Page 19 of Hunters and Hydrangeas

I grab a juice glass and pour the rest of the blood into it. “About half.”

“Call in your prescription. I’ll pick it up for you.”

I roll my shoulders, feeling off. This gnawing sensation isn’t pleasant.

Cassian studies me. “You took your medications this morning, didn’t you?”

“Yeah.”

“Tell me how you’re feeling right now.”

“You butted your way in as my conservator. Are you my therapist, too?”

“I just don’t want you to eat the neighbors, bunny.”

I growl, tossing back the nasty scarlet liquid and then rinsing my mouth. It helps a little, but not enough.

“I feel hungry,” I finally answer. “But I’m not. So snacky, maybe? And it’s making me feel kind of…caged?”

He nods solemnly. “It takes a few months to get the dose right. You might need to make another appointment with Dr. Martin.”

“When I was transitioning, the lack of blood didn’t make me feel like this. It just made me sick.”

“Technically, you’ve had enough blood to keep your body systems running well. Just not enough for…” He frowns like a man who doesn’t want to tell a woman she’s acting hormonal.

I cross my arms. “Is that a nice way of saying I’mcrazy?”

“No,” he says soothingly, but his lips twitch with a smile. “You seem perfectly stable.”

The front door opens, distracting us both. It’s a welcome sound—my favorite, really.

“Piper ran out of blood,” Cassian says when Noah joins us in the kitchen. “I’m going to pick up her prescription for her.”

“I haven’t called it in yet,” I remind him.

“Well, get on it. They close soon.” He heads for the door, jingling his keys. “When I get back, we can talk about Alfred.”

A few seconds later, the front door closes.

“Hey,” Noah says when we’re alone, looking good enough to…

No.

“Hi.” I swallow as I pull my eyes away from his neck.

“I have buffalo blood in the fridge,” Noah points out.

“I’m fine.”

He crosses the space, smirking in a way that’s both annoying and hot.

Or maybe just annoyingly hot.

“You seem fine.” He sets his hands on my shoulders, rubbing gently as his honey-brown eyes stray over my face. “Did you have a good day?”

“Cassian almost choked the life out of Ethan’s brother, and we might have found a property we’re interested in.”

Noah raises his brows. “You found a property already?”

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