Page 63 of Hades' Shadow
“C’mon, Jayden, wake up for me.” I cry into his neck.
“Beth,” he sighs my name and I jerk my head up to peer into ice-blue eyes.
“Oh my gods, Jayden, you’re okay,” I sob, letting the tears flow freely now.
“Are you crying?” Jayden reaches a hand up, wiping the tears from my cheeks with his thumb.
“You… you’re… you wouldn’t wake up. I thought I was gonna lose you,” I cry, leaning my face into his palm.
“It isn’t good, Beth,” he groans.
I spring into action, pulling the bag off my shoulder and digging around for the bottle that we are only to use in dire emergencies and pull out the stopper.
The clang of metal and whizzing arrows are only background noise as I focus on the man in front of me and place three drops of the red liquid on his tongue.
Jayden’s back arches and he bellows in agony as the muscles and tissue in his back begin knitting themselves back together.
I wrap my arms around him, holding his face to my chest through the pain. I don’t have healing powers or I could have been more help and maybe the elixir wouldn’t be needed, but the damage done by the clawed demon is extensive.
“It’s okay, it’s working.” I rock him in my arms, whispering reassurances as he groans through the pain.
“Beth, thank you,” he whispers against my neck as I loosen my hold on him slightly.
I don’t let him go.
“You don’t have to thank me. Oh gods, Jayden. I was so scared that you, that you…” I can’t finish my sentence as a lump catches in my throat.
“Shhh, it’s okay. You saved me. I’m okay.” He wraps his arms around me this time and I sob into his neck uncontrollably as he rubs my back.
“Don’t do that to me again, Jayden. I can’t take it. I can’t lose you.”
Did I really just say that? Fuck.
Jayden stiffens but doesn’t pull away. He tilts my chin up so I can look him in the eyes and runs his thumb over my cheek again, wiping away at the tears. “I’m not going anywhere, Beth.”
“I’m sorry,” I mumble as I attempt to pull myself together.
Jayden squeezes me one more time and places a gentle kiss on my forehead. “Nothing to apologize for, baby.”
His whispered words are so soft I almost don’t hear them.
There’s a grunt from behind me and Raven yells, “Hey, assholes, quit making out. I can use a little help here.”
“Shit.” I scramble off Jayden’s lap.
How did I end up on his lap?
“Are you okay? Maybe you should go back to the car and the three of us can handle this.” I hold out a hand to help him up and he takes it gratefully.
Jayden stands and pulls the shredded mess of a shirt over his head, revealing long lines of sinewy muscles. “I’m fine, Beth. Because of you.”
“What are you doing?” I nearly shriek as my brain begins functioning again.
I hate that just the sight of those abs and chest makes me fucking stupid.
“That shirt is shredded. It’s a hazard in a fight.” He shrugs and turns to the nearest demon and pulls his obsidian blade.
I groan internally because he isn’t even opening his bag to grab a new shirt. He’s just going to fight half-naked.
