Page 8 of From the Edge

Mell blinked. “You thought she was an alpha?”

He rubbed the back of his head. “The goblin spirit was convinced she was a male. He kept finding her scent in your bed. He was furious.”

“Yeah, I got that idea by the fights. Good thing she took it easy on you.”

He stared. “What?”

“Yeah, she knew I liked you, and she pulled her punches. If you were particularly bitchy, she absorbed his lust and left me with a cuddle buddy for the night.”

He blinked. “What?”

“Oh, yeah. When you were too rough with me, she pulled your urges, and I had a very pleasant evening.”

He stared at the woman who was fighting to breathe. “But she smells like an alpha.”

Mell turned back to her friend and knelt at her side, holding her hand. “So do you, and I still touch you.”

He reeled back, and Mell smoothed Rowan’s hair out of her face while the healer helped her get her lung inflated.

A wooden tube was where one of his fingers had been, and the healer leaned back. He smiled. “Since you have to remain prone for an hour at least, I am going to finish healing you.”

“Fine, but minimal contact.”

He nodded. “You find it disturbing. I understand.” He placed his hands against her skin, and a light glow spread under her skin.

Mell looked at her lover’s confusion.

He asked, “What does he mean she doesn’t like contact? That scent was all over you.”

Mell had understanding hit her. “Dude, you know I have to have contact to stay healthy and sane, right? It’s a family thing.”

He blinked. “What?”

“I need contact to remain healthy. I really needed it once I got pregnant. It helps my digestive system, my circulatory system, and my mental acuity. I would have told you, but I couldn’t.”

He stared past her to Rowan. “Oh, he feels horrible.”

Rowan grunted. “He’s going to feel pain when I am fixed. I am going to rip those fucking ears off.”

Her healer smiled. “You have a lot of confidence in your abilities.”

Mell said, “She should. She killed the shadow morons who cursed me. It stopped the draw; it just didn’t stop the curse entirely.”

Rowan sighed. “Sorry about that. I didn’t know it took three layers of power to snap, or I would have kidnapped some of the pointy-eared ladies.”

The healer said, “That would have been unwise.”

“And yet, it is an interesting thought. Those tall gals love a ride on a motorcycle,” Rowan whispered as she went limp.

Mell started shouting and squeezing her hand, but Rowan wasn’t waking. “Rowan! Wake up.”

The light under her skin got brighter as the healer started sweating. He muttered, “She’s fighting me.”

“She’s stubborn.”

He glanced over, and his eyes went wide. “Let go!”

Mell was pulled back, and the light turned blinding. Her eyes went wide as she realized that she had been absorbing some of the healing. “Oh, no.”