“Ben.” Lara smiled. “He keeps sneaking in here and leaving his soldiers to ‘guard’ Drew.”
“See, Drew,” Indigo said as Lara left to check on Silvia, who was well on the way to recovery, “you have to wake up now. What’s Ben going to play with if he gives you all his soldiers?”
She was brushing Drew’s hair off his face when she caught Riley’s scent. The other lieutenant came in and took his brother’s hand. “How is he?”
Riley always asked her, not Lara. Because he was mated. And he’d almost lost his mate once. “Strong,” Indigo said, “so strong that when I fall asleep, I swear he’s curled up around me.” Sometimes she woke feeling as if she’d been rubbing her face against thick, lustrous fur the shade of silver-birch bark. It comforted her in sleep … and caused incredible desolation when she woke.
Meeting her gaze in silent understanding, Riley leaned down to whisper something in Drew’s ear before leaving several minutes later. Brenna had already been by that morning and would likely return again within the hour.
Lara touched Indigo’s shoulder some time afterward. “Come have a cup of coffee.”
Indigo shook her head.
“Fine, then I’m pulling rank,” Lara said in a steely voice. “You will get up right now, sit your ass down at my desk, and eat what I put in front of you.”
Startled, Indigo stared at Lara. “You can only pull rank when a pack member is in danger of harming herself.” In that situation, Lara outranked even Hawke.
Lara poked Indigo in the ribs. “When was the last time you ate?” She didn’t wait for a response. “If you don’t do this voluntarily, I’ll call Hawke and Riaz and have them hog-tie you to a chair. Then I’ll spoon-feed you, and after that, I’ll pump you full of narcotics so that you get at least eight solid hours of rest.”
Indigo’s wolf wanted to snarl, but it loved the pack healer too much. “You play mean, Lara.” Bending down, she pressed her lips to Drew’s. “I’ll be back after I satisfy General Lara.” It was hard to pull herself away, harder still to stuff food down her gullet.
It took her ten minutes—because Lara refused to let her go until she’d finished every bite. “Drew, sweetie, I have some bad news,” Lara said, after Indigo returned to his side. “Your mate’s lost twenty pounds and looks like a fish stick. You’re going to find yourself mated to a skeleton if you don’t open those baby blues.”
Indigo scowled, but her response was lost in a rush of noise as Riley, Brenna, and Judd all returned, along with Hawke and a couple of the teenagers who’d gone up into the mountains with her and Drew. Too many people—but this was how they healed.
By touch. By Pack.
Hawke asked Lara for an update, and the healer began to speak, but Indigo was focused only on Drew … and her wolf caught it the instant his breathing changed.
Then she heard the sweetest sound of all.
“Where’s Indy?” It was a groggy question.
A whirl of sounds and scents crashed against Andrew’s senses. He felt Lara’s warm hands on his face, his chest, heard his sister’s cry of welcome, saw Hawke’s distinctive hair glint in the light, but—
There she was.
“Hey.” Memories tumbled into him, pain and anguish … and the incredible power of someone holding him to life.
His mate.
She didn’t say a word, just pushed past Lara to crawl into bed beside him, her face buried in his neck. His heart almost stopped. She’d done it in front of everyone, his strong, private, incredibly proud mate. And then he didn’t care, because he could feel damp heat against his skin. “Out,” he snapped.
Everyone left.
“Indy, please don’t cry.” He couldn’t stand it. Indigo was tough to her bones; he’d never seen her cry. “Please, baby, please.”
Her hand clenched on his shoulder, her tears heartbreakingly silent.
He stroked one hand into her hair, a little lost, but determined to give his mate what she needed. “I promise not to get shot again. Twice in one lifetime should be enough to fulfill anyone’s quota.” He kissed the parts of her face he could see, her ear, the corner of her eye. “Baby, you have to stop.”
His wolf was going insane inside him, scratching and clawing in distress. Giving in to the animal—and ignoring the sharp aches and twinges of his body—he shifted to take her mouth in a kiss that was a passionate mix of apology, possession, and sheer tenderness. When he finally allowed her to breathe, her eyes glittered up at him, a bright, brilliant indigo.
Unable to bear the sight of the tear trails that marked her cheeks, he kissed them off. “I’m sorry,” he said against her lips.
PLAY OF PASSION
Nalini Singh's books
- Play with Fire
- Ascendancy of the Last
- Blood of Aenarion
- Broods Of Fenrir
- Burden of the Soul
- Caradoc of the North Wind
- Cause of Death: Unnatural
- City of Ruins
- Dark of the Moon
- Demons of Bourbon Street
- Edge of Dawn
- Eye of the Oracle
- Freak of Nature
- Heart of the Demon
- Lady of Devices
- Lance of Earth and Sky
- Last of the Wilds
- Legacy of Blood
- Legend of Witchtrot Road
- Lord of the Wolfyn
- Of Gods and Elves
- Of Wings and Wolves
- Prince of Spies
- Professor Gargoyle
- Promise of Blood
- Secrets of the Fire Sea
- Shadows of the Redwood
- Sin of Fury
- Sins of the Father
- Smugglers of Gor
- Sword of Caledor
- Sword of Darkness
- Talisman of El
- Threads of Desire (Spellcraft)
- Tricks of the Trade
- Visions of Magic
- Visions of Skyfire
- Well of the Damned
- Wings of Tavea
- Wings of the Wicked
- A Bridge of Years
- Chronicles of Raan
- Dawn of Swords(The Breaking World)
- A Draw of Kings
- Hunt the Darkness (Guardians of Eternity)
- Lord of the Hunt
- Master of War
- Mistfall(Book One of the Mistfall Series)
- The Gates of Byzantium
- The House of Yeel
- The Oath of the Vayuputras: Shiva Trilogy 3
- The Republic of Thieves #1
- The Republic of Thieves #2
- Edge of Dawn
- A Quest of Heroes
- Mistress of the Empire
- Servant of the Empire
- Gates of Rapture
- Reaper (End of Days)
- This Side of the Grave
- Magician's Gambit (Book Three of The Belgariad)
- Skin Game: A Novel of the Dresden Files
- Murder of Crows
- The Queen of the Tearling
- A Tale of Two Castles
- Mark of the Demon
- Sins of the Demon
- Blood of the Demon
- The Other Side of Midnight
- Vengeance of the Demon: Demon Novels, Book Seven (Kara Gillian 7)
- Cold Burn of Magic
- Of Noble Family
- Wrath of a Mad God ( The Darkwar, Book 3)
- King of Foxes
- Daughter of the Empire
- Mistress of the Empire
- Krondor : Tear of the Gods (Riftwar Legacy Book 3)
- Shards of a Broken Crown (Serpentwar Book 4)
- Rise of a Merchant Prince
- End of Days (Penryn and the End of Day #3)
- Servant of the Empire
- Talon of the Silver Hawk
- Shadow of a Dark Queen
- The Cost of All Things
- The Wicked (A Novella of the Elder Races)
- Night's Honor (A Novel of the Elder Races Book 7)
- Born of Silence
- Born of Shadows
- Sins of the Night
- Kiss of the Night (Dark Hunter Series – Book 7)
- Born Of The Night (The League Series Book 1)
- The Council of Mirrors
- Born of Ice
- Born of Fire
- Born of Defiance
- Gates of Paradise (a Blue Bloods Novel)
- A Very Levet Christmas (Guardians of Eternity)
- Darkness Eternal (Guardians of Eternity)
- City of Fae
- The Invasion of the Tearling