“Selena? No, the baby… we don’t have a lead apron, so she can’t have an X-ray in the shed.”
“Fuck.”
“Cain, it’s probably just a bruise. Don’t worry about it. A bit of ice and a couple of days and it’ll be on the mend.” I reach out, trying to soothe him with touch again, but he steps back before our skin connects.
“I am worried about it, Selena. You’re in pain. I can sense it. And It’s my fucking fault.”
“Cain!” Zainab’s voice shouts through the phone’s speakers, reminding us both that she’s still present and listening to every word. “Are you listening to me now?” He lets out a rumble “I’ll take that as a yes.” My eyes widen in surprise as I realise Zainab heard the sound. “My shift is nearly over. I can borrow an apron from work and do the X-ray when I get there. Is that okay with you both?”
“Thanks, Zainab.” The defeat in Cain’s voice pulls at my heart.
“It’s what I’m here for. I’ll see you both soon,” she says before hanging up.
Cain shoves his phone back in his pocket, and I do the only thing I can that will pull him out of his own head.
I kiss him.
Kiss him with everything I have.
Kiss him like I’ve imagined kissing him for the longest time.
Fisting my hands in his shirt, I tug him down towards me so I don’t have to balance on my tiptoes.
It doesn’t take him long to reciprocate. One of his hands slips around my waist as the other slides across my neck and grips the hair at my nape. His mouth moves on mine ferociously, like he’s drinking me in.
We finally break apart, both breathing heavily, staying wrapped up in each other as close as my gigantic belly will allow. “Selena, does that mean—”
I answer before he even finishes his sentence. “Yes, Cain. You said it yourself.” I dive in for a quick peck on his lips, just because I can. “I’m yours… your mate.”
He drops to his knees and holds my enormous belly between his hands. “Did you hear that in there? Your mummy just said she’s mine.” Like magic the baby gives a kick in answer, causing Cain to look up at me in awe. “You like the sound of that, too, don’t you?” he says, once again focusing his attention on my belly.
“Of course, it does. Because that means it’s going get the most wonderful daddy by default.” I laugh at the warmth of his breath as he kisses my bump through the thin fabric of my top.
He reluctantly gets to his feet, his movements slow. “Let’s go get you some ice and wait for Zainab in the shed. Once you’ve had the X-ray, I can spend the rest of the day revelling in your body.” It feels like a swarm of butterflies are floating around in my stomach as I take in his words. It’s been such a long time since we’ve been together like he’s suggesting. As much as I want nothing more than for us both to take pleasure in each other’s nakedness, what if he’s disappointed in what he finds beneath my clothes? My body isn’t what it once was.
* * *
We walk into the shed, and I marvel at the sight before me. The floor is covered in those foam mats that you’d find in a martial arts place, not that I’ve seen any real-life martial arts places. I’ve seen them in the movies though, so I’m sure that’s what they must look like.
Along the back wall of the shed, there are what look like hospital beds—three of them all lined up. Do these guys get that many injuries that they’d need three all at once? I ask as much. “Do you really need three hospital beds?” I glance at Cain over my shoulder, wanting to see his face as he answers.
“Being a werewolf has its dangers.” He shrugs. “And it’s not like we can go down to the hospital. We heal too quickly, so we’d draw unwanted attention.”
I nod, understanding his reasoning.
A woman of Indian decent walks into the shed, something black with maroon piping hanging over her arm. “Selena, it’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve been in the pack since before you and Theo, but I don’t think we’ve ever met.” She looks at me, an eyebrow raised quizzically.
She doesn’t look familiar at all. “I don’t think we’ve met before.” I shrug, unsure. “But my memory is rubbish, so I could be wrong.”
She laughs. “That will be the baby brain. It only gets worse once the baby arrives.”
“You’ve got kids?” I ask, surprised. I hadn’t noticed any kids in the time I’ve been around Theo and the pack, except Alyssa. I assumed they struggled to have children.
“I was bitten and had my first shift after I had kids,” she states with a knowing nod, before wheeling a stool over to one of the beds. She positions a plastic board with grid type markings on top of the bed, before motioning for us to join her. She hands me the apron, which is far heavier than she made it look. “If you just put your arms in here.” I do as instructed and glance at Cain, who’s leaning against the wall beside the bed. His leg’s bent at the knee, his foot flat against the wall.
He gives me a reassuring smile, before I look back to Zainab as she tells me how to position my hand for the X-ray.
“That’s perfect,” she says, once she has me sat on the stool with my hand outspread on the plastic board. She pushes a button on the machine and repositions my hand before doing it again, my hand at a slightly different angle. “That should be enough.”
We head over to a computer in the corner of the room, which I’d not noticed on entering the shed. After Zainab clicks the mouse a few times, an X-ray of a hand pops onto the screen. My hand.
I squint at the screen, trying to see a break of some kind jumping out at me. Deciding there’s nothing obvious to me, I turn to watch Zainab’s face. She is the qualified doctor after all.
Zainab’s lips are pressed together as she frowns at the screen, clicking through the different shots of my hand. “Okay. Do you see here?” She points at the screen. “That mark there is a fracture.” She points elsewhere on the screen. “As is that.”
Cain stiffens beside me and I grab his hand with my good one, praying to whatever god wants to listen. Please let that be it.
Zainab changes the screen to one of the other images and points at the screen again, making my heart sink. “There is another.”
Cain growls, and I squeeze his hand, trying to comfort him. He snatches his hand back and paces behind us. I don’t know what he’s doing, but whatever it is has the hairs on the back of my neck standing to attention, and a shiver runs down my spine.
Zainab takes a deep breath before speaking again, sounding somewhat pained. “Luckily, they’re just fractures so you won’t need surgery, just a cast.”
I nod, before turning my attention back to Cain. I take a tentative step towards him until Zainab reaches out, halting my steps with a hand on my arm.
“Give him a minute,” she says, her tone demanding.
“He’s blaming himself,” I say, my voice high-pitched, unable to keep a lid on my anxiety. I need to help him.
“He can hear you, you know?” The deepness of his voice tells me he’s anything but calm.
I pull my arm out of Zainab’s hold.
“Be careful, Selena. His wolf is riding him right now. I can feel it,” Zainab warns, whilst rubbing her hands over her forearms.
I take slow, sure steps towards him, wanting to show them both that I’m not scared of Cain, or his wolf. I know neither of them will do anything to harm me again. He’s punishing himself too much for his earlier mistake.
“Cain,” I say as I approach him, not wanting to startle him. I place my hand firmly on his broad back as I step around him, sliding my hand over his shoulder and down his arm as I go.
He stands stock still, and I worry he might shrug me off. I stop before him and look up into his eyes.
Ice-blue eyes.
Not Cain’s eyes.
His wolf’s.
“Mate.” The word leaves my mouth before it even registers in my head. I have no idea what it means—the fact that I’ve said it—but I know it’s momentous.
Zainab makes a noise behind
me, but I’m too focused on Cain and his wolf to pay attention to her.
Cain swallows. “Mate.” His voice is deeper and gruffer than usual. It’s the voice of his wolf. His hand snakes out and slides roughly around the back of my neck. Pulling me close to him, forceful, but without hurting me.
My eyes are locked on his wolf’s eyes.
He leans forward and I think he’s going to kiss me, but his mouth brushes past my jaw before he bites at my neck.
I gasp in shock at his move and the slight pain it causes.
He licks and kisses the spot, like he’s caressing it, causing me to giggle as I grip at his bicep with my good hand. My knees start to give and my body floods with my arousal as he slowly kisses his way back up my jaw, to my lips.
I close my eyes, luxuriating in the feel of his warm mouth on me, imagining it being in other places. Places that are now tingling with need.
His mouth disappears, and I take a few seconds to compose myself before I open my eyes. I’m greeted with happiness beaming out of Cain’s deep blue eyes, his smile wide across his face.
“Hey,” he says, his voice sounding like his once again.
“Hey,” I say with a grin of my own. “Mate,” I add, letting him know, I understand the depth of what just happened between us.
We claimed each other. Permanently. Whether there are more steps to the claiming—if that’s even what it’s called—or not, there’s no going back from what we’ve just done.
And I for one, wouldn’t want there to be.
Thirteen
MINE AT LAST
Cain
My wolf settles down, content in finally having our mate accept us. We’ve been waiting for it for such a long time. I search her blue eyes, wondering if really understands what just happened between us. The confidence I see tells me she does.
Unable to wipe the smile off my face, I crush my lips on hers as I hold her body against mine. Running my hands over her curves, excitement fills me as I think about being able to trace these curves with my mouth.
A throat clears behind us, and I get pulled back to reality and the shed.
“If you’d like to be left alone to…” Zainab clears her throat again. “Finish what you’ve started, you need to let me put a cast on that hand.”
Her hand. My euphoria comes crashing down. I fractured Selena’s hand in numerous places. I broke my mate. How could I have been so rough?
A finger caresses my temple, and lips press a gentle kiss on the tip of my nose. “Please don’t blame yourself, Cain. Watching you blame yourself hurts me more than the damn hand does.”
Taking a deep breath, I’m almost floored by the scent of our arousal being so thick in the air. I immediately understand why Zainab may have felt uncomfortable. I give Selena a reassuring smile as I try to push my self-blame back. “Let’s get you patched up.”
* * *
It doesn’t take Zainab long to fix a cast up. I don’t know how she had all the equipment since we very rarely need casts due to our exceptionally quick healing abilities. Usually, we’ll just strap anything broken in place whilst it fuses together.
“Six weeks? I need to keep this thing on for six weeks?” Selena glares at the stark white cast that covers her hand and most of her forearm. “I’m due in six weeks. What if the baby comes early? I won’t be able to change nappies or anything.” She shakes her head defiantly as she pulls at the opening around her fingertips. “Nope. Take it off. I can’t have a cast.”
I step up to her and place a calming hand on hers, hoping to still it. “Hey, calm down, beautiful. You don’t want to cause more damage and have to have it on longer.” I glance across at Zainab, pleading with my eyes for her to back me up.
“Yes.” Zainab nods. “How about we play it by ear. We’ll give you a weekly X-ray and reassess the situation as we see how it’s healing. You could have it off in as soon as four weeks.”
Zainab’s words cause Selena to pause her ministrations. “Really?” She looks at Zainab, her eyes wary. “Four weeks?”
“Four weeks,” Zainab reassures her with a wide smile, causing Selena to flash a smile back. I suddenly have the urge to hug the woman. She managed to talk Selena down from her panic, something I couldn’t do. Part of me feels put out by that thought, but I brush it aside.
I pull Selena into my arms and press a kiss to her forehead. “How about we call for some takeaway and watch a movie or two?” I offer, wanting to take her mind off her worries. As much as I want to get her naked in my bed, I want it to happen for the right reasons, and as a distraction from her injury wouldn’t be it.
She nods against my chest. “That sounds perfect.”
I release my hold on her and pat her behind gently. “You go pick the food and the movie, and I’ll help Zainab clean up here. I’ll be with you in five.”
Zainab waves me off. “Don’t worry about it. I know exactly where everything belongs. It will take me twice as long to clean up if I’m telling you where to put everything. Go, enjoy your night.”
Selena steps forward and says thank you to Zainab, giving her a quick hug before heading back to the house.
Bending slightly, I place a gentle kiss on Zainab’s cheek. “Thanks. For everything.”
She waves me off once again. “Go, enjoy your mate, before I change my mind and make you clean up the mess.”
I laugh and back out of the shed with my arms raised in surrender.
I find Selena in the kitchen, flicking through a handful of takeaway menus. Picking two out of the pile, she holds them up, fanned out in her good hand. “Chinese or Indian?”
The thought of honey chicken and sweet and sour pork has my taste buds singing. “Chinese,” I answer instantly.
As Selena states her choice. “Indian.”
I laugh and surrender the choice to her. “Indian sounds great. Pick what you want and I’ll give them a call.”
She hands me the menu without looking at it. “Butter chicken and garlic naan bread.”
I shake my head in disbelief. “You’d already decided before you even gave me the option.” I laugh. “Did you just want to torture me with the thought of Chinese food?” I take the menu and pretend to pout.
She lets out a chuckle, clearly amused with my silly pouting face. “I didn’t, honestly. I always have the same thing when I have a curry.” She frowns and I want to rub away the crease between her eyes. “In fact, I’m pretty boring. I have one set meal from each of the takeaways. I never really have to look at a menu.”
Taking note of the phone number, I throw the menu on the counter behind her before pulling her into my arms and taking her lips with mine. I want to wipe the frown off her face. She’s anything but boring. Her body relaxes into mine within seconds of our lips connecting, and I contemplate ignoring the whole idea of food, to just sweep her up and take her to have my wicked way with her. The grumbling sound coming from her stomach has me pulling away with a laugh. “And on that note…” I release her and grab the phone out of the cradle on the side. “I better order some food.”
In no time, I’m throwing the phone on to the counter and pulling Selena back into my arms. I can’t seem to keep my hands off her. “Food should be here in twenty minutes. How do you want to pass the time?” I slide my hands down her back and over her perfect butt, giving it a gentle squeeze in the hope of hinting at what I’d like to do with the time we have.
She grins, raising a brow in a knowing look. “If we pass the time how you’re thinking, we won’t get fed at all because you won’t be ready to stop at twenty minutes.”
I roll my eyes playfully. “Fiiiine,” I concede, knowing she’s right. It’ll take me all night to worship her how I want to. Twenty minutes just won’t cut it. I tap her butt gently as I step away from her. “You go choose a movie and I’ll grab us some drinks and plates for the food.”
* * *
I potter around in the kitchen, keeping myself away from the temptation of Selena. The sound of a car on the gravel drive a
lerts me to the arrival of our takeaway. It reminds me of old times when I was avoiding her so I wasn’t tempted to sleep with my brother’s wife. Thank fuck those days are over and I only have to wait for another couple of hours.
I promised her food and a movie, and that’s what she’ll get—until I can finally make her mine.
It doesn’t take me long to have everything served up. Placing Selena’s glass of apple juice on the coffee table, I hand her the plate of food and watch as she balances it slightly on her stomach, causing me to let out a laugh.
“What?” She looks at me with wide, innocent eyes. “I have to reap some benefits from being this huge.” Grabbing a piece of naan bread and popping it in her mouth, effectively stops her from explaining any further.
After collecting my own meal, I sit beside her, placing my beer on the coffee table before tucking into my lamb rogan josh. “What movie did you pick?” I ask between mouthfuls. She grins at me, and I wonder if she’s going to torture me with a chick flick. “It’s not Bridget Jones, is it?”
She laughs heartily, the sound causing my jeans to get tighter over my growing erection. “No, although I’m sure you enjoyed Bridget when I picked it for movie night once.”
I purse my lips as I make a show of thinking. “Nope, I never paid attention to any of those movies. All I could think about was the feel of your feet pressing into the side of my thigh.” Her wide-eyed expression makes me lose the joke in my voice and keeps me talking. “The three of us would share the couch, and although you’d be leaning against Theo, your feet would be encroaching into my seat. I loved it, and hated it in the same breath because even though I could feel the heat of your skin against mine, it reminded me I was never going to hold you in my arms like Theo did.” Feeling raw and exposed, I swallow the lump rising in my throat.
“You were wrong, Cain. I’m yours. You can hold me whenever you want and nothing will ever change that.” Her words sound like a promise.
Mount Roxby Box Set Page 47