Chapter 15
Fifteen
NOVA
Katee is settled now with the baby, they’re both doing well, and vitals are perfect. Addy is six pounds and seven ounces, and is being snuggled by her mama.
I’m feeling restless, so I left them to snuggle and bond after letting one of the night nurses on duty know in case she needs anything while I take a walk. It’s not unusual for me to have a wave of adrenaline and energy after a baby is born.
It’s a new life, a happy beginning, and there’s something so beautiful about that.
It’s almost two in the morning, and the hallways are very quiet as I walk. My soft soled shoes are the only noise on the linoleum surface, and I see a nurse or two doing their rounds with patients as I leave the maternity ward.
My thoughts are filled with an alpha with red hair, a questioning gaze, and smugness. God, why is my scent match someone who is so damned presumptuous? You’d think that a doctor would hold assumptions back before letting shit fly out of his mouth.
My energy quickly is turning into fuming anger, and my lips twist with concentration. Stabbing the button for the elevator, I get in and choose a random number. I need to walk this off before I go back to Katee’s room so I can return as her benevolent midwife instead of a raging crazy person.
Blowing out a breath, I grumble about alphas and their audacity.
I don’t even know why I’m so upset. The chances that I’ll see him outside of the hospital are very slim. I just need to hope that my interactions with Dr. Stewart are limited while I’m here.
The doors open to the elevator, and I step off and gaze around. I have no idea where I am, but I turn right and continue to walk. I’m feeling led in that direction, so I’m going to see where it takes me.
I rarely sleep when I’m attending a birth, simply because I’m flying on a high afterward.
I’m deep in my thoughts about Dr. Asshole as I take random turns around the hospital. I’m working myself up, and I honestly rarely indulge in this because I tend to spiral.
Two large alphas are standing outside of a hospital room appearing dangerous and threatening, making me wonder who is so important that they’re guarding the door.
This floor smells like antiseptic and floor cleaner, and it makes me sneeze.
The alpha with dark hair and glasses looks over to stare at me for a long moment, making me feel uncomfortable.
“Excuse me,” I whisper. My hair is up in a messy bun, my clothes rumpled from the long hours of assisting Katee, and I’m sure that’s why he’s staring so hard.
Unless there’s somehow something on my face too. That would be embarrassing.
Both men are gorgeous, even if they are out of the ordinary of alphas that I’d give a second glance to. The bad boy looks are enough to typically make me run in the other direction.
“Bless you,” he rumbles as I force my feet to move. The blinds are open as I pass, and I stumble as I see a woman badly beaten in the bed.
“Is that why you’re out here?” I ask, unable to take my eyes off her. “Is she in trouble or are you protecting her?”
I shouldn’t even be asking this question, but there’s a huge yank on my heart that makes me lift my fingers to my chest to soothe the ache.
“I think trouble finds her,” the other alpha mutters. “We’re here to make sure it doesn’t.”
My gaze swings over to meet his intense green eyes as I shake my head. “She’s so hurt,” I whisper.
Ugh, why do I feel like crying? Shaking my head, I blink rapidly to try to dispel them.
“You have her eyes,” the alpha with the green eyes mutters. “What did you say your name was?”
“I didn’t,” I mutter, wiping away a tear that escapes with my thumb. This is getting really weird, and I don’t know what to think about this.
Taking a step back, I glance up to see the alphas are moving forward to mirror my movements.
Fuck. Why do I suddenly feel as if I’m their prey now that I’ve caught their attention, pulled into their web?
I’m the girl who usually exists in the background as a midwife, and I’m happy being in that space.
This? I feel as if the rest of the world has fallen away for them and I’m the only thing that exists now.
“Anyway,” I say, voice cracking from stress. “I hope she gets better quickly. I have to go back to my client.”
Turning, I walk quickly away, forcing myself not to run. Isn’t that a red flag for a predator? That’s what it feels like they are.
“Wait,” the alpha with the glasses barks out. There’s a hint of power to it, and I almost fall from the weight of his alpha bark.
My father liked to use his bark on me, and it’s another reason why I left home as soon as possible. Whining, I think about good things, something that I’ve instilled myself for more than just insisting on positive thinking.
For me, it’s about survival. It’s how I break free, stay focused, and break the curse of being an omega. I won’t bow down to an alpha ever again.
Time seems to speed up as I break the effect of the bark on my body, and I begin running. Fuck trying to not play into this dumb alpha’s instincts.
“Shit, she broke my alpha bark. Fuck, don’t tell Hollis I did that. She’ll have my knot,” he panics as I disappear around the corner.
I have a feeling Hollis is the girl laying on the bed, but not who these alphas are in relation to her. If she keeps their leashes, I hope she wakes up soon. However, I don’t know why I had such a strong reaction to her, and I don’t know if it’s worth finding out.
Shivering, I try to find my way back, but there seems to be a dead end. Fuck. I can’t loop around to where those alphas are. I’m stuck.
“Can I help you?” a nurse asks, glancing up from a desk.
“Yes, please. I just attended a birth for one of my clients and decided to take a walk. I think I’m lost,” I say with a sincere wince.
The nurse grins, standing.
“That’s fine. It’s easy to do,” she says, walking over to hit a button that opens a pair of doors that I thought was a wall.
Well shit. I feel kind of dumb now. Taking in my face, she chuckles.
“Did you think you hit a dead end?” she asks. At my nod, she shrugs. “It happens often. Happy walking.”
“Thank you,” I breathe, continuing on my way.
“Caleb, you left your post,” the nurse teases someone.
Looking over my shoulder, I put a name to the alpha with the intense green eyes. He’s taller than I am, and his shirt sleeves are pushed up to show off his tattoos.
“Only for a second,” Caleb grumbles, shoving his hand through his brown hair as he glares at me.
I look away and keep forcing my feet to move forward. The doors close behind me to separate us again, and I finally get a full breath as I rush back to the elevator to return to the safety of the maternity ward.
My heart is threatening to break out of my chest, but while my parents make me want to flee a city, I don’t get that same feeling. I’ll never see Caleb and the other alpha again. Minneapolis is large enough to hide in.
I just don’t understand why I’m feeling as if I’m making the wrong choice. Whoever is laying on that hospital bed is important to me, I just don’t know why.
HOLLIS
I’m alone when I wake up, and I’m not happy about that. As the all consuming ache in my body settles from laying in a bed for so long, I whimper as the sunlight shines in my eyes.
I fucking hate hospitals. I want to leave.
Searching for the call button, I push down on it to ask the nurse when the doctor will be able to come by.
I try to think of the last time I saw Brice, frowning.
I remember that he stayed with me until he had to get up to use the bathroom.
I passed back out after that and don’t remember anything else.
The light shining like a happy son of a bitch through the blinds is killing me. Shutting my eyes, I growl unhappily.
“Why do you hate me?” I complain loudly. It may be theatrical, but did I mention that I am a terrible patient?
There’s no one here to hear me anyway, and Caleb and Lars are outside my door. It’s just me and my miserably large annoyance.
“Hello?” a nurse calls out through the hospital room’s PA speaker.
“Hi, is there any way to know when the doctor will be able to come by? I’ve been here since yesterday and haven’t seen anyone,” I explain.
To be fair, I’ve been passed out most of the time, but I’m grumpy. I’m at that point where if I had a better mother figure, I’d be asking to see my mommy. However, that’s not in the cards for me.
“Yes. Dr. Royal is headed in to see you now. He didn’t want to wake you,” she says.
Now I feel like a jerk. Dr. Royal is wonderful.
“Thank you,” I say. “I appreciate it.”
The PA system goes silent, and the lack of feedback tells me that she’s not there anymore. Turning my face away from the bright sunlight, I wait for the doctor with my eyes still closed.
“Hollis, don’t fall asleep on me,” I finally hear as the door opens.
“The light hurts my eyes,” I explain, squinting at him.
“I’ll fix that,” he says immediately, walking over to close the window blinds without a sound. God, I love this man.
The sound would have made me flinch, and my body is already battered enough as it is.
“It’s safe,” Dr. Adrain says with humor.
Taking a breath, I open my eyes. His face immediately drops any hint of emotion, and I know I’m in for it. His hand rubs at his face, his beard making a slight sound in the silence.
“Just tell me,” I sigh. “Though, how are you my doctor?”
He’s an ER doctor, and usually quite happy to stay there he’s told me.
“We’re short staffed this week,” he grunts, coming over to sit next to me. His short black hair looks perfectly in place despite the long hours it sounds like he’s pulling. “There’s also not a chance in hell I would let anyone else touch you or your files. Hollis, what the fuck?”