Phoenix had dismissed everyone except Imani who was helping him look through supplies.

I watched confused as she began to talk to him about medical things. The words gauze and antiseptic met my ears despite their hushed mumbles. I nervously began to fiddle with the hem of my dress, staring at the back of their heads.

Finally, he turned to me, armed with supplies in paper packaging. I noticed Imani smile at me before she walked out of the cabin.

"Is-is she not going to help?" I wondered as the door shut behind her.

Phoenix chuckled and set the supplies down beside me. "She is not great at human healing."

I eyed him as he began to wash his hands in a nearby water bucket, covering them with soap before drying them on a paper towel. He smirked at me as he pulled on some gloves and I just stared in confusion.

He grabbed a squirt-type bottle in his hand and stood near me.

"What are you doing then?" I asked.

"I am going to clean your wounds, Nova." He smiled softly.

"You?" I asked, tilting my head.

He chuckled, stepping closer. "I am."

"You're not a doctor," I stated.

He smiled at me. "I am not. But not a lot of werewolf doctors are good with human injuries. Once I realised...how fragile you were I began to learn human medicine."

My eyes widened in surprise. "You-you did?"

He nodded, shaking the bottle in his hand. "I want to take care of you, myself."

I sucked on my lower lip to fight the smile away. "Oh."

"Oh," He repeated with a laugh. "Now let me clean your wounds. It would be easier if you could pull the straps of your dress down. They are sticking to your wound."

I nodded and pulled the spaghetti straps off my arms. He helped me with my injured shoulder as I found it difficult to pull my arm out. I made sure the dress was secure under my armpits and nodded.

"Ready? It's just water for now." He asked, stepping closer and holding my gaze.

I nodded again, tensing. "Okay."

He didn't say anything just moved his attention to the wounds on my neck. I watched as his eyes darkened but tilted my head to give him better access. The water was fairly warm against my skin and it didn't hurt as he cleaned my wounds.

When he finished I turned my attention to what he had next and my eyes widened when he began to dowse a cotton pad with some dark-looking liquid. The smell of it burnt my nose and I found myself tensing up. It was going to hurt, wasn't it?

Cel growled at my anxiety, preparing herself for the attack.

He paused at my reaction and his hazel eyes gazed up to find mine. I shook my head but he smiled softly, his hand moving to hold my cheek. I found myself relaxing into the warmth of his touch, the mate bond soothing my nerves as his calm emotions flooded into me. The plastic of the gloves was annoying but the feeling of his touch was enough to distract me.

I swallowed nervously and he took his chance to lift the pad to my neck. It immediately burned and stung and I shrieked, pulling away from the painful thing.

"No! No!" I shrieked, craning my neck away despite how much it made it worse. "It hurts, please!"

"Nova!" He gasped. "It's okay, it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you. You need to let me do this, I have to clean you."

I felt my lip wobble, tears on the edge of breaking. Doctors only cause pain, hospitals only cause pain. I didn't want to hurt.

His eyes held me captive and he gestured for me to copy his breathing pattern to calm down. Once I settled, he cleared his throat. His eyes were soft and gentle as they held mine, his lips curving into a gentle smile.

One hand discarded its glove and moved to my waist which had me pause. His thumb rubbed soothing circles into the fabric of my dress and I felt myself calming; the brief, startling panic subsiding for now.

"Let me help you." He cooed. "I will not hurt you. This will be quick, and it'll go numb after."

I didn't reply, just meekly nodded my head and closed my eyes. I jumped when the cool touch of the pad met my neck and let out a small squeal as it burned. But his hand held me firmly, his touch igniting the comfort I sought out. His hand trailed down my waist to down the top of my thigh and my breath hitched when it settled on my bare skin.

I opened my eyes to see him concentrate on his work as he began to clean the knife wound. His fingers were firm around my upper knee, his thumb still tracing small circles on the inside of my thigh. I began to find it enthralling, his touch on such a sensitive area ignited a pleasure within me.

I swallowed harshly when he pulled away and he gave me a once over. His hand clenched before moving away and I found my skin cold without his touch.

He pulled out gauze and began to attach it to the front of my neck. The back of his fingers smoothed it down gently and I held my breath as his bare fingers traced the mark he gave me on my good shoulder. It touched the base of the gauze and settled on the spot where my neck meets my shoulder.

His eyes darkened and I shivered when his thumb ran along the lower jaw mark. He had gone deeper than I realised at the time, the mark huge and red. His touch on the mark caused nothing but sheer pleasure to run along my spine.

"Next time, I mark you whilst I am conscious enough to drive you to the edge of pleasure." He grumbled.

I gasped, unconsciously squeezing my legs together at the sexual threat. His eyes lazily looked up to me, the hand that was bare skin moving to cup my face. He pulled me closer to place a firm kiss on my forehead, lingering for longer than necessary.

When he pulled away, his pupils were blown but he began to focus on my knife wound. He prodded it gently with his gloved hand but I didn't feel much pain.

"This numb?" He asked.

I nodded silently and he smiled in acceptance. Pulling on another glove, he got to work on setting up a needle and stitching thread. I hated stitches with a passion.

"Do you have to?" I whined, fighting the anxiety.

He smiled softly, "I do. I won't hurt you. You can't feel anything there. When you want me to stop, tap my shoulder twice or just tell me."

"Okay." I breathed.

He bent down again, his eyes focused on my shoulder. I was tense as he began to sew my skin, but to his word, I felt nothing but the tug of the needle. I felt slightly nauseous if I concentrated on it too much so instead I opened my eyes to study him as a distraction.

His eyes were focused with determination, the deep honey colour clouded as he concentrated. His eyelashes were so long and graced his cheeks every time he blinked. His nose was angular and strong, complementing the strong cheekbones he was blessed with. His skin was so tan it made me feel like a pasty ghost.

Up close I could see the faint scarring of what must have been silver along his arms, one even on his lower jaw. My eyes followed the sharpness of his jaw, his teeth no doubt clenched inside. I settled on his lips, perfectly pink and kissable-wait, wait, what?

Cel chuckled at me, swishing her tail. 'I'm not complaining.'

I chewed on my lower lip, not helping myself by going back to stare at him. He knew I was looking as whenever I did his jaw clenched and his nose twitched. I moved to study the thickness of his throat and the broadness of his bare shoulders. His muscles were bunched as he threaded the stitches, his strength outstanding to me as they moved in swift choreography.

I licked my lips when I found his mark on his right shoulder, the same spot as mine. My teeth had left an almost perfect mark on his skin, the advanced healing he possessed had healed it up to a nice dark brown/red that complimented his skin colour. I suddenly wondered what his heritage was, to have such amazing skin, hazel eyes and dark hair.

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He suddenly cleared his throat and I heard the sound of scissors snapping beside my ear. I glanced down at his handy work as he wiped it clean. The small stitches had sealed my wound nicely and I only got a glance more before he covered it too with gauze. He then took my broken fingers and wrapped them together, securing them with some tape. I was like a patchwork doll.

Once satisfied, he turned to look at me. I gave him a sheepish smile but his eyes only darkened. His hands cupped my jaw and I found myself tensing as his head came closer. His breath fanned my face and I parted my lips at its warmth.

"You think eyeing me up whilst I'm working is fun?" He teased.

My eyes widened. "I-I-"

"You drive me crazy, love."

I gasped at the endearment, goosebumps trailing along my arms.

"Can I kiss you, Nova?" He breathed.

Yes. Cel sighed.

I couldn't speak, too entranced by his smell and his dark honey eyes. So I allowed him to pull my face closer until his lips were brushing against my nose. My eyes fluttered closed and I welcomed the warmth as his mouth descended on mine.

His hands grasped my face firmly as his lips moulded to me. It started gently, coaxing my mouth to a rhythm only his lips spoke. But then it grew hungrier as I began to fight back and soon my hands were wrapped around his broad shoulders and fisting at his hair.

He growled against me, lifting me from the table. I shrieked and hung for a moment before his hand moved to wrap my leg around his waist. One hand stayed secure along my back as the other held my thigh. I came up for air as the pleasurable warmth tingled across my body. My breathing and heart were erratic, trying to keep up with the need I felt within me.

Phoenix grumbled, his hand moving to grab at my ass and I gasped when his lips attached to my jaw. He peppered it lightly before he sucked at my skin. His lips trailed down the side of my neck, avoiding my injury, leaving a fiery hot warmth in its wake.

I moaned as he began to suck on my mark, the sensations his mouth was creating were making me squeal in delight. My legs tightened around him and I grasped his hair harder, pushing his head deeper into my neck. He growled and nibbled at it lightly before moving to place an open-mouthed kiss on my shoulder.

His head moved back up to face mine and I found his eyes dark with lust. I shivered against him and he squeezed my ass in return before mounting his lips back on mine. I moaned into his touch, my hands trailing down his shoulders and back, my claws extending and leaving small trails of red behind. It only caused the hunger to grow worse and when he pulled away again I growled in frustration.

"We need to stop." He breathed.

I panted, staring down at him. His pupils were blown, his hair a mess and pink trails from my nails peppered bloody lines on his back. I blushed furiously, releasing how far we could have gone if he didn't snap out of it.

"We have duties to attend to." He smiled softly.

I sighed but nodded my head, cupping the back of his head gently as I smoothed his hair down. He slowly began to lower me to my feet and I released my legs from his waist. I looked up at him with a frown, suddenly feeling a whole lot smaller and colder.

"Come," He held out his hand. "We have a pack to attend to."

•••

Weeew, hope you enjoyed it.

Hope u liked it, things are heating up a little between Nova and Phoenix hahaha

What's a book that has had a major impact on you?

One you can read again and again and again

© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 2021 © XDeafening_SilenceX on W a t t p a d