Page 204 of Just Wait

“I’m telling you, it’s unnecessary. I feel much better,” Lumen says with a huff.

“You’re going to have a sore ass if you continue to fight basic care,” I tell her, pecking a kiss on her cheek. “Let us look after you.”

She is much cooler than she was during the spike she experienced in the maze, but we need to check her baseline temp to be able to compare the two when a spike hits.

“You are bossy all of a sudden,” Lumen grumbles, holding her tongue out. She also lifts the bottom of my shirt that she’s clad in, fanning herself. I have no idea where she found it, but I like seeing her wearing my clothes.

“He really is,” Mal says, popping the thermometer into her mouth.

I barely hold back a smile.

I really am, but she should know this by now.

I’m more able to go with the flow when it isn’t a serious medical concern. Perhaps we needed Riser here to temper us, after all. He ran down to refrigerate the drinks and food items we grabbed, but he manages to calm Lumen in a way Mal and I haven’t yet figured out.

I don’t begrudge him being her safe space.

If anything, it’s a blessing.

If things go south, one of us can run and get him.

I massage Lumen’s scalp and grab her wrist, bringing it to my mouth so I can nurse my bite.

Bonding doesn’t go as smoothly for betas as it does for omegas. Their bites are more likely to get infected, and they’re not meant to be a conduit for so many connections. That alone tells me there’s a high likelihood that Lumen is an omega, but just to err on the safe side, I’ll be cleaning my bite frequently.

Mal, the lucky fucker, gets to tend his bite every time he kisses her.

Since it’s only the top canines that break the skin, his claiming mark will only be visible if she pulls down her lower lip to show someone. Mine, however, will always be visible as long as she isn’t wearing long sleeves.

It fills my chest with an unnatural amount of pride, but truly, bonding location is mostly irrelevant.

The thermometer beeps frantically, and that seems like a bad sign.

Mal pulls it from her mouth and curses.

“What is it?” Lumen asks, leaning toward him.

I release her hair to avoid tugging on it, but he turns the device toward her. Even if I couldn’t sense his concern in the bond, it’s written all over his face.

“107.1,” he says, his eyes widening. “That means you were even hotter in the maze.”

“There’s no way,” she says with a huff. “I’d be dead.”

“Check yours,” I instruct Mal.

He resets the thermometer without bothering to swap to a fresh cover.

I could argue with her and try to gently guide her toward the realization, but it’ll be easier to show her the difference in their body temperatures before moving on to the next step.

“How are you feeling?” I ask, leaning over to brush my nose against hers.

I take the opportunity to covertly mark her cheek with my scent, which should help settle her system.

“I’m okay,” she whispers, wrapping her hand around the back of my neck. “Just itchy. Not itchy. That’s not the right way to describe it. Maybe unsettled? It’s almost like anxiety, but not just a mental thing. The feeling is all throughout my body, right under my skin. I feel like I’m supposed to be doing something… Only, I don’t know what I need to do to make it stop.”

“That was a very clear explanation,” I tell her, pecking a kiss on her lips. “We’re here to help. Don’t be afraid to ask for what you need. We’re bonded now, sweetheart.”

“Yeah,” she whispers, her eyes fluttering shut.