Page 75 of Rescued

The deputy shrugs, glancing at his watch. “We’re about done here. Waiting on a tow truck for Barton’s vehicle, then we’ll need your statements.”

Mika frowns, glancing down at my swollen hand. “Any chance you could swing by the hospital and get our statements there? I think Gabriel might have broken his hand when he knocked the fuck out of Barton.”

Stanish tries to hold back a smile but fails miserably. “Yeah, well, if it’s any consolation, it looks like Barton has a broken jaw. Bet you anything they wire his mouth shut, which’d be a blessing. That guy…whew.” Stanish shakes his head. “One holier-than-thou son of a bitch, let me tell you.”

I laugh despite the ache in my hand. “Oh, yeah. He was a friend of my parents. They were all pretty damn zealous.”

“Yup,” Stanish says, nodding. “Go on, I’ll come up to the hospital for the statements—after I make sure Kaufman doesn’t ‘accidentally’ screw up this investigation.” He winks, then strolls back toward the sheriff, leaving me and Mika staring at each other.

“Huh,” Mika says after a moment, looking genuinely baffled. “Who knew?”

I shake my head. “Not me, caveman. Not me.”

Mika places his hand at the small of my back, steering me toward the truck. His touch is warm and steady, grounding me when my thoughts are all over the place.

“Well,” he says, his voice softer now, “it makes me feel a bit better. Let’s get up to the hospital.”

I nod, leaning into his touch as we head to the truck. I want to see Todd, make sure he’s okay. But more than anything, I want this whole mess behind us so I can go home with my mate. Because Mika’s right—I owe him a demonstration of just how hard he makes my heart—andother things—go pitter-patter.

Three hours later, my hand is immobilized in a splint that runs halfway up my forearm. It aches like hell, but the pain meds they gave me are starting to kick in, softening the edges. Mika keeps a steadying hand on my elbow, probably worried about how loopy I’ll get once the pills really hit.

“Here we go, babe,” he murmurs, pushing open the door to Todd’s hospital room.

The moment we step inside, Adam leaps away from Todd’s bed, yanking his hand out from beneath the covers.

“Oh, wow.” I can’t help but snicker. “You guys turn the prettiest shade of red.”

Mika shoots me a look, his lips twitching like he’s trying not to laugh, but Adam’s glare could curdle milk. “Next time, knock,” Adam snaps.

Mika’s gaze narrows, the air around him going cold and sharp. “Watch your tone, Adam,” he says, his voice low and steady, but carrying enough weight to make the vet’s ears turn even redder. “Gabe’s hopped up on pain pills, courtesy of his fractured hand.” He glances at Todd, who’s suddenly looking sheepish. “That fractured hand, I might add, he got while breaking your father’s jaw after the man tried to bash my head in with a goddamn pipe.”

Todd’s smile vanishes like smoke in the wind. “Oh. Oh shit, I’m sorry, guys. He’s fucking crazy—” His words come out thick and garbled, and I have to work to understand him even without Mika’s wolf-enhanced hearing.

“It’s not your fault your dad’s…uh, like that,” Adam sighs, his tone softening as he reaches for Todd’s hand. “Sorry I snapped. It’s just a little embarrassing to get caught with my hand in the cookie jar, so to speak.”

I can’t help but laugh. “Hey, man, it’s okay. Right, Mika?” I glance at him, grinning. “I mean, I plan on having my good hand in Mika’s cookie ja—”

Mika slaps his hand over my mouth before I can finish, his face heating up. Adam and Todd laugh, and I bite down on Mika’s fingers, not hard, but enough to surprise a yelp out of him. He jerks his hand away, glaring at me.

“You’ll pay for that later, mate.”

“I’m counting on it, sexy,” I shoot back, leering at him.

Adam and Todd look between us, clearly confused, and Mika shakes his head, trying to play it off. “Okay, you can put your good hand—and any other part you want—in my cookie jar when we get home,” he says, his voice light, though his cheeks are still pink.

My cock stirs at the promise in his voice, and I grin at him. “Deal.”

“Well, uh, on that note,” Adam interjects, clearly trying to steer the conversation back to safer ground, “Deputy Stanish came by and filled us in on what happened. He even mentioned you might have blackmailed the sheriff into good behavior?” He raises a brow in question.

I burst out laughing, the pain meds making everything ten times funnier. Mika sighs, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, Stanish caught on, but it worked. Those record options on cell phones are something else, huh?”

Todd’s eyes go wide, his jaw dropping. Adam chuckles, shaking his head. “You two are something else,” he says, his voice warm, and for the first time since we walked in, he actually looks relaxed.

Todd reaches for Adam’s hand, their fingers lacing together, and I feel a pang of something that’s not quite jealousy. More like hope—for them, for us, for all of it.

Adam leans down, murmuring something in Todd’s ear that makes his face light up. It’s a good look on him, the kind of glow that only comes from feeling truly seen, truly loved.

I glance at Mika, who’s watching me with an expression that makes my chest ache in the best way.

---