"What happened?" she demands, her voice as sharp as any Lycan's. The command within it is no less than an alpha's.
"We were—" The words stick in my throat.
"Having sex, I got that part." Her fingers press gently along Grace's throat, examining the skin with a scowl. There's no mark there. Not yet. "When did she pass out? Before, during, after?"
"After." I rake a hand through my hair, hating how dependent I am on this strange woman to care for my Grace. "She was fine. Then she just... went limp."
"Ambulance. Right." Lyre mutters, fishing a phone from her pocket. "This far out, it'll take thirty minutes minimum."
Thirty minutes. My chest squeezes painfully. "That's too long."
"No shit." She punches in numbers, holds the device to her ear. "We could drive her, but moving her might—"
She breaks off, attention shifting to the call. "Yes, medical emergency. My friend, a young woman, is unconscious andunresponsive after..." A quick glance at Grace's shorts, still on. She frowns at me. "After intercourse."
There's a volley of questions, and Lyre answers them decisively as I pull Grace's limp body into my arms, fighting a growl when she reaches out to check her pulse.
"No, no visible trauma," Lyre says, and I flinch.
Do they think I…? No. It wasn't like that.
I stroke Grace's hair, noticing Fenris behind Lyre. He's flat on the ground, his eyes never leaving Grace.
Will she be okay?
My heart constricts at the question. I'd just accepted this tiny, frail little human as mine. And now…
It's only proof humans can never be mates with a wolf.
No,Fenris murmurs.Our bond would never hurt her.
And yet it has.
Lyre sits beside me, rubbing her hand down Grace's back. Her phone's on the couch across the room; she must have hung up.
She's not panicked. Angry, yes. The acrid scent of fury radiates from her. But she's not afraid.
"She'll be okay," Lyre says confidently. "Probably going to need some fluids to help stabilize, though."
My eyes narrow. She knows something. "What's wrong with her?"
Lyre's multi-colored hair falls forward as she leans closer to Grace, and I fight back the growl trying to escape my chest. "Her energy is... depleted. Dangerously so."
"What does that mean?" I demand.
"It means you took too much." She shoots me a venomous look. "You didn't hold back. Just took everything she had to give, you brainless sack of muscle."
"I didn't—"
"You did," she cuts me off. Then she pauses. "Maybe not intentionally. But you did."
She places a hand on Grace's forehead, then over her heart. The touch, though clearly medical, makes Fenris snarl. I swallow the sound before it can escape.
"Why didn't you warn me?" I snap. Better to be angry with someone. It's easier to handle anger.
Lyre laughs—a harsh, humorless sound. "Oh, I'm sorry. Was I supposed to give the terrifying Lycan King sex education before he fucked her senseless? My bad."
My temper flares hot and dangerous. "You left us alone, but you knew this could happen, didn't you?"
