Page 22 of The Vampire's Receptionist
Guilt tugged at his core. He never meant to hurt his friend. “I didn’t want to worry you. I was trying to figure it out on my own, doing research on the side–”
Harlem rolled his eyes, huffing out a watery laugh as he brushed his tears away with the backs of his hands. “You and your research. You’re a puzzle fiend. It’s a major problem.”
The corners of his mouth ticked up in some semblance of a smile. “True. I’m sorry for not telling you. For not seeking help.”
“Technically, you did,” Kian said with a frown. “You told me.” His nose wrinkled a little. “I didn’t realize it was more than a one-time thing. You never mentioned it again, and after confirming that no one else reacted like that, I figured it was a fluke. A bad night. I probably should’ve looked into it more.”
“So you both have communication issues? That must make working together so much fun,” Harlem teased, though his tone was still a little wobbly with emotions. Dorian could see that he still blamed himself for the incident. While he wasn’t sure whatwas causing his issue, he was certain it had nothing to do with Harlem. He’d considered at least once going to a feeder club. The thought made him feel just as sick as feeding from Harlem. There had to be some magic involved that he could only tolerate Kian.
Doctor Chapman returned with Ozen and Avery in tow. Something in Ozen’s expression had changed since he first left the room, but when they locked eyes, he only smiled softly.
“You and Kian will be staying with me and Avery for the time being. I’m strong enough to pull you apart and more patient than Maverick. And I’m nice enough not to throw you into any walls.”
He huffed, then winced as Doctor Chapman reset his dislocated arm with a quick motion. “It was necessary. I don’t blame him for it.” He glanced over his shoulder at the broken window. “I’ll need to call maintenance for repairs.”
“I’ll do that,” Kian said, ignoring Doctor Chapman’s irritated look in his direction. “You’ve got enough on your plate.”
Since they first met, Kian had seemed determined to take care of him. He struggled sometimes making connections with people outside of his inner circle, but Kian’s efforts warmed Dorian towards him. If he had to deal with the fallout of this illness, at least he wouldn’t need to face it alone.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Doctor Chapman didn’t think it was safe to move Kian before his blood transfusion, so they had to wait in Dorian’s office for the nurse to arrive with everything they needed. Kian wanted to complain, he’d be fine after a night of rest, but then he thought about how Dorian was now relying on him to eat. Emergency blood donations were once in a blue moon when he was a paramedic. He had time to recover afterward. If he had to feed Dorian regularly while they figured out what was going on, then he’d need to recover faster. So he kept his complaints to himself and waited, instead watching as the doctor put mending spells on Dorian’s injuries. He hadn’t been awake when the dragon intervened on his behalf, but given how much damage was in the room, he got the feeling Dorian was stronger than he appeared to survive it with only minimal injuries.
They made Dorian leave the room during the transfusion, since Doctor Chapman was worried the smell of blood would set Dorian off again. After he was gone, Kian was left alone with the doctor, the nurse, and a human he didn’t recognize who fretted nearby.
He glanced at the doctor, catching his eye, before jerking his chin at the human and raising one eyebrow.
“That’s Avery Hawksley. The CEO’s mate. He is the one who called for me.”
Avery heard them speaking and edged closer, his brows furrowed as he watched the nurse push the needle into Kian’s arm. “I, uh… I was calling to see if Dorian wanted to join us for lunch, but no one answered the phone. I thought I’d stop by instead and just stepped out of the elevator when Dorian’s feeder came running out in a panic. I knew I couldn’t do anything to stop him, so I called for help instead.” He grimaced. “I’m sorry Dorian got hurt, but it was a little terrifying how he wouldn’t let you go.”
Kian sighed and nodded. “It happens. He wasn’t aware of himself. I doubt he even remembers it.”
“You know all this, and yet you still put yourself at risk to feed him without backup. You could have died,” Doctor Chapman admonished with a scowl.
Kian scowled right back. “I knew there were people around who could help. But he was so close to death, he couldn’t hear me speaking to him. All the spells I knew from my time as a paramedic said we were in the critical hour. I did what I had to do, and I’m not really interested in your opinion on my choices.”
Doctor Chapman’s eyes narrowed in his annoyance, and his lips pursed to show his displeasure. It didn’t matter now. The deed was done, and Dorian and Kian both survived. There was no point in rehashing everything.
Avery bounced on his toes, looking anxiously between the two of them before speaking directly to Kian. “We have plenty of space in our home for the both of you. If you give me an address, I can pick you up a few things from home, so you’re more comfortable.”
Kian wrinkled his nose. “I’m sure I can get it myself. I–”
“No. You can’t,” Doctor Chapman interrupted sharply. “You’ll be resting for at least three days and strictlymonitored after each feeding to make sure you don’t have any complications. I’ll remind you again that you nearly died today. You need rest. Especially since you’ll be continuing to feed Dorian while I research what is afflicting him.” He must have seen the refusal in Kian’s eyes, because he followed up with, “If you were treating someone with the same issues, what would you suggest to them?”
He opened his mouth to argue, then snapped it shut again. Damn. The stupid druid had a point. If he was treating a patient with significant blood loss after feeding a vampire, he’d recommend rest and lots of iron-rich meals to counter the loss. He was being stubborn. He relented with a sigh.
“Fine. But don’t judge me on the state of my apartment. I hate cleaning.”
That made Avery snicker. “I promise, no judgment. When I get super busy with a deadline, I don’t clean either. Ozen has to pick up after me, because I can’t focus long enough to put my clothes in the hamper.”
Kian tipped his head curiously. “Deadline? What do you do?”
A light pink tint took over Avery’s face as he admitted, “I’m an author. I am writing a series of office romances.”
“They’re very popular,” the nurse chimed in with a beaming smile. “I buy them as soon as they come out. The next one comes out soon, right?”
“A few more weeks,” Avery admitted sheepishly. For a romance author, he was surprisingly shy about his craft.
