right this moment, Haven had been the only rescue I had. I owed him. Also I'd ripped his body apart, and caused him massive amounts of pain. Oops didn't really cover that one.
"When you can walk," Nathaniel said, "I'll take you to the feeding area." Nathaniel's fur glistened under the lights, wetter from being so close to Haven's violent shift than from his own. He slipped off the end of the bed and padded around to join Micah, who was still holding my hand.
Micah pressed my hand to his face, and it left a wet glistening stain on his cheek. I was so going to need another bath.
"I can walk." Haven slipped off the side of the bed, and went straight to his knees. "Shit."
Nathaniel reached down to help him stand.
Haven asked, "Did you take her beast, too?"
"Yes."
"It didn't hit you this hard, did it?"
"No." Nathaniel didn't bother to explain that it hadn't been as violent, and no one else did either. I wasn't sure we were keeping Haven, but if we were then Nathaniel would need to establish some sort of dominance with the other man. That Nathaniel could take that much pain and keep on ticking would help.
Haven leaned against the bed, Nathaniel still holding his arm. Those golden lion eyes looked at me. "Don't take this personally or anything, but the fringe benefits better be fucking amazing."
"They are," Nathaniel said.
"Depends on what fringe benefits you're talking about," I said.
"Sex," he said, straightening up slowly, obviously still in pain. "You're Belle Morte's line, there is no other fringe benefit for you guys."
I couldn't argue with the last part, but I could with the first. "Don't assume you're getting sex, Haven."
He gave me a look. "All this and you don't think I've proved myself enough for sex? Damn, girl, what does a man have to do to meet your standards?"
"When you figure it out, let me know." This from Richard. He stopped near the bed, and looked at me. "You could have been my lupa for real, but you didn't want to be. You chose him, them, over me."
"If I'd been lupa for real, you wouldn't have wanted me. I saw it in your head."
He shook his head. "You could have been my lupa at the lupanar, with the pack."