Page 57 of Met Your Mate

Next, I peel the shitty hospital comforter off her little body and replace it with the soft purple one I bought at the first gift shop. The bright blue blanket I got is a bit lighter, so I fold it and put it on the nightstand beside her head. On top of it, I snuggle a mini green dinosaur and tuck a little white cat plushie under her arm.

I scatter the other stuffed animals I found around our pack room, so I don't smother my poor girl in fake fur.

Humming, I settle down beside her and crack open a book. A yummy one if the abs on the cover of it are anything to go by. I barely make it through the intro sex scene when Freya's voice startles me.

"Oh god, is this a fever dream?"

I can't help but laugh as her eyes take in the extreme amount of color around her, then widen on my book cover.

"Not a fever dream," I rush out, not wanting her to panic. I set the book down beside her hip. "You're safe, baby."

Freya's eyes flick to mine, then down to the stuffed cat in her arms. She doesn't say anything or show any sign that she heard me. A little frown mars her face, like she's trying to understand what the hell is going on.

"Do you want me to incline the bed?" Fuck, I'm an idiot. "Freya... can you hear me?" I ask hesitantly, my heart clenching in my chest.

She nods softly, plucking at the soft hair on her fake kitty. "You sound funny, though," she whispers and touches her lightly bandaged ear as I get her into a seated position.

I swallow, tipping her chin up with my pointer finger. I need her to look at me when I tell her. "Baby, your right ear..."

Her lip wobbles, bright blue eyes pleading with me to give her some good news. She looks so damn tired of everything, and I really don't want to be the one to break the bad news. Especially alone. Maybe it's for the best, though. She's doing so much better than earlier without everyone crowding her.

"Your right eardrum got pretty damaged toward the end there. The doc said being so close to a gun firing tore it pretty bad, but we have to hope you'll regain hearing in that side, okay?" I'm trying to keep her optimistic.

"I—" Freya covers her left ear immediately. "I can't hear anything.”

My heart breaks watching her test it over and over again. But I need to let her process. I can't relate to what she's going through, but I can support my omega while she comes to terms with the next few months of recovery.

On the sixth round of covering and uncovering her left ear, the shower in the bathroom turns on much louder than the buzzing of Elliott shaving his face. Her head snaps up before looking at me for answers.

"Just Elliott, don't worry. But Freya, there's some other stuff we should talk about."

I don't know if she realizes it, but she's fluffing and rearranging the blanket around her. Maybe it's a nervous tick, or maybe she's nesting like I had planned.

"What else?" she asks with dread lacing her tone.

Taking a chance, I give her the blue blanket and green dinosaur. Immediately, she begins forming her own small cocoon, making my heart swell with pride.

"You are extremely dehydrated, that's what the IV is for." I gesture to her arm. "Malnourished, just like the rest of us. But there's something else he mentioned; do you want them to do a rape kit on you?"

I feel sick just saying the fucking words, but it's her choice. Christ, if they did more than violate her the way they did in front of us, I don't know how any of us will react. It won't be good, which is why I decided to ask now while we're alone.

Nibbling on her plump little lip, I worry I'm going to puke the more my omega has to think about if she was raped or not.

Freya shakes her head. "No. I really don't think so." A weight, a fucking heavy one, lifts off my shoulders and chest. "The only time I felt sore down there was after my heat with you guys," she admits, blushing furiously.

"Thank fuck." The relief tumbles out of me too fast to catch, but to my absolute astonishment, Freya giggles at me. "What's so funny?"

She smiles sweetly, petting the white kitty that matches her hair. "You're just too cute when you swear."

"What?" I ask, shocked because nobody's ever said that. "I always swear, though."

More giggles, sparking butterflies in my stomach. "Sorry to break it to you. Did you get all this?" she asks, gesturing to all the colorful things.

"I did!"

"Thank you, Casey," she says around a yawn, snuggling further into her pillow and makeshift nest. "Stay with me?"

Our weak bond flares when her hand grips mine. "Always," I whisper, watching my beautiful mate drift off to sleep.

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