by Gina Kincade
The male shifter turned back around and took a few more steps before turning to a door and opening it, "There's not a lot of room in here but it should serve its purpose."
He grabbed her hand and pulled her into the room with him, making sure that the door closed firmly behind them. There was no lock so they had to be quiet, but the room would do for a quickie.
The two of them came together quickly, shedding clothes as fast as they could, their tongues stroking each other. Aleah pulled Wyatt's scrub pants down, whimpering in her impatience while Wyatt pulled her pants down in one quick swoop. He reached behind her back and unclasped her bra, letting it fall to the floor as she slid her arms out of it, and took her breasts into his hands. He tweaked her nipples, watching as her head fell back and she moaned in desire. She reached down and gripped his cock in her hands, stroking it until it stood at compete attention for her. Then she jumped up, Wyatt gripping her ass cheeks as he held her weight and slid herself down onto his shaft until he completely filled her. The two quickly found a rhythm and soon they were reaching for the orgasm so close at hand. When both were spent, Aleah climbed down and began looking for her clothes.
Wyatt caught his breath first, "I really hate having to be quick but damn it's worth it. I swear you're trying to suck the energy out of me."
The female shifter laughed, "That's not true and you know it, lover. Now if you could just help me find my bra we can be on our way and let the team know about everything."
The male shifter stood, holding her over his finger by a strap, "Is this what you're looking for?"
She snatched it out of his hands, "Yes! Now let's get going. We have some information to share."
Wyatt chuckled and left the room first, followed closely by Aleah. They met at the elevator and headed up to the fifth floor.
Deanna was standing by the elevator when the door opened, "I thought you had reconsidered hashing out this problem we have. I'm so glad to see that I was mistaken. Shall we head to the conference room?"
Aleah gave Deanna one of her sickening sweet smiles, "After you, Deanna."
The Immunologist turned on her heel and led the way to the conference room, "With pleasure."
Deanna slammed open the conference room door, "Look who I found, guys. I think we should all have a seat and see what she has to say for herself."
Alfred and Rosa were standing in the furthest corner of the room and looked at each other before sitting down.
Wyatt and Aleah shared a look that said, looks like there is another budding romance happening that Dr. Morgan hadn't foreseen.
As the female shifter looked around the room she saw that William was still sitting in the same chair he had been when they had gone downstairs and she sighed. That was a problem for another day.
She cleared her throat, "As you already know, Dr. Morgan and I have been disappearing at odd hours throughout the day..."
Deanna scoffed, "No kidding. Just tell us, are you sleeping with him? Why are you pussy-footing around? Get to the point already."
Aleah sighed, "I'm not pussy-footing around, Deanna, but all right I'll get to the point. Do you remember the first day we were in this room? The day we met Dr. Morgan?"
Everyone in the room nodded as Wyatt took a seat next to his lover.
She let out a breath and continued, "Well on that first day he mentioned experiments that we're going to be needed to appease the humans, help them understand what we are and how we came to be. Well those experiments have been underway for some time now. Dr. Morgan wanted to wait until he had a little more information before bringing all of you in. Now that he has that information I've been given the green light to tell you what has been happening."
Rosa stood, "Are you telling us that you and Dr. Morgan have been conducting experiments in this hospital for months and are only telling us now?"
Aleah held up her hand, "I'm not trying to upset any of you, but yes, Dr. Morgan and I have been using my blood to conduct these experiments and we finally have some answers. The humans will be getting said answers in the next few days and it's time for you to come on board. Now we have our first patient in the vampire society of our community and we are able to conduct some experiments on your kind to see what makes you tick. Rosa, it would be a good idea for you to take the lead with Dr. Morgan on that."
The Neurologist nodded and returned to her seat, "I was wondering if the good Director would see that logic. I'm glad to hear that he has. Please, continue."
Alfred cleared his throat, "How long has Wyatt been in on this?
Wyatt fielded that question, "I was just brought in this morning. And that's only because Aleah is becoming anemic, truth be told. Dr. Morgan is going to need blood samples from all of us to conduct the experiments in the different societies of our community."
The three specialists began to murmur amongst themselves while Aleah finally took a seat.
William stood while clearing his throat, turning everyone's attention to him, "Is that right? And while you are gathering these blood samples who will be taking care of our patient? Have any of you even thought of the vampire lying in room 526 waiting on results of tests that have been run on him since we were last in that room?"
The female shifter scoffed, "As if you care, William? I'm leaving from here to tell the patient what results we have on the blood panels we have run so far, but I needed to take care of this tension between all of us coworkers before I did anything else. Rosa, can the three of you head on down to the lab in the basement and give Dr. Morgan those samples. I'll take the test results to our patient and see that he is comfortable and meet you all down there."
Rosa nodded and looked at Alfred and Deanna, "Let's go get this done. The sooner we get this out of the way the sooner we can concentrate on our patient."
The three specialists headed out and Aleah turned her attention to William, "You need to go downstairs and give Dr. Morgan your blood samples as well. I know that you're a shifter, and a rare one like me and Wyatt, but I don't know which one. Dr. Morgan is very good at determining what our animal forms are just by looking at the blood so it would be good to have your type on file, just in case we should get another one like you in the hospital."
William stepped around the table, "I'm the best damn Cardiologist in the United States and that's what I signed up to do when I received the phone call stating my skills were needed. And for the last six months my skills have gone unused but you expect me to offer up my blood to the Director for study? When do I get to use my skills? When am I going to be able to prove my worth on this team?"
Aleah shook her head, "Your skills are needed, William. We have a patient now that we are studying, a Cardiologist is going to be needed so that we can be able to test his heart, find out why it only beats every so often. Aside from the obvious. Until we are ready to conduct those tests we need you give Dr. Morgan some blood samples so he can finish his research on shifters. The sooner we can give humans the answers they are searching for and get all of our blood samples on file, the sooner we can concentrate on doing what is necessary to help our patient become healthy again."
William gave a dejected sigh, "Fine but I want to go on record as resenting this."
Aleah nodded, "Duly noted. Anything else you have on your mind we can deal with at a later time."
The Cardiologist nodded and made his way to door, "Agreed. Now go tell our patient what his lab results were."
Wyatt and Aleah followed William out of the room. The three went their separate ways, William to the elevators and the couple to room 526.
"Mr. Crabtree? It's Doctors Masterson and Macleod. Are you awake?" Aleah asked softly as they entered the room.
The patient grunted, "Unfortunately. Are my test results in?"
The female shifter smiled and nodded as she approached the bed, "Yes, Mr. Crabtree, your test results are back and everything looks normal."
The patient sighed, "While that's a relief, my abdomen is still burning. Do you have any theories as t
o why that is?"
Aleah shook her head, "I’m afraid not, Mr. Crabtree. Dr. Morgan will be up to discuss other tests that we can perform to figure out your ailment shortly. We'll let you get back to sleep."
The couple left the room and headed down to the basement to join the rest of the team. It was time to come up with a game plan to help their patient. Aleah had a few theories that she wanted to discuss with Rosa and Dr. Morgan on the matter of the burning in their patient's abdomen but until then she was ready to knuckle down and find out why the supernatural community were so different from the humans.
On Call by Bethany Shaw
Chapter One
Erin cursed under her breath as the red and blue lights swirled in the reflection of her rearview mirror. She rolled her eyes while smoothing a hand through her hair. Her curls spilled down to her shoulders, a reminder she had forgotten to pull it up before leaving for work. She prayed the officer was going after another car on the freeway, but the cruiser inched closer to her.
“Great!” This was just what she needed. Not! She cursed under her breath and pulled over to the side of the road, watching in her rearview mirror as the cop car followed her movements.
This day just keeps getting worse and worse. First she’d lost her keys, her son had spilled milk all over himself right before they walked out the door, and now this. She blew out a breath and rifled through her purse for her license. Maybe if she had everything ready this wouldn’t take as long.
The officer tapped on the window and she pressed the button to lower it. Hot sticky air flooded the cabin and she groaned. It was unusually warm even for Florida this time of year. She flicked the AC higher, causing the icy blast and heat to mingle around her.
“Well, well, fancy meeting you here, darling,” a familiar voice said.
Erin’s head snapped up and she whirled around. She knew that voice. It was Officer Hottie, as she’d so affectionately nicknamed him. Erin knew him through her friend Laney and had a huge crush on him. Not that anything would ever happen between them. He went through women like she changed underwear. She was a relationship girl. But damn if she ever decided not to be, she would totally hit up Hottie.
“You know you were speeding, right?” Officer Hottie asked.
“Yeah, hi, I’m so sorry. How are you?” she asked meeting his sea-blue eyes. He was tall—at least six feet—and his sandy blonde hair was mussed perfectly. The man probably rolled out of bed looking like that and it took her a good forty-five minutes to get ready in the morning. And she wore scrubs to work.
He grinned at her. “Can I assume the reason for your speed is to get to work?”
Erin flicked her gaze to the clock on the dash. She had approximately ten minutes to get to work, park, and clock in. It so wasn’t going to happen. “I’m on my way in and I’m running a little late. Sorry.”
He leaned in closer. His musky cologne wafted into the car and she breathed it in. “No worries. I’ll let you go with a pass this time since I know you work in the ER and there was a three-car crash on 95. I heard over the radio they’re sending the more severely injured people there.”
“Oh, crap.” She flicked her eyes to the dash clock and gritted her teeth. I’m so going to be late. Hopefully I get there before the squad.
“Try not to speed too much, Nurse Erin.”
Her heart fluttered at the way he rolled the r in her name. He was a shameless flirt. The man hit on everyone, except her friend Laney for some reason. Maybe because her friend knew all his dirty laundry. Laney had filled her in on all of Adam’s...erm Hottie’s indiscretions. “Thanks.”
“I’ll see you around at the ER.”
She chuckled as he winked then took a step back from the car. Officer Hottie and his partner, Graham, were in the ER at least once a week. It seemed like they were always the ones sent to take care of the idiots who got themselves in trouble but needed medical attention before going to jail. Though Officer Hottie and Graham were both gorgeous, she wouldn’t want to be on either of their bad sides. They were both tall, muscular, and she knew Graham took boxing lessons in his spare time. It wouldn’t surprise her if Hottie were his partner for that too.
“Bye.” She waved at him as she put her window up. The frigid stream of her AC hit her and she wiggled, glad she hadn’t started to sweat in the humid Florida heat. She checked her mirrors and behind her, then eased back onto the road.
Once she was in the flow of traffic, she sped up, but this time not going quite as fast. She’d been lucky Hottie pulled her over. Nurse or not, another officer might not have let her go. She pulled into the employee lot, parked, and jogged to the ER as the sounds of sirens wailed toward the hospital.
“You’re late,” Laney said as Erin rounded the corner.
She swiped her time badge and hustled to her friend. “Rough morning.”
Laney gave her a knowing look. “I know the feeling. But if it makes your day any better, you’re working with me today.”
That did make her day better. She liked most of the ER doctors, but Laney was also her best friend. “I heard there was an accident on 95.” She bit her lip and giggled despite the situation. “I got pulled over by Officer Hottie.”
“Adam?” Laney asked, lifting her brow. “What was he doing in a cruiser? Did he give you a ticket?”
“No. And I’m not sure what he was doing.”
The double doors that the paramedics used burst open as two men wheeled in a man on a stretcher. Laney raced forward to meet them and Erin followed behind, gripping the cool metal bars of the stretcher as they made their way to the first trauma room.
“Forty-two year old male, unconscious at the scene,” the paramedic began then continued to list the known injuries. Erin listened to the man’s injuries then hurriedly withdrew blood and set up an IV. Her double shift was just starting and it looked like it was going to be a long one.
***
Adam held the gauze to his forehead as he leaned back in the hospital bed, focusing on a spot on the blue fabric curtain that separated him from the chaos on the other side. He’d gotten back into the room, if you could call it that, quickly but it had been slow going after that. It was just his luck to wind up chasing a perp twenty minutes before being due back at the station to end his shift. The thief had given him one hell of a run, but he’d caught him. Not before getting whacked on the forehead with a landscaping brick by the dirt bag. That had hurt like a motherfucker. Striking an officer was a big no-no. If the robbery charges didn’t stick, at least that one would.
He let out a breath and stared up at the paneled ceiling. How much longer was he going to have to wait? His head throbbed and he wished he’d taken the pain meds the paramedics offered him at the scene. Sticky warmth seeped through the bandages he held on his head. Closing his eyes, he let his head fall back on the pillows as he waited for a nurse or doctor. He’d noticed Erin’s name was still on the whiteboard when he’d been wheeled through the department. Maybe she would be his nurse. That would make his day better. She wasn’t the type of woman he usually went after, but there was something about her he couldn’t quite put his finger on.
Erin was cute, smart, and funny. He’d spent enough time with her thanks to his partner’s obsession with her friend, Laney, to know he liked her. He and his partner frequented the hospital a lot. Mostly to obtain medical care for dirt bags before taking them to the precinct or to question patients who were already at the hospital. It gave him the opportunity to get to know all the hot nurses and doctors by their first name, and of course Graham got to crush on the hot Dr. Laney Cafferty without her being the wiser.
The door glided open and the very doctor he’d been thinking of strode in.
“I heard you were here. Where’s Graham?” Laney asked, looking over her tablet before meeting his eyes. “I’m surprised he’s not here with you holding your hand.”
Adam laughed out loud at her joke. He’d struck gold when he’d been partnered with Graham Cooper. They'd become quick
friends and did most everything together on and off duty. “He had the day off. I don’t think I’m ever going to let him live down the fact that he wasn’t there to back me up today. It’s all his fault this happened.”
Laney shook her head but smiled. “Let’s see your head.”
He moved the gauze and she leaned forward.
“Definitely needs stitches. It’s possible you have a concussion too. Are you hurt anywhere else?”
“I already figured I’d need stitches,” he said, rolling his eyes. “No other injuries. Just need someone to sew me up. Any chance Erin’s available?”
Laney’s gaze went to her tablet. “Are you experiencing any dizziness or blurred vision?”
“No.”
“Did you lose consciousness?”
“No,” he said, taking on the same monotone she had when she started to ask him her series of questions.
“Nausea or vomiting?”
“Nope. I do have one hell of a headache though.” He cracked a smile.
“Speech sounds fine. I think you might just be okay.”
He chuckled. “Thanks, Cafferty, I was on pins and needles for a second there.”
Laney cracked a smile. “I’ll have Erin bring you some ibuprofen assuming you don’t have any allergies.” She narrowed her eyes at him as she took a step back. The light friendly smile vanished as she sighed. “I’ll send her in as soon as she’s done with her other patient.”
“Thanks, Cafferty.”
“Erin’s my best friend. I know how you are with women, and I don’t want to see her get hurt. Don’t screw around with her, Adam.”
He sobered at her warning. It was no secret that he was a bit of a ladies’ man, but he always made his intentions clear. He got the occasional clinger who couldn’t move on when the time was right, but most women he had fun with weren’t looking for anything permanent either.
“I’ll see you around, Adam. Be careful out there.” She touched the screen of her tablet as she hurried to the door.