by Alice Brown
“Well, you had a gash on your head when you came in late last night, but that has completely healed and shouldn’t be causing you any problems. Hmm, I wonder if it is because you are running so low on blood.” He turned on his heel, ready to head back out, when a nurse walked in with two bags of blood, a cup, and a straw.
“Ah, thank you, Nurse Amy,” Dr. Weathers said as he took everything from her. “I’ll take it from here.”
He brought the blood to the side of the bed. Lucas was still lying on his back, his arm up over his eyes to block all light. “Lucas, how do you want to do this, man? Are you able to sit up? If not, we can just pour it in a cup and you can drink it through a straw.”
Lucas was sure he heard Walter snicker as he snorted. Drink from a straw…what am I, a damn invalid?
Although a moment later, he wondered just what kind of shape he was in when just sitting up in bed had him sweating and shaking. Damn, he was weaker than a human if just sitting up took everything he could muster.
“Hand me one of those bags, Doc.” Dr. Weathers placed the bag into his outstretched hand.
He tore off the end of the bag and then tilted it to his lips, making a seal so as not to spill any of the life-giving nectar. He didn’t stop until the bag was empty. As he removed the bag from his mouth, he noticed his head had stopped pounding, and he was feeling better already. He held out his hand for the other bag, again downing it within a minute.
“Should I go round up a few more bags?” Walter asked from his chair beside the bed.
Dr. Weathers studied his patient for a moment. “Yes, try to get another two or three if you can.”
While they waited for more blood to arrive, Dr. Weathers addressed his health issues. “Okay, you’ve still got some nasty burns that have not completely cleared up. I think now that you are awake and we are getting some blood in you, the burns should start healing more rapidly. There were no broken bones, although your back is a mess. We’ve put a large gel pad over it so it wouldn’t bother you when you were sleeping. You know, you are very lucky to be here with us right now. If your teammates hadn’t found you when they did, I seriously doubt you would have still been alive. You came in here in pretty bad shape.”
Lucas closed his eyes as memories of being left to die in the hot Texas sun swam through his brain. His captors hadn’t thought he could possibly survive what they had planned, so they had run their mouths as they were dishing out their punishment. Lucas now knew a bit more about the case, and wanted to try to put the pieces together before another woman paid the price.
He felt a hand on his shoulder and reopened his eyes. Dr. Weathers was standing in front of him, a bit of a concerned look on his face. “Are you okay? I kind of lost you for a moment.”
“Yes, I’m fine. Just reliving the nightmare of being chained up in the sun for three days straight.”
The door to his room opened, and Walter walked in with a pretty young nurse on his heels.
Dr. Weathers looked up and smiled at Walter. “Oh, good, you were able to get plenty.” They were not at a regular hospital per se. The office of the Texas Rangers had its own medical wing especially for vampires who needed medical care, occupying the entire second floor of the building the Rangers called home. Dr. Weathers worked there, along with two nurses, to ensure the vampires in the surrounding area were taken care of.
The nurse stepped around Walter, hoping she could get her patient’s vitals before he drank his blood. She had already been told by Nurse Amy that their patient was a Texas Ranger and had been seriously injured in the line of duty. Dr. Weathers said goodbye to the patient and told him he would be back by later to check on him. As she approached the bed, she glanced over to her patient with what she hoped was a pleasant smile. The minute their eyes met, and his scent hit her at the exact same second, she froze. Holy shit, this man is gorgeous! And he is huge! And he is my mate!
The woman walking toward him reminded him of an angel in her white scrubs. Long black hair pulled back into a high ponytail, and a body that was made for pleasure. She reached the side of the bed and gave him a tentative smile. “Hi, I’m Nurse Baldwin. I’ll be your nurse while you are here. Is there anything I can get you?”
Lucas looked up at the angel above him. She was beautiful. He ran his eyes down the length of her body, wishing it was his tongue instead. Her breasts looked to be an easy handful to fit his large hands, hips made for a man to grasp ahold and fuck into oblivion, and long legs that would wrap around him nicely. “Your name and phone number, mate.”
Although she was trying to keep up a professional front, she was a nervous wreck on the inside. First, he was just so…so big. Second, he was a Ranger, a Ranger! Surely there had been some sort of mistake. She could only imagine how Fate must surely be laughing her butt off for saddling him with plain-Jane Meredith Baldwin.
I’ve never been this nervous in my life! Wonder what I am supposed to say? “Hi, my name is Meredith Baldwin, I don’t get the whole concept about sex and I am currently being hidden away from the guys that did this to you.” Yeah, that should have him running in the other direction.
She gave him a nervous glance and her hand slipped as she was checking his blood pressure. Lucas heard Walter groan from behind her, “Oh, bloody hell, yeah, he’s just fine. And on that note, I’m out of here, man.”
She took the arm cuff off and checked his pulse. “I’m pulsing for you, sweets,” he murmured, watching as her long eyelashes fanned out as she looked down.
She leaned over him, gently running her fingers through his hair. “The chart states you came in with a nasty gash, but I’m not seeing anything. Is it already healed?”
“Yes, darling, my head is fine. You know our kind heals fast. But if you want to keep running your fingers through my hair, I’ll not stop you.” Her hand came to an abrupt stop as she realized she had been standing there running her fingers through her patient’s hair like some lovesick teenager.
Gently, as not to spook her, he reached up and clasped his hand around her wrist. As he watched her, she reminded him of a scared doe. Pitching his voice low, he asked, “Do you have time to sit and talk with me a minute or two?”
In keeping hold of her wrist, he gently maneuvered her until she was sitting on the side of the bed facing him. He continued to hold her wrist, while gently running his thumb over the inside.
Lucas turned to his side and propped his head up with his hand. “So, what’s your name, baby?”
“Meredith Baldwin,” her response but a whisper as her eyes were glued to the spot on her wrist Lucas was tantalizing. Oh, God, if he keeps doing that I am going to be leaving a wet spot under me! How is he doing that? I’ve never really been turned on to a guy like this. It must be the mate thing. I can’t believe I got a mate that looks like him! He is gorgeous, even if he is as big as a mountain! I wonder if he is disappointed.
Oh yeah, she is so getting turned on by my touch. I can smell her juices flowing, and her nipples are poking right through that scrub top she is wearing. “Meredith. Now that is a pretty name for my own little angel. You’re beautiful. You know we are mates, correct?”
Meredith could only nod. She cleared her throat twice in order to respond to him, all the while wondering if she really was going to leave a wet spot on the bed. She could feel her juices leaking from her pussy at an alarming rate, and her nipples had stood at attention the moment their skin touched. But what would happen if he found out the trouble she was in? What would he think when he realized his own team was protecting her, giving her shelter in this very building? What would he think when he discovered that she was only a half-vampire, and because of that, she didn’t have vampire strength?
“Meredith? What’s wrong, baby? I kind of lost you there for a moment,” Lucas asked in concern.
“Lucas, there is a lot about me that you don’t know. I am just going to spit it all out, and if you change your mind about the mating after you hear everything, I’ll completely understand.”
Meredith stared at him for a moment, biting her lower lip in distress. Then she looked up toward the ceiling and Lucas noticed the tears in her eyes. Wait a minute? Tears? Vampires couldn’t cry, unless his mate was…
“Lucas, I am only half-vampire. My mother was human. I don’t have any vampire strength. I have some of the speed, but not all. I have enhanced senses, enjoy eating normal human food most of the time, but still need the occasional serving of blood.” She stopped there and glanced over to him.
He raised his eyebrow up at her. “What? Was I supposed to jump up and run screaming out of the room? You’d better come at me with a little more than that, darling.”
“That’s not even the half of it,” she stated as she shook her head and gave him a tired smile. This next part she was dreading. In her mind, it was the part that would make or break the deal.
“The reason why I am here, the reason I work here, and by the way, I live here also, is because your boss, Walter, is hiding and protecting me. That case y’all have been working on, the one with the twelve dead women? Well, I inadvertently witnessed number eight being murdered. I watched Eddie McDaniels kill that poor girl. And he knows I saw him do it. He and his group of rogues have been after me ever since. Eddie was sending his goons about once every two weeks to try to get to me. After they burned my house down, ruined my car, and killed my dog, I finally had had enough. I came in and spoke with Walter alone in his office and asked for not only protection, but his silence in the fact that I am here. So, besides the other nurse and Dr. Weathers, no one knows I am here.”
Lucas felt like he had been punched in the gut. First, to know his mate had literally been right under his nose for some time now and he never knew. Second, to know she had been in trouble, had needed his protection, and could have been taken from him before he ever got to know her.
“Babe, those murders were almost two years ago. Are you telling me you’ve been in hiding ever since?”
“Yes, I have been. I have known nothing but the inside of this building for the past ten months. Prior to that I had just been running scared every few weeks when they caught up to me.”
Lucas noticed the fine tremor that went through her. “Do you have any other patients to take care of, baby?”
She shook her head in denial. “No, you are the only one here.”
“Good.” He scooted over and wrapped his free arm around her waist all at the same time, having her lying next to him in an instant. She squawked in alarm, until he brought her back up to his chest, his mouth to her ear. “Shh, everything is okay, baby. I’ve got you, and you can stop fretting about everything. Because I can damn guarantee you that I will protect you with my life. I am not about to let anything happen to the gift that has been handed to me.”
Tears fell on the arm that pillowed her head. “You have no idea the terror I have gone through. They even know that I am only a half-vamp; they have left me enough notes stating that I would quickly become their next kill after they all had a turn…” An anguished sob escaped her as she finally felt free enough to let go, to let someone else worry about the problems for once. She finally felt free to pour out all the pent-up fear, frustration, hurt, and anger.
And wasn’t that weird. Here she was, crying her eyes out on a man she had known for all of fifteen minutes. Geez, someone needed to commit her. But her parents had been mates, and her mother had always told her that when she met her mate, everything would work out. Even though it was hard to believe, she would fall in love with her mate almost instantly. Her mother had described it like coming home from being away for a really, really long time. That everything would just “click” into place. She believed her mother.
Placing a hand on her hip, he gently turned her so she was facing him. Lying back, he draped her over him, letting her cry for all of the injustice she had been forced to deal with over the past eighteen months. Of all that was lost. He whispered how he would take care of her from now on, how he would find these bastards once and for all and deliver the justice they deserved. Because even he knew it would be the only way the two of them could have any kind of life together. He kissed her forehead and wrapped his arms around her tightly. From the looks of things, he would bet she had never once broken down over the past two years. She probably never felt safe enough to do so.
Finally, she cried herself to sleep. He lay there feeling like he needed to get up and stretch, every muscle in his body protesting from being inactive too long. But there was no way he was going to disturb her. If she ended up sleeping draped over him for the entire night, he would savor it.
The ironic thing of it all? He remembered girl number eight. The local police had called and asked for help since they hadn’t been able to get any leads on who was doing this to their city. To think his mate had been in the same city all along and they had just missed meeting one another eighteen months ago. Eighteen months he could have been enjoying his mate. Eighteen months he could have been protecting her. Well, as of this very moment, he vowed to protect her with his own life. She was his mate. She was to be cherished, protected, loved, and spoiled. He planned on doing all of those things and more.
About an hour after she had fallen asleep, Walter poked his head in. Lucas was quick to place a finger to his lips to warn his friend to be quiet. Walter whispered, “I’m heading out now. Everyone else has gone home and you two have this entire wing to yourselves. If you need anything, call downstairs to the officer on night watch. You and I need to talk in the morning.”
Meredith awoke twice during the night, each time from a nightmare. Lucas wondered when the last time his mate had gotten a good, uninterrupted night’s sleep. Both times she started off mumbling in her sleep, quickly followed up with her thrashing and flailing her arms, as if she were trying to fight someone off her. Then she would scream out, as if in horrible agony. When Lucas was finally able to break through the nightmare and awaken her, she was embarrassed to have been seen like that. And when she crawled off him, he merely hooked his arm around her as he turned to his side, spooning her. After talking softly to her and reassuring her that everything was okay, he finally got her to relax enough to start to go back to sleep. His hand crept up under the front of her scrub shirt, and he allowed his fingertips to skate over the smoothest, softest skin he had ever felt along her rib cage. He didn’t go any further, especially when things were so new between them and she was so upset, but that didn’t stop his dick from rising to attention. Nor did it escape his notice how well it fit along the crack of her ass.
Chapter Two
Meredith started stirring about seven the next morning. “Good morning, baby,” he greeted her.
She popped her head up, blinked twice, then sat up abruptly. “Oh my God, I can’t believe I did this. I am supposed to be taking care of you, and here I go to pieces and….” she started wringing her hands in distress.
Lucas was smart enough not to crack a smile. “Hey, it’s okay. I think I am almost completely healed. As a matter of fact, can you remove this gel pad they’ve have placed across my back? It is starting to really itch, and I would like to get up and take a shower.”
She immediately hopped off the bed. “Oh, of course.” He could tell by watching her body language she had just flipped the switch to becoming a professional around him. Too damn bad, because he was getting ready to un-flip the switch.
She carefully un-taped the edges and slowly peeled it off. “Well, I don’t know what this looked like yesterday, but it hasn't completely healed all the way. Looks like everything has scabbed over well, and I see a lot of new pink skin, so I am going to guess this looked tons worse yesterday. There are no gaping sores though, so you should be able to take a shower, just be careful,” she instructed.
“Well, I was thinking. I
might have trouble cleaning it without taking a chance of opening things back up. You wouldn’t want to show me where your place is and help me in the shower, would you?”
“Umm, Lucas, I...”
“Good morning, everyone!” Dr. Weathers came into the room, saving her from having to come up with an answer.
“Good morning, Doctor,” nurse and patient greeted him simultaneously.
Dr. Weathers turned to Meredith. “So, how is our patient doing today?”
“Most of his burns seemed to have healed overnight. We just removed the bandage from his back and it seems to be healing nicely.” Meredith was trying her best to be professional with Dr. Weathers, although she had the feeling he saw right through her act.
“Hmm, let’s take a look at that back, shall we, Lucas?”
Five minutes later, Dr. Weathers stated he was released but would need to take it easy for the next few days until all injuries were completely healed and he had regained his strength. “I am advising no work for the next three to four days. Plenty of blood, and you might want to find some help for at least the next day or so with cleaning your back.” Lucas shot his head up just in time to see Dr. Weathers shoot a quick meaningful glance over in Meredith’s direction.
Lucas gave a low chuckle. “Thanks, Doc.”
On his way out the door, he stopped and turned his head back to Meredith. “Meredith, we have no other patients. Why not take the next several days off? You more than deserve it, Nurse Amy and I can handle anything that might come up.”
Meredith stood staring at Dr. Weathers. He knows. He knows I have found my mate. “Are you sure?”
“Most definitely. I’ll see you in a few days.” And with that and a smirk on his face, he walked out the door. He had been happy when Walter gave him the heads up yesterday afternoon that Lucas and Meredith were mates. He could only hope this would mean a positive turn-around in his young nurse’s life. She deserved to be happy. And she certainly didn’t deserve the hell she had been put through the past two years.
