Chapter Forty-Two
Penelope
I curled against my mate, clinging to the safety of his arms. As I felt the SUV pulling to a stop, I peered over at the hospital, swallowing hard. “Do I have to?” I asked, looking up at Dristan, but he just nodded, waiting with the patience of a saint—which I know had to be hard for him—while I came to terms with the decision.
“Fine,” I sighed, about to get off of his lap, but he lifted me instead and I yelped as we exited, people looking at us with raised eyebrows. “Dristan,” I hissed, “Put me down.”
Rudgar and Kor looked at each other with amusement before they drove toward the parking lot.
“Never,” he murmured and he cradled me closer. “It’s bad enough that the family physician is all the way back in the city and I have to trust your care to people I don’t know and haven’t done a background check on to make sure they’re qualified.” My heart melted at the realization that my mate was just trying to take care of me, but I also felt the heat filling my face as everyone continued to stare.
I could imagine how we looked. A towering orc with a scowl on his face and a human in his arms with bruises all over her face. I ducked my face to bury against his throat, and he tightened his arms around me.
“H–Hello,” a nurse said, eyeing Dristan with a suspicious look. “Can I help you?”
“My mate is hurt and she needs to be checked over. Now,” he growled.
I gave her a smile and her eyes narrowed on my face before turning to glare at Dristan. “I can help her from here, but you’ll have to put her down and leave.”
“I’d like him to stay, please. If he can,” I asserted, a pained smile on my face. “I’ll feel safer if he’s here.”
That settled some of her ire and she gave me a sweet smile. “Alright, love. Come with me.” She tilted her head toward the desk.
I was ready to fill out my forms, but Dristan took over—as he did with everything—completing them with minimal information from me. I quirked an eyebrow at him, but he just shrugged at me, his elegant scrawl continuing across the papers with me bracketed between his huge arms.
“You shouldn’t know all of this stuff,” I whispered, rolling my eyes and leaning my head against his chest. I offered a smile to the admission nurse who was giving us amused looks.
When it was time to go for the exam, the nurses gave a valiant effort to take me on my own, but Dristan wasn’t having it and they conceded after realizing that he wouldn’t budge. I kept up the apologies until we were left alone behind the screens surrounding the bed I was perched on. I smacked his chest.
“You should have just waited outside,” I whisper-yelled.
He shrugged, tucking my hair behind my ear, and when I saw the concern in his eyes, I couldn’t hold onto my annoyance.
“I’m okay,” I murmured, and he nodded, but his brow was furrowed as he looked at my injuries.
The doctor came in, jerking back as she spotted Dristan with me. She glanced down at her chart, looking back up at us. “Penelope?” she asked, eyebrows raised.
I sent her a smile while Dristan eyed her with speculation. Before he could begin the interrogation I saw brewing, I said, “I’m sorry, but I asked my mate to be here while I get examined, if that’s okay.”
The doctor relaxed then, before nodding. “That’s fine. I see here that you were attacked. Do you mind if I touch you?”
As the examination began, Dristan winced with every prod and poke. When I flinched away from a spot on my face that was aching, he gave a low growl. The doctor didn’t even react, making a soothing sound in the back of her throat.
“Sorry about him,” I said, shaking my head.
“I’m used to it,” she laughed with a wink, rolling in a cart with gauze and antiseptic. “My mate’s an ogre and he’s the same way.”
I grinned, sharing a conspiratorial look with her, relaxing with the knowledge that he wouldn’t be kicked out.
“Ogres and orcs aren’t anything alike,” Dristan groused next to me before wincing again as the doctor cleaned a cut on my cheek.
It wasn’t long before we were finished and I was released. We consulted the nurse for aftercare tips—while Dristan asked way more questions than I thought necessary—and I waved at where Rudgar and Kor were sitting, dwarfing the chairs in the waiting area.
“Hey,” Rudgar called, waving the phone he held in his hand and holding it out to me. “Your family wants to make sure you’re okay.”
I grabbed it with a grateful smile, putting it to my ear. “Hi,” I said, “I’m okay.”
The collective breath of relief from the other side brought a watery grin to my face.
“Are you coming home?” My mom asked, sniffling. My lips parted, but Dristan shook his head, taking the phone from me. “I’m getting Rudgar to come get you. Pack light. We can always go back for more of your things later. For now, I don’t want you staying there since they know where you live.”
He tipped his head at Rudgar and his brother nodded, taking his phone back and heading out. Kor was left, turning to give me a concerned look.
“How’re you feeling?” he asked, eyeing my bruises.
“It looks way worse than it feels,” I told him. “Thank you for being here.”
He shook his head. “Dristan’s a great friend. Even if he’s an asshole sometimes. I’m just glad I could help.”
“You’re leaving, right?” Dristan asked, glancing up from where he’d been tapping at his phone.
Kor pursed his lips, huffing out a breath. “Yes. I’m heading back to my own mate, thanks for asking.”
“Good. I’ll see you back in the city,” Dristan said, dismissing him. Kor shook his head, waving at me as he left.
“Are you ready?” Dristan turned to me, frowning as he looked me over.
“Yeah, but where are we going?” I asked as he led me outside, my hand tucked into his huge palm.
“We’re going to a new hotel a little further away,” he said, a taxi pulling up in front of us. “Your parents and Becca will have to stay somewhere else tonight until we can make sure no one is following us.”
I nodded, anxiety roiling inside me at the thought.
“It’s okay,” he said, ensuring that I was buckled up before he rounded the taxi, contorting himself until he fit in the backseat with me. “I’ll protect you.” He pressed a kiss to the top of my head, a scowl spreading across his face as his eyes hardened. “No one’s ever going to hurt you again.”
I settled against his side, allowing his heat and scent to surround me.
By the time we arrived at the hotel, I felt much more settled. We’d driven for about an hour and with each mile we put between ourselves and the assholes who’d taken me, relief coursed inside me.
When we arrived, I scuttled out of the taxi even as Dristan grunted with disapproval behind me, following me out with his hand on my lower back. He guided me to the doors, his gaze clocking everything around us.
By the time we’d secured a room—only the best for Dristan, of course—and made our way there, I was ready for the day to be over. I took my mate’s hand, leading him straight to the bed and falling backward onto it.
He looked down at me, my grumpy male’s concern etched across his face.
“I’m fine ,” I told him, holding my hand out to him. “I promise.”
The fingers that took mine were shaking a little and it was my turn to frown.
“Hey, are you okay?” I asked, sitting up and tugging him closer. He peered down at me with brows drawn and swept his thumb under the gauze on my face.
“I was so close to losing you,” he whispered. “And I can’t live without you, rega . Not for one second.”
Love for this male spread through my chest, heating me from the inside. I stood, tilting my head back so I could peer into his amber eyes.
“You’re not going to lose me. I’m safe. I’m here,” I whispered, taking his shaking hands in mine and giving them a squeeze.
That seemed to snap something inside him. He lowered his face to mine, kissing me, his tusks bracketing me the way I loved. He released a low groan from his chest, pressing forward until I fell back onto the bed with a gasp.