by Ophelia Bell
“Fuck,” Javin muttered, though he couldn’t fathom why Gerri thought she should have visited before he’d even called her. Behind him Simon barked a laugh.
“Holy shit, you did not call a matchmaker for Astra without asking her, did you?”
“Is there something wrong, Dr. Traore?” Gerri asked, one sculpted eyebrow arched.
“Um, no, not at all! I’d just appreciate it if you would wait. Astra’s in a delicate state right now, so I’d like a moment to make sure she’s up for a visitor first. I’ll be at the medical center in a few minutes.”
“Very well. I look forward to seeing you,” Gerri said, then the image disappeared, leaving Javin staring in panicked shock at the vista through the windshield.
“You do love meddling in people’s lives, don’t you?” Simon said from behind him. “I knew you were a control freak but I had no fucking idea.”
“It’s for her own good. If we can’t work on a stable counteragent for the toxin, mating is going to be her only hope of reviving her link to her dragon and returning to the arena.”
Simon went quiet and Javin’s spine tingled with the awareness of tension that hadn’t been in the transporter a moment ago.
“You’re in fucking denial,” Simon finally said. “Also, where was this suggestion when you were offering me solutions? Was it mating that got Hot Wings back in the arena? I’ve been out of the loop for a couple years on this shit. A little heads-up would have been nice.”
Javin shot a glare over his shoulder. “I did suggest it earlier tonight, but you shot me down. Over the last couple years, we’ve observed that champions who have been injured stand a much higher chance of full recoveries if they take mates. It stands to reason it would work for your condition too.”
“How long have you known this without mentioning it?” Simon challenged.
Javin was at a loss. He’d known the mating angle for more than a year but hadn’t offered the option to Simon until tonight.
He didn’t answer and they remained silent for the rest of the trip, but Simon’s resentment permeated the air inside the small transporter. By the time they pulled into Javin’s parking spot at the League Medical Center, his hackles were up for a confrontation. But Simon only hopped out and strode toward the door without a word or a look back.
Javin cursed and jogged to catch up, his long legs carrying him to the stockier hyena shifter swiftly.
“Slow down. I didn’t realize you were that far out of touch, Simon. I thought you knew.” He grabbed Simon’s arm to halt him.
The other man spun around, jaw clenched and eyes blazing. “You’re my fucking doctor. Do you normally just assume your patients are aware of their options? I could have called this matchmaker and asked for her help instead of relying on you for my fucking lifeline.”
Javin flinched and loosened his grip. Simon was right though. So why hadn’t he? “I’m sorry,” was all he could say.
“Don’t be fucking sorry. You want to make it up to me? I want what you’re so eager to give Astra that you didn’t even ask her opinion.”
“Fine. I’ll introduce you to Mrs. Wilder. Come on.”
He headed into the center, picking up his pace. He was anxious to head off the matchmaker before she could speak to Astra herself.
His gut was a tangled mess now. Gerri was supposed to be the answer to Astra’s problem, and she could no doubt help Simon too. But the idea of losing them both in the span of a night suddenly wasn’t sitting well with him.
He shook it off. He was being ridiculous. The matchmaker was good—she had a flawless success rate—but it still took time for her to find matches for her clients. Besides, he had more important things to do, like following up on this lead to track down the maker of the toxic drug that had been a plague on the arena league for years now. He didn’t have time to lose his shit over Astra and Simon moving on. Astra was his dead best friend’s little sister. She deserved to be whole with someone who loved her. And Simon had been fucked over in the worst way by his partner. Despite Javin’s spotty opinion of the man, Simon still deserved happiness.
This was what was best for them both.
When they exited the lift to the second floor, Javin took a deep breath, slowing down to a walk as he spotted a well-dressed woman seated in the visitor’s lounge.
“I need you to keep her busy while I go prep Astra,” he said under his breath to Simon. “This is your chance to have a chat with her, so don’t waste it, all right?”
Simon nodded, an eager smile spreading across his face. “No problem.”
“Mrs. Wilder,” Javin called in a louder voice. “You really didn’t need to come all this way.”
The platinum-haired woman stood with easy grace and turned. Her sharp eyes met Javin’s as she smoothed out her tailored skirt, a fellow wolf within her gaze. She regarded him for a few seconds before shifting to Simon, and Javin had the strongest sense that she’d just taken their full measure with a single glance. His unease spiked, but he smiled through it, stepping forward and offering a hand.
“I’m Dr. Javin Traore. This is one of my patients, Simon Irons. He’s interested in hiring you too, as a matter of fact.”
She took his hand, gripping firmly and shaking. “Dr. Traore. Simon.” She offered her hand to Simon, who dipped his head in a slight bow.
“Mrs. Wilder, it is my complete pleasure to meet you,” Simon said.
“Please just call me Gerri. I prefer to be on a first-name basis with all my clients. The nature of my work requires a certain level of intimacy that precludes some formalities.”
Her gaze darted between the two of them and her nostrils flared. Javin hoped like hell she wasn’t scenting the two men on each other, but if her wolf’s senses were as keen as his, he was shit out of luck.
One eyebrow lifted as she met Javin’s eyes again. “I’m eager to meet Ms. Garrick. I understand she is the most recent victim of one of these awful attacks in the arena. The drug seems to have made a resurgence.”
“It’s tragic is what it is,” Javin said in a strained voice. “And I should warn you she may not be precisely open to the idea of a mate, but short of tracking down the origin of the drug, she has no other options for her recovery.”
“Why don’t you go check and see whether she’s up for a visitor? I’ll get to know Simon while we wait.”
She shifted her attention to Simon with a smile, and Javin gave the other man a pleading look that he hoped conveyed keep her busy. Simon grinned his toothy grin and tilted his chin toward the corridor.
Javin wasn’t sure he liked that look the other man had given him. Simon was desperate and desperate men could be dangerous, but how much damage could the man do? If he wanted a mate, Gerri was the perfect person to introduce him to.
Astra’s reaction was a bigger concern and he braced himself, rehearsing his speech as he headed to her room. A few paces away from her door, he heard two female voices—Simina’s and Astra’s. The two of them didn’t sound amicable at the moment either and his stomach turned to lead.
Simina wouldn’t have sold him out, would she? But the closer he got, the more certain he was that she had.
“Gerri’s the real deal, sweetie. Try to forget how she wound up here. Just give her a chance,” Simina was saying. So perhaps it wasn’t all shit talking. He forced himself to an easy gait as he entered, plastering on a smile. But he faltered the second he saw Astra up and dressed and stuffing her things into a bag.
“I’m not fucking staying for this. You had a choice, Simina. You didn’t have some asshole making that choice for you.”
“So I’m just some asshole now, am I?” Javin said, crossing his arms and blocking the doorway.
Astra turned her dark-eyed glare on him. She’d even put on battle paint and would have looked as ferocious as ever if not for the pallid tinge to her complexion. “If you did what she said you did, yes. You’re a fucking son of a bitch.”
He smirked. “You realize that isn’t an insult to a w
olf shifter, right?”
Astra rolled her eyes and jabbed a finger at him. “Asshole! There’s literally nothing else you can do for me here so I’m not staying just so you can meddle with my life! Bryer and Ignazio invited me to stay with them until I recover. They’re definitely better friends to me than you’ve ever been. Now get out of my way!”
She was on fire, but Javin couldn’t let her storm out without meeting Gerri. “She came all the way from Earth just to meet with you, Astra. At least take a minute to sit down with her.”
“No! If you think she’s so great, you hire her!” She shoved at his shoulder, but Javin held his ground.
Astra growled and tried to push beneath his arm, but he dropped it, hooking it around her waist and holding her back. He glanced to Simina for help.
“Hey, I told you she’d respond this way,” Simina said, watching in amusement as he fended off the frustrated dragon shifter’s attempts to break through him.
“Javin,” Astra warned. “You don’t want to fuck with me right now! I will hurt you.”
“I’ll survive. Just meet the woman, Astra. This is your best shot at recovery.”
She shifted sides and tried to shove past his other arm, but he easily blocked her again. Her reflexes were way off, which worried him. Her rising frustration with her reaction time was growing more apparent too, and were those tears in her eyes?
“Javin, please don’t make me hurt you,” she rasped. Her eyes flashed with violet inner fire for a split second, the first sign that her dragon really was still in there. He blocked her again, this time hoping somehow that getting her riled up would spark that link again.
“Show her to me and I’ll let you out,” he taunted. “Let me see your dragon, Astra. Show me Midnight Star.”
She took a step back, her jaw tight and her eyes blazing, but that brief spark of light was no longer there. She dropped her bag and lunged at him with a roar, fingers outstretched. He’d seen this move in the arena and knew how damaging it could be. At the top of her game, he would stand no chance against her, but he dodged readily, feinted, then swept her feet out from under her with an almost lazy kick. She hit the floor and he grabbed her wrists, pinning them over her head, and stared down at her.
“You’re sick, Astra. I know this is a bitter pill to swallow, but you need to talk to Gerri Wilder if you really want to get better. Just do this for me. It’s not a commitment to mating. Consider it a backup plan if you want. I just need to know you have a chance to be whole if I can’t come through with a counteragent that will work. Please.”
Her breathing was ragged and quick beneath him, her eyes filled with agony that he doubted had anything to do with the physical wound in her leg. Inside him, his wolf made a rumbling murmur of interest. She needs a mate. Mark her now and give her one, it seemed to say.
Javin’s mouth watered at the sight of the pulse in her throat. That would be the easy way to fix everything, but no. He closed his eyes and forced his beast back into the darkness. Even if she didn’t hate him, she was Talon’s sister. Mating her was not an option, but he would be damn sure to give her every opportunity to heal that he could find.
“You had better fucking come through,” she shot, struggling against him and looking more panicked with every squirm and twist. “But when I’m better, you should watch your fucking back. I owe you an ass kicking for this.”
He chuckled as he shifted off her, instantly missing the heat and softness of her curves beneath him when he stood. He reached down to offer her a hand up, but she ignored it, standing unsteadily with a wince.
“I have no doubt you’ll deliver, and I will welcome it when it comes,” he said.
9
Astra
Astra’s teeth dug into her lip in an effort to suppress the cry of utter rage and frustration bubbling forth after her confrontation with Javin.
He shouldn’t have been able to overpower her so easily. Sure, he was bigger, bulkier, far more muscular—the man had often trained with her brother, though Talon had always been the better fighter. But she was the champion, not Javin. Her skills were unmatched by most arena champions, so someone who wasn’t a pro should never have gotten the upper hand.
Except when she’d leaped at him, her dragon hadn’t responded. That brief surge of awareness had faded fast, and the next thing she’d known, she was flat on her back, pinned to the floor with him staring down at her all smug. She hadn’t even had the strength to break free so she’d had no choice but to give in.
She trudged after him down the hall, limping with each step and hating herself for how he affected her and dreading this infernal meeting the closer she got. But at least it was late enough that the floor was quiet save for a handful of staff who seemed busy with the patients who were staying overnight. No one else would have to bear witness to her damaged self being forced into the last thing most champions ever willingly sought.
The lovely older shifter stood when she entered the visitor lounge behind Javin, and Astra narrowed her eyes. She looked benign enough, but she had a calculating look that Astra wasn’t sure if she could trust.
“You must be Midnight Star. I’m Gerri Wilder. It is lovely to finally meet you.” Rather than simply hold out a hand, Gerri strode straight up to Astra and enveloped her in a warm embrace that caught her off guard. Astra’s eyes widened, then her breath hitched and she hugged the woman back, too surprised by the greeting to react any other way.
“How are you feeling, dear?” Gerri said when she pulled away, giving Astra a look of deep concern. She led Astra to a chair and urged her to sit, taking the seat next to her. “I’ve been following these awful attacks for some time. I know it’s no consolation, but I am grateful your injury was far from fatal.”
“Me too,” Astra said, baffled by the concern, though she probably shouldn’t have been surprised. Still, Gerri’s solicitous nature put her at ease in a way neither of her doctors’ had. “I’m doing as well as can be expected I guess. Thank you for asking.”
Her skin prickled and she glanced up, realizing there was another set of eyes watching her. A beefy, tawny-haired shifter stood a few feet away, hands in his pockets. Astra frowned. “Do I know you?” she asked.
“I hope not,” he said with a gruff chuckle. “Er, that is to say, no, we’ve never met. I’m Simon Irons. Retired champion.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You seem familiar, but I guess if you’re retired, you were before my time.”
He swallowed and glanced at the floor, shrugging.
Astra’s mouth quirked. His shyness was endearing. “It can’t have been that long ago though, can it? You still look strong enough to compete.”
Looks could be deceiving, but this was a man who clearly trained hard. His strong shoulders bulged against the stretchy material of his shirt that clung to his tapered torso. The man had muscles on top of muscles and while he lacked the clean, lithe grace Javin possessed, he made up for it in sheer power.
“That’s behind me, I’m sad to say,” he said, flicking his gaze up to her, then looking at Gerri.
“Are you hiring Gerri too?” she asked, for the first time intrigued about what this matchmaker could offer. Perhaps she’d enjoy being paired with a retired champion like Simon. Someone who was done with the arena, but who could still appreciate the work that went into a career with the league. At the very least, she might enjoy the search if she got to sample the goods along the way.
When Simon cleared his throat she jerked her gaze back to his face, realizing she’d gotten a little lost in thought while imagining him naked. Then Javin clapped Simon on the shoulder and said, “You should remember him. His partner was the one who was responsible for Bryer’s injury a couple years ago.”
Simon blanched, his face going pale. A sick chill settled in Astra’s belly. She’d actually been attracted to this bastard?
“You’re one of them.” She didn’t try to hide the bitter edge to her voice and was gratified by the pain that crossed his features. He di
dn’t deserve any peace for what he’d done.
“It’s more complicated than that, Astra.”
“Don’t fucking talk to me,” she snapped, then turned to Gerri. “I’m sorry, you’ve wasted your time coming here. I don’t want a mate. I’ll find some other way to heal.”
Gerri held up a hand. “Wait, Astra. I think I can still help all three of you if you give me a moment. I’ve gathered from my conversation with Simon, and from simple observation, that neither of you are in the right place for a mate right now, am I wrong?” She shifted her gaze between each of them.
“I can’t speak for the others, but it’s the last thing I want,” Astra said.
“But there is something all three of you have in common, that you desire more than mates. More than anything. If I may be so bold as to guess,” she went on, “you want to get to the bottom of this drug’s existence. You are a victim of the toxin, Simon here is afflicted with an addiction to the drug itself that he wants nothing more than to rid himself of, and Javin wishes to help the both of you heal from it.”
Astra shot a confused gaze at Simon. Gerri’s tender look at the other shifter made her wonder what he’d said to garner any sympathy from the older woman. He’d broken league rules in the worst way, had been banned as a result. Technically, he shouldn’t even be allowed into this medical center. Yet Javin seemed friendly with him too. None of this made any sense.
“Am I wrong, Astra?” Gerri asked.
Astra tore her eyes from Simon, swallowing. “No. Are you saying you can help us figure this out? You know how to find the source of the drug?”
“That’s why I made the trip. I wish I’d come earlier because I’ve had information for a few weeks that may have helped prevent your situation, but there really is no way to predict how events will unfold, and I prefer not to betray my clients’ secrets if at all possible. Either way, I felt this information was best conveyed in person.
“I’ve had multiple clients over the past year who were affected by this drug in some fashion. My talents have been limited to helping with the damage they incurred on the inside. But for the first time I think I have a way to help with the bigger problem. If you three are willing to work together to get to the bottom of this, I will tell you more.”
