freedom, desperate to breed our chosen mate.
