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The doctor came in, rifling through some papers on his clipboard. I stood up, my heart pounding as Lila grabbed my hand and stood up with me. Everyone stood up as well. Then the doctor, looking serious, said, “I’d like to ask the guests to join Kieran Redford here.”
The whole waiting room went quiet as we all listened to the doctor. The tension in the room was electric and I could feel the nervousness of everyone. Then, the doctor said something that made us fall to the ground in tears.
He looked us straight in the eye. He then smiled and said, “Congratulations. Kieran’s doing well and has had the surgery. You can see him in twenty minutes, since he’s awake.”
We all cheered and cried with joy. Kieran was alright. I felt a huge weight being lifted off my shoulders. I turned to Lila and gave her a big hug. She sniffed and laughed. Beck gave everyone a big hug and said, “If anyone tells him I was crying over him, I’ll make sure you regret it!”
We all had a laugh at his expense. Luca came over and gave me a hug. “Well done, Tali! Now, remember, he just had an operation. Please don’t put him through the wringer by asking him to do an inter-office exchange.
“Luca, pipe down.”
Just to let you know, I’ve got a few more things to add.
I felt a bit sick when Luca and Lila left Kieran’s room and it was my turn. I had no idea how I was going to bump into him. I had no idea how he’d react when he first saw me, especially after what went down on the beach when I confessed. I immediately flushed at the memory.
Taking a deep breath, I turned the knob and went in. The first thing I saw was Kieran on his bed, the sheets pulled up to his chest. A couple of wires were attached to him here and there. And then my heart skipped a beat when his blue eyes met mine.
He smiled softly and patted the bed next to him. I sat down slowly, trying not to hurt him. I didn’t know what to say, so I just grabbed his hand and started crying.
“Honey, please calm down,” Kieran said gently. “It’s hard to see you cry.”
“I’m sorry,” I laughed. “You really scared the living crap out of me.”
“Come here,” he called. I looked at him, not wanting to, and pointed down to the side where he’d been shot. “Don’t worry.” He sat down, made a bit of a noise and then opened his arms. I gradually got into him, and his smell helped me to calm down. His heat felt nice and comforting. I took a big whiff of his smell and hugged him back.
“You really scared me,” I muttered and closed my eyes. “Don’t do that again.”
Kieran kissed my forehead. “I’m really sorry I scared you. I’m really sorry for everything. But don’t worry. Wolves can take this better than a regular man and I’ll be healed in about a week.”
I had a thought, and I looked at him, wondering if he’d had the same idea. I was pretty shocked, too. “Weren’t they curious about why you were healing so quickly or why you’re not in a deep sleep, but actually wide awake?”
“No, the doctors here are aware of werewolves. We live in a werewolf-infested town,” he laughed.
“Tali, about what you said at the beach,” Kieran said. I got all tense in his arms and he stroked my hair to make me feel better.
“Look, I’m sorry,” I started to say.
“I love you too!” Kieran suddenly stopped talking after that.
I moved away from him and looked into his eyes, trying to see if he was lying. Instead, I found complete honesty and love. I blinked once, too stunned to say anything. I just said “What?”
“I –” Kieran said, looking at the space in the middle of my eyes. “I find these things really difficult,” he said, annoyed with himself. I tried to keep a straight face, but I couldn’t stop laughing. “I–I–I love you.”
I couldn’t stop laughing so I started snorting. Kieran looked at me seriously and went red with embarrassment. I gave him a quick kiss on the lips and said, “Don’t worry, I love you too.”
Just to let you know, I’ve got a few more things to add.
Things had definitely started to slow down.
The chaos was starting to die down. The Iron Justice hasn’t been an issue for me for the last two weeks. Kieran healed in a matter of days. His incident had actually brought the Eclipse and Moonfire Pack closer, and they felt they had to find the intruder – the person who’d harmed a wolf in the territory both packs shared. I got out of patrol duties. I was finally getting enough sleep, but of course, I woke up with a start some nights drenched in sweat and trying to get my breathing back. Kieran slept over some nights because he was so protective of me. Some nights, Elias or Tasha would sleep over. Even my mum did.
I felt like they were babysitting me, and eventually I lost my temper and snapped at them. But they quickly dismissed me with pained expressions. I gave it about three months before things stopped completely and my life went back to normal – sort of.
I was still trying to get used to the idea of werewolves – or healers, as they’re also known. I couldn’t believe it, I’d thought of it as a myth less than four months ago! To sum up everything I’ve learned since then, healers are the top werewolf caste. No one knew we were still around, though. We could heal any werewolf, obviously. But every healer has their own way of doing things. Some people even heal with their eyes, their lips, their chanting and their spit. I’d go for my hands.
Back to the pack, Beck and Brielle didn’t get together. Unfortunately, though. I thought that, since the incident and judging by their behaviour in the waiting room, they would. But it seemed like a bit of a struggle for Brielle. She wasn’t sure what was best for her. I later found out she was insecure – she was afraid to trust Beck again. They found out they were mates when Beck was only fourteen and Brielle was fifteen. He was young. He was scared. He turned her down because of it. The other reason was Damien. She was crazy about Damien, too. But I wasn’t going to get involved in her problem. It was her heart and her own rightful choice, and I respected that.
But another pair finally became a couple. Lila and Luca were probably the cutest, but the couple that showed the most PDA. Kieran would flinch and look away, and his eyes would get all big whenever the two of them started to make out. But I’d just put my hand on his chest, using my ability to calm his racing and angry heart. So, after what happened with Kieran, the two of them finally got together and it actually made them closer somehow. Lila told me how she’d known Luca was her perfect match since she was sixteen, but she’d been too slow to actually give his heart to him. Obviously, this was because of her mum dying.
I know you’re probably a bit confused about the mate thing. Well, I am too, sort of. A werewolf pair finds their mate out of the blue – even if they’ve known that person for years. They were cursed for killing most of the healers. One day, out of the blue, something would happen to leave a stunned girl and a speechless boy. It’s a tough world we live in.
Back to the present, I never liked to talk about what happened with Kieran. It really left an impression on me. But I stopped myself from thinking about it too much. Kieran sometimes joked about it. He’s used to dealing with these sorts of situations, being alpha and all.
And today, I went on another date with him.
“I told you I’ve got hands and can open the door myself,” I groaned, slapping him on the head just as I got out of my house.
“Ouch,” Kieran said, narrowing his eyes at me. He was still holding the door open to his car. “I just thought I’d be a bit nice. You’re so ungrateful.” He gave me a playful pout, turning his head away like he didn’t want me to talk to him.
This was our usual greeting.
I wrapped my arms around his waist, laughing and resting my chin on his chest. When he still wouldn’t look at me, I kissed his neck, and heard him low and growly at the back of his throat. I smiled against his neck and started laughing my real laugh – yeah, the one with the snorting. Kieran and I shared a laugh. I gave him a kiss on the nose and said, “You’re not going to stay mad at me, are you?”
He took both of my hands in his and looked down at me. His blue eyes had more spark than the stars in the sky. He smiled at me, and I could see him resting his forehead on mine. He inhaled my scent and said, “You look beautiful, Talis.”
I laughed out loud. I just put on some light, dark skinny jeans, a grey, knitted, oversized, long-sleeved sweater, and black boots from Steve Madden. I also had my hair up in a nice bun with a headband on. I just did my makeup with mascara and eyeliner. To finish off, I had black pearls in my ears and I carried a black clutch. Kieran did say to dress comfortably.
“You look good,” I admitted, biting my lip. I looked at his body and took him in. He was wearing a dark grey button-up shirt rolled up to his elbows and straight-fit jeans that were hanging low on his hips. His Nikes were in good nick and his hair was short, but not too short. He cut his hair and I thought he looked good.
In the end, I got in his car and he drove off to a nice pancake house. I smiled. He knew me too well. I really enjoyed eating at places that were more relaxed than posh restaurants where you have to sit up straight. I’m not saying I don’t like eating at classy restaurants, I just prefer less crowds, small places and a cosy feel. Another reason was the waffles. I thought the waffles here were amazing and I could eat them at any time of the day.
Next, we stopped somewhere that took me by surprise. “The Pack House?” I said, looking at the two-storey building in front of us.” I unbuckled my seat belt and waited for the engine to die before getting out of the car.
“Yeah,” Kieran said, coming around the car and putting an arm around my shoulder. “I just wanted some time to myself with my partner.”