A preschooler shrieked in the arms of her grim-faced father.
“Gods, I was…I was so scared.” Haziq gulped, his young face drawn in remembered horror, his solid arm shaking now that they were safe. “I didn’t—I didn’t know how bad it was, but everyone else was out, and the fire trucks hadn’t arrived yet. I knew you were still in there, and I couldn’t just…”
At a safe distance from the apartment, he helped ease Gwen down to the curb. She looked up at him, tried to gather sufficient words to thank him for saving her life, and burst into tears instead.
Before she even had time to become embarrassed at her utter lack of control, he sat down beside her. Took her in his arms again.
And as he held her carefully, respectfully, they cried together.
—
Fifteen minutes later,Haziq was giving his statement to someone in uniform. The blaze seemed to have been extinguished, although it was hard to tell from the outside. Firefighters continued swarming the building, their trucks parked directly in front of the structure. More and more police vehicles, sirens set to full blast, arrived by the minute.
Human paramedics had separately checked Gwen and Haziq for smoke inhalation issues. The whispered revelation of her pregnancy had caused concern, but she’d eventually been given the go-ahead to skip the hospital. So had he.
Afterward, she’d answered various officials’ questions. And then, with the heroic doorman’s help, she’d gladly moved away from the epicenter of the tumult. The tiny little park across and down the road from Hugh’s apartment boasted a prettily carved wooden bench, and she slumped there numbly, a blanket wrapped around her shoulders.
Waiting. For what, she didn’t know.
Hugh might still be in a do-not-disturb meeting with the SERC chair. Even if hehadbeen disturbed—news of arson in a councilor’s apartment would surely spread fast—getting from SERC headquarters to here would take time.
She hadn’t escaped with her cell. It was no doubt waterlogged now, along with her tote, her identification, and everything else she’d packed only yesterday. Someone would probably lend her a phone to call Max or Sabby, but…
That would require getting up. Talking to someone.
She didn’t have the energy for that. Better to stare into space and be afraid.
Then Hugh’s little hybrid appeared at the end of the street, traveling at a speed not recommended for a residential zone. Once he neared his building’s grounds, he didn’t scan his resident’s ID and wait for the complex’s wrought-iron gate to open, allowing him access to the parking lot. Instead, he steered directly toward the cordoned-off area in front of the building, outside of which all the residents and rubberneckers had gathered. The car jolted to a halt as close to the teeming crowds as possible, directly in front of a no-parking sign.
With vague interest, she watched him lurch out of his car and slam the door behind him.
His head whipped back and forth as he scanned the crowds. Once he spotted Haziq, he didn’t walk to the other male. Hesprinted. Interrupting Haziq’s interview-in-progress, he said something to both the official and the doorman, and Haziq pointed toward the park. Toward her.
Hugh’s eyes met hers, and even from this distance, she could see him exhale. See his shoulders lower. Still, he didn’t waste any time jogging to her, and his grim expression didn’t alter. When police officers stepped in his path and attempted to waylay him, when neighbors called his name and reached for his sleeve to catch his attention, he simply dodged them and kept moving. As he approached, his stare encompassed her from head to toe, lingering on her undoubtedly pale, wan face.
She blinked at him, unable to process any of it.
He arrived at her side, breathless. Hauled her up and into his taut, radiator-hot arms without apology, squeezing her so hard she squeaked. Pressed a hard, claiming kiss on her smoke-scented hair and waved over Haziq, whose interview was apparently now finished.
“Come on.” A second breath-stealing squeeze. Then, at Hugh’s direction, the two males positioned themselves to support her on either side and herded her toward his car. “I’m taking you both to the hospital.”
As her mouth opened, he silenced her with another fierce kiss to her temple.
“No arguments. I mean it, Gwen,” he told her with such stony, stern conviction, her lips clamped shut again.
His urgency and affection didn’t feel like a show put on for observers. More the natural continuation of their previous evening together, in bed and out. As he bundled her carefully but efficiently into his car, all she could do was hope that her instincts weren’t misleading her. Because if she let herself believe in the truth of her seeming connection to Hugh…
It would be far too easy to fall for him. Although maybe that was just the smoke inhalation talking.
Luckily, the nearest hospital boasted a Supernatural and Enhanced wing alongside its well-regarded common human emergency department. After Hugh initiated a low-voiced, very intense-looking conversation with the emergency department’s admittance nurse and offered his identification and credit card, Haziq was promptly taken back to an exam room. At that point, Hugh basically shoved Gwen into a wheelchair and set a new land speed record on his way to the specialized wing. More firm, quiet conversation and identification-brandishing ensued.
Moments later, a scrubs-clad werewolf doctor appeared at Gwen’s side, introduced himself, and led the way to her own exam room. Without further discussion, Hugh pushed her wheelchair down the long hall at a swift clip, apparently intent on accompanying her inside.
At the room’s entrance, she finally balked. “Hugh, I appreciate your concern. But I want a private exam, please.”
The doctor’s head turned, and his scrutiny of the SERC councilor turned assessing.
“Not because he caused any of this,” she assured the doctor, which didn’t seem to help matters at all. “I’m just a bit shy.”
