CHAPTER NINETEEN
Vallis
Heartville
Physical therapy annoyed me. Scratch that.
My physical therapist annoyed me. He was too much of a morning person with frost tips who smelled like a different baked good each day thanks to his pheromone blocker spray.
I much preferred Ivan’s method of following along as I shuffled up and down the halls of the Heartville hospital.
I might’ve skipped physical therapy altogether if Ivan hadn’t admitted he had no formal training in physical therapy and my range of motion might never make a full recovery without help.
Still, Doctor Bee annoyed me. I was sure Bee was short for something, but I didn’t bother to ask what.
Instead, I daydreamed about dragging him into Moonbottom lake, named for how it reflected only the bottom half of the moon each night, and leaving him there.
He was bossy and his cheerleading left me feeling like he thought my brain rotted away inside the coffin instead of a little muscle mass.
“You know you’re going to look back on this one day and be happy you had me,” Doctor Bee said when I sat down in the middle of a session instead of testing my shoulder’s range of motion by popping him squarely on the nose.
I might’ve but Lero was there and if I missed my mark I didn’t want my mate to see it.
“Or I might look back and wonder if they found your body,” I growled.
“Fair,” the doctor nodded in his cheerful way. “I’m a dragon, though. So, it’ll be really difficult to hide my body. You’ll need to regain more strength before you pull off that particular feat.”
“Oh, fuck you,” I groaned, leaning back in the chair.
“No, thanks. I’m omegasexual.”
“What?” I arched a brow.
“I’ll tell you what it means after you give me another twenty reps,” Doctor Bee said.
“I don’t know if I’m that curious,” I shrugged.
“How did that shrug feel?” he asked me.
“Almost normal.”
“Well, this exercise ball is about the weight of a three month old bear cub. It’s not too heavy, but not too light either. So, let’s get back to it.”
“I hate you. I hate your ancestors. I hate that school that gave you a degree,” I said and meant every word as I took the weighted ball back from him.
Mostly, I hated that damn ball that was heavier than it looked.
I probably should’ve hated Pami. I sort of did but hating a dead person seemed like a waste of time.
Doctor Bee was here in front of me, driving me forward, when I just wanted to rest.
“I sort of hated the academy too,” Doctor Bee said, adjusting my form. “It was full of annoying people.”
“Yeah, they let you in to fill their quota,” I said and the doctor chuckled.
“So omegasexual?” I asked, gritting my teeth.
My arms really didn’t like it when my hands moved higher than my nipples.
Which was about as high as I could move them in my coffin.
Sometimes I managed to rub my eyes, but it was hard to maneuver into that position, so I had given up at some point.
“You wish you were born an omega? If I had to guess.”
“No, that’s a whole other thing,” Doctor Bee shook his head.
“I don’t think omegasexual is ver--- Keep those arms tight.
You used to go to the gym. I can tell. This isn’t the time to get sloppy with your form.
It’s more important than ever. You have a little over eight months to get ready for this cub. ”
“My cub is going to eat you!” I growled.
“They’ll have to,” Doctor Bee chuckled. “With those noodle arms you’ll never catch me. Now, tighten them up!”
“I don’t think---” Lero started as I fixed my form.
He stopped when Barry shook his head. I didn’t know my grandfather-in-law was watching from the doorway.
That sort of pissed me off more. Come to think of it, pissed off was how I felt about everything and everyone except Lero, our unborn cub, and Ivan since I woke up in the hospital.
“Mate, will you be okay, if I talk to granddad for a minute?” Lero asked.
“Yeah,” I said, automatically leaning back for a quick kiss when he walked by.
“The mating link only does so much,” Doctor Bee said once Lero was out of the room and the door was shut. “He only hears me being an ass.”
“You are an ass.”
“Yeah, but if I came in here and babied your ass, you wouldn’t do shit but bite me. I know how it is. Broke my collar bone and arm in college. I was stubborn and let it heal on its own. Had to have surgery and physio. It sucked.”
“Omegasexual?”
“Yeah, I see your game. You’re lucky I’m a gentleman or I’d say Lero’s going to be doing all the heavy lifting in the bedroom if you don’t keep those Frost-damned arms tight.”
“Fuck off!” I growled.
“Hey, you really want to know?” he asked, taking the weighted ball from me.
I nodded, because I was curious and rolled my shoulders that felt as if someone had beaten them to death and wrenched them around the wrong way in their socket.
“It’s simple. It’s means I’m attracted to omegas exclusively but whatever hits my good spot doesn’t consider gender.”
“Oh,” I nodded. “Makes sense.”
“See, you’re learning stuff here.”
“Now that Lero isn’t in here. How am I actually doing? Is it as crappy as it feels?”
“No,” Doctor Bee shook his head and sat down on the bench across from me.
“Every time you take a break, I’ve been switching it out for a heavier ball to keep you going without getting your brain involved.
Ivan did you a big favor on getting you up on your feet and moving.
I think as long as you follow through with your physical therapist back in the Nightshade Territory, you’ll be alright.
Don’t let them go easy on you. I’ve seen some therapists do it.
They get it in their heads that their clients have been through enough and the next thing you know, they’re making your life harder by not pushing you.
I’m an asshole. I’ve always been an asshole.
It comes naturally to me and it’s why I’m good at my job.
I care more about your kid having a sire who can participate in their life than how you feel about me right now.
You don’t have to like your physical therapist. You have to trust them, though.
Remember that. When they send you home tomorrow, be an asshole for your own recovery.
Don’t bother telling Barry if they don’t do their job right. Go straight to Xenos.”
The only goal I was willing to share when they asked me what motivated me for physical therapy was being there for my kid.
Everything else felt too personal. Too raw.
Hell, that almost felt too personal too.
Except, the world was a lot bigger than Lero, our unborn cub, and Ivan.
Eventually, I’d have to socialize with others again by doing more than grunting.
“Come on. Let’s get some more work in before they ship you home.
I’ve heard the physical therapist there is good but I don’t trust anyone as much as I trust myself,” Doctor Bee said and handed off the next level of weighted ball.
“This is a six month old bear cub. Be glad the ball doesn’t squirm like a baby will. ”