Page 37 of Fated
"God, it's becoming a full-time job keeping you alive," he said, trying to lighten the heavy mood, and I smiled.
"How are you feeling?" Curtis interrupted.
"Like I got attacked by an asshole hell-bent on taking over my pack," I muttered.
"How did he get past the patrols?" Curtis asked.
"Someone must have helped him," I said. The two alphas and Curtis shared a look.
The patrolling schedule was changed regularly so it wouldn't be easy to slip through. I'd changed the times of the schedule after Richard had left, which meant the only way he could have gotten past the patrols without getting detected would have been if he'd been given the information by someone who had access to it—a member of my pack.
I was in a vulnerable position, more so now that a traitor was feeding Richard information so he could try and kill me. It was a blow to my already weakened confidence at taking over the alpha role from Victor.
My eyes went back to Blake and then my gaze dropped to our hands. I wasn't sure if I was ready to take this step with Blake but my time was running out. I needed to be able to shift and that meant it was time to mate with him.
Kyle left, telling me he'd be back in a couple hours to check on me. Curtis checked me over before he disappeared, leaving me alone with Blake.
"I want to see my mom," I stated as I sat up. I felt weak but the determination to see her brought me to my feet.
I'd expected Blake to argue but he put an arm around my waist and helped me walk to my mom's room. She was sleeping peacefully and I didn't have the heart to wake her up so I watched her for a few moments as Blake stood beside me before I bent down and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"You should get some more rest," Blake instructed while he helped me back to my room. He was right. I was tired by the time I got back into my hospital bed and Blake covered me with a blanket. I couldn't relax enough to sleep when I was worried about the traitor in my pack.
Blake scanned my features.
"I'll watch over you," he assured me. "Close your eyes and sleep. I won't let anything happen to you."
My throat thickened and I swallowed hard. He was so damn sweet and becoming harder and harder to resist.
Right then and there I made my decision to take the next step with Blake. He had a reputation at school of being a player so I was sure he knew what he was doing when it came to the bedroom. My few sexual experiences had been quick and awkward. I had nowhere near the experience his reputation suggested and that made me feel nervous.
Knowing he was watching over me and he wasn't going to leave, I closed my eyes and began to relax. The gentle stroke of his thumb against my hand eased me into a peaceful sleep.
Blake's face was the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes. He was watching me. He gave me a soft smile when he saw I was awake.
"Hey," he said as he pulled the chair closer to the bed. "How are you feeling?"
I was feeling much better. I didn't know if it was the painkillers or my increased werewolf healing that was responsible.
"I feel okay," I said as I tried to sit up. He stood up immediately and helped me. I looked up at him as I felt the warmth of his touch on my skin. For a few moments our gazes held. He felt the same way I did—I could see it in his eyes. Feeling embarrassed for the way I was feeling, I dropped my gaze to my hands.
My mom was the only person I'd ever truly loved and it had been used against me. What if this was another ploy by Blake? I cared about him but if I developed stronger feelings it would be harder to handle any more betrayal from him. I took a deep breath and released it as Blake sat down in the chair and watched me.
"Did you stay here all night?" I asked. I don't know if I was expecting him to say he hadn't and then I could use that to keep myself from falling harder for him.
"Yes," he answered. He'd stayed here with me the whole night? I could feel my heart swell with emotion at the small gesture.
I gave him a side-glance.
"I also checked on your mom," he revealed, and I stared at him in shock. "She was doing okay this morning but she's still deteriorating."
I just stared at him a little open-mouthed for a couple of seconds before I shut my mouth. It had been unexpected.
"Thank you," I said, sounding a little hoarse. He knew how much my mom meant to me so he'd checked on her.
"Curtis says you can leave today if you're feeling better," he said as he reached for my hand and his long fingers wrapped around mine. It was hard to believe that such small gestures had such a big impact on my growing feelings for him. I loved how I felt when he touched me. Now I understood why werewolves wanted to be together almost all of the time after they'd mated.
"Okay," I said, giving him a nod. I wasn't sure how to act around him now that I wasn't sure exactly what we were. We weren't your typical run-of-the-mill teenagers who'd fallen in love and were dating. We were werewolves fated to be together forever. It would take time to erase the memories of deception and hurt, but I did have hope that we would be able to work it out.
