Page 8 of Rejected Broken Mate

I blinked, surprised she knew that Ayden was my boss, but I brushed it aside. I was too tired to think. She probably just knew him because he's a fireman, and I wrote it down as my job.

"I'm worried he caught another bug."

"Let's just draw some blood and see what the labs say," she said, grabbing out a needle.

I held Michael's hand while the nurse drew his blood. She stepped out, leaving us alone. Worry built in my stomach.

I rubbed my forehead, feeling exhausted. I was working off four hours of sleep. I looked at the time, seeing it was just a little past three in the morning now.

"Mom, am I sick?"

I gave Michael a soft smile, brushing his hair back. "You're just a little warm, nothing to worry about."

He chewed on his cheek. "I hear that voice again."

I blinked. Michael had mentioned this before when he was sick the first time: that he heard a voice in his head. It had worried me before, and that panic grew in the pit of my stomach.

I didn't know what to say. What do I say?

I swallowed when the door opened, and a man entered the room. He held the clipboard, pulling my gaze away from Michael.

"Laura," the man looked at me smiling. "I'm Dr. Hart. Looks like Michael is going through his first signs of shifting."

I stared at him, opened my mouth, and then shut it. I processed his words and then scowled. "What?"

He raised an eyebrow at me. "His first shift; I'm sure he's shown signs before. This is normal. The temperature should go down in a few hours. We can give him some Tylenol for the pain, and he should be good."

I shook my head suddenly, wondering if I got a crack doctor. "Hold on, what the hell do you mean his first shifting? What the hell are you talking about?"

The doctor's face fell, and he frowned. "Oh…you don't know, do you?"

"Know what?" I snapped.

Dr. Hart placed his hands together. "Your son is a shifter. And from what I'm gathering, you being human and your reaction, you don't know much about us."

I just stared. I must be having a bad dream. I waved my hands and shook my head. "I don't understand. You need to explain and explain well before I start yelling because you aren't making any goddamn sense."

Dr. Hart continued to talk, explaining what he could. My mind felt like it was going to explode when he sighed. "The biggest sign is you normally hear your shifter animal in your head."

It suddenly clicked: Michael's temperature, occasional sickness, and the voice in his head.

My mouth just hung open slightly, and I couldn't speak. Dr. Hart gave me a sympathetic expression. "I didn't see his father listed on the papers, so I'm going to presume you don't know who it is?"

I shook my head. "I know who it is… he's just not part of the picture. He left. He never told me about any of this." Correction: He never told me he was one. I was aware of shifters, but it wasn’t like I’d been around them often enough to know everything.

Dr. Hart nodded. "Well, this can be hard to understand if you've never dealt with it before. We have programs for young mothers if you want to join. Normally, they are for expecting moms, but they take in newcomers who haven't been around before."

I frowned. "Okay....so you said it should go down? Just some medication?"

Dr. Hart nodded. "Yeah, if you have any questions, you can certainly call and ask. I would set him up with a doctor here so they can monitor his behavior, and if anything becomes serious, they can guide you with steps."

Dr. Hart left, and I stared at Michael. I ran my fingers through his hair, thinking, but my mind traveled to Miles. He never told me, and he never showed me any part of that side of him.

I suddenly was questioning if our relationship had truly been just about the sex. He never took me to see his folks or even took me to his hometown. Miles never told me anything about his life outside of college, and if he did, it was small things.

"Mom," Michael whispered. "Can we go home now?"

I smiled softly, leaning closer and pressing my nose against his. "The doctor is going to go get the discharge papers, and we will be okay. He says you just have a bug."

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