Chapter 9
His thoughts all jumbled up, it took Remy a few moments to realize the doctor was answering his mate’s question.
“…not bad at all,” answered Dr. Marceau. “It’s only a concussion.”
“If that’s all,” Carson asked, “why isn’t he awake?”
Shrugging, the doctor replied, “Each person reacts differently to head injuries, but I expect him to regain consciousness soon.”
“That’s a relief. Will he be able to travel?” asked Carson.
“Not today, I’m afraid,” Dr. Marceau said. “He won’t be able to shift right away and until it happens, he needs to be monitored.”
“Henri will be okay, right?” asked Fionn.
“Yes, he will, pet,” Hunter replied tugging his mate close to his side. “He just needs some time.”
Glancing at his cousin, Carson said, “I’ll call Remy again and let him know we won’t be arriving until late tomorrow.” Then turning to the doctor, he asked, “Is there a hotel close by?”
“Oui,” Dr. Marceau said, “just around the corner on the next street over.”
“That’s perfect,” replied Carson, “here’s my phone number…please call me when Henri wakes up.”
“Certainement,” the doctor said, as he wrote Carson’s number down on Henri’s chart.
Turning to Hunter and Fionn, Carson said, “C’mon guys. Let’s go get a couple of rooms for the night.”
~/~/~/~/ ~
Remy pulled his face out of the light sphere, reflecting on everything he’d heard and seen.
While relieved that Henri would recover, he was shocked to find out he had a mate.
A mate he was never supposed to have according to the research he did as a teenager when he was horny and his cock had a mind of its own.
Even years later, the words he’d read still mocked him.
“Fated Mates are reserved for the witches and warlocks whose magic qualifies them for the top three rankings.” Heartbroken when he found out he was doomed to spend the rest of his life alone, he focused instead on making a life for himself outside the world of magic.
But, now, years later, he found out he’d based his decision on a lie; an urge welled up within him to throttle the sonofabitch who wrote those words.
Staring off into space, Remy pictured a life with a mate—no longer alone, loving and being loved, someone standing by his side, contentedly growing old together.
Fuck! What about my brothers? Remy’s dreams of a happily ever after came crashing down.
Regardless of what it costs me personally, my brothers come first!
How could he forget the vow he made to himself that day at the graveyard, when he watched his parents’ coffins being lowered into the ground?
He would take care of his brothers—no matter what.
The loss of his parents had affected them all, especially Galen, and Remy swore never to cause his brothers more pain if he could prevent it.
As much as he’d love a mate, it just wasn’t going to happen—his brothers were his top priority.
Waving his hand, the light sphere disappeared.
Sighing, Remy’s thoughts wandered back to the man who was his mate, Carson Blackwood—the one he planned to approach about staying on during the transition.
Now, why bother, since once Carson learned Remy was going to reject him, he was sure a job offer would be off the table.
Fuck! His life was suddenly one big mess and he had no one to blame but himself.
As soon as he learned Artur’s businesses were being sold, he should have busted his ass to find another job—someplace far away from here.
Maybe it’s better to resign now before I’m fired…
at least that way, it’ll be easier to find another job without having to explain what happened.
Contemplating the risks of quitting versus staying, Remy sorted through the possible consequences, inwardly groaning at his conclusion—staying was the only option if there was any hope of eventually finding a well-paying job.
A good letter of recommendation would go a long way in helping him have his pick of workplaces in the human world and that would only happen if he worked with Carson Blackwood on the sale of Artur’s businesses.
Two weeks tops…I can do it for two weeks.
All I have to do is make sure he doesn’t find out I’m his mate.
Frowning, Remy tried to remember everything he read about mating back then, hoping for a clue that would help him conceal what he was.
It was fruitless. Whatever he once knew was forgotten after he found he’d never have a mate.
Burying his face in his hands, Remy concentrated on organizing his mind, side-lining everything extraneous to his current problem.
Once finished with that, he divided his thoughts into two different categories—those requiring more information to be useful and those that were complete.
Finally, he could see a path forward. Lowering his hands, he reached for his computer, turning it on.
Smiling to himself, Remy opened up a search window, typing in ‘Carson Blackwood.’ Then he clicked on the search icon.
Finding out more about his mate was where he needed to begin.
~/~/~/~/~
Coming out of her drug-induced sleep, Willow Thatcher used the power of her animal to remain motionless.
Letting her senses flow around her, she picked up voices, low and muffled, belonging to two men somewhere near her.
Her eyelashes opened a fraction, revealing glowing, golden eyes cautiously exploring the place she was in.
A small sigh of relief escaped her lips when she discovered she wasn’t chained up or in a cage. This I can work with.
Slowly stretching her cramped limbs, Willow wondered if the men who kidnapped her knew the danger they were in—leaving her unrestrained would end up being a deadly mistake.
Rising slowly from the bare mattress and standing motionless, her animal located the exact location of her attackers.
Stealthily moving over to the door, she tried the doorknob, finding it locked.
Undressing quietly, she folded her clothes neatly on the bed. Then, she shifted.
Extending a claw, Willow inserted it into the lock, twisting it until she heard a click.
Slowly turning the knob with her teeth until the door opened a crack, Willow looked out.
The two men she’d heard were sitting side by side at a table, their backs to her, watching the flat screen TV on the wall.
Absolutely perfect! Stepping back, she pawed the door wide open…
and pounced. Both kidnappers were dead before they could utter a sound.
~/~/~/~/~
Pushing open the kitchen door, Quin stuck his head in, grinning when he saw Theo and Steel preparing lunch for the pack. “Hi Theo,” he grinned .
Standing in front of the counter next to the stove, Theo glanced over his shoulder and gave Quin a big smile. “Hey Q, what’s up?”
Joining Theo, Quin peered over his friend’s shoulder. “Whatcha doing?”
“I have to spread shredded cheese on top of this casserole before popping it into the oven,” Theo answered.
“Will it take long?”
“Nope…why? Do you need me?”
“Yeah, I got something to show you,” Quin said, beaming at his friend.
Wiping down the island, Steel paused, studying Quin who was radiating excitement. Smirking, he said, “Yo, I can do that, Theo. I think your friend might explode if he has to wait much longer.”
“Are you sure?” Theo asked.
“Yeah. Now scoot.”
“Thanks,” Theo said, giving Steel a grateful smile as he handed over the cheese. “Don’t put too much on or it won’t melt like it’s supposed to.”
“Promise,” Steel chuckled.
After washing and drying his hands, Theo said, “Okay, Q, lead the way.”
“Oh, my gods, you’re going to love it,” Quin bubbled. “C’mon, Norm and Kieran are waiting for us.”
Following his friend through the great room to the front door, Theo’s mind filled with possibilities of what could be awaiting him but couldn’t figure it out. “How about a hint? ”
“Uh-uh.” Reaching the front door, Quin pulled it open and, waving his hand, exuberantly cried out, “Ta-da!”
Shifting his gaze from his friend to the outside, Theo saw Norm and Kieran standing next to…
“Oh my gods! It’s gorgeous! I love it!” Flying down the front steps, Theo skidded to a stop in front of a gazebo made from slender, white, Aspen limbs.
Staring at it in awe, he tentatively reached out a finger, stroking the smooth, silky bark on one of the posts while letting a soft moan escape from his lips.
“Honeybunch,” Norm purred, hugging him, “Kieran designed this for our wedding ceremony and Logan got Slate’s crew to build it. Now all we have to do is find a spot in the forest for it.”
“Thank you, Ki,” Theo said, beaming at his friend, his eyes filling with tears. “It’s absolutely perfect…just perfect! I…oh my gods…how did you know…I love it…. you are so good to me and pooh bear.”
“I can’t wait to see you and Norm standing under it, saying your vows,” Kieran said, clasping his hands to his chest. “I can just see it now, the two of you decked out in matching suits, with matching flowers in your lapels, music softly playing, the Alpha walking Theo down the aisle and Norm waiting for you under the gazebo decked out with your favorite flowers…which, by the way, you have to let me know soon what they are so I can order them otherwise I’ll just have to guess and you might not like the color and then your wedding would be ruined…
well, not ruined really, but you know, not perfect and I so want your wedding to be perfect…
so maybe you should tell me right now so you don’t forget and then I’ll order them right away so I know they’ll arrive in time. ”
“There are going to be flowers?” asked Theo .
“Oh, yes,” replied Kieran, “Quin and I are going to wrap the gazebo in your favorite flowers.”
“And don’t forget the flowers for the tables,” Quin added.
“That’s right,” Kieran said. “So, we need lots of flowers and the sooner we can order them the better it’ll be, so we can make sure you have the wedding of your dreams...so do you want to think about it or can you tell me now?”
Theo looked at Norm. “What do you think, pooh bear?”
“I think you should have anything you want, honeybunch,” Norm replied. “Go ahead, tell Ki what you’d like.”
“Okay, if you’re sure,” Theo said and, after getting a reassuring nod from Norm, continued.
“There’s a wildflower in the rain forest where I was born…
I always loved it because it was one of the first signs of spring, but it’s more than that…
pooh bear gave me a bouquet of them right before we were kid… ”
Quickly realizing Theo couldn’t finish, Kieran interjected, “Oh, I remember you telling me about them when we were in Tajikistan. They were blue, right?”
“That’s them,” Theo replied quickly, “pale blue. That’s what I want… pale blue flowers representing our love and white flowers for our fur along with green ivy for our home. There’s a lot of ivy…and moss…lots of moss in the forest we grew up in.”
“Oh, that sounds so romantic,” Quin said. “Ki, can you imagine how gorgeous it will look? I can just see it now. You know, maybe we should become wedding planners? Do you think Fionn wants a wedding, too? ”
“Maybe,” Kieran answered, giggling. “But I think everything would have to be fire-proof.”
“Why? Just because he’s a dragon?” asked Quin.
“No…well, yeah,” replied Norm, “but not for the reason you think. It’s because he tends to snort fire…usually when he’s upset or angry, but it happens at other times too.”
Batting Norm’s chest, Theo said, “Hey, he’s getting better.”
“I know, but it still happens,” Norman smirked.
“Doesn’t matter,” Kieran said, “Hunter loves him…fire and all.”
“He really does,” Quin said. “I haven’t seen my brother this happy for a very long time. I wonder if they are enjoying France?”
“Of course, they are,” Theo said. “Ooh la la…Paris is the City of Love.”
“Oh, maybe that’s where you and Norm should go on your honeymoon,” Quin said, excitedly.
“Oh my god, that would be fantastic!” exclaimed Kieran, pulling out his phone and googling Paris. “Oh, wow, there’s so much to do.”
Theo giggled. “I don’t think we’d be doing much outside of our hotel room, right, pooh bear?”
“Right, honeybunch,” Norm replied, kissing his fiancé’s cheek. “I want to ravish you day and night.”
“Isn’t that what you do now?” asked Quin, a bit bewildered .
“He does,” Kieran laughed. “When we were rescued, Cody was going to have us share a room and I told him I needed my beauty sleep because they snore.”
“Really? They snore?” asked Quin.
“Uh-uh. I just said that because I wasn’t going to tell Cody what they really were doing,” Kieran chuckled.
“Ah, got it,” Quin said, smirking at Theo and Norm.
“And I got my honeybunch,” Norm said, brushing his lips against Theo’s.
“Thanks, pooh bear,” Theo said, returning the kiss.
Then, looking at Kieran and Quin, he continued, “Do you have any more questions because I have to get back to the kitchen and check on my casserole. I don’t know when Dakota will be back, so I better make sure it doesn’t burn.
Otherwise, there’ll be a whole bunch of hungry wolves at lunchtime. ”
“Go!” exclaimed Kieran. “Q and I will order the flowers in the meantime. You guys haven’t changed your mind on the date, have you?”
“No,” Norm said. “I spoke to the Alpha yesterday and confirmed it.”
“Great,” Kieran said. “Let’s get together tonight and talk about the menu.”
“Perfecto,” Theo said, heading back into the house, grinning as he thought about his upcoming wedding.
After Theo left, Quin looked at Norm. “You haven’t told him about the honeymoon you’re planning, yet?”
“No, he thinks we’re going to spend a few days in San Francisco,” Norm said.
“Do you think the both of you will be safe where you’re going?” asked Kieran .
“I hope so, but the Alpha told me he’s going to send some enforcers with us, just in case,” replied Norm.
Kieran nodded thoughtfully. When Norm first told him about his idea for their honeymoon destination, he had some misgivings.
But after listening to his friend’s reasoning and consulting his spirit, Kieran agreed it was the perfect place.
“One other question, do you know the name of the blue wildflower you gave to Theo?”
“Yeah, Wild Lupines,” answered Norm. “Theo loves them.”
“Perfecto! C’mon, Q,” Kieran said smiling, “let’s go up to the studio. It’s time to feed Queenie and then we can hunt down where to get some Lupines along with other blue and white flowers. See you later, Norm.”