Page 35 of Alice and Her Shifters (Dirty Paranormal Fairytale Haremlan 2)

The only thing left to do was wait. I grabbed the rag from my shirt and went to wet it down before returning once more to lay the moist cloth along her forehead in hopes that it would help to ward off the fever.

“That fire could draw a lot of unwanted attention,” Milo said.

“You can douse it if you must. Just make sure the water has had a chance to boil first.”

“Very well,” Milo said. “I’ll keep watch for any unwanted guests. Just do whatever it takes to save her.”

I met his stern gaze. A flash of worry crossed through them. I had never known Milo to care about anyone but himself. Just another change that the girl brought over us.

“I’ve done everything I can,” I said.

He nodded. “I’ll hunt for food as soon as the fire is out.”

“Be careful,” I said.

“Awe, I didn’t know you cared,” he said.

“I don’t,” I said. “But Allison does.”

He frowned and nodded once before leaving me.

I watched Allison sleep for the next few hours. Everything from here on was up to her. But if she didn’t wake soon, I didn’t know what I would do.

Aidan and Milo stood guard outside while I sat next to Allison, on the dirt floor, waiting for her to wake up. Minutes ticked by like hours, and I was starting to become nervous about her waking up. I didn’t do well with waiting, so I stood from the floor and headed outside.

“Where’s Aidan?” I asked, noticing he wasn’t around.

“Getting food,” Milo said.

“I thought you were going to do that?” I asked.

He shrugged. “Aidan didn’t exactly take no for an answer. How is she?”

“She’ll survive, I hope. It wasn’t as bad as I initially thought,” I said. It was a small lie. It was worse than I thought. I just hoped that Aidan got the salve back to me before the poison was too far into her system.

Milo let out a sigh of relief. “She never stops surprising me.”

“Nor me,” I agreed. “She’s sleeping. If Aidan comes back, tell him I need more fresh water. I don’t want her becoming dehydrated.”

“I agree,” he said. “Thank you.”

“I didn’t do any of this for you,” he said.

His cat eyes met mine. “All the same.”

I stared at him for a moment. I spotted something in his eyes that wasn’t there before Allison came along. He didn’t bother hiding it now. He cared for her. Just like I did. I had reason to believe Aidan did as well. But I never could truly tell with him.

“Let me know when she’s awake, won’t you?” Milo asked.

I nodded and returned to my post at Allison’s side.

I was relieved to find that she had more color to her cheeks. A sigh left my lips as I sat down next to her. She was going to pull through. Thank the moon and the stars above. There was still no telling how much longer she was going to sleep. I took the opportunity to lay down and stare at the ceiling. I wanted to sleep, but my body wouldn’t allow me to.

My only hope was to lay on the ground waiting for Allison to wake up.

Another fire crackled and popped from outside of the mill. Soon, the aroma of meat roasting floated into my nostrils causing my stomach to growl. A hand touched my shoulder, startling me.

I sat up and settled my gaze on Allison’s sleep-filled blue eyes. I smiled.

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