For the Love of Caden

by Sandrine Gasq-Dion

  Kellan got the kit ready and prepped the area with alcohol. He found a nice vein and slid the needle in smoothly. He heard a soft curse and looked at Caden in the car. “Okay?”

  “You stabbed me!”

  “I assure you, I am one of the best at this.” Kellan taped the area and held up the bag of saline. The firemen were making their way over with the Jaws of Life. “Well, you should be free soon. Hopefully.”

  Caden sighed. “Great.”

  After an hour, they’d finally freed Caden from his crumpled BMW prison. He was loaded into the ambulance and his chatty paramedic was along for the ride. He couldn’t focus on anything but the man’s black-as-night eyes. They were so mesmerizing. The man, Kellan, was looking over his leg and touching it. It hurt like hell.

  “Stop touching me!” Caden balked.

  “I have to assess your wound.” Kellan looked at the damage. He cleaned the area as best he could. The bone was broken and sticking out of the skin. Ugh, a compound fracture.

  “How bad is it?” Caden hissed.

  “You want the good news or the bad news?” Kellan looked over at Caden’s face.

  He felt a hand on his jacket and was face to face with Caden in seconds. His mouth opened in protest and that’s when it hit him full force. The smell. He’d been so fixated on doing his job; he’d never realized the delicious smell coming from the man. Now he did. Oh shit, this guy was his mate. Before he could even say anything, Caden growled at him.

  “This is not funny!”

  Kellan grabbed the oxygen masked and placed it over Caden’s face. “You need to calm down.”

  “Do you know who I am?” Caden roared.

  “Nope, and I don’t care either.” Kellan chuckled as Scott injected Caden with morphine. He looked up at Scott with a small smile. “Did you ask?”

  “Nope, figured he was hysterical. Alex will cover me.” Scott laughed.

  Kellan looked down at the man on the gurney. His eyes were closing slowly and his breathing evened out. Kellan checked his blood pressure. “He’s my mate.”

  Scott looked up. “No shit?”

  Kellan sighed. “Nope, no shit.”

  ~~ As soon as they got to the hospital, Kellan sought out Alex. He found him getting ready for surgery and pulled him aside.

  “The man we just brought in, he’s my mate.” Alex nodded. “I’ll see what I can do; we’re filling up fast from this accident.” “Don’t let anyone else touch him, please.” Kellan looked at his alpha.

  Alex sighed. “All right, I’ll keep you posted.”

  For the next four hours, Kellan walked around in a daze. He’d finally found his mate and the guy was an asshole. Kellan sighed. Great. This was his lot in life.

  By the time they came off shift they were covered in blood and puke, and some other shit Kellan didn’t even want to think about. They showered and changed in the locker room, wishing the next shift luck. Friday the thirteenth had been one hell of a mixed blessing. He’d found his mate and of all things the guy was French. He hadn’t been sure at first, but when the curse words started flowing he’d understood half of them. Alexander wanted them to all know more than one language so Kellan had taken French and Russian.

  He went to the cafeteria and grabbed a cup of coffee. Running a hand through his hair he sighed and looked at the time. At least it was after midnight now; it was now the fourteenth. Kellan went back to the ER and looked for Alexander. He sat in the chair and closed his eyes. It seemed like seconds, but when he opened his eyes again Alexander was shaking his shoulder gently and it was three in the morning.

  “Hey,” Kellan stretched his legs out. “How’s my mate?”

  “Out of surgery and doing just fine,” Alexander smiled. “You can go sit with him if you’d like.”

  Kellan debated going home, but he couldn’t. No matter how much his mate had irritated him, he was still his mate. “Okay.”

  “Like it was ever a question Kellan,” Alexander smiled. “You’ve been pacing the hospital and you could have gone home hours ago. Give the man a chance; you caught him at a very inopportune time. He was scared and panicked. He’s your mate.”

  Kellan stood up and cracked his back. “How come you know so much?”

  “I’m old,” Alex winked.

  Kellan smiled and walked down the hall to Caden’s room. The sign on the door read Caden Fournier. Well, definitely French. Kellan opened the door and looked inside. Caden was fast asleep, the heart monitor beeping quietly. He grabbed the chair next to the bed and sat down. Caden’s hands were beautiful – long, slender fingers and clean, manicured nails. Kellan gently took Caden’s hand and brought it to his lips. The heart monitor beeped a little faster, as he kissed the soft skin of his mate’s hand. Kellan smiled.

  “You feel it, too.” He whispered.

  Laying his head on the bed, he closed his eyes and listened to Caden’s heartbeat. Within minutes he was asleep and dreaming of being with the man whose hand he held.

  ~~Chapter Three~~ A ray of sunlight passed across Kellan’s lids and he opened his eyes to see Caden still asleep. He stood up and stretched his arms out. There was a soft knock on the door and then it opened. A woman stood in the doorway looking him over.

  “Who are you?”

  “I’m Kellan, a paramedic.” Kellan eyes stayed focused on the woman as she crossed the room to

  Caden’s side.

  “Someone should have called me sooner. This is

  unacceptable.”

  “And you are?” Kellan crossed his arms over his

  chest.

  “I’m Evangeline. Why was I not informed

  sooner?”

  “There was a multi-car accident yesterday, we

  were flooded with patients. We did the best we could with the information we had.” Kellan moved to the door of the room and opened it. Obviously this was Caden’s wife or girlfriend; he could feel his

  heart breaking. “Well, he should be awake soon.” “Were you there?” Evangeline sat in the chair.

  “He’s claustrophobic and he has anxiety attacks

  sometimes.”

  “I was there. I tried to keep him calm.” Evangeline giggled. “Boy, you had your hands

  full.”

  There was a soft moan and Caden opened his

  eyes. He looked at Evangeline, and then his eyes

  came to a stop on Kellan.

  “Why are you here? I do not wish to be poked

  and prodded again.” Caden snarled.

  “No problem, I wouldn’t put up with your attitude

  anyway.” Kellan waved his hand in the air. “Good

  luck.”

  The door whispered shut and Caden looked at

  Evangeline.

  “What?”

  “Weren’t you a little rude?” Evangeline arched a

  perfect eyebrow.

  “He stuck a needle in my arm!” Caden pouted. “You are the biggest baby.” Evangeline

  smoothed his hair back. “He was really hot, too.” “You noticed?” Caden chuckled softly.

  “How are you really? Was it awful?” Evangeline

  sat back in the chair.

  Caden lay back and sighed. “If I am truly honest,

  the paramedic made things a bit easier. He was

  very calm and told me everything he was doing

  before he did it. I was very rude to him.” Caden

  closed his eyes. “I shall make it up to him.” “I’m kind of hoping he’s straight, boss.”

  Evangeline giggled.

  “Shut your mouth.” Caden smiled.

  The door opened and the doctor strolled in

  looking at his chart. He looked up and Caden tried

  to smile.

  “Well, doctor, how is my leg?”

  Alexander looked at Kellan’s mate. The man was

  beautiful; if he were gay he’d be fighting Kellan for

  him. He smiled and cleared his throat. “You have a

  comp
ound fracture, Mr. Fournier; we have started

  you on antibiotics to prevent infection. Because the

  bone was exposed to the air, bacteria are one of

  our greatest concerns. Thankfully, the paramedic on

  call tried to wrap the area and keep it covered,

  lessening your chances of infection. You are looking

  at six weeks or more to recuperate.”

  Caden sighed. “How long will I be in the

  hospital?”

  “Well, that depends,” Alexander narrowed his

  eyes. “Can you stay in bed?”

  Evangeline giggled and Caden smacked her

  hand.

  “If I must, I will do what I have to.” Caden looked

  around the room. “Where are my things?”

  “In the closet over there,” Alexander nodded to

  the corner. “If you can resist getting up and follow

  orders I’ll try to have you out in a week, but you

  must promise to stay off your leg.”

  “I will, doctor, thank you.”

  “I will be back to discuss some other things with

  you.” Alexander arched a brow.

  “Yes, thank you.” Caden watched the doctor

  leave and motioned to the closet. “Can you be a

  dear and get my phone.”

  “Are you calling someone about work? Because

  if you are I’m not getting it for you.” Evangeline

  crossed her arms.

  “I’m calling Grayson, silly.” Caden rolled his eyes. “Already did that.” Evangeline propped Caden’s

  pillows. “Now relax, I’ll take care of everything.” “I do love you.” Caden crooned.

  “Uh huh, if only I had a dick we’d be perfect.”

  Evangeline smiled.

  “Don’t be crass!” Caden laughed.

  Evangeline looked down at her boss. The man

  could be a royal pain in the ass and sitting on said ass was not something Caden could do easily. It was going to be a long month.

  ~~ For six weeks Caden thought of nothing but recovery, and the paramedic. He’d sent gifts, cards, flowers, chocolates and all were returned

  unopened. It was pissing him off. He’d apologized over and over for his behavior and had gotten the cold shoulder from paramedic Kellan Brady. The man was delicious and Caden couldn’t stop thinking about him. He dreamt of him at night, fantasied about him during the day. The best part of it all? Kellan had no idea who he was. Or if he did, he couldn’t have cared less.

  Caden could finally walk without the aid of a cane and decided to hit Pikes Place Market. He obeyed the rules, stayed off his leg and got the green light from Doctor Romasko. Grayson came to visit a few times in the six weeks of recovery, but Caden was too embarrassed to tell him about his crush and subsequent brush-off from the paramedic. He was not used to being told no.

  The day was warm and dry and Caden walked slowly, trying to take it easy on his leg. Up ahead, a nice round ass was bent over looking at fresh vegetables and Caden had the urge to bite it. The man stood up and Caden’s breath stopped. It was the paramedic. He stopped in his tracks trying to decide if he wanted to speak to the man or not; he was not ready to be turned down again. Caden swore softly. Since when was he such a pussy? He made his way over and stood behind Kellan Brady. He hadn’t said a word when the man in front of him stiffened, and turned slowly. Caden gave him a weak smile.

  “Hello, Kellan Brady.” Kellan crossed his arms over his chest. “Are you stalking me now?” Jesus, but the man was beautiful. Kellan wanted to throw him on top of the vegetables and fuck his brains out. For over a month he’d dreamt of Caden Fournier, what it would be like to make love to him, kiss him and hold him. It was stupid, really; the man had a girlfriend, or wife, whatever. It was pointless to lust over a straight man. That hadn’t stopped him from getting updates on the man from Alexander. Kellan looked at the man’s perfect cupid bow lips. Fuck, he wanted to bite them.

  “No, I am not stalking you.” Caden frowned. “I needed groceries for my house and I have not been here yet. After weeks of staying inside, I wanted to get out.”

  “Why not just send your girlfriend?” Kellan turned back to the bin of vegetables.

  “My girlfriend?” Caden furrowed his brows.

  “Yes, the woman at the hospital.” Kellan sighed in frustration. “Did you hit your head, too?”

  “Evangeline is not my girlfriend, she is my assistant. I do not have a girlfriend Mr. Brady.”

  “I’m surprised,” Kellan turned to look at Caden. “She looked like your girlfriend or wife.”

  “Unless she sprouted a penis, she is not my type.” Caden crossed his arms over his chest.

  Kellan stopped mid-reach for a bell pepper. “What?”

  “I’m gay, Mr. Brady. I have no interest in women. It does translate the same in the states does it not?”

  Kellan stood there. He couldn’t even speak. His mate was gay. He opened his mouth then closed it.

  “Oh, please do not tell me you are homophobic.” Caden raised a brow.

  Kellan stammered. “Jesus! No, I’m not a homophobe.”

  Caden looked up at Kellan. At his five foot ten, Kellan stood taller than him. “Then why did you look like that just now?”

  “I was surprised is all.” Kellan smiled. “I should have known.”

  “Excuse me?” Caden arched a brow.

  “The chocolates, flowers and gifts?” Kellan chuckled, softly.

  “I was trying to apologize; you would not take my calls or see me.” Caden blushed, this was not like him. He was being reduced to a babbling idiot in front of this man. In all fairness, Kellan Brady was absolutely breathtaking. He could think of nothing but sucking his dick until them man screamed his name. “I would have apologized in person, but I was stuck in bed.”

  Kellan’s mind went directly into the gutter on that statement. He had a vision of Caden underneath him, writhing on the bed as Kellan fucked him senseless. “Well, I’m standing right here.” Kellan gave him a wry smile.

  Caden blustered. “You are quite an ass; I am not sure you deserve an apology.”

  Kellan stepped into Caden’s private space, looking down at him. He lifted the man’s face to his own with his fingertips, and smiled. “No more than you were.”

  All the air left his lungs as he looked into midnight pools. Caden fought and reached for words, but none came. He was completely transfixed to the spot, captivated by the man in front of him.

  Kellan lowered his head and tilted it, as if to kiss Caden. He stopped within inches of Caden’s pouty, cupid bow lips. “You could just say sorry. I’ll accept that.” He whispered.

  Caden nodded.

  “No, you say sorry.” Kellan smiled.

  “Sorry.” Caden whispered.

  “Good,” Kellan stepped away and looked at his

  watch. “Well, as much as I’d love to stand here and talk all day, I have a job to do.” Kellan looked at the dazed expression on his mate’s face and had to smile. It’d taken every damn ounce of control he’d had not to kiss the man. “You take care, Caden.”

  “Wait,” Caden snapped out of his daze. He couldn’t let Kellan get away. “Could we maybe have dinner? You know, so I can make it up to you?”

  Kellan pretended to think about it. “I’m off Friday —”

  “Perfect!” Caden smiled. “Would you like me to pick you up?”

  Kellan pulled a card out of his wallet and handed it to Caden. “This is my home number and cell, call me this week and we’ll figure it out. Since you sent me cards and, well, stuff, you know my address.”

  Caden nodded. “I’ll see you Friday, Mr. Brady.” Caden watched the man walk away, that tight ass swaying back and forth. His mouth watered. “I have a date.”

  ~~Chapter Four~~ Caden swore time was going backwards. He’d made Evangeline hide Kellan’s card from him so he wouldn’t call him until Wednesday. They’d had a brie
f conversation on the phone and Caden invited him out to his house for dinner. Kellan agreed and the date was set - seven on Friday. Now Caden was walking frantically around his kitchen. It had taken him a good two days to plan the menu and in the end he decided to make couscous, a Moroccan meal. He’d never been so nervous; his damn palms were sweating. His eyes drifted to the clock again. Dammit it was only five. Caden sighed and checked the pot again. The smell of cumin invaded his senses and he sighed; he loved the dish and only made it with lamb. His hand hovered over the pot with the cayenne pepper. Should he make it spicy? What if Kellan was allergic? Dammit, he should have asked. His ringing phone brought him out of his argument with himself.

  “Hello?”

  “Caden, it’s Kellan. Look we’re at the scene of an

  accident and I don’t know how long I’ll be so I just wanted to call you and let you know.” “Are you all right?” Caden could hear Kellan’s tone of voice, he sounded upset.

  “I’m fine, just a little shaken up.” Kellan ran hand through his hair; they’d gotten the kid and mom out of the van right before it exploded. The mother was screaming at them to take her child first. Scott had pulled her out as he was trying to unbuckle the kid’s seatbelt. He’d gotten out seconds before the van exploded and was hit with the blast trying to protect the child.

  “If you’d like to make it another night…”

  “No, it’s okay, Caden, I’ll be there. I just wanted to let you know.”

  “All right, if you’re sure,” Caden held the phone a little tighter. He felt…he didn’t know what the feeling was. Concerned? Worried for Kellan? “Please be careful.”

  Kellan smiled into the phone. It was cute, the concern in Caden’s voice. “I will, see you as soon as I can.”

  “All right, I look forward to it.”

  “Me too, Caden.”

  Caden hung up the phone and stared at it. He picked it back up and dialed Grayson’s number. The phone rang a few times before Grayson’s cheerful voice came over the line.

  “Hey, Caden!”

  “Grayson,” Caden smiled. Grayson always sounded so happy. It was probably due to the drop dead gorgeous husband he had. “I wanted to call you and tell you I have a date.”

  “You do! That is so awesome, Caden! What does he do?”

  “He’s a paramedic. His name is Kellan and he’s so beautiful Grayson - dark hair and eyes and he’s taller than me—”