12. Greylen
Greylen
Rowan sat across from me with an adorably baffled expression on her face.
“I still don’t understand how he spent so much money,” she said, exasperated, placing the tablet she’d been studying on the desk.
The more I dug into Jenkins’s finances, the more confused we became. I had spent almost a week trying to untangle the mess, with little success.
I had invited Rowan to spend her lunch break in my office, going over some of the financial information. I wanted to make sure she had everything she needed for her clinic. While the previous healer would have taken money from me without hesitation, Rowan seemed reluctant to ask for anything.
“Honestly, I think we know very little about what his motivations were.” I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose.
“I just want to know where all the money went. Looking at this, he could have afforded a private island in the Bahamas and still lived the rest of his life in luxury. He could have been basking in the good life, and instead, he was here, causing chaos in your horde.”
“I know. Maybe he was just keeping all the money like a selfish ass, or maybe he was using it for something else. We won’t know anytime soon,” I grumbled. “Anyway, that isn’t why I asked you here. We’re supposed to be setting up your clinic.”
The last thing I wanted to do was dwell on how monumentally we’d fucked up with Jenkins.
Personally, I was still beating myself up for that mess.
How had we been so fucking blind? I wanted nothing more than to focus on the future, on providing a good clinic for Rowan, so she could do what she did best.
Rowan shrugged. “I already have almost everything I need. A few repairs to the building would be nice, and some more space to grow herbs, but other than that, there’s not very much more.”
I looked at my mate in exasperation. “You are single-handedly saving the health and well-being of this horde. Surely you need more than what you’ve got?”
Biting her lip, she looked thoughtful for a moment before speaking.
“Herbs. That’s all I need, especially after hitting up the health store and pharmacy in town with Nix.
Last week, I ordered some special varieties that should arrive any day now.
They weren’t exactly expensive; they’re useless in the human world.
There are also several horde members who enjoy gardening.
They’re going to help me plant and maintain a larger garden. ”
“Would you like more greenhouses?” I asked. “What about Jenkins’s facility? Do you want to do anything with that?”
“I wouldn’t say no to more greenhouses, but it’s not urgent if there are better places to spend the money.
Some of the buildings are falling apart.
Good housing is just as important to health and well-being.
As for Jenkins’s place…” She shuddered. “I would rather not work there. That place gives me the creeps. Honestly, maybe repurpose the building?”
“We could do that, destroy all the stuff inside.”
“No!” Rowan shook her head. “The medications in there are dangerous for dragons, but good for humans. Drop them off at the local shelters, the antibiotics and such would be so useful, and the vitamins!”
“That’ll be easy enough to do.” I agreed.
“Good. There is no point letting good medicine go to waste.”
“What about some extra hands?” I asked. “You’ve got so much work to do. I know that Nina is amazing, but surely more help would be useful?”
Rowan pursed her lips, tilting her head as she thought about it.
I couldn’t help but admire her for a moment.
She sat in the large armchair I’d placed in my office instead of the small wooden chair on the opposite side of my desk, and her feet were tucked underneath her.
Her hair was scraped back into a messy ponytail with strands falling around her face.
She was an effortless beauty. Maybe it was the fact that we were fated mates, but every time I laid eyes on her, my breath stuttered.
There had been days when we had lain in bed, tangled up together in the sheets, just admiring each other.
I missed those days more than anything.
Yet somehow, I got the distinct impression that we were building something stronger this time. It was more difficult and took a lot more effort, but I had a feeling it would be worth it.
“Extra hands could be useful,” Rowan admitted. “But they need to be the right hands, if you know what I mean?”
I nodded. “Yes, I know exactly what you mean. Can you think of anyone you would like to add to your team? If not, I can ask around and see who’s interested. We can assess from there?”
“Yeah. Getting Nina an assistant would be useful. I don’t think she’s had enough sleep recently because she’s always dealing with horde members who want to see me.
In time, I’m going to need someone who can act as a second, someone who I can train to do smaller healing tasks so I can focus on the larger issues. ”
My chest tightened ever so slightly at her words. Logically, I understood that she needed a second, but a small part of my brain wondered whether she wanted to train someone to replace her eventually.
Rowan and I were getting closer, and several members of the horde had been gossiping about seeing Nix and Rowan making out, pressed up against his truck like horny teenagers. Everything in me was saying this was serious between us, permanent, but there was always that worry.
What if we were just a temporary diversion for her?
“That makes sense,” I said, but my voice was thinner than I intended.
Rowan, ever the observant human, leaned forward and gently took my hand. “I assure you, I’m not going anywhere any time soon. Having a second just means I’ll be able to take a day off here or there. Not that I’m shirking my responsibilities to the horde…”
“No, you deserve a day off. Actually, once you’ve finished dealing with Jenkins’s mess, you deserve an entire month off.”
Rowan snorted delicately. “For some reason, I don’t think that’s possible. With any luck, the horde will be growing soon, and their medical needs are only going to increase.”
“Did you find out the name of the baby?” I asked.
A delicate blush covered her cheeks as a smile graced her features. “Rowan. They named the little boy Rowan.”
It was a perfect name. After everything my mate had done to bring that baby boy into the world, naming him after her seemed appropriate.
“That’s wonderful. We’re going to have to start saying Rowan and Baby Rowan just to separate you two!”
“I think we will cope.” She smirked, going to pull her hand back—but I held on tightly. Her soft hand in mine felt right. Having her in my office… Well, they were some of my favorite times.
Maybe I needed to set my office up in her clinic; that way, I would always be around her.
The idea had merit, even if it was a little over the top.
“I heard you and Nix had a good time in town. Did you manage to get plenty of supplies?” I asked innocently.
Her face flushed, and I had to bite back a smile. “We got plenty,” she assured me. “Though maybe Griffin can go with me next time because Nix got a little…”
I raised a brow. “A little, what?”
“Let’s just say that the salesperson was a creep. I think he wanted to be flirty, but failed miserably, and naturally, Nix didn’t like it.”
“Ahh, I’m guessing that’s what fueled the make-out session against the truck I keep hearing about?”
This time, her deep blush was accompanied by a smile.