Chapter 8

Luka

“Take off your clothes.”

Okay, now it all made sense. Sex. That was the reason why he took me, and he wanted a return on his investment right away. How else would he know if he got what he bargained for?

He looked at me expectantly as I sat there. I had just defied him already by asking for mercy for the nurse, so I didn’t want to try to defy him again. But what choice did I have? If I said no, maybe he would send me to the latrines, too.

I had just woken up from a coma, and my body was still racked with injuries. And he still wanted to have sex? I didn’t understand.

I tried to speak.

“I don’t think…” I said, hesitating.

“Don’t make me say it again.”

Could he actually be worse than Declan? I realized I didn’t know anything about him. Not really.

I slowly took off my hospital clothing, starting with the pants. It hurt my ribs to lean down, and I scrunched up to get them off. Then I started to undo the gown over it. I kept snagging my wounds, which was unbearable every time. I tried to go slowly.

Caleb saw I was in pain and wasn’t having it. He ripped my gown off and finished tugging down the pants, throwing both aside.

I covered my body with my hands, not sure if it was more for modesty or to shield myself from the cold air.

“Lie down.”

I looked around, moving slowly, but complying. I wanted to refuse outright, but I didn’t think it would be wise, having just seen what happened to the nurse.

“I’m still not feeling well,” I said as I tried to make myself flat. “My body is sore and in pain. I’m just not feeling up to sex. Would it be possible for us to wait? I’m not refusing you, I’m just…”

His face became angry, and I braced myself for violence.

“What are you talking about?”

Shit, I had really done it now.

“Lie down,” he repeated. “So you can apply the medicine to your body.”

He walked toward the tray where the nurse from hell had placed the various ointments and creams.

I could feel my face burning hot, and I was sure it was beet red. How was I supposed to know? But I also felt like a total idiot. But why would I have any reason to think he’d meant anything else? It’s his fault for being unclear, not my fault for misunderstanding.

I didn’t know if I was angrier at myself or at him. All I knew was that I was angry and that I felt stupid.

He placed down the medications onto the table by my bed delicately, one by one, so they were easy to reach. I got the impression that it was to demonstrate his sincerity, to emphasize to me that he didn’t just take me away for sex.

I mean, I assume that was part of the reason. But I appreciated the gesture regardless.

“Here, I’ll be gentle,” he said, as he gingerly peeled off some of the gauze that was particularly stuck. He took some of the ointment in his hands to loosen it.

I winced and gasped as he tugged at some of the gauze, and he looked me in the eye sympathetically and went more slowly. He dipped a piece of cloth into a cool basin of water and wrung it out, then wiped it over my skin, slower than before.

It felt like a summer dip in a mountain lake, and I could feel myself healing. He placed medication onto the cloth and rubbed it in, but his fingers brushed my skin. I thought it would hurt and braced myself each time his hands came close, but each time I was surprised by the relief.

His fingers brushed against my skin unintentionally, and each time an electrical surge went through my skin, like the glow of a firefly. It was comforting, in the same way of holding his hand as we were leaving Long Lake Pack.

I found my eyes drooping shut every once in a while, and straightened myself up each time. I didn’t know him, so I couldn’t trust him, of course, and there was no way I could let my guard down with anyone.

But being with him, it was the closest thing to trust I had felt so far. Even if I was constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I looked at the muscles in his arms as he dabbed me with water and applied the medication, as he took off my dressings and replaced it with new gauze. It occurred to me that I hadn’t had anyone touch me in a healing way before. I liked it.

Caleb

I wasn’t used to taking care of anyone, especially since I had spent most of my life being waited on. It was a change. But after the incident with the nurse, I didn’t want to take any chances.

We stayed mostly silent, although every once in a while she would wince and take a deep breath.

“Sorry about that,” I said. “I’ll try to be careful and go slowly.”

“I could do it myself, maybe,” Luka suggested, which irritated me for some reason. “I mean, not that you’re not doing a good job or anything…”

“I appreciate it, but you’re not well enough. I’ll find another nurse for you, and make sure you have plenty of doctors, but I can’t allow you to treat your own wounds for the time being. You could hurt yourself more badly.”

I knew my chief of security, after dealing with the nurse, would be arranging a meeting to establish dedicated staff to attend to Luka’s care. I wanted to have a protocol for vetting to avoid anything like what just happened.

Her wounds were cleaner now, but as slow as I went, the raw skin still tore. Every time, it made me ask why I was doing this at all. When I took her away from Long Lake Pack, it was so evident, I didn’t even question it. But caring for her abused body, I felt a sense of responsibility for her.

What was I doing?

Yeah, what are you doing? Logan grunted. He had been irritable since leaving Long Lake Pack, with no outlet for his aggression and no outlet for his primal drives.

What’s that supposed to mean? I asked him, my irritation echoing his, like two brothers bickering.

You’re a king. No, not just a king. You’re king of the alphas and leader of Red Moon Pack. And yet you’re here playing nursemaid after running away from an alpha who isn’t fit to grovel at your feet.

I don’t think that’s fair, I answer him.

You’re right. It’s not fair, it’s not fair to me or yourself not to act, Logan said. Take her. Possess her. Explore her, and act on the reason you brought her here.

As much as I was tempted, it wasn’t even a question. She had a gorgeous body, I couldn’t help but notice that, especially with her clothes off. In some ways, with the attraction of her scent and the beauty of her nude body, it was difficult not to just start pawing over her, kissing every inch of her skin.

But her naked body also reminded me why I didn’t want to at all. She was so broken physically, so injured, it might kill her. Just breathing and moving brought her pain. The slightest touch to her wounds made her gasp.

If just touching her raw injuries made her howl in pain, there was no way I was going to subject her body to the irrepressible lust of a 6-foot-5 250-pound shifter king of pure muscle.

I explained all of this to Logan, who didn’t want to acknowledge that it was true, despite also knowing it. It just couldn’t happen. Not yet.

Still, every time I caught sight of her gorgeous pale skin, her full breasts, the tuft of hair between her legs, I wanted to climb on top of her and bring myself to ecstasy. I didn’t know how I was going to keep controlling myself.