Page 83 of Destined For The Wolf Daddy

“You got it, boss lady,” he said, patting my shoulder and looking at Cole. “You call me, too, if anything happens. We won’t be far. I’m gonna kill some time taking everyone out to dinner, I think.”

“Thanks,” Cole said. “I’ll keep you up to date.”

Finally, Travis took his leave with the rest of the pack and a couple of the nurses. We were left with the doctor, the remaining nurses, and a whole lot of space we didn’t need.

“Shall we move somewhere a bit more comfortable?” the doctor asked. “It feels awfully empty in here with everyone gone, and it’s not as if you will shift today.”

“I think that’s a good idea,” I agreed. “Let’s get somewhere a bit more cozy.”

We followed the staff back to the other rooms in the clinic. One of the nurses led us into a room I’d not seen before; it looked more like a tiny hotel room than a medical office. The décor was soft and colored in warm tones of red, beige, and brown. There was a comfortable-looking recliner, slightly modified with a table I assumed was used for patients’ arms when they got their injections.

If I remembered correctly, Travis’s first injection had been an intravenous one. I wasn’t sure if mine would be the same, but if it was, I’d be here for a little while yet.

The nurse gestured for me to take a seat in the recliner while she went and grabbed a lighter-padded chair and brought it over to the side of the recliner.

“You can sit here,” she told Cole once I was settled in the recliner.

Cole nodded and took a seat. The nurse hovered for a moment with a little smile before saying, “Okay, I’m going to let the doctor know that you’re all ready to go and get the first treatment ready. You guys just hang tight and let me know if you need anything in the meantime.”

“Thanks,” I said with a tight smile.

She bustled off, turning on a small space heater in the room before closing the door quietly behind her. The warmth from the heater started to make the room more comfortable as Cole and I waited in relative silence.

I looked over at Cole and found him watching me with tired eyes. When I met his gaze, he gave me a smile. “How you holding up?” he asked.

“I feel strangely calm, but I think that might be because I’m so worn out from all the stuff that went on today,” I said. “I can’t tell if that's a good thing or a bad thing.”

He opened his hand toward me, and I placed my hand in it. He closed his fingers around mine and rubbed his thumb across my knuckles, his eyes low and thoughtful as he looked at my hand.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” he asked.

“Cole,” I said, a little exasperation in my tone.

“I know,” he said. “I’m not asking in the hope of convincing you not it. I’m asking because I think it’s important to check one more time before you go down this path of no return.”

I heaved a sigh and squeezed his hand a little tighter. “Okay,” I said. “I understand it, I really do. But I’m sure. I’ve been sure for a long time. Long enough that I’m more keen to just get this started so I can stop being worried about what-ifs and thinking about what could go wrong.”

He nodded and lifted my hand to his mouth, kissing the back of it. “Okay,” he said. “Then we’ll get it done and over with. We’ll figure out what happens and go from there.”

He looked so pale and drawn. I wished I could find some way to make him feel better, to take away some of the stress of the first injection. But there was no way to do that, not even for me. And I arguably needed it more than he did.

A few moments later, the doctor returned with a bag of the serum and a rolling tray of intravenous catheters and needles to get the treatment started. The nurse was the one to wrap the latex around my arm and start probing the inside of it, palpating it for the best vein to place the needle.

In the end, my arm was too hard of a location for the needle.

“I think we’ll have to use your hand,” the nurse said. “Is that going to be alright?”

“Whatever you have to do,” I said, though I was sincerely dreading having the injection in such a sensitive spot.

Cole squeezed my hand, and I looked over at him again. He was back to his usual confident self. His smile was calm and collected, his eyes warm and encouraging. “I’ve got you, sweetheart. Just keep your eyes on me. It will be over before you know it.”

“Are you nervous about needles?” the doctor asked.

“I’ve always been a hard stick,” I admitted. “The last few experiences with needles, I was unconscious for, so I’m not exactly looking forward to it. Needles in the hand particularly hurt, you know?”

“Well, just look at your mate, as Cole said. You guys will get through this together.”

I nodded, setting my hand on the pull-out tray as the nurse brought it out. I watched nervously as they prepared the rather large-looking needle.

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