Chapter One Hundred - Infirmary - Damian's POV
A few seconds pass before someone walks out of one of the rooms at the back. It's a young female who we call Wiry. She's very agile and quick in battle, but very delicate when it comes to stitches and other things when we need medical help.
Maya freezes as soon as she sees her, her gaze narrowing. Her cheeks redden a bit, then she looks down at me. I glance up at her, noticing the way her gaze locks on a certain part of my lower body.
Before I can ask what is wrong, she reaches down to the foot of the bed and brings the thin blanket from the bottom over my legs up to my waist, covering me entirely.
My own gaze narrows as I try to figure out why until everything clicks.
She's territorial and doesn't want anyone else looking at me. I almost tell her it isn't like that for wolves, but then I think better of it. If she wants to be territorial, then I should feel proud because it means the bond is growing between us.
Wiry looks over her glasses as she approaches, a clipboard in her hand. 'Well, it looks like you got yourself into a pickle."
Her eyes scan up and down my body, then down to the cover. Her gaze flicks up to Maya who is staring at her like she might use the crowbar on her next. I reach out, taking her hand in mine to calm her down.
'Maya cleaned my wounds, then wrapped me with a bandage. The wound is not bleeding through, but she felt like I needed to be checked," I explain, trying not to laugh.
Maya's gaze moves to mine as she studies me. I'm not sure what is going through her head, but I'd love to be inside of it to hear everything.
'Did you put that bandage on your wound nearby or in your room? It's quite the walk so if it hasn't bled by now, you should be fine," Wiry notes, her voice low. 'But I'm glad she brought you here, just in case. She did a fabulous job taking care of you, just like a good mate would."
Her eyes dart to Maya, a smile slowly spreading across her face. 'Continue to keep an eye on him. He is quite the troublemaker when he wants to be."
'Hey," I say, my voice getting louder. 'I am not."
Wiry's eyes find mine again. 'When do you not get into trouble?"
When her brow raises, I know that I can't even argue. She has a point and I can't fight that.
'Well, I guess I have been in the past beside the things I couldn't help."
Wiry laughs out loud, causing others to look. 'That is true. Lots of things you couldn't help, but you love trouble and I know that. He's been in more scrapes than he'll probably ever tell you about." Then she smirks as she scribbles something on her clipboard. 'You know, I've stitched him up more times than I can count. There's not much left I haven't seen."
Maya doesn't answer, but I notice how her hand tightens around the crowbar. Her jaw slightly ticks, though she keeps her expression neutral.
I squeeze her hand, but she doesn't do it back.
'Well, I think that will be changing," I say before I really think about it. 'Scrapes will be kept to a minimum and you know she might kill me before a wound does. Then again, she's a great nurse, so she may heal all my wounds."
Wiry moves to the side of the bed where my wound is and looks at the bandage. 'Everything looks great, but hopefully, she doesn't have to do this too often. You can be difficult."
I know exactly which incident she's talking about. 'That was one time, Wiry."
'And you refused to let me near you until you passed out from the pain," she adds, tapping the clipboard against the side of the bed. 'So, if she can reign you in and keep you in check, I'm all for it."
I glance at Maya, whose cheeks are flushed again, but she doesn't back away from the other side of the bed. She meets Wiry's gaze.
'I trust her with my life," I say quietly.
Wiry nods. 'Good. If you don't need me, then feel free to return to your room. Take the sheet with you because no one needs to see all of that. Not when you have a territorial human."
As soon as she steps away and heads back to the room, the tension drops. Maya exhales and watches her all the way until she disappears behind the door.
'You didn't have to cover me, you know? They've all seen me naked on several occasions. We're wolf shifters. Nudity is part of it."
'I know," she says, not looking at me yet. 'I just didn't want her or any female looking. I can't explain it."
'So, you're admitting it?" I ask with a cocky grin.
She turns slowly to face me. 'Admitting what exactly?"
'That you are territorial when it comes to me."
Maya rolls her eyes, chuckling low under her breath. 'Oh, please spare me. You are worse."
I blink. 'Me? Who says? When have I been overbearing?"
Her straight gaze tells me all I need to know. I've been that way all the time.
'Don't act so dumbfounded," she says, learning a little over the bed. 'You glare at anyone who so much as gets close to me. I'm not blind, Damian. You keep it mostly in check, but it's there."
'That's different," I say, keeping my voice low. 'Males are generally just born that way."
'Keep telling yourself that," she whispers. 'You're such a liar."
I grin, even as I wince from the movement. It pulls lightly at the bandage as I sit up a little.
'Maybe. But you like it about me. I think you like everything and are growing more fond of me as the days pass."
There's a pause before her gaze softens. 'I like a lot of things about you. It's just scary. That's all."
'Well," I say in a low voice, 'if you want to stay territorial, I won't mind it at all."
She leans a little closer. 'Good. Because you know I'm not going anywhere."
The air shifts between us, and I almost lean forward to close the distance between us, but movement makes the wound hurt.
'We can go back to our room, don't you think?"
She looks around the room, noticing the blank walls and all the beds lined up with curtains in between. There's not much to look at and everything is all white, except for this bed in particular.
'Let's go back."