Chapter 12
Rowan
Staring at the ceiling of Griffin’s room, I listened to the birds twittering outside. The sun had come up hours ago. I’d been awake for far too long, my body protesting the fact I hadn’t moved. But my stomach was empty, I could kill for a glass of water, and of course, I needed to pee.
Part of me was trying to avoid getting up and facing what waited outside the door.
Nestled among the blankets on the bed, I was comfortable and didn't want to leave the room, when I knew a decidedly uncomfortable situation was probably waiting for me outside of it. Sighing, my hand drifted over my midsection. The rough skin of the dragon fire burns was a harsh reminder of what I’d been through, even if I couldn’t remember any of the details.
Dragon fire injuries were no joke. I’d seen a few of them while helping Kiki heal in the early days of my recovery. Even a small burn from dragon fire could be fatal, yet a third of my body was covered in its marks, and I had somehow managed to survive.
Kiki had worked tirelessly to keep me alive; I couldn’t go and ruin her hard work by letting a bunch of dragons drag me into yet another dangerous situation.
Eventually, I could no longer ignore the growling of my stomach or the call of nature, so I crawled out of bed, throwing on a pair of leggings, and a T-shirt of Griffin’s.
Mine were filthy, so his would have to do.
I also opted for a pair of running shoes because I had a sneaking suspicion that, if my day went anything like yesterday, I was going to need them.
Not that I’d be able to outrun a dragon in any universe. Those fuckers were annoyingly fast.
But I could damn well try.
Thankfully, I’d traded the small razor blade I’d found in the bathroom for my taser. Knowing I could stuff it into a pocket or the back of my waistband provided a bit of comfort.
Would the horde be mad at me for the scene I’d caused? After everything that had happened, I'd only had a chance to speak with Griff and Ma about the fight. Who knew what kind of reception I would face today?
At least Ma would be happy to see me. The rest of the horde, well, I had no choice but to wait and see if they were seconds away from booting me.
As I pulled the door open, I went to step into the hallway, only to stop short when my foot hit a solid mass taking up a fair chunk of the floor.
“What the hell?” I blurted, looking at the dragon on the carpet.
Nix.
Totally unfazed by my standing on him, he rolled over, stretching languidly before giving me a lazy smile, all lopsided and sleepy.
“Hello, beautiful.” He beamed up at me, pulling himself into a seated position.
“What are you doing, lying outside my door like a creeper?” I crossed my arms, fighting the urge to smile back.
He shrugged, sighing as another stretch took over. He yawned, shaking his head and making his curls bounce. “I didn't want to be far away from you,” he explained simply, still smiling easily. “Are we getting breakfast? I'm hungry, and I’m sure you need to eat.”
Nix stood, stretching yet again. His shirt rode up, exposing the bottom of his abs. I immediately tried to look away, but I couldn’t keep my stare from flicking between the floor and his bare skin until it was finally covered.
Dragons had damn good bodies as a point of fact.
Usually, I didn’t care. Hell, nudity was common within hordes because shifting into giant scaly beasts often meant their clothing got torn to shreds.
In my time as a healer, I’d seen my fair share of abs, chests, and genitalia of every shape and size.
Unfortunately, my body decided that Nix’s abs were better than all I’d seen before him, responding without permission.
“Just… keep your distance.” My voice was nowhere near as commanding as I wanted it to be.
Already being so close, my body was crying out with the compulsion to be near.
My body and my brain were very much in disagreement.
Without another look, I turned and made my way toward the kitchen, suddenly eager to go to breakfast, and put an end to morning chitchat with the dragon who’d been sleeping outside my door.
Which was a whole separate thing I didn’t want to think about.
The kitchen was empty, other than Ma and Nina, who were busy baking. Ma was kneading dough, her hair tied back with a scarf, flour dotted over her clothing, while Nina was pulling several loaves out of the large oven, also covered in flour.
Clearly, baking bread was a messy business.
“Rowan!” Nina’s face lit up at my arrival. “There you are. Come take a seat. Let me get you some breakfast. I heard about everything that happened to Griff—Oh. Hello, Nix.”
Her eager, fast-paced words stopped the moment she noticed the large Alpha behind me, giving me a look as she rolled her lips between her teeth. I walked over, offering a polite smile while pretending not to remember I was being stalked by a six-foot dragon who smelled like heaven.
“Is everything okay?” she asked, confusion playing over her warm features.
I looked at Ma, raising a brow. Hadn't she told Nina what had happened? Frankly, I was surprised every member of the horde wasn’t dripping with gossip that filled every crack and crevice.
“She knows,” Ma supplied helpfully.
I nodded, relaxing as I walked up to Nina.
“Well, in that case, ignore Rover here. I just want to eat and then check on Griff and Rory. I’ve been assured Nix means no harm, but I think he’s in the middle of a psychotic break with the rest of them, so I’m opting to ignore him,” I muttered, doing my best to keep my voice casual.
“Okay…” Nina trailed off, glancing between Ma and me several times.
“Ignore me, ladies.” Nix flashed that dazzling smile of his, way too charming for my liking. “I'll just be following our girl around. There was a slight misunderstanding with Griffin, but he's fine and will be up and about soon.”
As he spoke, I strode over to the counter, where several breakfast items were lined up on the granite surface.
After grabbing the same bowl of fruit and oats that I'd had the previous day, I leaned against the counter, eating while standing.
The last thing I wanted was to feel like a sitting duck—or to put myself any closer to Nix.
The dining hall would be too crowded, so leaning against the counter, it was.
Despite his nonchalance, I was still on edge.
Nix sat at one of the small tables, keeping me in sight as he ate pancakes at record speed. By the time I finished my small bowl of oats, he was already on his third plate of them, and the syrup bottle had been drained several inches.
“Okay, I’m off to check on my patients,” I said, going to rinse my bowl in the sink. Ma swooped in before I could even turn the faucet on, plucking the dish out of my hands with a playful glare.
“Leave that to me!” she exclaimed, waving me off and grabbing a sponge and the soap.
Biting back a smile, I shook my head. “I’m capable of washing a bowl, you know.”
“Okay, sunshine, let’s go,” Nix said, abandoning his semi-full plate.
“Um, it’s okay. You can stay and eat. I know the way and can take care of myself.”
“No trouble. As I said, I want to be around you.” Nix strolled over to me, flinging an arm around my shoulders.
Having a dragon who I didn't know so close to me set off alarm bells, which swelled into mild panic, my heart rate ticking up at his proximity. I didn’t let anyone just touch me. And yet I found myself leaning into his embrace without meaning to.
Shaking myself, I shrugged off his arm and hurried out of the kitchen, trying to regulate my breathing while my pulse sounded in my head.
“Don’t,” I hissed. “I… Just don’t.”
“All right, sunshine.” Nix held up his hands, still smiling. “Let’s go check on the kiddo.”
Gesturing down the hall, Nix waited for me to move. It took a moment, one filled with me forcing myself to swallow several times, but then I straightened my spine and proceeded down the hall like nothing had happened.
Nix was, at least, respectful when I entered the doctor’s office, simply taking a seat in one of the entry rooms and letting me get to work. I’d looked back for only a second before squaring my shoulders and leaving him. I peeked in on Griffin first.
While I had slept, he had been moved to Jenkins’s office and set up in his own room.
“Hey, Ro!” he greeted with a smile.
He was sitting up and moving around, his cuts and bruises already healing to a faint yellow. His eye was considerably less swollen than the day before, too.
“You look like trash.” I laughed, looking him over.
“Handsome trash, though. I see you have a shadow…” He trailed off, looking at the dragon behind me.
I huffed, glancing back at Nix, who just beamed. “I just want to be near her,” he explained with a shrug.
If it wasn’t for how bizarre the whole situation was, I would have found his actions endearing.
Griffin gave him a look that was almost approving, much to my horror.
“Okay, I’m going to check on Rory—you’re fine,” I grumbled, glowering at my friend as I exited the room, striding right past my guard dog.
Compared to Griff, Rory wasn’t any worse, but he wasn’t improving, either. He had a few moments of lucidity, and I discussed trying to get him to eat something. He was so dehydrated, his eyes were starting to sink into his skull. If we didn’t change that immediately, Rory would go downhill fast.
“Leah, I know I’m new here, but do you trust me?” I asked, sitting in the chair next to hers.
“I do. But…” She trailed off, looking at her sleeping son and his labored breathing.
“I know it’s hard to trust, but what I want to do is give Rory some IV fluids and completely take him off all medications. Would you let me do that?”
“Stop everything Doc is giving him?”
I nodded. “Those drugs could be doing more harm than good. I want to see how he does with only natural, herbal remedies. The IV fluids… Well, he’s so dehydrated, he needs a little help,” I explained.