Page 11 of Shifter and the Succubus (The Pack #1)

Sabrina rolled her shoulders as she sat back in her office chair.

She loved being a doctor, felt it was what she was meant to do even after she left her clan.

But after practicing for centuries, it sometimes took a toll.

Being a Succubus was hard enough. True, many supernaturals lived for centuries.

But with her kind, they could live for millennia.

Not something they advertised, really. Succubi had been persecuted in the past because of superstition and jealousy.

Vampires tended to think they were the head of the supernatural food chain, while shifters were private and a bit suspicious as a whole.

Even other demon clans had turned their backs on Succubi in the past. So her clan kept their abilities and longevity somewhat of a secret.

Of course secrets didn’t help build trust, so it was a double-edged sword.

And she remembered what it was like to carry a sword.

To fight with one. Maybe she was becoming too soft.

She hadn’t had a good sword fight in a long, long time.

The desk phone buzzed, and she clicked on the speaker. “Yes.”

“Your next appointment is here. They’re in exam room three.”

“Thanks.” Sabrina smiled as she headed out of her office and down the hall. This was the type of appointment that helped raise her spirits. She knocked lightly on the door and heard confirmation that she could enter before she opened it and stepped inside.

Lela sat in a chair with baby Sasha bouncing in her lap. He grinned when he caught sight of Sabrina.

“Hello, Lela. And hello to you, smiley boy.”

Sasha giggled as Lela stood and set him on the exam table.

“How is he doing?” Sabrina asked.

“Good. He’s finally starting to sleep through the night. Never thought we would get there.”

Sabrina picked up a thermometer and placed it close to his forehead. It beeped within seconds. “Temperature is normal.” She took her stethoscope from around her neck and wrapped her fingers around the chest piece to warm it up. “How is he doing with the food?”

Lela smirked. “I think he loves to play with it more than eat it. I spend more time scooping it off his chin after he spits it back out again.”

Sabrina chuckled. “He’ll get the hang of it. Make sure to try a variety of foods.” She tucked the stethoscope into her ears before lifting Sasha’s shirt and listening to his heart and lungs for a few moments. “Sounds good too.”

She held her hands over him and concentrated.

His energy pulsed in a brilliant and fresh way, and it made Sabrina smile.

A few minutes later after checking his reflexes and some other items like his weight, she nodded.

“He looks wonderful. He doesn’t need any inoculations today, so he’s good to go unless you have some questions for me? ”

Lela tilted her head and stared at Sabrina for a moment. “Are you okay? Your energy is a little off.”

Sabrina wrapped her stethoscope back around her neck. “I meant questions about Sasha. I’m fine.”

“Don’t try to kid me,” Lela admonished.

Sabrina sighed. “I remember how quiet you were when I first met you in the realm.”

Lela barked out a laugh. “That didn’t last long, though, did it? And weren’t you the one who told me to stand up for myself?”

Sabrina chuckled. “I did. You didn’t have to listen so well.”

“Well, I’m glad I did. I owe you a lot, Sabrina. You taught me how to control my powers, and now I can help others when I see something is wrong with their energy. If they agree to listen to me, that is.”

“Touché. So are you seeing something dire?”

Lela’s gaze ran over Sabrina and became unfocused as she examined her. After a minute she blinked and seemed to come back to herself. “Nothing life-threatening, but you seem drained.”

A recurring theme for her. “I’m just tired. I’m trying to remember when I last took time off and it’s been a while.” She really needed to stop reflecting on her short trips—could she really call them vacations?—over the past fifty years.

Lela nodded. “You work nonstop. Plan a vacation. You’ve trained your team and added to the hospital to help with the arrivals from the realm. And with Sam living in the realm and working proactively on health issues there, those immigrating are healthier and acclimate faster.”

“You should speak at the next Demon Council meeting when they ask how the immigration plans are going.”

“Now you’re deflecting,” Lela said.

Sabrina smiled. “Are you studying to be a psychologist now?”

Lela chuckled, which made Sasha giggle. “No. Between this little guy and my trips back and forth to the realm, I’m more than a little busy.”

“When is your next trip scheduled?”

“I leave tomorrow with a shipment of clothing and educational materials. We’ve set up a school in each village to teach languages and other information regarding earth. I’m also taking boxes of books. Sergei is going to stay home and watch Sasha this time.”

With the time fluctuations between earth and the realm, Sabrina had suggested that Sasha not go back and forth since they didn’t know if it would negatively impact his development. “It’s amazing how much has changed in the realm in such a short time. Much of that is due to you and Sergei.”

“We do what we can. The sooner the demons can learn about earth, the sooner they can come here and settle into the population without setting off alarm bells with humans. Now, let’s get back to you and what has you upset. It wouldn’t have to do with Jason, would it?”

Sabrina’s stomach dipped at the sound of his name. “What have you heard?”

Suddenly Lela looked down at her son instead of meeting Sabrina’s gaze. “Not much.”

“Right. Why do I find that hard to believe? Have you been talking to Misha?”

“Maybe. I took food over to their house last night for dinner since Misha isn’t letting Callie do much right now. Misha might have mentioned that Jason had been shot recently and had finally decided to start learning about his shifter half. What do you think about that?”

“I think that it’s a good idea for him to find out what it means to be shifter. Maybe he can find some peace with it.” She hesitated for a moment and then spoke. “After he was shot, I asked him if he ever came to speak with you about his animal side.”

Lela shook her head. “He hasn’t. And that is fine. He wasn’t ready before. Maybe he won’t need me to read his animal energy if he learns how to change on his own.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he doesn’t end up reaching out to you.”

“And I’ll be happy to meet with him.” Lela picked up Sasha from the table and set him in her lap. “So you’re still ignoring your feelings for him.”

Sabrina narrowed her eyes even though sadness instead of anger bubbled under her skin. “I’ve told you before that I can’t risk a relationship with him. Succubi and shifters don’t mix.”

Lela scowled right back. “And I told you that was an excuse. Since when do you follow the rules? Do I need to give Kyle a call?”

Sabrina shook her head a bit too forcefully. “Please don’t. She and Talia already staged an intervention with me.”

“I wish they would have let me know, I could have helped.”

“They didn’t need any help.”

Lela gave her a long look. “Apparently they did if you’re still avoiding him.”

Her sadness had a bite to it the longer they spoke about Jason. “I’m not avoiding him. He came to the hospital the other day and we talked. He agreed with me that we should remain friends. That we shouldn’t risk the relationship.”

“Because of your concern about his safety?” Lela asked.

Sabrina hesitated. “I haven’t exactly told him about that.”

Lela frowned. “So you’re making decisions for him without him knowing why you won’t be with him?”

Okay, maybe anger was going to come into play. Sabrina opened her mouth but Lela plowed on. “Misha told us that Jason almost died, Sabrina. What are you waiting for?”

A knock at the door stopped her from answering Lela. “Come in.”

The door opened and Susan, one of the ER nurses, popped her head in. “Sorry to interrupt, but if you’re done, we need you.”

Lela stood with Sasha in her arms. “I’ll let you get back to work. We’ll talk again when I return from my trip.”

Sabrina said her goodbyes and then pushed aside the conversation with Lela as she headed down the hall, and Susan got her up to speed about a patient that just arrived in their clinic/ER.

An hour later Sabrina was back in her office typing up her notes for the day before she headed home. Her conversation with Lela came back to her even after she had tried to bury it away. Bury away all her emotions where Jason was concerned.

Sabrina flashed back to the day of the shooting.

She’d braced herself when the van doors opened and a terrified Misha picked up Jason and laid him on the gurney.

But this time all her emotions that she’d forced down flooded back to her.

She tried unsuccessfully to calm her erratic breathing and pounding heart when she looked at his unconscious form.

Yet she continued to push him away. Continued to lie about her feelings for him. Continued to erect her impenetrable walls.

Jason had almost died.

What was she waiting for?