Chapter 43
This was all putting me on edge. Why were doctors’ offices always so bland?
Sinclair’s hand settled on my knee, stopping its bouncing, so I started fiddling with the Band-Aid the phlebotomist had slapped on the inside of my arm. We all went directly to get our blood drawn as soon as we arrived. Elias had turned an interesting pale shade.
A woman in scrubs came around the alcove.
“Mrs. Greymont,” she called, holding a folder and looking over her thin glasses.
I whipped around to glare at Kyan, sitting next to me. His only reaction was a twitch of his lip as he stood.
“Here,” he announced.
The woman peered over the rim of her glasses. “If you’ll follow me.” She held the door until we reached it, and Kyan widened it for me.
“Did you sign the testing release forms?” she asked, looking down at the sheet Elias filled out.
“Yes,” I answered, since the other three weren’t saying anything.
“Perfect, come on in.” She waved her hand, and we entered a spacious room. “If you come here for me, Mrs. Greymont.”
“Briar is fine,” I corrected, heading for the chair she motioned to. It was a comfy one that even laid back. She made quick work of my vitals and sat back on her circular roller chair.
“You’re looking good.” She wound up the blood pressure cuff. “The specialist will be here soon. She’s just finishing up with your blood samples.”
“Can this be fixed?” Kyan asked, his eyebrows low.
“As I told you over the phone, Mr. Greymont, Bond Sickness continues to go through various trials, but at this moment, no, there is no medical cure, but Dr. Katri will be able to elaborate on it.”
She stood. “Any more questions?”
“Nope, thank you,” I answered, and she smiled at me, a genuine smile, not the superficial hard close-lipped thing she was doing toward the Alphas.
She left, and I turned the three of them.
“She does not like you guys.” A woman after my heart.
“How do you feel?” A dent formed between Elias’ eyebrows.
“Elias,” I huffed, frustrated. Ever since they had taken vials of my blood, he’d been on edge. He was definitely fixating on me to distract himself.
“As fine as I was when you asked twenty minutes ago.”
The doctor entered, and she swept a look over everyone, ending up focusing on me with a smile.
“And you must be their Omega,” she murmured.
“Your Alphas are quite anxious about your bonds.” Instead of waiting for a response from me, she went straight to the computer, tapping at the keys.
“But they weren’t wrong in fearing. Now, we have some good and some bad news,” she rolled to face me.
“I tested all of your blood against your two Scent Matches’. ” She swung to look at Elias.
“Her blood recoils from yours, confirming my suspicion, based on what you told me happened, Mr. Greymont. Your Omega is suffering from stage two Bond Sickness.”
“How can we fix it?” Kyan said, rushed. It wasn’t until now that I really looked at him. The fluorescent overhead lights let me. Dark circles smudged underneath his eyes, and he wasn’t the only one. Elias looked exhausted. The one that looked relatively okay was Sinclair.
“That’s the bad news. There is no immediate cure, but it’s better than the alternatives. We just have to turn this around before it becomes level three. From there on out, you’re hitting danger levels.”
“That doesn’t answer how we fix it,” Elias bit out.
I shot him a glare.
Dr. Katri laughed, and I met her gaze.
“Your Alphas are quite protective.” She chuckled again.
“Well, Mr. Greymont, the answer isn’t one you’ll like, but it’s time.
” She rolled further out from behind her desk and pressed her hands together.
“Right now, her biology is rejecting yours. Usually, we see this in Omegas who don’t trust their Alphas.
Like I said, there are plenty of studies currently being conducted, but it’s easier for scientists to determine the after-effects, not the cause. ” She turned to Elias.
“She needs to be comfortable, she needs patience.” Her chastising tone turned harsher. “She’s your Omega, and her well-being must be first.”
Elias’ lips thinned, but he didn’t say anything, which was saying a lot more.
“I do want to keep an eye on this, so I’m going to get a few dates lined up for you to get your blood drawn. I’ll test the reactivity of it then.”
“Okay,” I agreed.
“Any questions for me?” she asked me.
I shook my head, and she clapped her hands against her thighs.
“Well, we’re all done here, but call if you have any concerns.” She opened the door. “The exit is to the right and then down the left. Take your time.” She walked out, leaving the door cracked.
All of them looked wound tight. I didn’t know what they were expecting after they’d caused all this. I stood, and it seemed to pull all of them out of their heads. They shuffled out with me, remaining silent as we all headed to the car. As always, they left the passenger seat for me.
In silence, Elias drove onto the freeway. I fiddled with my sweater’s sleeve. The cotton was soft and hugged my body. I recognized the well-known workout brand, but I never thought I’d be wearing it.
Elias took the exit through a more crowded area of the city.
“Where are we going?” A large shopping center surrounded the parking court. Elias parked in front of an Italian restaurant. “Why are we here?”
“We want to take you on a date.” He cleared his throat.
I didn’t know how to respond.
“Is that . . . okay?” He tripped over his words and scratched his eyebrow.
This was definitely new territory—them asking for my opinions and actually listening.
It made me want to see how truly apologetic they were.
If I let this happen, I’ll soften . . . Do I want to risk the possibility of forgiving them?
Would I even be able to forgive them?
“I’m hungry,” I finally admitted.
“Good.” Elias nodded curtly.
With speedy efficiency, he shut the engine off, and my car door was pulled open by Sinclair and his perpetual smirk. The curve of his lips was cemented into the position.
Kyan’s head lowered, his fingers flying over the screen. “The slot machines were delivered to the auction venue.”
“So, the plan’s coming together?”
Kyan lifted his eyes to me. “Yes, we should be set to go in a few weeks. We’re trying to drum up more chatter about it.” Kyan propped the door open and jerked his chin.
I went inside, and the low, golden lighting of the quiet restaurant washed over me, along with classical music.
“Reservation for Greymont Pack,” Elias said to the hostess. She didn’t look up as she tapped at the screen.
“Perfect, your table is ready, if you’ll follow me.” She raised her gaze, and it flared, but jumped across all of them and ended on me. Her face turned a plum color. “Yeah, um, this way,” she muttered and shuffled out from behind the counter. “Watch your step.”
She led us to a round booth in the corner, and I slid into the furthest end. Elias and Sinclair took up one side, and Kyan on the other.
“Four waters and a hot tea,” Kyan ordered, taking the menu from the table.
“I’ll let your waitress know.” She jerked her head in a nod and backed away, almost dazed.
I sat back to watch them—Kyan staring at the food options, Sinclair gazing down at his phone, and Elias, one arm stretched over the back of the seat, also scanning the menu.
Sinclair’s thigh pressed into mine. He scrolled through his cell phone and saw me watching, so he turned his phone toward me.
There was a theme to the names he kept tapping .
. . all women. He pressed numbers upon numbers, scrolled to a stop, then returned to the top of his screen and tapped on the ‘delete all contacts’ selection. Everything disappeared.
“Did you just delete—”
“Every single woman on my phone.” He grinned, obviously proud of himself. “I want you to know, you’re the only one for me.”
“And you think I’d want to see that?” I said, talking slowly.
His eyebrows furrowed, and he faced me fully. “Yes,” he said slowly.
“You’re an idiot,” Kyan mumbled, flipping the page of the menu.
“Wait, what?” Sinclair scowled and turned to me. “You didn’t like that?”
I blinked and turned away from him.
“Briar.” Elias cleared his throat. “Once we’re done here, we can go get your things from the apartment.”
Panic stopped my breathing. I clawed for a reason to dissuade him.
“No way would they keep anything without payment,” I said, dancing around the truth.
“You’re right.” He frowned. “We should have thought to collect them when you . . .” He paused, thinking. “Anyway, they should have put your things in storage for a certain amount of time. Kyan, can you look into that—”
“My . . . friend, put everything in my car for me.” The truth was, everything was in my car because I’d been living in it, so there was nothing to pack inside that apartment. It’d been a long time since I’d lived there.
“Friend?” Sinclair leaned forward.
“That’s fine. We can get your car towed to the house.”
“Who is this friend?”
I liked how the rest of us were on the same page, ignoring Sinclair.
I didn’t answer Elias immediately because if they got to my car, it could open me up to their curiosity. I would definitely spill that I’d been living out of my car for the last few months before I went to them.
It was a risk I had to take.
“My car was impounded by Alpha Recovery Towing.”
I could already feel their confusion in the furrowing of their brows, and through Kyan’s side of the bond, it flashed briefly to me.
The server approached, holding a notepad.
“Are we ready to order?” he asked, cheerful.
“Yes,” I emphasized, glad for the distraction.