Page 81 of Forbidden Devotion
Ann bit into her wrist until blood flowed freely from the wound. She lowered it to Nathan’s mouth, forcing his lips open with her other hand.
“Go ahead,” she encouraged. “A few swallows will help. Don’t be afraid.”
“Go on, Nathan.” Mitchel held Nathan’s head up as the young wolf followed their instructions, closing his mouth over the punctures and forcing himself to swallow until she pulled her wrist away and closed the wound herself.
“Good. Feel better?” she asked.
Color flushed Nathan’s cheeks. When he spoke, his voice sounded strong. Solid. “Yes, thank you. I do.”
The shallow breaths he’d been taking evened out to regular lungfuls. Under Mitchel’s hand, Nathan’s muscles flexed, and he held the weight of his own head. He was struggling to sit.
“No, no, no,” Mitchel said. “Lie back. Relax and be still.”
“I shall carry him.” Luther knelt, but Mitchel wasn’t ready to let Nathan go.
“I think the bullet is lodged in his gut, or there would be more blood from his back,” Ann said. “He’ll need a surgeon, but he should be fine until we make it back to Oak City’s hospital.”
“I assure you, he’ll have the finest care,” Luther said as Mitchel slid out of the way so Luther could scoop Nathan into his arms. Sinclair cast a worried glance at his father and the injured wolf.
Mitchel finally had a chance to look Sinclair over from head to toe. No blood, though the bruising on his wrists was concerning. Otherwise, he looked hail and hearty. Thank the moon for that.
He opened his arms, and Sinclair sank into them.
* * *
Sinclair
Buryinghis nose in Mitchel’s neck, Sinclair breathed the wolf’s scent in deeply. Safety. Home. Security. Mitchel’s kisses landed on his crown. They clung to each other for a long stolen moment, then untangled and got the hell out of there.
Clinging to each other’s hands, they followed the others down a long hallway, through a set of wooden double doors to what was clearly a viewing room, into the lobby, and out the front doors.
Sinclair had never been so grateful for fresh air in all his life. He sucked in lungful after lungful.
Then he spotted the limo.
“Thisis the car you chose to rescue me in?” Sinclair’s sass lightened the heavy mood.
“Only the best.” Ann reached for him, and Sinclair embraced her. “Son. I was so worried!”
“I’m sorry, Mom. I don’t know what happened.” Sinclair kissed her cheek. “I was dazed after the explosion. I couldn’t think straight. They came out of nowhere.”
“I’m just glad you’re safe.” She ducked into the car.
Sinclair and Mitchel followed.
His father made Nathan as comfortable as possible. The young wolf insisted he was all right. Josh took the seat next to him so he had someone to lean on.
Becket was on one phone, ordering someone to come take care of the bodies, and his father was on another, relaying instructions for a press release.
Sinclair curled into Mitchel’s side, the weight of his arm around his shoulders a great comfort. “You saved me,” he murmured into Mitchel’s neck.
“If we hadn’t come along when we did, you looked ready to save yourself,” Mitchel said.
“I was trying to be prepared if an opportunity arose.”
“You were phenomenal. I think you could have taken out all six of them the way you were brandishing that fire extinguisher.”
“How did you know where to find me?”
