“I should be.” But his appetite was dull. Eating seemed like too much trouble.
April’s face clouded, and worry layered her scent. “Do you think you could eat anyway? Aaron wants you to have as much protein as you can stand in the next few days, to help rebuild your strength.”
Never in his life had Malachi not wanted to eat. No doubt Aaron was right. Maybe if he ate something, he’d realize he was hungry. Kelsey had once said that happened to her sometimes when she was fixated on the layouts and reels and endless social posts that made up her day job.
“I’ll try a little later,” he said.
Getting up required effort, and April noticed. He favored his aching leg as little as possible. His body seemed to trudge through quicksand, and he wanted to howl with frustration. Twenty-two more days of this.
“Malachi?”
“I’m all right.” He tugged her hand, and she followed him out of the room, but her scent remained laced with worry.
He looked around the extended living room of Rhett’s cabin—which was rather over-sized, not only for a single wolf but even for a family—and noted each person present. The pups were out of sight, but he could smell their bright child-essences from a few rooms away, securely sleeping. On one of the sectionals, Ember slept on her side, one arm slung over the pup she carried, a throw pillow between her knees. Aaron sat at her feet, reading some paperback with a cracked spine and decimated covers. Not one of his own, then. Must belong to Rhett.
The rest of the adults sat around in small groups on couches or around a card table, some quietly lively game in progress. Several of them looked up when he entered, smiled at him, studied him. Their care for him scented the room with a subtle herby flavor, and he nodded his thanks, his throat suddenly tight.
April squeezed his arm. “I’m going to hover, just FYI.”
Strangely, he didn’t mind. Fifteen hours of sleep, a clear head at last, yet his feelings were a pitching sea. He longed to keep his mate near enough to touch.
“Don’t worry about me,” he said.
“I’m working on it,” April said.
Then she stepped in close and wrapped one arm around his waist. With the other hand, she gently pressed his chest over his heart, one of the only places his torso didn’t bear a scar. It was intimate somehow, a reassurance. She stayed at his side until Aaron set aside the tattered book and beckoned to him.
“I’ll let you two talk,” April whispered, then moved across the room.
Malachi sighed. He didn’t need to sit. He’d been standing for less than five minutes after sleeping for fifteen hours. But…well, he didn’tmindsitting. He crossed the room and sank down next to Aaron, careful not to jar the couch and wake Ember.
“We’re maintaining a guarded perimeter?” Malachi said. “Patrick and Nathan, Arlo and Corbin.” Every other wolf’s scent was easy to pick out in the house, along with the unmistakable feline odor of Flannery seeping from under the couch.
Aaron nodded. “Nobody alone, and a distance far enough to smell them long before they’re within shooting range of Rhett’s place. Per his direction we’re now on four-hour watches and changing out two at a time every two hours. That way there’s no fourth hour with all four wolves potentially distracted by hunger or whatever.”
“Good.” He looked around the room, and calm settled over him at the sight of his pack together and safe. “No one went home.”
Aaron shrugged. “We weren’t sure how you’d feel when you woke up. Didn’t want to worry you.”
Malachi flinched. They had stayed for a full day because of his weakness.
“Also,” Aaron said, drawing the word out as if in response to Malachi’s reaction, “you told me you wanted the pack to stay close to the safe room for a day. Not like it was a council decision or anything, but I took it to Rhett and Arlo, and the three of us agreed it made sense from a security perspective too.”
He nodded. He did remember saying that. Another thing he remembered—Aaron’s raw scent from this morning. Would he mind having this discussion in front of the others? Malachi guessed not. The wolves would overhear, but they had heard and smelled the entire ordeal, and they knew Aaron.
“I remember what you did for me.”
Aaron nodded. His scent held genuine peace about the topic. He rumbled a quiet laugh when Malachi raised his eyebrows. “It’s not that I skipped the self-berating part. It’s just that your mate got to me before you did.”
“Oh?”
“She was very insistent that webothsaved your life, and…yeah, it’s true. I did my best for you, Mal. Ultimately you needed April there, but you needed a good medic too, especially considering how long you held your wolf back.”
From within Malachi’s body came the heave and thrash, as though his human form were a cage his wolf would no longer tolerate. He stiffened, did not allow his body to flinch though the wolf tried to push him off the couch onto all fours. He shut his eyes.Enough.The conflict lessened but didn’t end. Never had his wolf flaunted such strength from inside him. He felt it as a massive pressure in his body, a squeezing from inside out. He let out another silent roar.SUBMIT NOW.
The pressure lifted. He drew a long breath and opened his eyes.
Every wolf in the room sat motionless, his head bowed. Their scents were tangy with deference. The women stared from one wolf to another to Malachi—all but April, who stared only at him and looked ready to jump up and come to him.
