Erica’s POV
The next day came so fast. I could barely get a wink of sleep. I was paranoid and full of fear that the assassin might track me and kill me in my sleep. I had no doubt that it was Hazan who tried to kill me, or at least, he had sent one of his men to finish me off.
Dr. Blake had come in every hour or so to check on me and even took a night shift to watch me.
I was more than grateful. I needed a friendly face around. A friend l face that didn’t belong to Lorenzo or Dante or Javier.
Javier!
I hadn’t even given the explosive revelation of Clarissa being his mate much thought. The shock from Lorenzo’s proposal still clung to me. I hadn’t been able to think about muchexcept Danteever since.
I felt my anger for him rekindle.
Deep down I could feel seething hatred for him. I wanted to rip out his heart.
How could he lie to me like that?
Wait. Did he lie to me?
I searched my memory for something, anything that he might have said about a mate but I couldn’t find anything.
It was all foggy in my head and the only clear thing was the smarting pain that was shooting through my leg and arm.
“Miss Erica?”
I looked at the door and saw Dr. Blake.
I never got tired of seeing his face. It was otherworldly and intriguing. Kind yet so commanding.
“A certain Mr. Lorenzo is here. He claims that he is your fiance and that you called him to pick you up.”
I gave a slow nod. Opening my mouth to agree was out of the question. The glaring fact of Lorenzo officially being my fiance still made me feel like throwing up.
“Alright. I’ll let him sign some paperwork for your discharge but I’m afraid that you won’t be allowed to leave until afternoon. Let’s say two-ish. We still need to run a few more tests.”
I gave a nod and he left the room. As soon as I was alone, a sigh escaped my lips.
I didn’t want to be alone with Lorenzo. I had probably made a mistake by calling him.
Nevertheless, I’d rather not be alone. An assassin was on the hunt for me. I’d rather have someone by my side, even if it was the man that I wanted nothing to do with.
I stared up at the ceiling and lay in silence. The acute pain in my entire body only filled me with more fear.
Hazan was after me. Hazan was after me.
I felt tears come to my eyes. I had wasted all my time here. I should have gotten Dante to help us. He had the stone. But the only thing that I succeeded in doing was getting laid time and time again and now I was an emotional mess and my wolf was weakened.
I had found information about the gem in that book that my father gave me but that was all. I didn’t even get to see the gem. Dante didn’t even tell me where it was.
“Erica?”
I turned to the door and saw Lorenzo standing there with Dr. Blake by his side.
He stared at me, his eyes traveling around my body and stopping at my bandaged arm and leg.
Dr. Blake looked confused. Why did I feel that he could feel a slight tension in the air?
“I’ll leave you two alone.”
He left and Lorenzo walked up to me. He looked at me in shock. I didn’t know what to do and all I could manage was a smile. A smile in all the pain that I was in.
“What… What happened to you?”
Fuck! I didn’t even think of a good enough lie before now.
“I had an accident. My cab crashed and a bit of the metal got lodged in my leg and scratched my arm. The doctors say it was infected.”
I was stunned at my own ability to lie on the spot. I had just unlocked a new skill.
It was evident that the doctors hadn’t told Lorenzo anything. Thank God for doctor-patient confidentiality.
He looked at my leg in more awe, as if it was the first time had seen an injury.
“Does it hurt?”
“Yeah. But only a little.”
Dr. Blake popped in again and my heart was thudding in my chest. Was he here to tell Lorenzo the truth? That it was bullet wounds?
“Mr. Lorenzo, here is the medication for Miss Erica. Her wounds were infected with tetanus and she will need to take these pills. The dosage is on the pamphlet. Tetanus is not known to kill wolves but it is fatal to them.”
My heart nearly exploded. He had been eavesdropping?! My respect for the doctor increased ten-fold.
“Alright,” Lorenzo said, taking the medicine from him. “I’ll be sure to read through it.”
Dr. Blake smiled.
“Also, you are needed at the front desk to sign more paperwork. Miss Erica might be released early. She is much better and will be even better by tomorrow.”
Lorenzo placed the medication on my bedside table and hurried away.
Dr. Blake and I watched him leave and finally, he turned to me, his grey eyes boring into me again.
“He isn’t your mate, is he?”
My heart jumped into my mouth. It was that easy to tell?
“You noticed?”
“It wasn’t hard. His reaction wasn’t something I would expect from a wolf you are mated with. He is a fine man, don’t get me wrong but I don’t know why you are with him. Do you owe him something?”
My heart sank deep. It could be something like that. He had been there for me when Dante wasn’t. I owed him my gratitude. My parents love him. It would mean so much to them that I marry him.
I sighed.
“Something like that. It’s… it’s complicated.”
“I see.”
I was grateful that he didn’t push it further.
“Miss Erica, it’s none of my business but listen to your heart.”
As if on cue, Lorenzo walked in.
“Okay, I’ve signed the papers. She will be discharged by noon.”
“Excellent. I’ll leave the both of you alone. Have a very good day Mr. Lorenzo, Miss Erica. And congratulations on your wedding. I am happy for both of you.”
He left and my heart spun painfully in my chest. Why did I feel that that jab was intensional? He said it to further hammer in his point.
I sighed.
He was right. So right.
Lorenzo took up the chair that was next to my bed and we sat in awkward silence for a while. I wanted to make small talk about our ‘wedding’ but my throat was sandpaper dry.
“I believe we should invite the doctor to our wedding. I like him.”
I raised my eyebrow in surprise.
“I like him too.”
The tension in the air was shed off slightly and a little conversation eased in. I told him about the accident and I asked him about the kids.
I was relieved to find out that they were okay and that he had left them with Clarissa.
************************************
Noon came and I was finally discharged. I slight fear of being outside the confines of a building built up within me. Could I really blame myself? I was shot for heaven’s sake.
I limped, with Lorenzo’s help, to the waiting car. He helped me get into the front and I fought through the pain to get my feet into the leg room.
I tried not to show the fear that was bubbling inside of me, but subconsciously, I was looking around, sniffing the air for anything dangerous, even if my sense of smell was weakened.
“Are you alright?”
I gave a quick nod to Lorenzo’s question. I didn’t want to give too much away.
“I’m fine. Just worried about the weather.”
He looked out of the window.
“I can see some dark clouds rolling in. We might expect some rain later.”
I smiled a smile of relief.
The universe was very much in favor of my lies. At least one thing was going right for me today.