“I don’t like him very much,” I say to Axel, who just laughs.
“Me either. Fucker kicked me in the chest when we met.”
“I like him even less. Can I please go see Cash now?”
“Yeah, let’s go,” he agrees.
He places a soft kiss on my forehead as he talks with the receptionist. She’s leery at first because we haven’t legally submitted forms as a bonded pack. My being married to Axel apparently doesn’t mean shit, but when Axel shows the woman the bite on my neck, she finally relents. The only caveat is that I can’t bring Axel back with me.
“I’ll be right here waitin’ for you, okay?” I take a deep breath as he cups my face. “You’re my strong, brave girl.”
It’s the push I needed. Cash needs me to be the strong one right now. He’s been the one I could always rely on when my life was going to shit, and now he needs the same from me.
I can do this.
The woman takes me to Cash’s room. When we walk in, I notice he has a massive bandage on his head and is hooked up to a few different machines. At least he seems to be peacefully asleep, there's no tension written across his face, and that’s a relief.
“He got really lucky, if the knife was just a few inches to the right, it would have been a different outcome,” she states.
Thanks a lot for putting those thoughts in my head, you fucking bitch.I must glare at her, because she slowly retreats, leaving me with my poor, broken Alpha.
I should pull up a chair and hold his hand, but I can’t help myself. I need to be as close to him as I can be. I need to feel him. I’m super cautious as I crawl into his bed, making sure I don’t interfere with any of the wires or put any weight on him, just my hand over his chest.
“You’re not allowed to scare me like this,” I tell him, knowing he won’t respond.
“I can’t lose any of you. It would break me.”
I stroke a line up and down his toned chest. I know he won’t be waking up anytime soon, but just feeling the warmth of his skin and hearing the tone of his heart monitor puts me at ease.
“I don’t think I can take much more. Life isn’t supposed to be this fucking hard,” I complain to him.
There’s still so much I don’t know about what went down with the club, but right now my focus is solely on Cash.
I rub the underside of his jaw softly. The bandage covers half of his head, and I can only imagine that the stitches cross over his tattoo.
“It’s okay, just another scar showing you survived,” I tell him softly.
I wish the rest of my pack was here, but at least I know they’re okay; Axel is in the lobby, and Tate is safe. It’s not the most ideal, but it’s something I can hang on to and ease my fears.
I fall asleep next to my Alpha’s healing body, hoping that I’ll wake up to a better set of circumstances.
My head’s throbbing,and there’s an annoying, low beeping noise in the background. My eyelids feel heavy and scratchy as I blink them open.
The bright fluorescent lights above have me slamming them shut again, but I can feel my Omega next to me, holding my hand. It’s a relief that has me wanting to open my eyes to make sure she’s real, while taking deep, even inhales of her scent.
“He’s awake,” she cheers softly.
I’m thankful it’s not too loud. My head pounds viciously, and the only reason I’m staying awake is because she’s here. I smack my dry lips together and the weight on the bed shifts. There’s a clanking of ice cubes before a straw is placed between my lips.
“You need to drink,” she says.
I hate her taking care of me like this. It should be the other way around. I should be the one supporting her right now. She’s been through so much, and I know she needs to feel more settled after her heat.
She needs me, and I’m wearing a fucking hospital gown—it’s mortifying. The itchy material rubs against my skin as I try to blink my eyes open again.
“There you are,” Lily beams, her warm eyes meeting mine.
I feel her relief through the bond. There’s still the sour taste of worry, but she’s relatively happy at this moment, as much as someone in this position can be.
