I almost turned around and headed straight back to the hospital a couple of times as we drove, but Juan assured me he was fine. His grip was firm on my thigh and he was awake and alert. His strength was unbelievable and I was practically swooning over him as we drove, but I had to concentrate.

I followed his directions, which took us about a half hour outside of Austin. Eventually, I turned down a dirt road onto a beautiful farm. I could only make out the parts closest to us as it was now the middle of the night, but when we reached the small farmhouse, I felt an overwhelming sense of belonging

“It ain’t much,” Juan said, tugging his seatbelt loose. “But it’s home.”

Yes, it is.

“Let me help you,” I told him as I hopped out of the truck and came around to his side. I pulled open the door and gave him my shoulder to help support him as we walked towards the house. He was warm and smelled delicious. All I wanted to do was lie down and cuddle in his arms, but I had to make sure he was okay. He’d rescued me, and now I had to look out for him.

The door opened as we stepped up the porch, and a pretty woman with messy brown hair and workpants on came outside.

“Juan!?” she gasped, rushing over to his side and taking his other arm. “What happened? Who are you!?”

“Relax, Jamie,” Juan said softly. “This is Bailey, my fated-mate.”

Jamie gasped, and I almost did too. Hearing him claim me like that to another person was monumental. I felt as though my entire world had just exploded like an incredible firework.

It was the first real mark we’d made on the world together. He’d acknowledged us as a mated pair, and I saw a look of approval on Jamie’s face as she helped me bring Juan up the steps.

“Well, that’s just great,” she grinned. “But what the fuck happened to you?”

“He saved me,” I explained. “It’s a long story.”

“I’ll bet it is,” she replied as we stepped into the living room of the house. There was no marble floor, no modern art on the walls and no keycard scanner anywhere in sight—and I loved every bit of it.

Stepping into the farmhouse was like coming home to a place I’d been countless times before. I could smell others too. Alphas, omegas, little young ones. I’d undoubtedly meet all of them, but for the time being, it was just us.

“Help me get him to his room,” Jamie told me, leading me down a hall to what seemed like the bedroom wing of the house. It reminded me of a summer camp or a barracks or something, but much more cozy, of course.

Jamie pushed open a door and we brought Juan inside and laid him down on a bed on the far wall.

“Shit, his face is bleeding too,” Jamie realized.

“Do you have gauze? Bandages?” I asked her. “I could only do so much with what we had at my…dad’s house.”

“Down the hall in the bathroom,” she replied. “In the cabinet. I’ll get some water.”

Jamie raced off to the kitchen and I made my way to the bathroom. A tall white cabinet stood in one corner. Quickly, I opened it and found a box of gauze and some Band-Aids, as well as some antiseptic ointment. I raced back to the bedroom and knelt down at my mate’s side.

“You’re okay now,” I told him as Jamie came back into the room. She had a glass of water for him as well as a bowl and a wet rag. She handed it to me and I used it to wipe the blood from his cheek.

The cut wasn’t bad, not too deep and more than likely wouldn’t leave a scar. I had a feeling Juan wasn’t the type to stay wounded for long. He was strong, he’d proven that much already.

Blood flowed gently and I dabbed it away with a piece of gauze. Jamie got a Band-Aid ready for me and applied a bit of ointment. “Here you go, big fella,” she said as she put it on over the cut.

“Stop hitting on me,” Juan said with a grin.

“What’s he talking about?” I asked, confused.

“Oh, nothin’,” Jamie scoffed.

“Jamie’s always trying to ‘convert’ the guys here,” Juan explained.

“And you figure me helping bandage you up is just another way of doing that?” she laughed.

“You never know.”

It was a good sign that Juan was joking around. That meant he was feeling better. I smiled as I unwrapped the makeshift bandage I’d put on his arm back at the house. His wound immediately started to bleed again and I quickly clamped down on it with a wad of gauze.

“Oh, no,” I moaned. “He needs a doctor.”

“Nah, he don’t,” Jamie replied. “Be right back.”

“Where’s she going?” I asked as she rushed from the room.

“Don’t worry,” Juan told me, raising a hand to my cheek. His touch was like warm butter against my skin. I felt myself blush and wanted to look away in embarrassment, but his eyes were hypnotic. They were the warmest brown I’d ever seen; like something an artist would paint.

Jamie rushed back into the room with some floss, a needle and a bottle of vodka.

“No way…” I said slowly as she handed the vodka to Juan.

“Take a swig, big boy,” she said. Juan took it from her and took a big gulp. Coughing, he set it aside on the dresser by the bed.

“Okay,” Jamie said, threading the needle with a long piece of floss. “Ever do any sewing, Bailey?”

“Uh, no,” I replied, feeling suddenly useless.

“That’s okay,” she said. “This’ll take two of us anyway. I need you to hold the wound closed and keep it as dry as you can, okay? Keep dabbing away any blood that comes out and make sure I can see. Can you do that?”

Of course I can! I wanted to say, but I noticed she was looking at my hands. They were still shaking. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, doing my best to calm myself down.

“You with me, sweet pea?” she asked.

“I’m with you,” I said firmly, opening my eyes.

“All right, Juany. You ready?”

“Just do it,” he growled.

“Here we go.”

I dabbed the wound with a large piece of gauze as Jamie threaded the needle through Juan’s skin. His body tensed up, but he didn’t make a sound. Instead, he just turned his eyes to me. I glanced up from the wound and smiled at him, but Jamie quickly scolded me.

“Stay with me, boy!”

“Right, sorry!”

Juan grabbed the vodka bottle and took another swig as we continued. I dabbed and Jamie sewed, and it wasn’t long before we had his wound closed up well. He gritted his teeth and held strong the entire time. I dabbed the last bit of blood and spread ointment over the suture before wrapping it in with gauze and securing it with an ace bandage.

“Shit-chea!” Jamie exclaimed triumphantly. “Now that’s how it’s done!”

She threw her arms around me and hugged me tight, patting me on the back like I’d just done something incredible. I didn’t know what to do and hated myself for being so awkward.

“Heh, heh,” was all I managed before she pulled back.

“Now this one’s a keeper, Juan,” she said confidently. Juan nodded and looked up at me from the bed.

“Yes,” he said firmly. “Yes, he is.”