“Excuse me, we are so sorry to bombard you like this,” I put on my sweetest voice and hold my hands up as I advance. “My friend was attacked last night and we’re not from around here, we didn’t know where else to take him.” I point over to the back seat of the Nissan, Huxley sits upright and holds his head on cue. After another glance at his silver watch he nods and gestures for us to come inside quickly.
“Sit him down here,” he asks as we help Huxley inside. He’s almost walking on his own, but Dax and I have one of his arms around each of our shoulders as we edge him towards the medical bed. Electric blue leather is visible beneath a sheet of paper that crinkles when Huxley drops onto it, his shoulders slumped and hair falling over his half-mast eyes. After washing his hands and donning a pair of latex gloves, the doctor returns with a kind smile.
“I’ve got ten minutes before the surgery opens.” He tells us while inspecting Huxley’s face, although his tone isn’t pushy. “My assistant is on holiday, so I have to man the phones and attend to patients. Bit of a one-man show at the moment,” he muses in a light tone before he grips Huxley’s nose and twists it back into place with surprising force. Huxley roars and hisses, torn between holding the newly set break and keeping his hands well away. After a few moments, he quietens down but his posture is still tense, anticipating another attack any moment. I shift forward to hold his hand, rubbing circles across the back with my thumb and earning myself a lopsided smile.
“That seems like the most I can do,” the doctor says after inspecting all around Huxley’s head. Pulling his gloves off and tossing them into the trash can in the corner, he retrieves a packet of painkillers and places them into Huxley’s free hand. “If any other issues arise, feel free to pop back or try the emergency room.” My ears prick up, knowing that’s exactly where we should be heading next, but Dax beats me too it.
“Out of interest, where would the closest hospital be?” He asks coyly from the opposite side of the room. He’s pulled his Afro back and fixed it with a hair tie., a blonde cloud hanging to the back of his head. He doesn’t wear his hair back often; his square jaw is more prominent now. His icy blue gaze is firmly set on the doctor, clearly avoiding mine as I look at him properly for the first time all night. Leaning in the doorway with his arms crossed, Dax’s tanned biceps push against his firm chest. Those arms that held me so gently in the throes of passion, cradled me safely as I gave him more of myself than I intended, and held me down while I fought and screamed to save Meg.
Dragging my eyes away, I focus on easing Huxley from the table as the doctor gives Dax directions to the hospital. It’s another two-hour drive from here, my stomach growls on cue as I think of getting back into the car for that long. Huxley eases himself from the table and links his fingers with mine, holding my hand tightly. As much as I want to, I can’t bring myself to pull away, I thank the doctor for his time and exit through the back door.
I want to feel isolated; I want to be alone and suffer the same way I can feel in my being that Meg is. But at the same time, I know the Shadowed Souls won’t let me do that. They will sense my pain, take it upon themselves to console me no matter how much I push them away like the chivalrous bastards they are. And until I’m fully fed and have managed to get some sleep, I don’t have the energy to resist them.
Dax moves around us to pop the trunk, shifting through Huxley’s bag to grab him a clean set of clothes. He accepts them without a word, remaining quiet like he’s been since waking and starts to strip. Discarding his bloodied t-shirt on top of the Nissan, Huxley bends to pull down his jeans and shorts without a care in the world. I quickly spin to step in the way of a gaping woman and her dachshund, frozen to the spot by the sight of Huxley’s body at the end of the alleyway. Giving her a scowl, she visibly shakes herself and moves along, leaving me to peek over my shoulder. Huxley’s not as toned as when I’d first met him due to not eating properly, but for some reason his ass is still a perfectly edible peach. I must be damn hungry because my mouth starts to water and I swallow thickly, dragging my eyes away as he steps into some tracksuit pants.
A black hoodie in placed into my hands, Dax’s arm retracting before I can shove it back at him. Pulling the material over my head, I inhale his uniquely spicy scent and growl as my libido suddenly rouses from her sleep. Traitor. Forcefully shoving my head through the hole, I fix my hair and push the sleeves up to my elbows roughly. “I have my own hoodies, you know,” I grumble and start to walk away.
The guys fall in behind me in silence, leaving the car hidden and strolling from the alley as casually as we can. Heads turn our way, the locals immediately noticing us as outsiders when we pass by, strolling for a café on the corner. My eyes flick between faces and vehicles, cataloguing everyone suspiciously to check we aren’t being followed. A dark sedan appears further along the road, heading this way. I dive behind Dax, using his body to shield me from view
