Chapter 12
walked slowly, it was awkward because of all the bandages and the I.V. pole she had to drag around with her.
"Why exactly are you out of bed?" The question came from Decebel.
"I tried to tell her to stay put, but she's about as cooperative as a wet cat," Sally told them as she too came out of the room.
Jen hobbled over to where Decebel stood and stopped right in front of him. "I'm out of bed because there is nothing fun going on in bed," she teased. After her earlier encounter with him she couldn’t help but feel brave and she could tell it made him uncomfortable for her to flirt with him, which only made her want to flirt more.
Decebel glared at her and took a step back. "You should be resting, not traipsing around in a hospital gown with an I.V. pole," he told her, sounding completely indifferent, just as if he were talking to a total stranger. Jen turned away and looked at Sally to hide the hurt in her eyes, which she didn't even know why she was feeling but there it was.
"What did I tell you, Sal, there is something going on and we are always being left out. So Ms. P, who wants to see our little wolf princess?" Jen asked, keeping her back to Decebel but not moving away either.
It was Vasile who answered. "Dillon Jacobs is here to see Jacque."
Both girls stared at Vasile blankly, "Right, right, and Dillon Jacobs would beeee?" Jen prompted.
"Jacque's father," Lilly spit out.
"Oh, snap," "Shit fire and hold the matches," Sally and Jen said at the same time. Vasile and Decebel coughed, both trying to cover up chuckles at Jen's vocabulary. Jen had the good grace to look slightly abashed at her outlandish statement, but only just.
"That doesn't even begin to cover it." Lilly's voice was distraught and frustration was written across her brow.
"So when were ya'll planning on dropping this nuclear bomb on Jacque's lap, because I think I am going to be needed elsewhere in the hospital at that exact moment," Jen told them. Sally stood next to her, nodding her head in agreement.
"We are going to tell her now," Decebel answered, giving Jen the perfect excuse to turn and ogle him without being obvious that she was indeed ogling.
Or so she thought until she heard Sally whisper in her ear, "So, Decebel is looking drool worthy I see."
Jen whipped her head around so fast that she knocked foreheads with Sally. "Freaking A, Jen, your head is even harder than I originally thought," Sally whined.
"Yea, well, Sherlock yours ain't so soft either," Jen snapped. Sally gave her a knowing look, reminding her that she had caught her checking out Decebel. She shouldn’t be bothered that Sally had called her out on it, she checked out guys all the time. This was different though, this was a freaking hot as sin werewolf. Yeah, okay, maybe the burns were going to her head. That must be why she would suddenly be fixated on the unattainable. Although, she thought, werewolves can have flings can't they? She looked at Decebel again, who was studying the floor like it had the answers to life written on it in Aramaic. A fling with him, hmmm, could be interesting. She didn't realize she had spoken that last part out loud.
"What kind of fling would be interesting?" Sally asked.
"What? I didn't say fling, I said sling. A sling for my arm, because of the burns and what not." Jen stumbled over her words.
"Uh huh, right, a sling. We'll have the nurse get right on that, Jen." Sally's look of 'you're full of b.s.' matched her tone of voice.
Jen turned to Lilly then, for once not wanting the attention directed at her. "Okay, well I say we get this over with Ms. P, just rip it off like a band aid, nice and fast." As she was talking she was hobbling back to the room with her I.V. pole in tow. Before anyone knew what she had planned, Jen swung the door open, saying, "Jacque, dear old dad has come to pay his respects to the nearly departed."
Jacque's head snapped up. "What?"
"Crap, why did nobody tell me someone with a freaking I.V. pole could move that fast?" Sally blurted out.
Lilly came into the room, followed by Vasile, Alina and at last Decebel, who was just as broody as ever. Jen crawled back into bed with Sally's assistance and turned to look at Jacque, who at the moment looked at a loss for words. That's a new one, Jen thought.
"Mom, tell me that Jen inhaled one too many smoke fumes, or that she is high on morphine, or even that she is just saying that to be a butt head."
Lilly shook her head. "How I wish I could give you any one of those excuses, but she was being just as brutally honest as she always is. You father is here and he wants to meet you."
Fane let out a low growl and Jacque laid her hand on his to help calm him. He looked at her and used their bond to talk to her. "You don't have to meet him, you know that right?"
"Yes, I know. But Fane, it's my father and he's here to see me. I can't tell you how many times I have dreamed that I would get to meet him one day," Jacque told him, and then she thought of what she had asked him earlier when she felt like he wasn't being totally honest.
"Wait, did you know about this? Is this what you weren't telling me?" Jacque glared at Fane skeptically.
Fane kneeled down so that he was face to face with her. "I'm sorry, love. I just didn't want to upset you and I didn't know what he wanted. I wanted to wait to tell you when we had more information." Fane's eyes were pleading with her to understand.
"Never keep things from me, Fane. It will never end well for you, we clear?"
"Crystal, Luna. Please forgive my thoughtlessness." Fane bared his neck to her out of respect for his mate.
"Man, that is so freaking yummy," Jen said, watching the exchange between Fane and Jacque along with everyone in the room. "I want one Sally, go find me one."
"One hot, loving, passionate, furry werewolf coming up," Sally said sarcastically. "Would you like fries or tots with that?"
"I prefer whipped cream actually," Jen said wistfully.
Decebel coughed and sounded like he was choking, while Jacque and Fane stared at the two girls in perplexity.
"I swear my two best friends have no shame. Absolutely, utterly, completely and wholly without indignity," Jacque's voice was full of mystification.
"Jacque," Lilly's voice brought Jacque back to the reality of the situation.
"Oh, right, so my father is in town…not sure what to feel about that to be honest."
Fane wished he could hide the worry that something wasn't quite right but she picked up on the thought before he could block it.
"What do you mean you don't think something is right?" she asked him out loud.
Fane turned and looked at Decebel. "Did you confirm it?"
"Yes, my prince, he is hiding something," Decebel answered.
Fane looked back at Jacque and he gently held her bandaged hand. "Love, he is here to meet you, but he is hiding another motive and we don't know what it is. It's making us very leery of him. I can't say that I like the idea of him near you."
"You will be with me, right?" she asked.
"Of course." He nodded.
"Then I won't be in any danger." Jacque said it with complete confidence in him.
He leaned down and kissed her gently. "Thank you, Luna. I will always keep you safe."
"I know wolf-man, I'm counting on it," Jacque smiled at him and gently ran her fingers down the side of his face.
Jen cleared her throat. "I don't mean to bust up an obviously promising interlude, but we kind of need to figure out what you want to do, Jac."
"I'm going to meet him," Jacque said bluntly.
Lilly looked at her daughter and gave one nod of her head that she understood. Vasile stepped up to Jacque's bed and placed a hand on Fane's shoulder, "Why don't you get some rest, Jacque. Sleep tonight and then your father can come meet you tomorrow."
Fane nodded his head in agreement with his Alpha, "I think that is a good idea, Jacquelyn. You've been through a lot today, you need to rest."
"I know I have, but I feel amazingly better. Aside from the fever I can't seem to kick," she told him in astonishment.
"That's your wolf genes coming out, we heal really fast. You are obviously going to heal much faster than a human but not quite as fast as a werewolf."
"Jen, how you be over there?" Jacque asked, using the slang that was nearly second nature with her best friends.
"Wait for it," Jen said as she began the process of unwrapping her legs and arms. Sally had started humming the song from the game show Jeopardy.
"Sally, wow, it's you! I've always wanted to meet you."
"It's me what?" Sally asked Jen, curiosity thick in her voice.
"The mayor of Smartassville of course. You should carry a sign that says welcome to Smartassville, population: 1."
Everyone in the room was trying to cover their laughs with coughs when Lilly finally gave it up and laughed out loud. "I'm sorry, Sally, but you have to admit that was pretty funny."
"I guess, for someone whose brain cells have been cooked recently, it'll do."
Jen finally had her legs and arms unwrapped and there was a collective gasp in the room.
"I must not have been burned as bad as you because I don't even have blisters on my legs anymore, the skin is just raw and really red. The ones on my chest are almost completely healed as well. Somebody will have to look at my back and shoulders to see if they have healed as well," Jen said, sounding dumbfounded.
"What?" Vasile, Alina and Decebel all spoke at the same time.
Jen looked around the room at each of them, unsure. "I said, I don't even have blisters on my legs or chest anymore." She nearly squeaked when Decebel was at her bedside in a flash. For someone so big he was surprisingly gentle as he examined her skin.
"You will tell me if I hurt you." Decebel held her blue eyes with his golden wolf eyes.
Jen couldn't say anything, she just nodded. All she could focus on were his hands touching her leg and she didn't even try to hide the soft sigh that came out as he ran his finger across her skin. He went to pull the front of her shirt down just enough to see her collar bone but Jen slapped his hand away. "You didn't buy tickets. You don't get a free show, fine, drool worthy werewolf or not."
"Alpha, it is true, her skin is healing rapidly. Too rapidly," Decebel said, looking at Jen.
"Why are you looking at me like I've grown a second head again?" Jen asked him, confusion marked her face.
Decebel just stared before finally turning and walking away. As he walked past Vasile he said, "I will take first watch tonight at the door." And then he was gone.
Jen was confused and frustrated at the little scene that took place but she couldn't worry about that right now, she had bigger fish to fry. If there was anything bigger than Decebel that is.
"Why would I be healing so fast?" she asked Vasile.
"I don't know. We will just have to continue to monitor you. Maybe have Dr. Steele run some blood tests on you," Vasile told her.
"Okay, well, I guess I will call Dillon and let him know that he can come tomorrow if you're sure, Jacque," Lilly told her.
"I am sure. Avoiding him won't do me any good. I think I need some sort of closure or whatever else it is that psychologists call it." Jacque's voice betrayed the fact that she really was tired even though she was feeling better.
The rest of the afternoon consisted of Jen and Jacque taking naps and when they were awake they continually bantered with one another with Sally as the mediator. There was never a moment when Jacque wasn't touching Fane or vice versa, both of them constantly seeking comfort from the other.
Finally, when it was time to call it a night Sally secured some sheets and a blanket from a nurse and slept on the couch by the window. Fane pulled up two chairs and sat in one while propping his feet in the other.
"You are not going to sleep like that," Jacque told him skeptically.
"You are right my love, I am not going to sleep at all," Fane told her. "Don't try to convince me otherwise, we have a group of strange wolves in your town, one of which is the father you have never met. There is no way I will sleep under those circumstances."
"Well, tell us how you really feel there, white fang," Jen said sarcastically, laying down and pulling the covers up. She felt really cold for some reason and was beginning to shiver.
"Are you okay, Jen?" Sally asked, noticing that her friend was acting like she was cold when it was not cold in the room.
"I'm just cold all of a sudden. Could you get me another blanket, Sal?" Jen asked, her teeth chattering together.
Sally walked over and opened the hospital room door and stuck her head out. Decebel was standing just to the right of the door.
"Hey Dec, could you get Jen another blanket please?" Sally asked him. She could have done it herself but she was experimenting. What could she say? She was an opportunist.
Decebel stood up straight and turned to face Sally directly. Trying to look past her into the room he asked, "Why, is she okay? Is something wrong?" Sally raised a single eyebrow at him. "I mean if something is wrong we might need to get Dr. Steele or something, that's why I'm asking," he said, trying to look nonchalant.
"Uh huh, right. Well, I think maybe she just has a little fever. That usually makes me shiver. So if you would be so kind," Sally prompted.
"I will bring them in to you," Decebel said as he turned away to search for her request.
A moment later the door opened to the room, letting a stream of light in that shone across the white floor, making the room seem harsh and uninviting.
Decebel walked over to Jen's bed instead of handing the blanket to Sally. He spread the blanket out over Jen while she simply watched him in silence. Once the blanket was in place he turned and walked out, closing the door quietly behind him.
"Is he bipolar, schizophrenic, or is there some weird werewolf gene that makes you a jack ass one moment and then somewhat nice the next only to then throw you back into jack ass mode within a single breath?" Jen asked, turning to direct her question at Fane.
"I don't know what is going on with him, Jen. I apologize if he is causing you distress. I can talk with him if you'd like."
"Na, it's all good. If he keeps it up I will gladly tell him to get the proverbial stick out of his fine, furry butt." With Jen's final statement the room fell quiet and Fane began to hear one by one the even breathing of each girl that indicated they had fallen asleep.