Page 25 of No Strings Attached
No one, not one of those nurses, explained to me what was going on. Not until my Alphas walked in. But now I’m too tiredto care, my skin stinging where the straps rubbed it raw. But with them surrounding me, it’s better. I can breathe.
The nurse’s voice cuts through my haze, saying something about how I’m good to go home if I sign the discharge papers. “We’ll give you some time alone,” she adds, and the door closes with a soft click, the room falling quiet.
I calm further and try to tug at Olivia with my bad hand, the awkward angle making me wince. She laughs, her wavy hair loose around her shoulders as she leans further over the bed. “I don’t want to hurt you,” she purrs. “I’d have to lean on your bad side, baby.”
“I don’t really care,” I tell her. “I just need you closer than you are.”
OIivia lets out a little sigh as she climbs onto the bed, resting gently against me, careful not to press on my arm. She brushes a loose strand of hair from my face but her expression is darker than it usually is. “What happened?”
“It doesn’t matter,” I push back, my gaze dropping to the sheets. I don’t want to talk about any of that.
Olivia sits up a little, her fingers grabbing my chin, forcing my eyes to hers. “I’m trying to be patient, Elias, really, but now you’re in the hospital regarding whatever you won’t fucking talk about, and I can’t do it.”
My eyes go wide, panic spiking in my chest as Olivia’s words sink in—
Is she saying she can’t do this relationship? That she’s done with me? My heart stumbles, fear drowning out the preheat burning in my belly. “No, baby, that’s not what I mean,” Olivia says, stealing me from my panic. “I’m saying I can’t just turn a blind eye anymore. We just came from a meeting with Warren, and he called you specimens like it was his right.”
Jamie kisses my cheek, his beard brushing my skin. “Olivia put him in his place, though. He shouldn’t feel comfortable saying those things.”
A groan falls from my lips because they aren’t wrong but I don’t know what to do about it. In this business, burning bridges like the ones that Warren Hart offers means I’ll lose where I am. However, in the last 24 hours, I’m not as worried about losing what I’ve built. I’m more focused on the two people currently at my side.
“What happened to your arm?” Olivia asks again, her tone softer this time.
Those gorgeous dark brown eyes search my expression for answers but I can feel the undercurrent of anger running through her and bleeding out through her scent. I don’t want her to do anything. Not yet. “Promise me you won’t do anything, okay? I’ll figure it out.”
Olivia’s eyes narrow at me. “I’m not promising you that, Elias.”
I sigh, the weight of everything that’s been happening the last few days finally closing in. “There’s a new commercial we were working on under Warren and it involves riding a bike.”
Jamie leans forward, his hand resting on my stomach. “Do you even know how to ride one of those?”
I snort, a bitter laugh escaping from me. “No, and I told them that, but I know how to now. Kind of.”
Olivia’s gaze sharpens at me, disappointment directed at me this time. “And so you got hurt trying to maneuver or something?” she asks, leaning closer, her fingers still gripping my chin. I’ve never felt like I’ve disappointed someone before but for some reason, staring into her eyes, I want to please her.
I want to make this right and knowing that I can’t, that the damage is already done, hurts more than anything else. I shake my head, my eyes dropping to the sheets. “Not exactly. Mypreheat was fucking with me, and I lost control. It could have been worse, but I’m okay.”
Olivia lets out a small grunt and I sigh again, knowing I shouldn’t have done it. It was reckless but it felt like I didn’t have a choice—even if I did. “I’m glad you’re okay. Goddess, I’m not sure what we would have done if it had been worse. Let’s get those discharge papers and get you home.”
I shift, my good hand still wrapped around Jamie. “You both can go back to work. I can grab an Uber and…”
Olivia presses a firm kiss to my lips, cutting off my protest. “Hey,” she says, pulling back, her eyes locked on mine, “I know you’re used to doing things on your own, but let us take care of you this time, okay?”
I’ve never given up control in any facet of my life. Even following rules, I still found a way to get out on top. But the plea in her words has me nodding, my instincts all too happy to lean for the first time. I sag further into the mattress, realizing how good it feels not to be in charge for once.
I lean heavily on Jamie as he helps me through the front door of their house, a dull pain throbbing in my arm from the number of drugs the hospital gave me as we left. Olivia dropped us off here since it was closer to the hospital before mentioning something about food.
Jamie keeps me steady as I continue fighting him, my words little more than a mumble at this point as exhaustion pulls at me. “I don’t need to be here. I can go home,” I murmur, trying to turn away and failing when I stumble a step forward.
He lets out a soft, worried laugh as he ushers me to the guest bedroom. “Elias, stop fighting me and just give in. I know you’rea big strong Omega but you’remybig strong Omega and I’d really like to take care of you.”
I grunt and then sigh, my body sagging as I find the couch and plop down onto it. My head falls back against the cushion, my lids slipping closed. Jamie snorts as he slowly eases the sling off my arm and then starts on my shirt. “We need to get you cleaned up before you can sleep,” he murmurs, helping me out of my shirt. I don’t even bother fighting him, too tired to even move at this point.
He moves onto my shoes, unlacing them with care, and then tugs off my jeans and boxers, like he’s done this a thousand times. I wonder if he’s undressed Olivia after a long day, the feeling of being taken care of so much better than I thought it would be. His little purrs almost have me asleep before I feel him tug my good hand. “Sweetheart, shower first. I can help you or you can do it yourself.”
I grumble, my voice thick with exhaustion. “We can do that later.”
Jamie laughs, a warm sound that cuts through my haze. “Riding a bike isn’t easy.” My eyes shoot open to look down at him, my Alpha on his knees between my thighs. A very different image gets planted in my head before I push it away. Jamie just shakes his head, picking up on what’s going through my mind. “We can do that later. As for that shower, you’re going to be hurting a lot more when the drugs wear off. I was a little wild when I was younger, and my entire body ached afterward. I know what I’m talking about.”
