Page 22 of Her Bossy Wolf Protector

His footsteps falter before he turns to face me. His eyes are unfocused, his hair a little disheveled, but he is dressed in a suit like he just came out of a corporate meeting.

“Jade!”

I am trying to catch my breath as I approach him, “What the fuck?”

“I think the phrase you are looking for is ‘thank you’.”

Is he fucking kidding me right now?“You can’t be serious.”

He folds his arms and waits on the barrage ofthank yous,which he sure as hell will not be getting. “What exactly should I be thanking you for? You fired me. You went into my home without my permission. You bought me freaking underwear. Who does that? Then you show up here after I told you, very clearly, that I did not want anything to do with you.”

He glares at me before counting the things off on his hand:

First finger – “I fired you because you were being incompetent, and in case you didn’t notice, I still gave you a pretty decent severance package.”

Second finger – “I helped your friend because I was concerned about you and knew that it was important to you. Have you forgotten that Alyssa may still be out there somewhere if I hadn’t found her? She’s here in the hospital because of me!”

Third finger – “And have you even bothered to think about the hospital bill? Well, I have! If you had, you would have known that I took care of that so that you and Alyssa wouldn’t need to worry. But no, you are a lot more interested in making me a villain. Fine! If you don’t want me to help anymore, then I won’t.”

Fourth finger – “And by the way, I only brought you fresh clothes because you look terrible, and despite everything, I wanted to make sure you were okay. Despite what you think, that is all I have been doing since the day I met you. Don’t worry about it, though. I am done.”

Then he turns on his heel and walks away leaving me completely stunned. Now that he has put it like that, I sound like more of a brat than before.

My heart is thundering.He just admitted that he was the one who found her!

I have known him less than a week, but it is obvious that I have really pissed him off. Maybe I should apologize? He is the one who saved my friend, after all.

I can’t think about that now. After Alyssa is discharged, I will talk to him and make amends. And then, if I have anything to say about it, he’ll be explaining a few things to me.

Feeling flustered and embarrassed, I return to the hospital so the nurse I left can get back to work.

I am plagued with so many questions. Why is Gabriel so invested in what is happening in my life? I am grateful for it, but still, his actions seem a bit above and beyond what would be expected for someone who just met me. It’s a little alarming.

I am still deep in thought as I approach the room that has now become my new home.

I stand frozen in the doorway, disbelief etched across my face as I witness the chaotic scene unfolding in Alyssa’s hospital room. The nurse is desperately attempting to restrain an agitated Alyssa, who has shockingly awakened from her coma.

“She’s awake?” I stammer, my eyes wide with astonishment.

The nurse nods grimly, “Yes, but we need to get her back to sleep. She’s highly agitated.”

A sense of urgency fills the room as doctors and additional nurses rush to Alyssa’s bedside. It’s then that my gaze falls upon the torn bandage on Alyssa’s neck, revealing two unmistakable fang marks. My heart races and a chill runs down my spine.

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