to get in the way of the bullet –”
Cold fear surged through her as the man grimaced, his lips pulling taut.
“Is – is he going to –”
Annie could barely force the words past her lips. The look the man gave her – half sympathetic, half grim – did nothing but make her heart plummet, sinking like a stone deep into her stomach.
“I don’t know,” the man said. “Using his powers… well, it takes a lot out of them, but they can usually recover. But combined with the bullet wound…” He shook his head. “Let me check. Help me turn him over.”
Wordlessly, Annie did as she was told. Part of her was still refusing to believe this was real, but all the same, she was still only just holding back the terrified scream that was trying to claw its way out of her throat.
No. This can’t be happening. No!
“My name’s Landon, by the way,” the gray-eyed man said as he probed the wound in Beau’s back with his fingers. “And you are?”
“Annie.” Her voice came out as nothing more than a whisper, in stark contrast to the frenzied cry she wanted to let out. “I’m Beau’s – I’m his mate.”
Landon looked up at her, surprise clear in his eyes. “His mate? I didn’t know he –”
“We only just met. He only told me a few hours ago. He said I’d meet his family –” Annie was aware she was babbling, but at the moment she just didn’t care. Somewhere in her brain, she realized she thought that if she told someone about their bond, about what they were to each other, then that would mean Beau would make it through.
He can’t – he can’t die. He told me I could meet his friends’ mates. He told me I could meet his family – that they were my family now too. If I tell people about it, then that means he has to keep his promise, right?
Landon nodded, but he was once again clearly focusing on the wound in Beau’s back – and he didn’t look very hopeful.
“It’s like I thought – dragonsbane. It’ll slow his healing, on top of him having already used up all his energy using his time pausing ability. But it’s not as bad as it could be. It’s missed his organs. It’s only gone into the muscle of his shoulder.”
Annie had no idea what dragonsbane meant, but she could guess it was serious by the way Landon rifled through his medical kit quickly, pulling out a long pair of forceps.
“All right, first things first – we have to get that bullet out of him, and the dragonsbane with it,” Landon said. He glanced up at Annie. “And you can help. I’ve seen this work before. The mated bond is a way for shifters to gain strength. I need you to focus on that – on the bond between you. Don’t worry about anything else, all right?”
Numbly, Annie nodded. “I can do that.”
She tried to focus. Beau was so still in her arms that she couldn’t bear it. She heard him take a short, shuddering breath, but that was the only reaction he had to Landon probing his wound with the forceps.
Closing her eyes, Annie pulled her concentration inwards, reaching out for the strange, glowing feeling in her heart she’d felt since the first moment their fingers had brushed back in the bakery.
I didn’t understand it then, she thought desperately. I thought this was just going to be a three-day thing, a bit of fun without getting attached. I was scared of feeling too much for you. I was scared of how much I felt, even after knowing you for such a short time.
She took a deep, shaking breath, laying her hand on Beau’s cold, clammy forehead.
But I was wrong, Beau. I shouldn’t have been so frightened. I should have kissed you on that lake – I should have kept letting you teach me how to skate.
It might only have been an extra hour or so that she would have known the touch of Beau’s lips against hers, but right now, to Annie, it might as well have been a hundred years. It seemed so unfair that they’d had so little time together – even a tiny bit more would have been worth any price.
Please, Beau. I’m not frightened anymore. I swear. I want to be with you – to be your mate. There’s so many things we still need to do together. Please. I can’t lose you