Page 63 of The Rabbit's Foot
A wheezed breath slid out of Mal, then another, and another. The color was returning to his face. Then Mal was thrashing, the muscles in his thick arms straining. It wasn’t hard to see that they were having problems holding him down. Finally, his eyes flew open.
“Alp!” he cried, and it was the sweetest sound Alp had ever heard. He slipped a hand under Mal’s neck as he peppered his face with kisses.
“What did you do, Gwyneth?” Damon asked, sitting back, the relief obvious in his voice.
“After giving him the shot, I had Alp lay above Mal’s heart, hoping that when Mal started breathing, he’d take the scent of his mate’s distress into his lungs, which would speed his healing as he sought to protect him.”
Alp looked up and gave her a smile. “Thank you. Thank you all for my mate’s life.”
Gwyneth smiled at him and stroked long, slender fingers over his cheek. “He’s a good wolf, and he’s got an amazing mate. Never forget that you are important not only to him, but to all of us. You show that we can live in harmony, no matter what species we are.”
Damon smacked Mal on the arm. “Get up, you lazy son of a bitch. We need to start figuring out what to do with all these people.”
Though he tried to come off like it was all fine, Alp could hear the tremor in Damon’s voice, and he noticed that he was shaking. When Cece came up behind him, Damon flinched, but then leaned into her touch.
Mal tried to sit up but sagged back to the floor. His face, still ashen, crinkled as he winced. “Maybe in five minutes?” he rasped out, his voice sounding as though he’d gargled glass.
Damon traced a finger along Mal’s jawline. The gesture was intimate and showed how deep his feelings were for Mal. Not like lovers, but more like a father who cared for his son. Alp was humbled to see it.
“Take all the time you need, kid. We’re going to check in with everyone, then get started on the cleanup. Sixty dead humans aren’t going to be easy to get rid of, but we’ll find a way.”
Mal nodded, but then his gaze flicked in Alp’s direction. “Alp?”
“Yes, First?” he whispered, too overcome with emotions to hold them in.
Mal tried to raise an arm, but it fell limply at his side. “Lay with me?”
“Of course,” Alp said, lying beside Mal and curling an arm around his stomach. “Forever.”
Chapter 21
The first thing Mal noticed when he woke was that every fucking part of him hurt. His joints ached and he had a throbbing pain in his head. He tried to sit up, but he simply couldn’t work up the strength.
“Mal?” came a sweet voice in his ear.
“Alp,” he croaked. “Are you okay?”
A hand brushed over Mal’s chest, tangling in the hair as Alp laid his head on top of Mal.
“Is this all right?” Alp asked, his voice whisper-soft and filled with fear.
Mal had to force himself not to wince. Alp’s touch burned, the brush of skin on skin more like shards of glass being shoved into Mal, ripping him apart, but it also brought comfort, because this was his mate, who was also seeking comfort from him.
“This is fine,” Mal replied. “Though in truth, I can’t seem to make my body work enough to hold you in return. However, I love the feeling of you touching me. Of you loving me. And you didn’t answer my question. Are you doing okay?”
A sniffle, followed by warmth pooling on Mal’s skin. “Honestly? I was so fucking scared. You were dead, and I couldn’t do a goddamn thing about it.” Alp snorted. “I worried about telling my mom that I’d let you die.” Another sniffle. “I stood there and let you die!” he wailed.
Pain seared Mal’s muscles as he wrapped his arms around Alp. The need to comfort his mate overrode the sheer agony of moving. “Hey, no. Don’t think like that. I was stupid. I figured that Hyde was weak and pathetic and that he knew he was about to die. I didn’t think he would have something to use against me. My hubris is what got me…. Well, killed.”
“I saw him standing there, and then you went down. I grabbed a knife or scalpel or whatever it was and went after him. I stabbed him, and then I looked into his eyes and saw fear. I wondered if that’s how I looked every time they did something to me. Then I realized I couldn’t kill him. Even after what he did to you, I couldn’t finish the job. You must hate me.”
But Mal didn’t. Not at all. “The fact that you couldn’t kill him makes me love you all the more,” he said, inhaling Alp’s scent. “What I’ve noticed about you is you’ve got a rock-solid core in you. You’re amazing and tough. Were you scared? Yeah, but you faced it and stood up to your demons. That says so much about the person you are.”
“Cece killed him. She ripped him apart.”
At least Mal knew Hyde wouldn’t hurt anyone else.
“I should get up,” Mal told Alp. “I’m sure there’s a lot of work to do.”
