Chapter 23 LEENA
LEENA
I fight the urge to sleep just a little more. As I roll around in the bed, pain moves through me the same way blood does.
“Ugh…” I groan, writhing uncomfortably. The soft mattress beneath me isn't something I've felt in a long time, and that's what finally gives me the willingness to open my eyes.
The first thing I see is that I'm not alone. Grant's head rests on my bed, and he sits on a chair beside me.
We're back in my room, and everything is so clean that it almost feels like a dream. I'm dressed again, back in my regular clothes and in my human form.
I can't sense any danger around me, which is jarring because of the last thing I remember.
Grant lifts his head and shows me a very sleepy face. Like me, his weariness doesn't last long when he sees that I'm up. “You're awake!” he declares. He gets up from the chair and basically crawls onto the bed to kiss me.
I feel a sudden rush of sensations when our lips touch. The pain in my body takes a back seat to this rush of pleasure. Grant tries to move away, but I pull him back with whatever strength I have left, deepening the kiss.
Grant fully enters the bed, taking me in his arms. I adjust to accommodate him, resting in my mate’s warm embrace.
Nothing feels better than this—definitely not anything I've felt in the past few days. I'm pretty sure I'm not going outside for at least a year after all that's happened. I'm fine with changing in the house when it's the full moon.
“I've missed you,” he whispers, bringing my face closer to his chest.
I rest against his pecs, fighting the urge to squeeze them. “How long have I been out?”
“About five days,” Grant says.
“F—five days? What the fuck? How was I unconscious for that long?”
“You went through a lot,” he explains. “Your injuries took time to heal, especially with the silver in your system.”
“But you look and feel great. Your injuries were worse than mine. How are you okay right now?”
He gives me a hearty chuckle. I wish I could see the expression on his face, but I'm cursed to stay eye level with his chest. This is a curse I'll happily take.
“I'm the alpha,” Grant states. There's no pride in his voice, just facts that no one can dispute. “I'm the strongest wolf here and anywhere else I go. No one's recovery is going to beat mine.”
“How long did it take you?”
”I was fine the next day.”
I gasp from shock. I had expected a couple of days at least, but to be up and active again so quickly, I couldn't dream of that ever happening.
“Just, wow…” I mutter. “Wait, what happened to the wolves?”
“We were able to chase them off,” he tells me. “I hate that I had to kill so many of them, but the rest have left now and are already on their way to a new home. Hopefully, they find a sanctuary that they can call their own.”
Grant's voice sounds almost like a melody. It plays in my head over and over, but this doesn't have the effect I want it to. Instead, I burst into tears.
Grant is clearly shocked by this. He pulls me tighter into a hug before letting go so he can look at my face. He brings my gaze to meet his own.
“What's wrong?” he asks. “You're safe now, why are you crying?”
“Because this is all my fault,” I sniff.
“Don't say that…”
“But it's true.” I'm full-on sobbing now. Grant keeps me in his arms, letting me release all my emotions. I keep going until the crying finally stops. Once this happens, the alpha wipes my face clean with his hands.
“You shouldn't blame yourself,” Grant tells me.
“You're just trying to cover up for me, but I fucked up, Grant. I shouldn't have stayed in the woods like that. There was no reason for me to be mad at you over something that wasn't ours to control. You're my mate.”
“But I still choose you,” he says. “Even if this bond hadn't manifested, I would've still chosen you.”
Grant runs his thumb over my lips, shutting me up effectively. All I crave in that moment is to be reminded of how he tastes.
Grant doesn't waste any time reading my mind. He kisses me with more ferocity this time, making sure his tongue lingers in my mouth. I hold on to his bottom lip, only letting go when I feel like I may hurt him.
“Now I believe you missed me,” he teases, making me chuckle. “I like that sound. I've been waiting to hear you laugh.”
“You're literally the only reason behind it.” This time, I hold Grant like he's going to escape me. The serenity of my room isn't one I want to leave behind anytime soon.
Grant's eyes turn to mine. The sincerity and softness in them make me melt into a puddle. “I love you,” he says. It's almost like a promise.
“I love you,” I reply without hesitation. There are many things that I haven't been sure of in my life, but this decision is one I know I want with my whole heart.
“I've been waiting for you to wake up so I could say that.”
“I can't believe you wanted to say it in the middle of a fight.”
“Of course,” Grant says. “I truly didn't know if we were going to make it out, and I didn't want us to die without telling you how I feel.”
I begin to feel bad again as the situation I put us in sinks in. Grant notices this change in mood and kisses the top of my head before renewing our embrace.
“We're here and we're together. Let's focus on that.”
I could get used to this.
There's a soft knock on the door. I hold onto Grant a little longer as he tries to get up and head to the door. Eventually, I let go of him and Grant walks to the door and opens it slightly.
I can't see who he's talking to from here, but it sounds like Graham. I'm a little shocked that he's still here after being told that I've been out for five days. I guess everyone is sort of hanging around the alpha for now.
The conversation is low, but I make out something about food and my stomach grumbles in response.
Grant laughs from his spot at the door before Graham walks away. My mate comes back to the bed and joins me once again. Having him so close almost makes me not want to go anywhere, but the thought of food is already sticking in my head.
“You sound hungry,” Grant teases.
“Can you blame me?” I ask. “I feel like I haven't eaten in days, which is true.”
“I know, love. I've told my people to create something cozy for us while food is being prepared. Come, it'll be nice for blood to properly move around your body.”
He offers a hand to me, and I slowly take it, sitting up and rising to my feet. It instantly feels like I'm on pins and needles. Each step hurts so much that I almost throw myself back onto the bed. Still, I keep going.
My entire body aches, which I didn't feel much of when Grant was holding me. My mate had been enough to distract me from my weakness, but now I'm starting to feel it. He keeps supporting me as we walk with his hand on my waist.
We walk out of the bedroom and move to the stairs. Grant offers to carry me down, which I happily accept because I'm not about to miss an opportunity to be in his arms. I hold onto him for dear life as he travels down, taking the steps one at a time.
Eventually, we reach the first floor, and I expect to see a bunch of people moving around, but it's completely quiet. I'm happy for the lack of noise, but I'm also confused.
“Where is everybody?”
“They're in their rooms,” he says. “Don't worry, you'll see them soon.”
“It's so cold today,” I mutter.
“Good thing we're about to do something to heat you up next.”
“What?”
Grant takes me to the living room, which isn't a place I spend a lot of time in. In fact, I've probably only stepped into the living room once since I arrived in this house.
All the places of interest for me are enough to keep me occupied. Besides, the house has never been full enough for me to go to the living room to look for people.
I take in the cozy view, instantly spotting the crackling fire that's growing in the corner of the room. A large collection of blankets and pillows is on the floor near the fire, almost a mountain.
I look at the heap with longing while Grant takes me there. The alpha places me on the blankets before joining me. We settle in and hold each other close as the fire heats us up.
“Hmm, this feels nice,” I confess.
I hear steps behind us, but I'm far too comfortable to turn around. It turns out to be Molly who appears with a large turkey.
“How are you, Leena?” she says, placing the plate between us and the fire.
“I'm okay,” I reply, returning the smile she has on her face.
“Please, eat as much as you can to gather your strength back.” Molly leaves us alone after her words of advice.
“I could get used to just living in front of this fire, you know.”
Grant chuckles. “I'm sure you could. Right now, you need it to get better. Go on, eat.”
I take a quick bite, an intense rush of hunger comes over me the second the food rests on my tongue.
I begin to devour as much as I can while Grant just lets me go crazy. He keeps himself close to me, though, rubbing my back.
After eating an embarrassing amount of food, I settle back into his arms, slowly watching the fire. Grant holds me close, occasionally kissing the back of my head. Our scents mix, and it's so intoxicating to me.
“Is this how it always feels?” I ask.
“Yes,” he replies without needing me to elaborate. “I've been learning about fated mates, and I kinda see the appeal now.”
I giggle in response. “Me too. I can't believe I rejected this.”
I turn around, bringing my nose close to him. I keep sniffing Grant, especially his neck, unable to stop myself as our scents mix even more.
“What is this?” I ask with my eyes closed.
“Go on,” he responds. “You're supposed to keep scenting me until our scents fully merge.” He kisses the side of my neck, making me moan a little before stopping.
I'm about to argue when everyone in the house suddenly walks into the living room to check in on me.
Nate supplies me with medicine while the rest try to make sure I'm okay. Grant doesn't take his hand off me even once, showing that I'm his as much as he is mine.