Page 42 of Free Me

Miko grinned. Caleb was easily distracted from the brownie idea by his upcoming playdate with his best friend and honorary cousin, Asher Danvers. The two toddlers were twin terrors when they were together, and Miko had frequently heard from his own parents that Asher and Caleb acted much the way their sires, Aeron and Peyton, had when they were the same age. Miko was pretty sure being a pint-sized hellion was a requirement of all the kids in their respective families.

Will my and Linus’s kids carry on the tradition, too?

He hoped so. But that was a far-flung future best left unexplored for now.

Because for right now, all Miko could do was be present for his bondmate and quietly pray that when the vanilla milkshake arrived, Linus could finally taste it.

TEN

By the timeanother tray of liquid diet came around at dinnertime, Linus was hungry, exhausted, and just wanted to be left the fuck alone for a little while. He was sick of being in pain, sick of putting on a brave face for his family and friends, and sick of not being able to taste or smell anything, except the faintest wisps of things that he wasn’t entirely sure were real or memories.

Mostly, he wanted to close his eyes, fall asleep, and wake up in a different reality than this one, because this one absolutely fucking sucked. Except for Miko. He’d always adored his best friend, but ever since yesterday, LinusneededMiko near him. Miko made him feel a little less crazy, dulled the constant pain in his leg and hips, and cheered him up with a simple smile. Linus didn’t dare ponder why. He didn’t care why, only that being with Miko helped.

Miko gave him hope that tomorrow might be better than today, and that had helped Linus push through his unappetizing dinner of broth, pudding and a blended protein shake of some sort. It was a lot of tasteless calories, but he needed the calories if he was going to walk again.

Mid-afternoon, the discharge liaison came around. Linus had wanted Miko to stay and give his input, but Miko had taken a much-needed meal break, so the only ones talking to the liaison were him, his parents and Tarius, who had taken over brother duty when Layne and Peyton left for Caleb’s afternoon playdate. They had all agreed the best place for Linus was an in-patient rehab in Old Towne called Aspen Grove, for a minimum of seven days, maybe up to two weeks. They had daily visiting hours and even encouraged family members to attend both physical and occupation therapy sessions along with Linus.

On the bonus side, the place skewed toward the younger end of patient ages, so Linus wouldn’t be surrounded by a bunch of elderly folks recovering from hip surgery. Hopefully, he’d have neighbors to talk to, since all the rooms were private.

By the time Gaven came on shift at eight, visiting hours were winding down and Linus was glad to see his constant stream of visitors slow to a trickle, until only Dad, Papa and Miko were left. All his brothers (even Demir had made time) and their various significant others had been in and out all day, most bringing him small gifts of magazines, candy or helium balloons. Every chair in the room had clusters of balloons tied to the arms, and he kind of hated them all. But they were given in love and he’d never ask Miko to give them to other patients.

Maybe he’d rehome them when he was finally discharged to rehab.

At eight-thirty, Papa declared it was time to take Dad home to rest, and Dad didn’t protest. He was stooped and pale and had trouble standing. Guilt socked Linus in the gut. Dad didn’t need all this stress, and he definitely didn’t need to be spending ten hours in a hospital room watching Linus do nothing more interesting than occasionally eat or use the bottle.

As if summoned by magic (probably someone’s text message), Gaven appeared with a wheelchair, and Dad’s lack of protest spoke loudly to how exhausted he was.

“Do you want a ride home, Miko?” Papa asked.

“No, I’m good, thanks,” Miko replied.

“You aren’t taking the bus at this hour.” Linus spoke up with more anger than he intended, flashing back to Miko’s encounter at the bus stop last night.

Miko smiled and gave him an understanding head-shake. “I’m not riding the bus. Peyton said he’d swing by at nine and pick me up. See you both tomorrow?”

“Not before noon. Dad needs to rest.”

Dad scowled as he bent down to hug Linus. “I’ll rest if you will, son. I love you.”

“Love you, too.” Linus tried to inhale the familiar, comforting scent of his sire, but it wasn’t there. Damned concussion.

Who will ever want a broken alpha like me?

Except his friend Rei Bloom had lost ninety-percent of his sight, was legally blind, and still found his bondmate. Linus might never play soccer again, but he wasn’t so completely broken he’d never be wanted by an omega. Right?

After his parents left, Linus let his body sink deeper into the uncomfortable bed. He really wanted to curl up on his side, wrap his arms around a pillow, and sob for a while, but side-sleeping was out of the question right now. So many of his muscles needed to be stretched back out, and more therapy sessions like today were key.

Even if he was sure Greco Schultz was a sadist.

Miko perched on the side of the bed by his hip, a newly-familiar spot that was both comforting and possessive, and took Linus’s hand. Linus rubbed his thumb over the back of Miko’s hand, his much paler skin moving in gentle circles over Miko’s. Cream and coffee. The perfect combination.

“What are you thinking about?” Miko whispered.

“Trying not to think. Been thinking too much lately.”

“You’ve had a lot to think about.” He let out a long breath. “So I’ve got two classes tomorrow. I need to start making up work from last week.”

“Right. Um, you don’t have to visit me if you’re too busy.”

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