Page 14 of The Healer (The Blood of Legends #2)

Chapter Fourteen

VILLAGE DOCTOR

P ounding on her door dragged Ilona from sleep. Growling at the intrusion, she flopped over, feeling like she had been drawn and quartered through the snow backward. She yanked the pillow over her head, praying the person would go away.

“Doc, two kids broke their arms. Coedwig needs you.” Dane’s voice was muffled as if he stood to close to the door.

Two? At the same time? “They can heal.” Guilt pinged through her heart. She had sworn an oath to do no harm. Her circumstances didn’t mean her vow no longer mattered.

“Broken bones work the same on shifters. If they’re not aligned properly—”

“So help me, Dane.” She sucked in a shuddering breath. But he was right, and her not going was harming the children, wasn’t it?

Silence rang out, deep rumbles followed, and a thump jerked her fully awake.

“I have coffee.” That was Rhys’s voice, right?

No, Dane waited at the door. No point in getting wishful and dragging her dreams into reality. That way led to disappointment.

She flipped onto her back and threw a pillow at the door. “Come in.”

In her boy shorts and a baggy T-shirt, she was more than decent. Her hair was a mess, but she didn’t care. Taking the time to brush it would only encourage Dane. Developing a crush on him would never happen. She was a one-man kind of woman. Not to mention the eager hopefuls flirting with him were striking, beautiful, and unscarred.

The door banged open, and he crept in, balancing a tray. The aromas of coffee, waffles, bacon, and sausage filled her bedroom.

“You’re wonderful.” She sighed, smoothing a spot on her duvet.

He lowered the tray, his tongue sticking out in concentration. Then he sat on the edge of the bed and almost spilled the coffee.

“Jake’s warming the clinic and trying to find out how it happened.” Dane ran a hand over his face which didn’t lighten the dark circles under his eyes. “If you hurry, we can be there in fifteen minutes. I’ve asked Harriet to pack your things, assuming you’re moving into your house when we return from the clinic?”

Ilona cupped the coffee mug to her chest between sips and nibbles of bacon. Did she want to stay? To discover the possibilities of his blood? “Yes, thanks.” She studied his cheek for any sign of the slap she had given him the previous night. Grimacing, she ran her thumb along the edge of her cup. “Sorry about…” She nudged her chin at his cheek.

“I should apologize. I wanted you well, and as an alpha, I don’t ask first before I do something.” He captured her hand holding the last bite of a waffle. “Dr. Ilona, please may I have your permission to share my blood should any harm befall you?” Those big ice-blue eyes, those pouting lips…shit, the man was a natural lady killer.

She smiled despite her best intentions. “Charmer.”

He grinned. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

When he released her hand, she popped the piece of waffle into her mouth, chewing as she assessed this virile man in his jeans and T-shirt. She sucked on her thumb before gesturing to the door, asking him to leave. Then froze. Rhys filled the space, his shoulders almost brushing the door frame.

“Morning.” She gulped and clasped her hands on her lap. Fussing with her hair would accomplish what?

“How are you feeling?” His deep voice caressed her ears, sparking goosebumps along her skin.

She shivered, relishing the tingles sliding down her back. Her nipples pebbled under the T-shirt but covering them would bring attention to her reaction.

When conversation turns awkward, take control of the situation. She lifted her coffee for another sip. “Dane, give me ten minutes. I’ll meet you out front.”

He glowered, scooped up the tray, then rose.

Rhys stepped aside to let him pass, entered her room, then closed the door behind him. Her breath caught at having him alone. Right, like she knew how to seduce. Not that she wanted to. No, of course not.

“So?” He grinned and scattered her heartbeat

That wasn’t possible, medically. She pinched her lips and dipped her chin, hoping to hide her burning cheeks behind the fall of her hair.

“How do you feel?” He crossed the room to stand at the foot of the bed.

His black jeans hugged thick thighs; his white T-shirt clung to his ripped chest and torso. But more than running her hands over his indents and hard edges, she longed to bury her fingers in his hair, to rub her thumb over his beard and bottom lip.

“Good.” At her rasp, she cleared her throat.

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t stop Dane.” Rhys’s blue gaze rested on her wounded shoulder. “Politics and pack boundaries play a part.”

She shrugged. “I won’t lie. I was super pissed at him. The worst is that his crazy antics worked.” Tugging on her collar, she revealed the red streaks.

Rhys kneeled beside her bed and ran his fingertips along the scars. She didn’t dare breathe, expecting herself to wheeze. Not that she could recall when last a man had touched her with such ease. And how much she liked his fingers on her would be suppressed until she could analyze it on lonely nights.

Flipping the blankets aside, she swung her legs off the bed, expecting him to step back. He didn’t. Instead, he caught her fingers and helped her up. An inch separated them, but he didn’t release her. He toyed with her hands, gliding and sliding his over hers. His breathing shuddered, and he raised trembling fingers to brush away a curl covering her eye.

“What are your plans for the day?” His voice thrummed through her like the soft roar of a steep waterfall, promising a cool swim but with devastating consequences.

“Mend broken arms, clean the clinic, move into my gran’s old home, and drive to Lover’s Point a few times.” Peaceful by trauma standards. The weight on her chest eased. She could do this.

“Need help?”

She stilled and met his gaze, drowning in the blue depths while the intensity in them promised sweaty nights and ecstasy. “No, but thanks.” Placing her palms on his chest, she tried to slip past, brushing a hip across something incredibly hard.

He hissed and gripped her elbows for a second.

“Rhys?” She smiled. “I have to get ready.”

“I know.” Closing his eyes, he sucked in a sharp breath then crossed to the door. “If you need anything—?”

“Thank you.” She followed him, but his gaze dipped to her bare legs.

He groaned, stepped backward through the door and shut it with a decided snap.

Blinking at the door, she took a few moments to slow her breathing before dressing. She tugged on jeans, clipped on a bra, slipped on a forest-green T-shirt, then a jacket, before dropping onto the edge of the bed to don socks and boots. A quick brush of her hair and teeth, and with a minute to spare, she threw her things into her bag. She didn’t want to overburden Harriet.

Rhys’s deep voice rumbled a greeting from the passage. Harriet laughed at something he said. When Ilona left her room, Harriet had her hand on the doorknob to the room across the passage. If that was Rhys’s room, Ilona was wise to move out—temptation and all that.

“Morning, did you sleep well?” Harriet’s parchment cheeks were bright pink, and her gray eyes sparkled.

“Of course.” Ilona wrapped an arm around Harriet’s fragile shoulders for a gentle hug.

Dane appeared at the bottom of the stairs. “Will you two quit gossiping? I have two cubs—”

“I’m coming.” Ilona hurried down the stairs, leaped the last two steps, and nudged him out of the way. That wasn’t easy to do with his great bulk, but she managed to budge him an inch.

“How’s the shoulder?” He narrowed his mischievous eyes, a dimple appearing in his cheek.

“Good, like you need to ask, Mayor Ass.”

“Hey, am I still not forgiven?” He grumbled under his breath as he trailed her to his SUV.

“Forgiven, not forgotten.” She climbed into the passenger side, hoping he didn’t demand she drive.

A few minutes later, he steered into a parking spot in front of the brick building she didn’t have fond memories of. They could have walked to it, but the wind had teeth this morning, nipping at any exposed part.

“Morning, Doc. How ya feeling?” Jake fell into step beside her.

“Good. Dane and I need to talk about the impact of shifter blood on human diseases and whether someone’s researching this. Is it common knowledge?” She spun on her heel and walked backward, meeting Dane’s gaze.

He shrugged. “Over the last few decades, scientists showed interest in certain townsfolk and their healing abilities. They chalked it up to the fresh air and healthy food sparking many diet fads.”

She nodded. “Mediterranean?”

He grinned. “As a polar bear, I see nothing wrong with living off fish.”

“No, thanks, give me beef, elk, or bison, and I’m happy.” Jake held the door open for her.

Dane leaned in to whisper, though why he bothered when Jake could hear him, she didn’t know. “Lion.”

She gasped. “But…how’s that possible? Lions don’t roam these lands.”

“Over the centuries, shifters migrated to safe harbors, so to speak. Now we’re a mismatch of species, our genes blurring. The odds of all your cubs shifting into the same animal have more to do with luck than anything else.” Jake grinned. “But my genes are dominant. All my cubs are lions.”

“Does the purity of those genes matter? I assume, as an alpha, your polar bear must be strong.”

Dane beamed, rubbing his chest like she’d complimented him.

She pushed through the swinging doors, heading for the faint voices in conversation.

He shrugged. “Works the same as humans, Doc. In a family of brown eyes, a kid with blue eyes is born.”

She pursed her lips, surprised at his insight. With a sigh, she nudged the consulting room door open. Two boys sat on the bed scrapping and swinging punches even as they nursed their injured arms.

With no overprotective furrowing of their brows, two women chatted, their shoulders relaxed. When Dane squeezed past Ilona into the room, they unfolded their arms, sharing smiles in greeting—neither were flirtatious.

“All right, who do we have here?” Ilona paused in front of the fighting boys.

In torn jeans, grubby shirts, dirty fingernails, and their hair standing on end, they were the poster image of rambunctious boys.

“I’m Cammy.” The blond raised his gaze to meet hers, nudging the brown-haired boy beside him.

“I’m Jonny.” He waved with his good hand.

“So, what happened?” She smiled to soften the question.

They snuck glances at each other. Barely suppressed laughter brightened their eyes and split their cheeks with mischievous grins. When neither explained, Ilona couldn’t help but smother a smile. They must have been doing something they weren’t supposed to.

“We’ve broken bones before. This time, Mommy noticed.” Cammy rolled his eyes. “She damn near lost her shit.”

“Language.” A woman behind Ilona grumbled something, and Cammy stilled his fidgeting.

“Who’s first?” Ilona schooled her features into a stoic expression, hoping she appeared professional behind her chuckling.

“Me.” Cammy offered a cheeky smile and held out his arm, not bothering to suppress a wince.

“Let me see.” To assess the damage, she clasped his arm with a gentle touch.

It had begun to heal. Yellow and green bruises along his ulnaris and minimi muscles didn’t prove he had broken his radius or ulna. She assessed Jonny’s arm, which had similar bruising, almost like they had clamped their left arms in a vise.

“X-rays?” She arched a brow at Dane.

In a small town, she wasn’t sure what technology was available. At Amity, the best and latest machines and techniques helped her treat the sick and injured children in her care. Then again, despite having all the equipment and knowledge at her disposal, she couldn’t save her father.

“We used to have an old one tucked in the storeroom.” Dane gestured down the passage. “It died.”

She grimaced. No X-rays meant assuming the worst. There was a high probability they weren’t compound fractures as evidenced by no bones piercing the skin, but that wasn’t a definitive diagnosis. Shit, all she could do was prescribe orthopedic arm guards. No X-rays worried her. She needed to see how the bones had broken, to ensure they would heal aligned.

Facing the mothers, she plastered on a polite smile. “Any idea what caused this?”

One blonde shook her head. She peeked around Ilona at Cammy. “Knowing him, he launched himself from tree to tree believing he could fly.”

The other mother nodded. “That was the cause last time, but we only found out afterward.” She wrung her hands. “We’re shifters, and if our alpha trusts you…” She thrust out a hand. “I’m Denise, Jonny’s mother.”

The blonde woman blushed. “Sorry, I must have left my manners in the other truck. I’m Beth Dunn, Cammy’s mom.”

“Dunn?” Ilona flicked a glance at Jake hovering in the doorway.

“Guilty.” He grinned. “Beth’s my mate, and Cameron’s my youngest cub.”

Ilona smiled as she lifted each boy off the table. They hurtled out the door and along the passage like nothing was wrong. Dane’s grumbles as he chased after them lightened her heart.

“Please tell me you have a pharmacy?” She scowled at Jake’s shaking head. “They need orthopedic arm guards. We don’t use plaster of paris or fiberglass anymore.”

“Write out the prescription, and I’ll send someone to Glenfell.” He sighed. “Sorry, Doc, that’s all I can do.”

“They need to be fitted. But they’ll probably heal before you have the armguards. Sounds like this happens often, so having them on hand might not be a bad idea.” She gestured to the mothers to follow her, escorting them from the consulting room to the reception area. Rifling through the reception desk, she found Amos’s prescription pad. “These are standard and should be over the counter.”

With ease, Dane held the boys by the scruffs of their T-shirts. “What do you need, Doc?”

“I want a cast, Doc. Can I have one?” Cammy stopped in mid-wrestle as soon as Dane carried them into the reception area.

“Me first.” Jonny swung a punch, and they scrapped again.

“Even better, boys, you get to wear a specialized armguard like the knights of old.” Ilona ran her hand over her arm then assumed a defensive stance holding an imaginary shield.

Their mouths parted in awe, while their eyes twinkled with excitement.

It was Jonny who asked, “Can we have swords?”

“When sickness or a wound brought a knight low, they stayed inside by the fire demanding roast chicken and mead.” Ilona used a stage whisper. “I’d ask for cake and popcorn.”

They beamed before dancing around their mothers with their pouting lips and puppy-dog eyes, making loud demands for mead.

“Thank you, Doc.” Denise shuffled her son through the front door.

Jake picked up Cammy, and with a nod to Ilona, escorted Beth to their SUV.

“Well done.” Dane leaned against the doorframe with his legs crossed at the ankles.

“Thanks. I wanted to do my fellowship in pediatric oncology, but—” She bit her lip to silence her words. No way was she bringing up her parents, not when she’d accomplished something today, even if it was peace of mind for the mothers. “You get coffee. I need to clean this place.” She ran her finger along the top of the reception desk and grimaced at the thick layer of dust.

“Ilona—”

She whipped her gaze to his. “I’m not talking about it, Dane. Help or get out.”

He stared, a frown marring his brow and twisting his lips. “I’ll get the coffee.”

She peered at him through the glass doors at his broad back, then with a flick of her hand to wipe away the tears, she searched for the janitorial closet.