Page 56 of Bite the Power
"I'm fine," he managed to rasp, though the words felt hollow even to his own ears. "Just need a minute to?—"
The world tilted sideways, and darkness claimed him before he hit the ground.
TWENTY-FIVE
TESSA
Moonlight spilled through the frost-etched windows of Kaidan's chambers like liquid silver, casting ethereal patterns across the ancient stone walls. The light seemed almost renewing after the fury and bloodshed that had painted the icy cliffs red just hours before. Tessa lay curled carefully beside Kaidan in their bed, her fingers intertwined with his, exhaustion painting dark circles beneath her eyes while relief shone like stars in their green depths.
He'd been unconscious for several hours now, ever since she and Eli had dragged his battered form from the icy cliff where Magnus's lifeless body still lay frozen in the Arctic wind. The memory of loading Kaidan's bleeding, unconscious form into the back seat of his Jeep, then Eli driving them frantically back to the palace, made her stomach clench with residual terror. She'd held Kaidan the entire way, whispering fierce declarations that he wasn't allowed to die on her and she'd do whatever it took to save him.
When they'd finally reached his palace, Bjorn and Elora had helped carry Kaidan to his chambers, their faces grim with worry as they'd watched Tessa take charge of his medical care. She'd cleaned and bandaged the deep gashes across his ribs whereMagnus's claws had nearly reached his heart, then tended to the minor wounds on his arms with the precision of someone who refused to lose the most important thing in her life.
The imagery mirrors a week ago,she thought with bitter irony,when I woke up in his bed after the fire at the research station.This time, she was the one who'd refused to let go, the one who'd fought to save his life while he lay helpless and bleeding.
Her body ached from the ordeal—bruises bloomed across her ribs where Magnus had grabbed her, and her throat still bore the thin red line from his knife. But those physical hurts were nothing compared to the soul-deep terror that had gripped her as she'd watched the two massive polar bears locked in mortal combat, knowing that one wrong move would leave her widowed before she'd even properly become a wife.
Tears had dried salt-sticky on her cheeks hours ago, leaving her eyes red and swollen from crying over his motionless form. She'd been raw with determination and terror, refusing to leave his side even when Elora had gently suggested she rest.
As his breathing steadied and grew stronger, his eyelids finally fluttered open like golden curtains being drawn back from windows. Emotion flooded through her—relief so intense it felt like drowning and love so deep it threatened to burst her heart.
"Tessa," he rasped, her name falling from his lips like a prayer.
She choked out a sound that was half laugh, half sob, leaning over him with careful reverence. "Welcome back, Your Majesty. You really know how to scare the hell out of me."
A weak smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he reached up with trembling fingers to touch her face. His thumb brushed away the remnants of dried tears with infinite tenderness. "Am I in heaven?"
"No," she whispered, pressing her cheek into his palm. "You're here with me in our bed."
His smile strengthened, that familiar alpha confidence flickering back to life in his blue eyes. "I like the sound of that. Our bed."
The words broke something loose inside her chest. "I thought I lost you," she confessed, her voice cracking like thin ice. "I can't live without you, Kaidan. I love you so much it terrifies me."
His hand tightened against her cheek, his gaze burning with fierce possession even in his weakened state. "I love you too, my queen. And I'm not going anywhere. It takes more than one deranged polar bear to separate me from you."
Exhaustion pulled him back under before she could respond, his breathing evening out as sleep claimed him once more. But this time, it was peaceful—healing sleep rather than the unconsciousness of trauma.
Tessa watched over him as moonlight continued its slow dance across their chamber, her heart still hammering with the knowledge of how close she'd come to losing the love of her life before their beautiful future together had even truly begun.
Three days passed in a haze of tender domesticity that would have amused Tessa under different circumstances. Here she was, a woman who'd spent most of her adult life avoiding emotional entanglements, now refusing to leave the bedside of an injured polar bear shifter king who grumbled like a petulant child every time she tried to change his bandages.
"Stop fussing over me," Kaidan growled on the second morning as she carefully peeled away the blood-stained gauze from the deepest gash across his ribs. "I'm not some helpless cub."
"No, you're a stubborn alpha male who nearly got himself killed playing hero," she shot back, her fingers gentle despite her sharp tone. "So shut up and let me take care of you."
His eyes flashed with heat at her commanding voice, and she felt his desire pulse through their bond even as his body worked to heal. "Careful, Dr. Monroe. Keep talking to me like that and I might forget I'm supposed to be recuperating."
"Behave yourself." She tried to sound stern, but warmth flooded her cheeks. "You're in no condition for anything more strenuous than drinking this soup."
She spooned another mouthful of the rich broth toward his lips, and he caught her wrist gently, his thumb stroking over her pulse point. "I could get used to being waited on by my queen."
The title still sent shivers through her. "Don't get too comfortable. I'm not planning to make a habit of this."
But even as she said it, she knew she was lying. The truth was, these quiet moments felt more precious than diamonds. Watching him heal, feeling his strength return through their bond, seeing the way his eyes softened when he looked at her—it was everything she'd never known she wanted.
What shocked her most was how rapidly his shifter healing accelerated. She'd expected weeks of recovery, but by the third day, the worst of his wounds had already begun to knit together with pink, healthy tissue. When she mentioned it, he'd given her a look so intense it stole her breath.
"It's you," he'd said simply. "The completed mate bond. Your love is healing me faster than my body ever could alone."
