Page 63 of You're Not My King!

It flustered him.

“Stop smiling, you jah-ck-ah-ss.”

I trailed my knuckles over his ruddy cheek, thumb brushing his dry, bitten bottom lip. “Beautiful.”

Roo-bin’s mouth opened and closed before he huffed, his pretty blush creeping down his neck. “Oh.”

Healer Fee-oh-nah and Puka rushed in, followed closely by a dazed-looking Nie’tr. They appeared both shocked and comforted by my alertness—I must have fared worse than I had thought.

“Oh, thank goodness,” Fee-oh-nah cried, her eye disks fogging as she shuffled toward me and, without hesitation, pressed her lips to my forehead. Twice. I was stunned by her brazen behavior—in front of my mate, no less—but he did not seem jealous or concerned. In fact, he smiled in that entertained way of his, scent clear of distress, and I wondered if this gesture was typical among his kind.

Nie’tr grinned, crossing the distance to tap my shoulder while Puka bounced on her toes, clearly resisting the urge to leap across the tent and plaster herself to me. She was young, and would have been dreading the preparations to become Great Leader in my stead. It was not a position she was ready to fill, but one day, she would serve our clan well. I sensed her relief that today was not that day.

“Brother,” she acknowledged, and it was Roo-bin who extended a hand, inviting her forward. She accepted gratefully, drawing near before leaning in to nuzzle with me, a rare display of affection that I welcomed. “I am glad to see you alive.”

I laughed softly. “You will not be rid of me so simply.”

She sent me a contented smile and stepped back, ruffling Roo-bin’s hair fondly as she went. It was Fee-oh-nah’s turn again to advance.

“Unfortunately, you are still in the danger zone,” she explained in Ly’zrd. “Until the antidote arrives, we must keep you alert and regularly dosed with tonic.” She repeated her words to Roo-bin in their language, and his shoulders slumped. “Do not worry, we have been given time. I can make more medicine, and prepare for Zae’l’s return.” She clapped her hands and wandered over to her potion station. “Which I will do right now?—”

As if summoned by Fee-oh-nah’s incantation—not for the first time, I suspected she was magik—Zae’l burst through the pelt, brandishing an arrow tipped with blood. My blood. He was panting with exertion, but as soon as his eyes landed on me, he hunched over, sighing with relief. “Vo’ak.”

“Thank fuck,” Roo-bin exclaimed, while Fee-oh-nah said, “A double miracle.”

It was no miracle. My clansmen would never fail me.

The healer thanked Zae’l for his assistance, patting his back in gratitude. In turn, he placed a hand over his heart and bowed, but she waved in dismissal.

“Eh, nonsense,” she laughed. “It is my pleasure to keep you all alive and kicking.”

She truly was a blessing to the clan, and I would strive to tell her so more often.

The world fizzed past as Fee-oh-nah created her antidote, muttering to herself as she snatched ingredients from the shelves and crushed them together. I stared at my mate, recommitting every contour of his face to memory. It was simple to pretend that we were alone, an invisible shield surrounding the furs. Roo-bin had not released my hand, his eyes never leaving mine as if he feared I would disappear. I rubbed across his knuckles with my thumb, wordlessly assuring the fretful creature that I was here, and there was nowhere else I would rather be.

Once the potion was complete, Fee-oh-nah returned to my bedside, and my mate’s hand squeezed mine just that little bit tighter, refusing to withdraw. The slimy purple antidote was poured onto my wound, and I hissed and grunted in pain, back arching. It was brief, and my mate’s close proximity dulled some of the agony, but even so, it felt worse than the arrow piercing my flesh.

Roo-bin looked to Fee-oh-nah, worry etched on his brow, heart racing. “What is hah-pen-ingah? Was it wrong?”

“Give it a mow-munt,” she said, voice laced with alarm. “I followed the in-shruck-shones to a tee.”

As if blowing out a flame from a candle, the pain subsided, and almost immediately, the split skin began to throb, but not in a way that suggested rotting. The wound was knitting back together from the inside out. Gradually, the black veins receded, and after several tense moments, the only evidence left behind of injury was a silvery scar on my sternum.

“Phew.” Fee-oh-nah exhaled, placing the empty tonic bottle on the table before turning back to me, expression stern. “Now, you will be weak and in bed for several days. No straining yourself.” She pointed deliberately at me. “You will be right as rain in a week or two.”

I did not understand why the rain was correct, but I trusted her judgment. “Many thanks to you, Fee-oh-nah.”

“Doh-nt mention it,” she said with a kind smile before squeezing Roo-bin’s shoulder and winking. “I will leave you two luv-burdz alone.” She gathered up the others, shooing them from the hut to leave my mate and me in peace.

I stared at my lovely hoo-man, at his lush, wet eyelashes, his slender body already plumping out from my nurturing, grateful to have been given a second chance to adore and worship him. He deserved it, after all the suffering he had endured within his short life, suffering I had unknowingly added to.

He was the perfect soul-companion, so caring and passionate, I could not have wanted for more. I only wished he had not been forced into such distress. The pain he must have felt from the tension of our bond could have killed him. I would be sure to unveil the culprits and make them pay for unsettling my mate. I swore it.

“Your beautiful tail.” He stroked a finger over the dressed stump, fury rising briefly in his scent.

“It will grow.”

He sniffed, wiping at his nose. “Still… Hurt?”

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